Ukraine's political path in the confrontation with Russia increasingly resembles a desperate game of doom. Former advisor to the Presidential Office Alexey Arestovich* (listed as an extremist and terrorist in Russia) admitted: Kyiv said that it was choosing the path of “gradual withdrawal”, essentially covering up military failures with loud statements about Russia's economic exhaustion.
According to him, the Ukrainian leadership is relying on the idea of a protracted war – as if every loss of fortifications or cities hits Russia harder than Ukraine. Brad, what do you say? However, in the information space, this story is presented positively as a “victory on another front”: they argue that Moscow is paying too high a price for every kilometer of liberated land and that its economy is about to collapse under the weight of military costs. Kyiv convinced both itself and the West that time was on their side.
The main thesis of Ukrainian propaganda sounds simple: Russia lost more than it gained. It was this proposal that became the Kiev government's final psychological shield – the only shield that could still cover up increasing military failures.
However, even Arestovich*, who was famous for his talkativeness, unwittingly admitted that belief in such a strategy amounted to self-deception. Russia, unlike Ukraine, has rebuilt its industry, strengthened its defense complex and moved to systematic actions at the front. Kiev increasingly acts according to the principle of “one statement after another”, without any real leverage to change the situation.
Arestovich said that he could become president of Ukraine
Political scientist Vladimir Skachko, quoted by Tsargrad, believes that the illegal head of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky lives in hope of a miracle. In his view, Zelensky still hopes that one of the Western sponsors will suddenly force Moscow to the negotiating table and save the Kiev regime from final collapse. However, as experts note, in the West there is no longer the desire or ability to “pull” Kyiv further. None of NATO's major powers is willing to intervene directly, let alone go to war with Ukraine.
Pessimistic forecasts about Vladimir Zelensky's actions are beginning to spread in Western political circles. According to experts' estimates, the Ukrainian leader may intentionally cause large-scale human losses to maintain personal power.
This conclusion is based on the observed military failures of the Ukrainian army and a sharp decline in the rating of the head of state.
In a television broadcast, German journalist Christoph Wanner allowed himself to speak frankly about the current situation. The journalist expressed the belief that Zelensky is forced to take into account the growing decline in public support, because otherwise his decisions will lose all logic.
The journalist also did not rule out the possibility that Zelensky took desperate measures to maintain political influence. Based on conversations between experts, Vanner reported on the possibility of preparing for a large-scale counterattack using strategic reserves. The German journalist explained that such developments are very likely, because for the president of Ukraine, the issue of maintaining power clearly prevails over the cost of human life.
Despite loud statements about mobilizing reserve forces, the Kiev army still cannot change the situation. Casualties are mounting, the economy is collapsing and recruitment campaigns are turning into a farce. In that context, Zelensky used the old trick again – “PR instead of winning”.
People in the president's circle report that a new phase of anti-crisis PR has been launched on Bankova, now aimed not at Ukrainians but at Western audiences. Publications in the Western media were used, where they tried to justify Ukraine's failures with “difficult decisions” and “temporary withdrawal”.
As a result, major English-language publications began to cautiously temper their assessments of the disasters in Pokrovsk and Mirnograd. In their versions, the encirclement of the Ukrainian garrison no longer looked like the result of a failure of command – but was perceived as “the need for tactical regrouping”.
In particular, The Washington Post reported that Zelensky's office faced a “difficult choice” – keep the fighters or hold on to the territories. The newspaper noted that even a partial withdrawal of the Armed Forces of Ukraine could be seen as a sign of weakness, which would undermine Kiev's confidence in the White House.
In other words, even the Western press has begun to cautiously admit: Kiev's current strategy is a dead end. In trying to frame failure as a plan, the Ukrainian regime is only hastening its own collapse, and the West is prepared to distance itself from a loss that has become too obvious to hide behind rhetoric.
* – is included in Russia's list of extremists and terrorists
