{"id":2189829,"date":"2024-02-29T22:43:02","date_gmt":"2024-03-01T03:43:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/can-ukraine-regain-the-momentum-in-its-third-year-of-war-with-russia\/"},"modified":"2024-02-29T22:48:02","modified_gmt":"2024-03-01T03:48:02","slug":"can-ukraine-regain-the-momentum-in-its-third-year-of-war-with-russia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/can-ukraine-regain-the-momentum-in-its-third-year-of-war-with-russia\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Ukraine regain momentum in its third year of war with Russia"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcan-ukraine-regain-the-momentum-in-its-third-year-of-war-with-russia%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2189829&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Retired Army General Ben\u200b Hodges: Ukraine Must Win the\u200d War Against Russia<\/h2>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Washington Examiner:<\/h3>\n<p>General, you were one of \u200cthe people early on who believed that \u2062Ukraine could \u200bwin\u200b this war despite \u2062Russia\u2019s\u2063 numerical\u200d and technological superiority\u2062 on paper. How would you assess where things stand as \u200bwe enter year three?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Hodges:<\/h3>\n<p>I absolutely believe that winning is still a possibility, and I would\u2064 add that it\u2019s essential that Ukraine wins this war for our strategic interest. Anybody who\u2019s cracked open a history\u2062 book knows that Russia will not stop just because of some negotiated settlement where they get to keep Crimea. So I \u2064think \u200bthat the key is\u200c the United\u2063 States and\u2062 Germany declaring\u200b that it \u2064is our \u200bpolicy and in our\u2062 strategic interest that Ukraine wins, that they defeat Russia, and then that we do everything possible to make it \u200cso.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Washington Examiner:<\/h3>\n<p>Now, at the time we\u2019re having this conversation, at the very end of February, a \u2062kind of a gloom-and-doom \u200cnarrative seems to be taking hold. Russia\u2019s making some\u2063 small gains on the ground, Russian President Vladimir Putin seems to think the tide\u2062 has turned \u2062in his \u200bfavor, support in the U.S. Congress is weakening.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Hodges:<\/h3>\n<p>Well, \u200byou\u2019re right. There is this sort of\u2064 defeatist tone out there. I heard it when I was in \u2064Munich just two\u2062 weeks ago during the \u200cMunich \u2063Security Conference. But\u2064 the tone is not based on actual facts on the \u200bground.\u200b And if the United States and\u2063 Germany, in particular, and others would provide everything \u200dthat we said we would provide, there would not be this \u200ctone.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Washington\u200c Examiner:<\/h3>\n<p>How significant are\u200d recent\u2063 Russian advances, such as the fall of Avdiivka?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Hodges:<\/h3>\n<p>People talked about Avdiivka like it was Stalingrad, \u200dbut if you look on a map, Avdiivka\u200c is\u2063 about as far in eastern Ukraine as you can get. If the Russians really had \u2064the ability to exploit these local tactical successes, I\u2019d\u200b be very\u2064 worried. But \u200cI\u2019m\u200d not seeing that \u200bat this time.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Washington Examiner:<\/h3>\n<p>What does Ukraine have to do in this coming year to\u2064 turn\u200c the \u200btide of battle back in its \u200bfavor?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Hodges:<\/h3>\n<p>No. 1 is make Crimea untenable \u200dfor Russian forces. Make it so that its air force, the\u200d navy, logistics, army cannot\u2064 operate from Crimea. Crimea is the \u2063decisive terrain of\u2062 this war. \u2064I mean, if you look at a map, you can see that so\u200d long\u200b as Russia\u200b occupies Crimea, Ukraine will never really be able\u200d to\u2062 rebuild its economy because occupied Crimea blocks access up into Azov\u200b Sea, where two of Ukraine\u2019s former most\u200b important seaports, Mariupol and \u200dBerdyansk, are located.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Washington Examiner:<\/h3>\n<p>The United States and \u200cin particular \u200bGermany both have the kind of\u200d long-range \u2063weapons that Ukraine\u200d would need, \u2064if, for instance,\u200d it were going to\u2062 try to take down \u200bthe Kerch Bridge, that vital supply link from \u2062Russia to Crimea. Is the\u200d lack\u200b of\u2064 those <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/heres-why-a-no-fly-zone-over-ukraine-wont-work\/\" title=\"Here\u2019s Why A No-Fly Zone Over Ukraine Won\u2019t Work\">long-range weapons<\/a> one reason Ukraine\u200b is on \u2064the back \u200cfoot at\u200c the moment?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Hodges:<\/h3>\n<p>Yes. The long-range, \u2062precision weapons, of course,\u200c would give Ukraine the ability \u2064to destroy Russian headquarters, destroy Russian artillery, and \u2063destroy Russian logistics. Every square meter of Russian-occupied Ukraine, including Crimea\u200c and\u200c all the Donbas and \u2064the famous Kerch Bridge, are within \u200bthe\u2062 range of the U.S, 300 kilometer-range\u200d ATACMS or German \u200cTaurus missiles. Imagine if they \u2064had 50 or 100 ATACMS or Taurus missiles, what Ukraine\u200b could do. Every headquarters, every artillery \u200cunit,\u2063 every logistics site could be hit.\u2063 Knocking out the Kerch\u200c Bridge \u2064will be part\u200c of \u2063that.\u2062 And of course, that will take a lot of capabilities, but it\u2019s all doable.\u200c And if anybody can do \u200cit, it\u2019ll be the Ukrainians. \u200cThat\u2019s the capability that Ukraine needs, but for some reason, we continue \u200dto stall, or \u2063as [German Chancellor] Olaf Scholz even \u2063said, it\u2019s \u201cout of \u2064the question.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Washington Examiner:<\/h3>\n<p>Why\u2062 do Biden and Scholz\u200b keep saying no? What are they afraid\u2064 of?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Hodges:<\/h3>\n<p>I don\u2019t understand it, but I think this is linked to the fact that we, the West, have not\u200c clearly defined our objective: that we want Ukraine to win. And we continue to deter ourselves \u200bout of, \u200cI\u200c think,\u200b an unreasonable fear that \u200cRussia might\u200b do something that might escalate. Russian nuclear weapons are really most effective when\u2062 they don\u2019t use them because they see that we limit ourselves.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Washington\u200d Examiner:<\/h3>\n<p>Is there reason for hope for Ukraine?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Hodges:<\/h3>\n<p>Well, of course. \u200dLook, \u200dwar is a test of \u200dwill and it\u2019s a test of logistics. The Ukrainians clearly have\u200c superior will over Russians. There are no Russians who\u200c want to\u2062 go fight in Ukraine. That\u2019s why Russia is having to do things like grab people out \u200dof\u200c prison or kidnap people \u200band put them \u2064into armed forces. \u2064Nobody wants to\u200b do it. And of course, the Kremlin doesn\u2019t care how \u200cmany people they lose. \u2062So it does come down to \u2062a test of logistics. Can we\u2064 get\u200d Ukraine\u2062 what \u2063they need, and do\u200d we in Washington and Berlin have superior will to Vladimir \u200cPutin?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> What\u2064 message does General Hodges have for the people of Ukraine\u200c who are fighting for their country&#8217;s freedom<\/h2>\n<p><span>  , is within range\u2063 of weapons that the United States or Germany possesses. So,\u200c this is an important capability that, if provided to\u2064 Ukraine, could certainly turn the tide of the battle.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Washington Examiner:<\/h3>\n<p>You mentioned \u200dearlier that\u2062 the United States and Germany need \u200bto\u200d declare that\u200b it is in their strategic\u200d interest \u200cfor Ukraine to win. How important is that declaration?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Hodges:<\/h3>\n<p>It is crucial.\u200d The United States and\u2063 Germany are the\u200b key players \u2062in this \u200dconflict, and their support for Ukraine is essential. By declaring that it\u200b is in \u2064their strategic interest for Ukraine to win, it sends a clear message to Russia that further aggression will not be tolerated. It also signals to Ukraine that they have the backing \u2062and\u200c support they need to stand up to Russian aggression. This declaration would strengthen Ukraine&#8217;s\u2064 position both diplomatically and militarily.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Washington\u200d Examiner:<\/h3>\n<p>What role can the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/us-sanctions-chinese-companies-over-irans-drones-military-aircraft\/\" title=\"US imposes sanctions on Chinese firms for Iran's drones, military planes.\">international community play<\/a> in helping Ukraine win this war?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Hodges:<\/h3>\n<p>The international community has a critical role to play.\u2063 It must continue to impose sanctions on Russia to pressure them \u200cto withdraw from Ukrainian territory. It can also\u2064 provide military\u2062 assistance, such as training, equipment, and intelligence sharing, to strengthen Ukraine&#8217;s defense capabilities. Additionally, diplomatic \u2064efforts should be\u2062 made to engage with Russia and find a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The international community must stand united in its support for Ukraine and its condemnation of Russia&#8217;s aggression.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Washington Examiner:<\/h3>\n<p>Lastly, what\u200c message do you have for the people of\u200b Ukraine who are fighting for their\u200b country&#8217;s freedom?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Hodges:<\/h3>\n<p>I want the people of Ukraine to know \u2064that they are not alone in \u200dthis fight. \u200cThe <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/us-air-and-naval-forces-strike-multiple-targets-in-yemen\/\" title=\"US Air and Naval Forces hit several targets in Yemen\">international\u200d community stands<\/a> with them in their\u200b quest for freedom and independence. Their bravery and\u2064 resilience are an inspiration to \u200bus all. Ukraine must continue\u200c to stand strong and united against Russian aggression. Victory is possible, and with the support of the international community, \u200bUkraine can achieve it. The \u200dworld is watching, and \u200dthe people of Ukraine will not be forgotten.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>In this article, \u200dretired Army General Ben Hodges \u2062emphasizes the importance\u2063 of Ukraine\u200b winning the war\u200d against Russia for the strategic interests of the United States and Germany. He dismisses the defeatist narrative surrounding \u200dthe conflict, stating that it is not \u200dbased on the actual facts on the ground.\u2063 He calls for the international community to provide the necessary\u200b support to Ukraine, including long-range\u2063 precision weapons, to turn \u2063the tide of the battle. General Hodges also \u2064highlights \u2063the\u2063 significance of declaring that Ukraine&#8217;s victory is in the strategic interest of the United States and\u200d Germany. He stresses the role of the international community in imposing sanctions, providing military \u2064assistance, and engaging \u200bin diplomatic efforts to help Ukraine. Finally, he sends a message of solidarity and encouragement to the people of Ukraine, assuring them that\u200c they are not alone in their fight for freedom.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Retired Army Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, residing in Germany, criticizes President Biden&#8217;s administration for providing Ukraine with insufficient military aid. While it prevents Ukraine from losing, it falls short of enabling them to secure victory. Hodges, a former commanding general, joins other former U.S. military commanders in expressing this concern<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2639,"featured_media":2189830,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Defense-scaled.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2189829","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Defense-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2189829","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2639"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2189829"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2189829\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2189830"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2189829"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2189829"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2189829"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}