Putin realises he can't win war against Ukraine, says US envoy Kellogg
Photo: US President’s Special Envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
Russian president Vladimir Putin likely realizes that he will not be able to achieve victory in the war against Ukraine as such a fight is a losing one for him, believes US President’s Special Envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, according to The Guardian.
Russia will not win the war
Commenting on Russia’s war against Ukraine, Kellogg emphasized that Moscow “will not win.”
“I think probably in his heart of heart he realises he can’t win this. This is an unwinnable fight for him, long-term. It’s not going to happen,” he noted.
NATO’s response to airspace violations
The US President’s special envoy also effectively supported the idea of shooting down Russian aircraft or drones if they violate NATO countries.
“The way you respond to something like this, from a military background, I would say sometimes you raise what is called the risk level to do it. I will give you a good example. … A few years ago, 2015, the Russians had a Russian fighter invade Turkish airspace. What did the Turks do? They shot it down. Okay, that will get you attention really fast, won’t it? Now, that’s what I mean about raising your risk level. I know it’s the dangerous thing to do. I’ve got it. I understand that. But sometimes you have to ask yourselves, where do you go? …Look, this is serious business,” he clarified.
According to Kellogg, the Russians have already been warned of a decisive response to airspace violations.
Meeting of Zelenskyy, Putin, and Trump
Commenting on the possibility of a meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump with Putin, Kellogg said that the path to such negotiations lies through increasing the cost of war for Russia.
Ukraine is already moving in this direction, he said, "hitting the refineries, which cut 20% of their oil production down."
"We are working on people not buying … on secondary sanctions … on buying their oil. Unfortunately, some in Europe are still buying it,” he emphasized.
The US President’s envoy noted that if Russia is deprived of “petrodollars,” it will face enormous problems.
“I think the calculus is on Putin, … and basically the pain level he is willing to accept,” Kellogg pointed out, mentioning that for the war, Russia is forced to “take tanks out of museums.”
According to Kellogg, there is no need "to draw any more red lines,” since the problems are with Putin, not with the West. And now Western countries are acting very cohesively.
Ukraine can regain territories
Earlier, US President Donald Trump stated that Ukraine is capable of regaining all the territories occupied by the Russians, provided there is support from the European Union.
The American leader also suggested that after restoring territorial integrity, Ukraine “may even go further.”
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski noted that Trump sided with Ukraine because he “likes winners.”
