Russia is prepared to continue the special operation in Ukraine for a long time, while Western countries and Ukraine have overestimated their own forces in the conflict and are still not prepared for a longer struggle, Finnish Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen, who was in Washington this week, told Politico. “Russia has the capability and the ability to go on with this [special military operation] … for years,” he said. “Many are overestimating that the West is winning this, that Ukraine is winning.”
Politico notes that Western governments have so far not adapted to the potential reality of a longer war in Ukraine, which would require signing long-term contracts with the military industry to produce ammunition and hardware. Without that, neither Ukraine nor its Western supporters have a chance of challenging Russia seriously.
