“The sad thing is that the possibility of (Russian President Vladimir) Putin winning this war is, of course, a reality,” Johnson told reporters in the Indian capital, New Delhi, where he was on a visit.
Johnson’s statement angered Kyiv, as Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmyhal said, commenting on his British counterpart’s statements, that his country will achieve victory soon.
Observers believe that Johnson’s statements, who are hard-line hawks towards Moscow in the Atlantic and Western bloc, may be the beginning of that bloc’s review of its policies from the Ukrainian crisis, in light of its grave repercussions that affect the entire world.
They pointed out that it is like an alarm as well, as it is almost impossible for the world to bear the continuation of this war for more than a year and 8 months, as expected by the British Prime Minister, which, within only a few weeks of its outbreak, has plunged the world into a series of countless economic, food and energy crises. countless, not to mention its consequences for international peace and security.
Commenting on Johnson’s statements, which observers considered a dramatic shift in the Western position on the Ukrainian situation, Masoud Maalouf, a former diplomat and expert on American affairs, said in an interview with Sky News Arabia: “This Johnson’s statement appears to be improvised, and it is closer, perhaps, to a slip of the tongue than to a thoughtful position.” “.
He added: “In general, Johnson is known for his verbal slurs and his contradictory stances, as is the case with the issue of his violation of the social distancing restrictions related to the Corona pandemic in the country, which he himself had adopted. These statements contradict completely and in detail even his words during the last period since the start of the Russian-Ukrainian war, He was asserting that victory is for Ukraine, and with his new position, he is creating a rift in the Atlantic position and the unity of his side regarding the Ukrainian crisis.
And about the consequences of this British position, Maalouf says: “On the ground, this talk does not necessarily affect the ground, but it will undoubtedly affect the morale of the Ukrainians as they confront Russia, as he is not satisfied with saying that the war will last for a year and a half, but rather adds and most likely that Moscow will win it, Although it is difficult for Russia to bear the cost of continuing the war until the end of 2023.”
But what about Washington’s position? The former diplomat responds: “Obviously, there will be no comment from Washington about Johnson’s ambiguous position, despite her discomfort with him, but she will not reveal this publicly, as the United States is keen on the unity of the Atlantic line in the face of Russia and not to express any positions and reactions that may show the existence of rifts and cracks. on the Atlantic and Western anti-Russian fronts.
In turn, Maher Al-Hamdani, a researcher and expert on European affairs, said in an interview with Sky News Arabia: “These statements by Johnson in which he predicted victory for Putin in the war and that it will last, is a message in the first place to Kiev and to Ukrainian President Zelensky in particular, to the effect that he should expect this result and be prepared. And that the West may succumb to this possibility if Russia stands firm for another year in the face of Western pressures, and that the West may not be able to bear the cost of this catastrophic war, especially the economic one, until the end of next year. Therefore, Zelensky must deviate towards the negotiating option and accept compromise.” .
And the expert on European affairs adds: “It is a statement consistent with another remarkable statement by US President Joe Biden about two days ago, in which he said that Russia will not win the war in Ukraine, and will not be able to control it completely, which explained an implicit harmony with the Russian tendency towards separating the Ukrainian east. meaning that the West will not allow Russia to control all of Ukraine, but it may accept Moscow’s control over some of it.
And he continued: “And this is exactly what the Russians are doing now by drawing a new map by imposing control over southeastern Ukraine, and linking the Donbass region with the Crimea through the city of Mariupol, and this is what the Russians want from the beginning, they are not interested in controlling the capital Kyiv and the rest of the country.” The Ukrainian regions, and the limits of ensuring their national security are drawn by this map that they are now engineering, and which the West may have begun to accept as a fait accompli, and Zelensky must act according to these new data.”
“Perhaps we are facing a light at the end of the tunnel of this devastating war,” al-Hamdani predicts, adding that “its end (it will be) at the negotiating table by redrawing new borders in this part of Europe between two new countries, western Ukraine and the eastern part of it, which may He joins Russia or resigns under his own name.
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