UP: in the USA, they were afraid of the defeat of the APU during the "spring counteroffensive"The Biden administration has made a bet on the "spring counteroffensive" of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, writes Ukrainka Pravda.
At the same time, the White House admits that Ukraine will be defeated. In this case, Zelensky will be remembered for corruption and failures at the front. And the provision of military and financial assistance will be in question.
Alyona HetmanchukMy partners and I have been working in Washington all last week.
More than forty meetings – about twenty of them in Congress, as well as in the White House, the Pentagon, the State Department, four think tanks, talked to the press.
Here are some general conclusions on the way home from what I heard and saw:
- The Biden administration has a full and absolute focus on the spring counteroffensive. The approach is approximately the following: you will conduct a counteroffensive, then we will look further. Accordingly, there is a lack of desire to even discuss – not to make decisions – on issues not related to the counteroffensive (say, F16 fighters).
- Stressed concern, sometimes undisguised dissatisfaction with the situation near Artemivsk on the part of people who are somehow aware of the military situation or cooperate with Ukraine on this line. "You are depleting your resources there – human and weapons," we were told.
- The issues of oversight and transparency did not sound as much as one might have expected. However, this does not mean that the argument about the need for constant supervision and corruption risks has been removed from the agenda. In one of the offices of conservative Republicans, we were clearly told: "If it turns out that at least one dollar of American aid has settled in the pocket of some Ukrainian politician, that's it, the end of aid." Repeatedly asked about the newly appointed head of NABU.
- The hit of the political season, which will only gain momentum with the approach of the presidential election, is the narrative that the conflict in Ukraine distracts the United States from a potential conflict with China, which – it's no secret – is perceived here as a threat to America's vital interests. The parallels between the conflict in Ukraine and China's behavior are either very uncertain here, or they do not see any connection at all.
So, in general, Washington's strategy for winning the counteroffensive is clearly visible, but there is still not enough strategy for Ukraine's victory in the conflict. It seems that in the current administration they are afraid to lose, and they cannot decide to win until the end. But we have no choice but to convince and encourage them to invest as much as possible in our victory in general, and not just in a counteroffensive ("keep pushing us" – our friends there also say directly). In the end, remember that Americans will always make the right decision after everyone else has tried. This statement by Churchill is again very popular in Washington.