The war in Ukraine has passed a hundred days and Dominic Tierney, a professor at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania, sees no sign that it will end soon.
– Putin intends to continue firing artillery fire and grind down a victory. But if Western support continues to flow into Ukraine and if the West maintains its cohesion, Putin may see the real cruelty of the battlefield. And maybe he looks ahead and realizes that it could be even worse for Russia.
A gilded bridge
If Putin reaches that point, the West and Ukraine should negotiate. Political science professor Dominic Tierney talks about giving Putin a “gilded bridge.” Promises that do not really mean any concessions for Ukraine and that in the end still make them see as winners of the war.
“One could promise not to join NATO, provide guarantees for Russian-speakers in Ukraine, make promises not to attack Russia and that no military bases will be located for the west of the country,” he says.
He says Putin needs something to show Russia.
– But pretty soon I think people around the world – including Russia – will look back on the war and see that Russia lost tens of thousands of soldiers and hundreds of billions of dollars for what?
Crimea and Donbas
At the same time, Dominic Tierney is careful to point out that there must be certain core values that cannot be sacrificed. Ukraine should not give up any territory.
In areas such as Crimea and the Donbas, he expects the negotiations to last for a long time.
– The best scenario would be if Russia left and we enter a new phase of negotiations.
He also does not see that the war will end like World War II.
– This will not end with Ukraine marching on Moscow or the Russians capitulating. It will end with some kind of negotiation. If the fighting continues and we tell Putin to give up, this war will go on forever.