Putin is no longer losing in Ukraine

Putin has not won a strategic victory in Ukraine on the battlefield. But if the US-led coalition of 50 nations helping Kyiv starts to fall apart, then the Russian president will have won a strategic pressure victory against the West. It would be a mighty blow for Putin which might well give him new ideas and ambitions for his next six-year term in office. The war in Ukraine has effectively ground to a halt with neither side gaining or losing anything of consequence. The much-promoted Ukrainian counter-offensive has largely failed and now that winter has set in, the territorial stalemate will be fixed in mud and snow and misery. Putin, not for the first time, will be very pleased with himself. When he launched his so-called special military operation, it became apparent that his military chiefs had planned the invasion so badly that no one had properly thought out how to keep the Russian forces fed, watered and fuelled. I suppose they believed it would all be over so quickly it wasn't necessary to set up a logistical back-up. Thus, tanks and other armoured vehicles ran out of gas and presented shooting targets for the Ukrainians. The West held its breath and became convinced that Russia was facing a humiliating defeat which would be good for democracy, good for Ukraine, and good for the planet. But Russia survived and started fighting back and then dug in, and that's how it has been ever since. I doubt 2024 will be a good year for Ukraine or for the West.