The gloomy warning of the former commander of the Ukrainian army. How the Tactics of the Russians change the war
The General of Valer Zălujnîi, the ambassador of Ukraine in the UK, participates in a Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral in London, on February 24, 2025. Photo: Adrian Dennis / AFP / Profimedia
Former Supreme Commander to the Ukrainian army, Valeri Zlujnîi, who is currently the Ukrainian ambassador to the UK, warns that Russia's war against Ukraine risks lasting until 2034.
“If we try to establish an armistice without strengthening our defense for the future, the war will extend many years. It started in 2014 and, with the will of God, it will end in 2034,” Zlujnîi said in an interview with Lb.ua and published on Wednesday, July 23.
According to Zălujnîi, Ukraine entered a new, radically different phase in 2024 in 2024.
He described a change in Russia's battle tactics, mentioning that the Kremlin has given up direct attacks in favor of a war of wear and concerns both the army and the Ukrainian civilians.
“At this moment, the front line exists mainly to kill,” Zlujnîi said. “In 2022, the tanks went in front, and the soldiers followed … Now, the tanks and soldiers changed the places,” added the former commander, quoted by The Kyiv Independent.
According to the general, Kiev must review his defense strategy and approach mobilization to prevent Russia from exploiting Ukraine's demographic and economic vulnerabilities.
Zălujnîi's statements came in the context in which the Ukrainian and Russian delegations met in Turkey on Wednesday, in Istanbul, for the third round of peace negotiations. The meeting, which lasted less than an hour, ended without any progress.
Moscow offered only a temporary 24-48-hour armistice to recover the injured and killed soldiers, rejecting Ukraine's proposal again for a complete and unconditional armistice.
“24-48 hours”: Russia came with a new proposal in the negotiations in Istanbul / Ukraine insists on a Zelenski meeting-Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin remains determined to continue the war until the West accepts Moscow favorable conditions, Reuters reported on July 15, citing sources close to the Kremlin.
In the interview, Zălujnîi also warned that Ukraine can support only a “war, high technology war”, and the only viable way to victory is to dismantle Russia's military and economic capacity to bear the conflict.
