Ukraine needs to align its military operations with the realities of potential reductions in Western aid in 2024, according to Igor Khrestin, a leading analyst at the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Texas, one of the leading US analytical institutions studying international politics, democracy, and the economy, in an interview with the Ukrainian publication NV.
“Given these realities, Ukraine will need to determine the pace of defensive and offensive operations, and these decisions and realities will, in turn, impact the type of military assistance that the United States and other allies can provide,” Khrestin said.
At the same time, most of Congress still firmly supports Ukraine, as evidenced by past votes passed by a significant majority in Congress, the analyst added.
“Skeptics [opposing aid to Ukraine] have also been very critical of the Biden administration’s partial approach to aid to Ukraine and the lack of clear goals for such assistance. At the Bush Institute, we argue that Congress should support Ukraine’s goals specifically regarding the restoration of the borders of 1991, which we see as a strategy for victory. The Biden administration should provide Ukraine with all the necessary weapons for this, including an adequate number of artillery shells, long-range missiles, and Western fighters. This is what Republicans wanted to hear all this time,” Khrestin explained.
The war continues on the European continent, and the United States must ensure that it does not waver in its support for Ukraine, according to the analyst. “Supporting Ukraine means supporting democracy and freedom, and the United States understands this. The West must continue to help Ukrainians defeat Putin,” Khrestin said.
Currently, progress has finally been made in the US Senate negotiations regarding the southern border. This decision could help unlock aid to Ukraine – US$61 billion for the next year. However, when the necessary vote for Kyiv will take place is uncertain.
Earlier, CNN, citing concerns from numerous American and European officials, reported that without Western assistance, Ukraine would be able to sustain the war for only a few months independently.
