Emily
Editor, Senior Moderator
https://www.thenationalnews.com/opi...offer-putin-in-exchange-for-peace-in-ukraine/
What Biden can offer Putin in exchange for peace in Ukraine
The leader of the West will need to make a notable concession to Russia without giving away the store
Raghida Dergham
Russia’s is not the only leadership that finds itself in a bind more than a week since the Ukraine war began. Leaders in the West, particularly US President Joe Biden, are struggling to find a way to resolve a crisis that has the potential of spreading beyond Ukraine’s borders into the rest of Europe.
Moscow finds itself in a corner for chiefly two reasons: Ukraine’s forces have robustly defended much of their territory against the Russian military; and western governments have imposed a range of crippling sanctions on the Russian economy in a rare show of unity.
However, the euphoria felt across Europe and North America over these early victories has been replaced, to some extent, by two concerns. One, Russian forces have made inroads into Ukraine, particularly in the south, and two, Moscow has ordered Russia’s military to put its deterrence forces – which include nuclear weapons – on “special alert”. The announcement doesn’t mean that it intends to use its nukes, but western governments have viewed it to be an escalatory step.
The situation, therefore, requires thinking outside the box on the part of the world leaders – and, given America’s position as a superpower, the only leader with the tools to bring about a shift is Mr Biden.
The Biden administration needs to understand that, by engaging in brinkmanship with Moscow, it risks pushing Russia further into a corner that could prove costly for the whole world. The objective should not be to teach its leadership a lesson, but to come up with creative ideas that may appear simple and might even give the wrong impression to the rest of the international community, yet could prevent a larger-scale war.
Any attempt on Mr Biden’s part to reach out to Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks will be an act of courage and not weakness...
What Biden can offer Putin in exchange for peace in Ukraine
The leader of the West will need to make a notable concession to Russia without giving away the store
Raghida Dergham
Russia’s is not the only leadership that finds itself in a bind more than a week since the Ukraine war began. Leaders in the West, particularly US President Joe Biden, are struggling to find a way to resolve a crisis that has the potential of spreading beyond Ukraine’s borders into the rest of Europe.
Moscow finds itself in a corner for chiefly two reasons: Ukraine’s forces have robustly defended much of their territory against the Russian military; and western governments have imposed a range of crippling sanctions on the Russian economy in a rare show of unity.
However, the euphoria felt across Europe and North America over these early victories has been replaced, to some extent, by two concerns. One, Russian forces have made inroads into Ukraine, particularly in the south, and two, Moscow has ordered Russia’s military to put its deterrence forces – which include nuclear weapons – on “special alert”. The announcement doesn’t mean that it intends to use its nukes, but western governments have viewed it to be an escalatory step.
The situation, therefore, requires thinking outside the box on the part of the world leaders – and, given America’s position as a superpower, the only leader with the tools to bring about a shift is Mr Biden.
The Biden administration needs to understand that, by engaging in brinkmanship with Moscow, it risks pushing Russia further into a corner that could prove costly for the whole world. The objective should not be to teach its leadership a lesson, but to come up with creative ideas that may appear simple and might even give the wrong impression to the rest of the international community, yet could prevent a larger-scale war.
Any attempt on Mr Biden’s part to reach out to Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks will be an act of courage and not weakness...