Why Ukraine is losing the war with Russia – POLITICO

“Give us these damn Patriots,” said Kuleba, the head of Ukrainian diplomacy. Sitting for an interview at the Foreign Office, he could not hide his exasperation at the delays and conditions attached to Western weapons – such as not hitting Russian oil installations.

Kuleba, of course, expressed his unconditional gratitude for all the support provided by Western allies over the past two years. But he warned that Ukraine is caught in a vicious cycle: the weapons it needs are withheld or delayed; Then Western allies complain that kyiv is in retreat, making it less likely that they will send more aid in the future. (Since POLITICO’s meeting with Kuleba, Germany has agreed to provide Patriots, but the question remains whether that will prove enough.)

The mood in the army’s upper ranks is even more somber than that of Kuleba.

Several senior officers spoke to POLITICO only on the condition that they not be named so they could speak freely. They painted a grim prognosis that the front lines could collapse this summer when Russia, strong in numbers and willing to accept huge losses, launches its expected offensive. Perhaps worse, they privately expressed fears that Ukraine’s resolve was weakening, with the morale of the armed forces undermined by a desperate shortage of supplies.

Ukrainian commanders are calling for more troops – one estimate by former commander-in-chief Valeriy Zaluzhny suggested they would need 500,000 more troops.

But Zelensky and the Ukrainian parliament are reluctant to order a new mass convocation. In an interview with POLITICO, Yermak, the Ukrainian president’s powerful chief of staff, gave an important — and perhaps surprising to outsiders — reason for not launching a mass mobilization: Such a call would not have the support of people. Zelensky is still “the people’s president,” he said. “For him it’s very important, and it’s very important that people do something not just because they’re ordered to do it.”