- September 30, 2024
- 1:34 pm
- World News
US President Joe Biden has left uncertainty on what exactly victory would look like for allies Ukraine and Israel, giving their leaders latitude to interpret their own goals.. Both states believe they are engaged in an “existential struggle” where victory requires an escalation of hostilities. However, the United States urged both countries to avoid such a development.
About this reports Mark Urban, newspaper correspondent The Times.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in response to this call, chose a strategy of ignoring. He continues to ramp up military operations despite American objections. At the same time, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, despite his significant diplomatic efforts in the United States, did not receive Biden's unequivocal support for the use of Western weapons to strike Russian targets deep inside Russia. Moreover, Zelensky has begun to see his influence in the West waning, which is alarming given the critical importance of Western support to continuing the resistance to Russian aggression.
Journalist The TimesMark Urban, describes how Biden has never been a supporter of the use of force, which reflects deep doubts in the West about violence as a tool to achieve political goals. In particular, Biden represents a part of the Western elite that is not confident that escalation will help force opponents to capitulate or change behavior. For the military leaders and governments of Ukraine and Israel, escalation is a necessary element of strategy, which, in their opinion, will bring victory closer.
Zelensky's visit to the United States, which many called a turning point in his strategy, ended in disappointment. According to Urban, the Ukrainian president, touring a munitions plant in Pennsylvania and speaking at the UN General Assembly in New York, faced outright criticism from the US administration, which believes that Zelensky's plan for victory “lacks a coherent strategy.” On the sidelines of the discussions, American officials expressed doubts about Kyiv’s plan, which became an alarming signal for Ukraine.
Ukrainian leaders often criticize their Western allies for their reluctance to make clearer commitments to victory, although such criticisms are usually kept private. However, sometimes they are voiced publicly, when Ukrainian officials express disappointment at the lack of decisive steps from the West.
Urban emphasizes that Biden responded to this criticism with a promise to continue supporting Ukraine “until victory”, but left it unclear what exactly this victory means. US allies are beginning to increasingly question how long they can maintain “strategic patience.” An important factor here is Biden's reluctance to frame victory in terms of Russia's defeat, which adds to the sense of uncertainty in US policy.
Zelensky feels that his actions are limited by this indecision. Similar sentiments exist in Israel, where Netanyahu faced US requests for restraint but chose to ignore them. The Israeli prime minister believes he can ignore these calls while continuing to receive American military support.
Urban notes that from an American perspective, this seems like ingratitude, especially given the efforts Biden has made to help both Ukraine and Israel. The US President is in a difficult situation, where he must assess the risks of a potential nuclear conflict with Russia if support for Ukraine leads to escalation, or destabilization in the Middle East if assistance to Israel increases tensions with its neighbors.
The author of the article concludes that in the absence of clear instructions from the United States on the issue of what victory should look like and what price might be acceptable, Netanyahu is using the situation to his advantage, while Zelensky feels increasingly pressured and constrained.
