EU support for Ukraine will wane – Czech president

Petr Pavel believes Kiev's “window of opportunity” will close at the end of the year

Ukraine should aim to regain as much territory as it can from Russia before the end of the year as it may not have a second chance at a counteroffensive, Czech President Petr Pavel has warned. He cited general “war fatigue” and the upcoming presidential elections stateside as potential reasons why Kiev’s backers may have less of an appetite for a continuation of hostilities.

In an interview with Britain’s Sky News TV channel broadcast on Tuesday, Pavel acknowledged that while “in an ideal world” he would want to see Ukraine regain control of all its territories within its 1991 borders, this may not be realistic.

He added that the situation will likely look “slightly different,” with Kiev ready to start talks with Moscow “once they expire all the possibilities of advancing.” 

The official went on to predict that Russian President Vladimir Putin would probably arrive at the same conclusion at some point, with neither Ukraine nor Russia being interested in a frozen conflict.

“So, what Ukraine is now aiming for is to get control of as much territory as possible by the end of this year, because then we’ll have an entirely different situation,” the Czech president explained.

According to the official, who previously served as a top NATO military commander, Kiev will have a hard time mustering forces for a second counteroffensive.

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Moreover, Western backers’ military support for Ukraine may diminish, not least because of the upcoming presidential election stateside, Pavel explained.

Commenting on President Joe Biden’s decision last week to provide Ukraine with cluster munitions, US Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl acknowledged that “things are going a little slower than some had hoped” in terms of Kiev’s present counteroffensive.

Speaking to CNN earlier last week, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky accused Western backers of not providing his country with sufficient weapons quickly enough, resulting in the ongoing military operation being “slowed down.”

The Financial Times reported last month that Western officials had been unimpressed by Kiev’s battlefield performance. The paper’s sources claimed that long-term Western support for Ukraine would be contingent on the eventual outcome of the counteroffensive.

Russia’s Defense Ministry, in turn, has reported that its forces have so far successfully repelled the push, which began in early June.