Russia Will Collapse Earlier: General Hodges Gives Intriguing Forecast
- 16.01.2024, 12:36
How much longer can the Kremlin wage war against Ukraine?
The second anniversary of the start of a full-scale war in Ukraine is approaching, and Russian President Vladimir Putin has no intention of ending it.
Former commander of US Army Europe Ben Hodges, in an interview with Sestry, said whether the Kremlin has the opportunity to wage a confrontation for another 5 years.
According to him, now we can safely record the fact that Vladimir Putin is not interested in starting peace negotiations with Ukraine, because he has global goals. This is not only about the complete destruction of Ukraine, but also about the collapse of NATO.
The head of the Kremlin has already put the country's economy on a war footing, but despite this it continues to remain in a difficult situation, and the defense industry is also experiencing many problems.
“He doesn't have to worry about what the Russians think because he's not participating in any legitimate elections. And he doesn't have to worry about the media challenging him. I think he knows that his political future is tied to the success of the fight against Ukraine. And so he will spend as many Russian lives as necessary to do whatever he needs,” said Ben Hodges.
Accordingly, in his opinion, all talk about the need for negotiations looks ridiculous.
Separately, the American general spoke about what another 5 years of war would mean for Ukraine. He believes that “Russia will collapse first,” because its economy is in very bad shape. Moreover, if the West had worked better on sanctions, the isolation would have happened faster. This would separate the Kremlin from Iran, China, North Korea and their military assistance. Accordingly, even the Russian people probably would not put up with this.
“I don’t think they can continue what they are doing now, especially if the West finally understands that Ukraine’s victory is in our interests. And this is not charity for Ukraine, it is for our benefit. The people around Putin are all oligarchs, they are losing their money. They know they have nowhere to go. Industry is being destroyed. I don't think Putin can continue to fight for five years. Besides, he’s not young anymore,” concluded Ben Hodges.