Russian soldiers in Ukraine to ‘burn through and depleted’ by end of winter — ex-NATO leader

As long as the Kremlin’s conflict with the neighboring nation goes on, former NATO head James Stavridis predicted that Russian soldiers in Ukraine will be “burned through and depleted” by the end of the winter.

Breakthrough This Winter

In an interview with presenter John Catsimatidis for the morning program “Cats Roundtable” on New York radio station WABC 770, Stavridis stated that he does not anticipate a breakthrough from either side this winter.

However, Stavridis said to Catsimatidis, “I don’t see either side having a breakthrough moment – at least this winter.” “Unfortunately, the earliest opportunity for a discussion will be following the winter. The loss of so many troops and so much equipment will leave the Russians burned out and tired.

Additionally, Stavridis stated that he thinks both parties would work to push for discussions in the later half of this year.

Stavridis continued, “On the Ukrainian side, pressure from the West to prevent more expenses is likely to become enormous.” “More battle to go, when I put it all together. Ukrainians triumph in the battlefield. Russians are succeeding in the air.

Let’s all work to have a negotiation somewhere in the middle of 2023, he said.

Counterattack Against Russia

The words by Stavridis come as the United States’ ambassador to Ukraine. Oksana Markarova said on Sunday that the U.S. had made effective use of the billions of dollars it had contributed to bolster its counterattack against Russia.

A $1.7 trillion federal budget plan approved by Congress last month contains $45 billion for Ukraine and other NATO partners. Several well-known GOP senators have publicly expressed their concern with the ongoing assistance provided to the sovereign nation despite the turmoil.

On CBS’s “Face The Nation,” Markarova stated, “We’re utilizing every U.S. dollar that is provided to us, to a good use. We’re using it as an investment into our common battle for democracy.”

Recent Missile Strike

A recent missile attack by Ukraine on the Donetsk area resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Russian recruits, and it was blamed on a simple mistake: untrained soldiers who gave out their locations by using their phones.

The Kremlin has refuted an allegation made by Ukrainian intelligence that Russia is getting ready to round up 500,000 additional people for a potential spring attack.

According to Stavridis, who spoke to WABC, Ukraine is winning the “ground battle” because it is more motivated and has received state-of-the-art supplies from Western countries, including as the HIMARS artillery that was used to kill the troops in Donetsk.

Stavridis claimed that Russia still has an advantage in the air, citing its use of drones to strike infrastructure.

Despite recent indications of a desire to dialogue from the Kremlin and the Ukrainian government, UN Secretary General António Guterres stated in December that he did not anticipate “serious” peace negotiations in the near future.