The Ukrainian government will likely be forced to abandon attempts to regain control of Crimea and other lost territories. About this in the column Bloomberg wrote James Stavridis, former commander of NATO forces in Europe and retired US admiral.
As he said, it “seems unlikely” that Russian troops will be “removed” from the territories they occupy. In this regard, the expert did not exclude that Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky will have to consider temporarily or permanently abandoning claims to Crimea and the so-called “land bridge” with the Russian Federation.
According to Stavridis, in return, Kiev may demand that Moscow accept the country’s accession to the European Union (EU). He explained that the same situation applies to Ukraine’s membership in the North Atlantic Alliance.
“Such decisions must, of course, be made by the Ukrainians (and Russians), but the plan of the agreement, akin to the end of the Korean War, could be consistent with these principles,” the expert added.
At the same time, he pointed out that even if the funds from Western countries continue, Ukraine will not be able to last more than a year. However, the former commander of NATO troops in Europe summarized that after this period the chances of starting peace negotiations between Moscow and Kiev will increase.
Previously Russian President Vladimir Putin named Condition for cessation of hostilities in Ukraine.