A geopolitical mistake of "historic proportions": CIA chief warns against reducing US support for Ukraine

A geopolitical mistake of "historic proportions": CIA chief warns against reducing US support for Ukraine

Kyiv  •  UNN

January 31 2024, 08:06 AM • 26341 views

The CIA Director warned that reducing US support for Ukraine would be a geopolitical mistake of historic proportions, and that continuing to provide assistance is a modest investment with a significant return.

For the United States, assistance to Ukraine is "a relatively modest investment with a significant geopolitical return.

This was stated by CIA Director William Joseph "Bill" Burns on the pages of Foreign Affairs .

Details

William Burns, director of the CIA, warned in a recent article in Foreign Relations magazine that cutting American support for Ukraine would be a mistake of its own,  "a self-inflicted wound of historic proportions.

For the United States to withdraw from the conflict at this crucial moment and stop supporting Ukraine would be a mistake ("a goal in its own goal" - ed.) of historic proportions

- said the American official.

Burns outlined his arguments in a column in Foreign Affairs, noting that less than 5% of the US defense budget is "a relatively modest investment with a significant geopolitical payoff."

The official also noted that Russia will not win the war on many levels, as Putin's army has lost more than 300,000 personnel and two-thirds of the technical and military park that the Russian armed forces had until 2022. However, Russia is no closer to its strategic goal of capturing Kyiv and conquering Ukraine.

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However, Putin's obsession with controlling Ukraine should not be underestimated, Burns said. Therefore, the task of Ukraine, according to the Crisis Group director, is to "overcome Putin's arrogance and demonstrate the high cost to Russia of continuing the conflict.

Ukraine needs to make progress on the front line, achieve sustainable success in the Black Sea, and, according to the official, strike deep into Russia.

Turning to the West's main fear of escalation, he writes, In this case, Burns notes the West's main fear of escalation, but in such an environment, Burns points out, he believes the Kremlin dictator "could start rattling off nuclear weapons again.

And while "it would be foolish to completely dismiss the risk of escalation," it would also be foolish to let ourselves be intimidated by it, Burns says.

Recall

UNN reported that the Pentagon successfully tested a new long-range precision-guided bomb that will be handed over to Ukraine on Wednesday to enhance its strike capabilities.

Also the day before, it became known that President Zelensky's attempt to remove popular General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi from command caused public outrage, which prevented his dismissal.

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