The victory of Russia in the war with Ukraine will give Beijing the courage and lead to the war between the United States and China because of Taiwan, the former owner of the Russian oil company Yukos, oppositionist Mikhail Khodorkovsky in an interview with Washington Post.
“The lost war in Ukraine is a step towards war in the Asia -Pacific region. You must understand: if a big guy hit his face, many other guys will begin to doubt whether he is really strong and also want to hit him on his teeth. … Therefore, if the United States wants to fight in Asia, then the most correct way to this is to show weakness in Ukraine, ”Khodorkovsky believes.
He noted that now the West has a choice between three options in the Kyiv support strategy. According to Khodorkovsky, the current path, despite the recent agreements on the supply of modern combat tanks, can lead to a protracted and complete risk to the war, since the necessary weapons are not sent immediately, but in stages, and often it has to be achieved too long. In this situation, there are no guarantees that Ukraine will be able to maintain the current level of losses. In addition, political disagreements in the United States on the eve of the presidential election of 2024 may encourage legislators to stop supplying weapons and economic assistance.
The second option involves a quick and significant increase in military assistance to Ukraine, including long -range missiles and fighters that will destroy Russian supply lines. “The only thing that can turn the situation on the battlefield is aviation. Everything else is secondary,” Khodorkovsky said.
As for the third option, Khodorkovsky does not exclude that ultimately the United States and its allies will “unfold and leave, as they did in Afghanistan, Syria and other places.” “Putin is a person who thinks retroactively, and he believes that if something has already happened before, then most likely it will happen again in the future. … Looking back, Putin sees that every time he begins a small war, He is able to consolidate society around himself, and he sees again and again how the Americans leave. If he successfully completes the Ukrainian campaign, then the national patriots who are now his main source of support will not allow him to stop and the next war will begin, ” – I am sure the opposition.