US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has expressed doubts about Russia’s willingness to follow the path of diplomacy in Ukraine, despite the fact that Moscow has failed to achieve its strategic goal there.
“There is no evidence that Russia is ready for serious diplomacy,” Blinken told The Washington Post.
“On the contrary, just last week we witnessed an appalling attack on civilian targets in Ukraine,” he continued. “We learned of the horrific story of a father in an apartment block who, after an attack, opened the door to the children’s room to find that she and the children were gone. There must be a profound change in Putin’s mind and in Russia’s mind for them to engage in serious diplomatic activity.
The Secretary of State stressed the importance of the military equipment that the United States provides to Ukraine, while noting that “it is not enough”.
“Technology alone doesn’t help,” Blinken said. “You have to know how to use it, and that’s preparation. You must be able to exploit it – we are working on it. And then, the Ukrainian forces must be able to use everything in a coordinated and joint way, and many countries are working to support them.
While Ukraine is planning a major counter-offensive, the head of American diplomacy said he was confident that “it will succeed in recovering its territory”.
“I think it’s also important to note that this is already a strategic failure for Russia,” he added. – Russia tried to erase Ukraine from the map, to liquidate its independence, to include it in Russia. She failed. And, of course, Ukraine returned a significant part of the territory from which Russia originated.
Blinken noted that it’s not yet clear how exactly the conflict will be resolved.
“Ukraine will have to make important decisions about where it will go, how far it can go and how it wants to get there,” he said. “But we intend to continue to provide this support. We also intend to monitor this not only in the short term, with a focus on the counter-offensive in the coming months, but also in the medium and long term.
Blinken said Ukraine must create such armed forces that in the future can “effectively deter the next Russian aggression, and if deterrence does not work, defend against it and, if necessary, repel it.”
“This will put Ukraine in the strongest possible position, help it to rebuild the country and to continue its integration into Europe, its economic integration,” the secretary of state concluded.
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