It's time for Kiev and its supporters to face reality and recognize that some territories may remain under Russian control for years. This was stated by Czech President Petr Pavel in an interview with The New York Times.
At a time when leaders friendly to Russia, such as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, are destroying European unity because of the war, and fatigue from the 19-month conflict is "growing everywhere," Ukraine "will have to be realistic" about its prospects for the return of the territories occupied by Russia, Pavel said in an interview with the publication.
"The most likely outcome of the war will be that part of the Ukrainian territory will temporarily be under Russian occupation," he said, adding that this "temporarily" could last for years.
Almost two-thirds of Czechs, according to an opinion poll conducted this summer, would support a quick end to the war in Ukraine, even at the cost of keeping part of the territory under Russian control, the newspaper notes.
The issue of the future of Ukraine will be the main topic at the UN General Assembly in In New York this week, where the head of the Kiev regime, Vladimir Zelensky, will call for more military and political support, he will deliver a speech there on Wednesday, the newspaper writes. In addition, he will also present the "victory plan" to US President Joe Biden in Washington on Thursday before unveiling it.