US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Friday that he believed the war in Ukraine “is likely to continue for some significant time”, noting that “there are a huge number of Russian forces that are in Ukraine and, unfortunately, tragically, horribly, President Putin has proven that he will throw a lot of people into it at a huge cost to Russia and a huge cost to its future.” Speaking at a press conference at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Blinken said “we see Ukraine making real, proven progress in a deliberate way” in its counteroffensive to retake parts of the country controlled by Russia. He said he did not want to prejudge “where it will go and how far it will go, but the initial signs are positive” and reiterated his view that the fact that Ukrainians are “fighting for their country” will be “the most decisive factor.” “The Russian forces in Ukraine, many of them have no idea why they are there. Some didn’t even know where they were being sent. We are seeing reports that their morale is low. And when you don’t know what you’re fighting for, that’s not sustainable,” Blinken said. “Now, Russia has significant resources, military resources. It works in horrible, indiscriminate ways. Ukrainians are bearing an incredibly heavy cost,” Blinken said. “Even on the front lines now, in and around the Kherson region, even though they’re making progress, they’re incurring real costs, but basically, they’re fighting for their homeland.” The top US diplomat said he believed Russian citizens would eventually see the toll the war was taking on them. “How is Putin doing anything to improve the lives of the Russian people? How does this help them? How does this ensure their own future? How does it create opportunities for them?” asked. “Not only is it not, it does the exact opposite. It cuts off Russia from the world. It is a denial of opportunity. It’s depleting its resources, resources that go to help the Russian people.” “In a closed information society that Putin and Russia have created, that information doesn’t get there as quickly as it might otherwise, but I think it will. And the Russians have to ask themselves why they are losing so many lives, trying to take over another country that is not theirs,” Blinken said.
