Report: When will the Ukraine war end?
While more than four months have passed since the war in Ukraine, experts are making many speculations about when the war in Ukraine will end.
Russian military operations in Ukraine have entered the fifth month while thousands of people have been killed in this war, billions of dollars of military equipment have been destroyed, and numerous cities have been subjected to relentless bombing.
In an article on its website, referring to the war in Ukraine, Al Jazeera news channel wrote that predictions about when the war in Ukraine will end vary widely. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has previously warned that this war could last for several years, while Western intelligence agencies have reported that Russia’s combat capabilities will be exhausted in the coming months.
After focusing on eastern Ukraine, Russia has taken control of almost all regions of Luhansk province and will probably continue its efforts to capture the remaining regions of Donetsk province, and these two provinces will form the Donbass region.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a speech last Wednesday that there is no date for the end of the Russian military’s special operations in Ukraine, adding that Russia’s goal of liberating Donbass has not changed.
Russia has decided to advance slowly but firmly in eastern Ukraine
Konstantinos Lokopoulos, one of the former commanders of the Greek and NATO army, said in an interview with Al-Jazeera: “After Russia failed to enter Kiev and changed its strategy for deploying its forces, it focused on eastern Ukraine and the generals Russia decided to advance slowly but firmly.
It was last week that Ukraine ordered its forces to withdraw from the key city of “Sorodonetsk”, which had been the target of Russian bombing for several weeks. On the other hand, while the Russian army is currently focusing on capturing the city of Lysichansk, on Thursday it announced its withdrawal from the important and strategic Snake Island.
Moscow announced that the withdrawal from Snake Island was a “goodwill sign” and aimed at showing support for efforts to resume grain and food exports at Ukrainian ports, but Kiev considered Russia’s withdrawal from Snake Island a victory and said that Russia forced to withdraw from this island.
So while the war continues, what is the likely scenario for how long the war will last?
Lokopoulos believes: “The war will end when one of the other sides imposes its demands on the battlefield and then at the negotiating table, or when both sides reach an agreement instead of continuing the war.”
An immediate end to the war between Russia and Ukraine is unthinkable
The military expert added that an immediate end to the war between Russia and Ukraine seems unthinkable.
He added: “I am absolutely sure that the end of the war will not happen soon.”
The current conditions on the battlefield also indicate a long war and Ukraine has also lost many areas in recent weeks. Ukraine has already lost all of Luhansk Oblast and half of Donetsk Oblast. In addition, Russia has also taken control of areas in the south of Ukraine.
Some experts believe that if Kiev enters into peace negotiations now, it will lack any leverage and the peace that will be achieved will be dictated by Moscow.
Jamie Shea, a professor of security and strategy at the University of Exeter, England, told Al Jazeera: “Russia probably believes that it has this advantage for the time being and continues to advance in Donbass, albeit slowly.”
