Photo : Lloyd Austin/Depositphotos
US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin has expressed his thoughts on the nearly one thousand days of war in Ukraine, arguing that Russian President Vladimir Putin has not achieved any of his strategic goals. Austin published this opinion in his column for Foreign Affairs, cited by RBC-Ukraine.
“The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, did not run away. Kyiv was not captured. And Ukraine has not surrendered.”
– Austin stressed, adding that the war has cost Russia “a staggering price for Putin’s imperial folly”.
According to the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, cited by Austin, Russia lost more in the first year of the war than in all its conflicts since World War II combined. Hundreds of thousands of lives were lost and over $200 billion was wasted.
“Ukraine has suffered terribly from Putin’s actions, but as I saw again last week in Kyiv, the country is standing firm and has even grown stronger.”
– Austin summed up. These words reflect not only the length of the conflict, but also the courage of the Ukrainian people, who, despite great losses and destruction, continue to defend their freedom and independence.
