Finland's Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen does not have high expectations for the peace negotiations taking place in Istanbul, Turkey, on Thursday. Her view does not even depend on whether Russia's dictator, Vladimir Putin, attends or not.
Valtonen stated that Putin’s presence would make little difference. This is because, according to her, Putin has demonstrated through his actions that he merely wants to continue subjugating Ukraine and will not agree to any solution that Ukraine could accept in the long term.
Her statement reflects a realism grounded in facts. And for that reason, Western countries — both in Europe and North America — and especially the administration of Donald Trump, should take her view as the starting point when considering a resolution to the war in Ukraine.
This point was also emphasized by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who announced that he would travel to Turkey regardless — but made it clear that Trump must understand Putin is the true obstacle to peace in Ukraine.
According to Zelensky, Trump must, above all, accept that Putin lies, while Ukraine is doing its part to pursue peace and has no intention of delaying the process. He also noted that if Putin fails to appear, it would serve as definitive proof that he has no intention of ending the war.
The significance of the Istanbul meeting remains to be seen. But it underscores the urgent need for EU countries to finally ramp up arms production to meet the demands of today’s geopolitical reality — and, through that, provide Ukraine’s military with sufficient support to first force the Russian army onto the defensive and ultimately drive them back, militarily defeated, to Russian soil.
In other words, the time has come for EU decision-makers to show Putin that the era of imperialism is over — even for Russia.
Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Warnings from Jussi Halla-aho and Igor Girkin About Europe's Near Future
When the War Comes Home to Moscow
Putin Faces a Heavy Price for His Hesitation
The EU leaders can talk the talk, but can they walk the walk is to be seen.
ReplyDelete