‘Ukraine can win'
Ukraine can still achieve a military victory over Russia, US General Alexus Grynkewich said during a Senate hearing on Tuesday. He was confirmed as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe and head of the US European Command earlier this month.
'I believe Ukraine can win,' he responded when asked if Kiev could still prevail despite significant casualties and waning financial support. Grynkewich also noted that Ukrainian forces are displaying a level of tenacity that is hard for outsiders to fully comprehend.
He did not specify what form a Ukrainian victory might take, nor did he provide further detail regarding battlefield prospects.
Top NATO officials have long insisted that Ukraine should aim to defeat Russia militarily. The bloc continues to supply arms and intelligence to Kiev, even as it loses territory to Russian forces.
Ukraine's 2023 counteroffensive failed to achieve any meaningful breakthroughs, and a more recent attempted incursion into Russia's Kursk Region was repelled. Meanwhile, Russian advances have continued along several sectors of the front line, including in the Donetsk and Kharkov regions.
Military analysts and Western officials have increasingly questioned the viability of a Ukrainian victory. Last month, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul claimed that the military defeat of nuclear-armed Russia had been impossible 'from the very beginning.'
US President Donald Trump has also repeatedly expressed doubt that Ukraine could secure a military victory over Russia, instead pushing for a negotiated settlement of the conflict.
He has insisted that 'Crimea will stay with Russia,' referred to Ukraine as 'demolished,' and cautioned that the country may not be able to survive the conflict, even with US support.
Moscow has also repeatedly insisted that its victory is inevitable and has criticized continued Western military aid to Ukraine, arguing that it only prolongs hostilities without affecting their outcome.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has stressed that the conflict will end only when its 'root causes' are resolved and his country's security interests are taken into account. He has also accused Kiev's foreign backers of being uninterested in actually ending the conflict and using Ukraine to achieve their own goals.
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