Kiev will pay a heavy price if it takes back Crimea
(Baonghean.vn) - Aleksey Arestovich, a former adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said the price of retaking Crimea would be too high for Kiev. He told Russian journalist Yulia Latynina that the operation could result in hundreds of thousands of casualties.
Mr Arestovich said there was "very little prospect" of retaking the Crimean Peninsula through military means, and discussed Kiev's remaining options in the conflict with Moscow.
“What would it cost? To destroy 200,000 of the adult male population?” he said, referring to the number of soldiers Ukraine would likely lose.
He warned that Ukraine’s economy could also be “completely destroyed” in the process. Kiev was “totally dependent” on the West, the former adviser to President Zelensky said.
“If the US and its allies stop supplying weapons to the Ukrainian army, the Kiev government will not only not be able to take back the territories annexed from Russia, but will also struggle to defend its current positions,” he said.
Arestovich also accused Washington and its allies of pursuing their own interests in the conflict.
“Let’s be honest: Our foreign policy goals in this war are diametrically opposed to the foreign policy goals of our sponsors and backers,” he said, adding that the West was willing to sacrifice Ukrainian lives to achieve its desired outcome.
However, Ukraine cannot abandon the West and pursue its own goals “at any cost,” the former adviser said, adding that this would be a “dead end” for Kiev and that the only consolation would be the prospect of joining NATO in exchange for peace with Russia.
“Stop the war and join NATO? Many would say it’s a historic opportunity,” Arestovich said. He also described NATO’s guarantees in exchange for agreeing to peace with Russia along the current line of contact as a “pretty good deal.” He said the deal would also likely require the West to lift some sanctions on Russia to persuade it to agree to the terms.
His remarks came as Ukraine’s much-hyped summer offensive has failed to yield significant changes on the battlefield, nearly a month and a half after it was launched. The Ukrainian army has suffered heavy losses, including heavy Western-supplied armor, in largely unsuccessful attacks on Russian defenses.
According to Western media, Kiev supporters are also disappointed by the slow pace of the campaign./.