On December 17, 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke at an expanded meeting of the Russian Defence Ministry Board.

Here are the key quotes from his speech (bold added for emphasis):

I would also like to acknowledge our comrades-in-arms from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. By the decision of Comrade Chairman of State Affairs Kim Jong-un, DPRK personnel were deployed to participate in the liberation of the Kursk Region.

Meanwhile, people in Europe are being indoctrinated with fears of an inevitable confrontation with Russia, with claims that preparations must be made for a major war...They are whipping up hysteria, guided by momentary, personal or group political interests rather than the interests of their people. I have said many times that this is a lie and an irrational narrative about an imaginary Russian threat to European countries. But they are doing this deliberately.

The goals of the special military operation will undoubtedly be achieved. We would prefer to accomplish this and address the root causes of the conflict through diplomatic means. However, if the opposing side and its foreign patrons refuse to engage in substantive dialogue, Russia will achieve the liberation of its historical lands by military means.

Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov also spoke at the meeting.

Here's some of what he said (bold added for emphasis):

Third, over 70 percent of the thermal power plants and more than 37 percent of hydroelectric power plants supplying energy to the military industry and the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been put out of operation, thus cutting Ukraine's energy capacity by more than half. This has directly impacted Ukraine's ability to fight back.

Maintaining and increasing the current pace of the offensive is the key objective for the next year.

With respect to the political and diplomatic efforts to resolve the so-called Ukrainian conflict, we clearly see attempts by European leaders and the Kiev regime to evade any resolution of this issue. This pertains specifically to the prolongation of the conflict with the aim of maximally weakening our country.

Simultaneously, the accelerated preparation of NATO's combined armed forces for confrontation with Russia by the 2030s has begun. Such a policy creates real preconditions for the protraction of hostilities into the next year, 2026.

After Belousov's remarks, Putin spoke again and launched into an historic account, from his perspective, of what's happened to Russia and Ukraine since the dissolution of the Soviet Union which occurred in 1991.

Here's some of what he said (bold added for emphasis):

Shortly after the Soviet Union had fallen apart, we thought we would quickly become members of the "civilised" family of European nations and the civilised Western family more broadly...Nothing of the kind happened. You see? Nothing of the kind happened, and we did not become an equal member of that family. On the contrary, they started going after Russia from all angles, and even ratcheted the pressure up.

It was publicly stated that NATO would not expand eastward. What followed? They disregarded this entirely, and one wave of expansion followed another. I repeat: we are not asking for anything extraordinary – only that the assurances given to us be fulfilled.

I believe everyone here understands that agreements with the Soviet Union were treated one way, and agreements with modern Russia, after the USSR's disintegration, quite another. All our interests were simply ignored. This ultimately led to the coup in Ukraine.

It was not we who started the war in 2022; it was the destructive forces in Ukraine, backed by the West. In essence, the West itself instigated this conflict. We are only seeking to end it, to stop it. Initially, we pursued peaceful means through the Minsk negotiations, as you will recall. Eventually, we were compelled to introduce a military component once it became clear we were being deceived...They engineered a coup, initiated military operations, and deliberately – I am convinced, deliberately – precipitated a war.

In addition, during the long question and answer session that followed the meeting, when asked a question by an NBC News reporter Putin responded, "We are ready for negotiations and to settle the conflict by peaceful means," adding that Russia does not consider itself "responsible for the loss of life."

Source:

Putin, Vladimir. (December 17, 2025). "Expanded meeting of the Defence Ministry Board". President of Russia. Retrieved 2025-12-19.

To understand Putin's perspective, it helps to understand the history of Ukraine and its relationship with Russia.

Here's a chronological, summarized history of important events that have led up to the current war between Russia and Ukraine:

• On August 24, 1991, the Ukrainian Parliament declared Ukraine's independence from the Soviet Union.
• On December 1, 1991, Leonid Kravchuk was elected as Ukraine's first democratically-elected president.
• On December 8, 1991, the Belovezha Accords (Minsk Agreement) were signed
  declaring that the Soviet Union (USSR) was dissolved. The Ukrainian president and the Ukrainian prime minister both signed the agreement.
• On July 10, 1994, Leonid Kuchma was elected as the second president of Ukraine. Election results showed a dramatic geographic difference in that the eastern half of Ukraine voted primarily for Kuchma, while the western half voted primarily for his opponent Leonid Kravchuk. Kuchma was a former Soviet official whose aim was to modernize Ukraine's economy and foster a balanced relationship between Russia and Western Europe.
• On June 28, 1996, Ukraine adopted a Constitution of Ukraine which established Ukraine as a democratic, law-based state with a presidential-parliamentary system, clearly delineating the separation of powers among the executive, legislative, and judicial branches.
• On October 31, 1999, running as an Independent candidate, Leonid Kuchma was re-elected as the second president of Ukraine. Kuchma's opponent, Petro Symonenko, running as the Communist Party of Ukraine candidate, received his votes primarily from the western half of Ukraine, while Kuchma received his votes primarily from the eastern half of Ukraine.
• On December 22, 1999, Viktor Yushchenko was appointed as Prime Minister of Ukraine. Yushchenko initiated policies of reform which were actively resisted by oligarchic government factions that had flourished under Kuchma.
• In 2001, Kuchma and his governmental oligarchs forced Yushchenko to dismiss his deputy prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko who, along with Yushchenko, was pushing reform policies. Shortly thereafter, Yushchenko was dismissed by a vote of no confidence by the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada (Parliament). Afterwards, Yushchenko became a symbol of reform and anti-corruption, gaining significant public support.
• On December 26, 2004, (after the Ukrainian Supreme Court invalidated election results from November 21, 2004) Yushchenko was elected as President of Ukraine. Election results showed that the western and northern regions of Ukraine voted primarily for Yushchencko, while the eastern and southern regions voted primarily for Viktor Yanukovych (the incumbent prime minister). Under Yushchenko, Ukraine's foreign policy shifted toward strengthening ties with the European Union, often at the expense of its relationship with Russia.
• In 2006, Yanukovych, a proponent of closer ties and who advocated for a more pro-Russian agenda, was appointed as Prime Minister of Ukraine.
• In April 2008, at the Bucharest NATO Summit, NATO members agreed that at some point Ukraine would become a member of NATO.
• On February 7, 2010, Viktor Yanukovych was elected president of Ukraine, defeating Yulia Tymoshenko (the incumbent prime minister). Yanukovych received 48.95% of the votes and Tymoshenko received 45.47% of the votes. Election results showed that the western and northern regions of Ukraine voted primarily for Tymoshenko, while the eastern and southern regions voted primarily for Yanukovych. Shortly after the election, the Ukrainian Parliament dismissed Prime Minister Tymoshenko.
• Starting in May 2010, a series of criminal charges were filed against Yulia Tymoshenko including bribery, misuse of public finances, abuse of office, and involvement in the 1996 murder of oligarch Yevhen Shcherban in Donetsk. On October 11, 2022, Tymoshenko was sentenced to seven years in prison. On February 22, 2014, following a revision of the Criminal Code of Ukraine that effectively decriminalized the actions for which she was imprisoned, she was cleared of all charges and was released from prison. Tymoshenko and her supporters believed the charges and imprisonment were politically-motivated. Ukranian President Yanukovych said the charges were non-partisan measures to combat corruption. Western governments and some human rights organizations condemned the charges.
• On November 21, 2013, after years of negotiations and overwhelming approval of the Ukrainian Parliament, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych declined to sign an Association Agreement with the European Union, citing pressure from Russia to seek closer alignment with the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union. A wave of demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine known as Euromaidan immediately followed. Protesters established a huge protest camp in Independence Square in the Ukrainian capitol city of Kyiv, occupied by thousands and protected by makeshift barricades. The uprising climaxed in mid-February 2014, when fierce fighting in Kyiv between protesters and police resulted in the deaths of almost 100 protesters and 13 police.
• On February 22, 2014, about 73% of the Ukrainian parliament and members of all parties voted to remove Yanukovych from office. Yanukovych claimed the vote was illegal and asked Russia for help. Russian propaganda described the events as a "coup." Yanukovych subsequently fled to Russia.
• In late February 2014, Russia invaded Crimea. On March 18, 2014 Russia annexed Crimea, an action that was denounced by the European Union and the United States as illegal.
• In April 2014, pro-Russian Ukrainian separatists self-proclaimed the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts (provinces) as People's Republics (independent states). Later that month, fighting began between the Ukrainian army and the People's Republics forces. This was the start of the war in Donbas (the geographic region consisting of Donetsk and Luhnask provinces).
• On May 2, 2014, anti-government, pro-Russian protesters attacked pro-unity, pro-European protesters at a "United Ukraine" rally in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa resulting in six deaths. Pro-Ukraine protesters also attacked a pro-Russian protest camp in another part of Odesa. Some of the pro-Russian activists took shelter in a nearby building, shots were fired by both sides, pro-Ukraine protesters attempted to storm the building and it caught fire as the two groups threw petrol bombs at each other. In total, 48 people, 46 of whom were pro-Russian activists died (42 in the building fire), and 200 were injured.
• On September 5, 2014, in an attempt to end the war in Donbas, the Minsk I agreement was signed by the Trilateral Contact Group on Ukraine, consisting of Ukraine, Russia, and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). This agreement failed to stop the war. On February 12, 2015 the Minsk II agreements were signed.
• On September 25, 2015, Ukranian President Petro Poroshenko approved the NSDC (National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine) document entitled "On the New Edition of the Military Doctrine of Ukraine," which recognizes threats posed by Russia in Crimea, Donetsk, and Luhansk, and threats posed by the activity of illegal armed groups in Ukraine attempting destabilization.
• On April 21, 2019, Volodymyr Zelenskyy was elected president of Ukraine.
• On March 21, 2021, Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy approved a new Military Security Strategy, replacing the 2015 Military Doctrine.
• In June 2021, at the Brussels NATO Summit, NATO members reiterated that Ukraine would eventually become a member of NATO.
• On December 17, 2021, Russia submitted two draft treaties to the United States proposing limits on both NATO and U.S. influence and activities in Europe. One of the demands in the proposal was that NATO members commit to no further expansion, especially in Ukraine.
• On January 26, 2022, the U.S. and NATO issued their formal response to Russia's draft treaty proposal, rejecting demands that Ukraine never join NATO and that NATO withdraw its forces from Eastern Europe.
• On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a military invasion into Ukraine, referred to as a "special military operation" by Vladimir Putin. Russia advanced into southern Ukraine, and along Ukraine's northern border. Russia's attempt to capture the Ukrainian capital Kyiv was repulsed by Ukrainian forces.
• On September 30, 2022, Russia declared the annexation of the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, along with Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy applied for NATO membership.

Also, it's important to note that prior to Ukraine's declaration of independence in 1991, the Soviet Union (USSR) dominated and/or had control over much of Ukraine for about 350 years.

Source:

"History of Ukraine". Wikipedia. Retrieved 2025-12-19.

Prior to the start of Russia's military operations in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated his reasoning and rationale for the invasion. He stated it at length, and he stated it multiple times.

On July 12, 2021, about seven months before Russian troops invaded Ukraine, an article written by Putin regarding the "Historical Unity of Russians and Ukrainians" was posted on the official President of Russia website.

At the outset of the article Putin gives a fairly detailed account of Russia/Ukraine history, establishing that Ukraine was under Soviet control for hundreds of years prior to its 1991 declaration of independence. Here's some of what he said following that (bold added for emphasis):

In essence, Ukraine's ruling circles decided to justify their country's independence through the denial of its past, however, except for border issues. They began to mythologize and rewrite history, edit out everything that united us, and refer to the period when Ukraine was part of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union as an occupation.

Radicals and neo-Nazis were open and more and more insolent about their ambitions. They were indulged by both the official authorities and local oligarchs, who robbed the people of Ukraine and kept their stolen money in Western banks, ready to sell their motherland for the sake of preserving their capital.

I recall that long ago, well before 2014, the U.S. and EU countries systematically and consistently pushed Ukraine to curtail and limit economic cooperation with Russia.

Step by step, Ukraine was dragged into a dangerous geopolitical game aimed at turning Ukraine into a barrier between Europe and Russia, a springboard against Russia.

Nor were the interests of the Ukrainian people thought of in February 2014 [when the "coup" occurred]. The legitimate public discontent, caused by acute socio-economic problems, mistakes, and inconsistent actions of the authorities of the time, was simply cynically exploited. Western countries directly interfered in Ukraine's internal affairs and supported the coup. Radical nationalist groups served as its battering ram. Their slogans, ideology, and blatant aggressive Russophobia have to a large extent become defining elements of state policy in Ukraine.

But the fact is that the situation in Ukraine today is completely different because it involves a forced change of identity. And the most despicable thing is that the Russians in Ukraine are being forced not only to deny their roots, generations of their ancestors but also to believe that Russia is their enemy. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the path of forced assimilation, the formation of an ethnically pure Ukrainian state, aggressive towards Russia, is comparable in its consequences to the use of weapons of mass destruction against us.

The anti-Russia project has been rejected by millions of Ukrainians. The people of Crimea and residents of Sevastopol made their historic choice. And people in the southeast peacefully tried to defend their stance. Yet, all of them, including children, were labeled as separatists and terrorists. They were threatened with ethnic cleansing and the use of military force.

The coup d'état and the subsequent actions of the Kiev authorities inevitably provoked confrontation and civil war.

During official negotiations, especially after being reined in by Western partners, Ukraine's representatives regularly declare their "full adherence" to the Minsk agreements, but are in fact guided by a position of "unacceptability". They do not intend to seriously discuss either the special status of Donbas or safeguards for the people living there. They prefer to exploit the image of the "victim of external aggression" and peddle Russophobia.

First of all, we are facing the creation of a climate of fear in Ukrainian society, aggressive rhetoric, indulging neo-Nazis and militarising the country. Along with that we are witnessing not just complete dependence but direct external control, including the supervision of the Ukrainian authorities, security services and armed forces by foreign advisers, military "development" of the territory of Ukraine and deployment of NATO infrastructure.

The Western authors of the anti-Russia project set up the Ukrainian political system in such a way that presidents, members of parliament and ministers would change but the attitude of separation from and enmity with Russia would remain. Reaching peace was the main election slogan of the incumbent president. He came to power with this. The promises turned out to be lies. Nothing has changed. And in some ways the situation in Ukraine and around Donbas has even degenerated.

On February 21, 2022, three days before Russian troops invaded Ukraine, Putin gave a televised address during which he announced that Russia immediately recognizes the independence and sovereignty of the Donetsk People's Republic and the Lugansk People's Republic.

Here's more of what he said (bold added for emphasis):

I would like to emphasise again that Ukraine is not just a neighbouring country for us. It is an inalienable part of our own history, culture and spiritual space. These are our comrades, those dearest to us – not only colleagues, friends and people who once served together, but also relatives, people bound by blood, by family ties.

The disintegration of our united country was brought about by the historic, strategic mistakes on the part of the Bolshevik leaders and the CPSU [Communist Party of the Soviet Union] leadership, mistakes committed at different times in state-building and in economic and ethnic policies. The collapse of the historical Russia known as the USSR is on their conscience.

At the same time, the Ukrainian authorities – I would like to emphasise this – began by building their statehood on the negation of everything that united us, trying to distort the mentality and historical memory of millions of people, of entire generations living in Ukraine. It is not surprising that Ukrainian society was faced with the rise of far-right nationalism, which rapidly developed into aggressive Russophobia and neo-Nazism.

Essentially, the so-called pro-Western civilisational choice made by the oligarchic Ukrainian authorities was not and is not aimed at creating better conditions in the interests of people's well-being but at keeping the billions of dollars that the oligarchs have stolen from the Ukrainians and are holding in their accounts in Western banks, while reverently accommodating the geopolitical rivals of Russia.

Corruption, which is certainly a challenge and a problem for many countries, including Russia, has gone beyond the usual scope in Ukraine. It has literally permeated and corroded Ukrainian statehood, the entire system, and all branches of power.

Maidan [Euromaidan] did not bring Ukraine any closer to democracy and progress. Having accomplished a coup d'état, the nationalists and those political forces that supported them eventually led Ukraine into an impasse, pushed the country into the abyss of civil war.

Do they [the Ukranian people] realise that their country has turned not even into a political or economic protectorate but has been reduced to a colony with a puppet regime?

In March 2021, a new Military Strategy was adopted in Ukraine. This document is almost entirely dedicated to confrontation with Russia and sets the goal of involving foreign states in a conflict with our country. The strategy stipulates the organisation of what can be described as a terrorist underground movement in Russia's Crimea and in Donbass. It also sets out the contours of a potential war, which should end, according to the Kiev strategists, "with the assistance of the international community on favourable terms for Ukraine,: as well as – listen carefully, please – "with foreign military support in the geopolitical confrontation with the Russian Federation." In fact, this is nothing other than preparation for hostilities against our country, Russia.

Kiev has long proclaimed a strategic course on joining NATO. Indeed, each country is entitled to pick its own security system and enter into military alliances. There would be no problem with that, if it were not for one "but." International documents expressly stipulate the principle of equal and indivisible security, which includes obligations not to strengthen one's own security at the expense of the security of other states. This is stated in the 1999 OSCE Charter for European Security adopted in Istanbul and the 2010 OSCE Astana Declaration. In other words, the choice of pathways towards ensuring security should not pose a threat to other states, whereas Ukraine joining NATO is a direct threat to Russia's security.

All the while, they are trying to convince us over and over again that NATO is a peace-loving and purely defensive alliance that poses no threat to Russia. Again, they want us to take their word for it. But we are well aware of the real value of these words. In 1990, when German unification was discussed, the United States promised the Soviet leadership that NATO jurisdiction or military presence will not expand one inch to the east and that the unification of Germany will not lead to the spread of NATO's military organisation to the east. This is a quote.

There can be only one answer – this is not about our political regime or anything like that. They just do not need a big and independent country like Russia around. This is the answer to all questions. This is the source of America's traditional policy towards Russia. Hence the attitude to all our security proposals.

As a result, the Alliance, its military infrastructure has reached Russia's borders. This is one of the key causes of the European security crisis; it has had the most negative impact on the entire system of international relations and led to the loss of mutual trust.

The information we have gives us good reason to believe that Ukraine's accession to NATO and the subsequent deployment of NATO facilities has already been decided and is only a matter of time. We clearly understand that given this scenario, the level of military threats to Russia will increase dramatically, several times over. And I would like to emphasise at this point that the risk of a sudden strike at our country will multiply.

I would like to be clear and straightforward: in the current circumstances, when our proposals for an equal dialogue on fundamental issues have actually remained unanswered by the United States and NATO, when the level of threats to our country has increased significantly, Russia has every right to respond in order to ensure its security. That is exactly what we will do.

In this regard, I consider it necessary to take a long overdue decision and to immediately recognise the independence and sovereignty of the Donetsk People's Republic and the Lugansk People's Republic.

On February 24, 2022, Putin gave another televised address announcing the start of a "Special Military Operation" for Ukraine. Here's some of what he said (bold added for emphasis):

It is a fact that over the past 30 years we have been patiently trying to come to an agreement with the leading NATO countries regarding the principles of equal and indivisible security in Europe. In response to our proposals, we invariably faced either cynical deception and lies or attempts at pressure and blackmail, while the North Atlantic alliance continued to expand despite our protests and concerns.

This array includes promises not to expand NATO eastwards even by an inch. To reiterate: they have deceived us, or, to put it simply, they have played us...This type of con-artist behaviour is contrary not only to the principles of international relations but also and above all to the generally accepted norms of morality and ethics.

Therefore, one can say with good reason and confidence that the whole so-called Western bloc formed by the United States in its own image and likeness is, in its entirety, the very same "empire of lies."

Properly speaking, the attempts to use us in their own interests never ceased until quite recently: they sought to destroy our traditional values and force on us their false values that would erode us, our people from within, the attitudes they have been aggressively imposing on their countries, attitudes that are directly leading to degradation and degeneration, because they are contrary to human nature. This is not going to happen. No one has ever succeeded in doing this, nor will they succeed now.

Moreover, these past days NATO leadership has been blunt in its statements that they need to accelerate and step up efforts to bring the alliance's infrastructure closer to Russia's borders. In other words, they have been toughening their position.

For our country, it is a matter of life and death, a matter of our historical future as a nation. This is not an exaggeration; this is a fact. It is not only a very real threat to our interests but to the very existence of our state and to its sovereignty. It is the red line which we have spoken about on numerous occasions. They have crossed it.

The purpose of this operation is to protect people who, for eight years now, have been facing humiliation and genocide perpetrated by the Kiev regime. To this end, we will seek to demilitarise and denazify Ukraine, as well as bring to trial those who perpetrated numerous bloody crimes against civilians, including against citizens of the Russian Federation.
It is not our plan to occupy the Ukrainian territory.

I want to emphasise again that all responsibility for the possible bloodshed will lie fully and wholly with the ruling Ukrainian regime.

On year later on February 21, 2023, Putin gave an address to the Russian Federal Assembly.

More:

• A brief history of the centuries-old relationship between Ukraine and Russia | The Week
• Putin pledges to 'de-Nazify' Ukraine, which is led by a non-Nazi Jewish president | The Week
• 'There is no Ukraine': Fact-Checking the Kremlin's Version of Ukrainian History | The London School of Economics and Political Science
• Ukraine: Conflict at the Crossroads of Europe and Russia | Council on Foreign Relations

Commentary:

During his December 17, 2025 address Putin said "It was not we who started the war in 2022; it was the destructive forces in Ukraine, backed by the West."

It's clear that Russia is the aggressor in the Russia/Ukraine war, just as Russia was the aggressor in its annexation of Crimea.

It's also clear that Putin feels he had no choice but to defend his "comrades" in eastern Ukraine and in Crimea, but to say that Russia did not start the 2022 war is undeniably false. Of course, it's Russian propaganda, but it's also a form of mental delusion.

What exactly does Putin means when he says "historical lands?" Is he referring to all of Ukraine, or just the Donbas? And if he means only the Donbas, assuming a peace agreement was reached between Russia and Ukraine, how long would it be before Putin decides he wants all of Ukraine?

Putin's July 12, 2021 article and his two televised addresses can be summarized as follows:

• Putin believes that NATO is not a "peace-loving and purely defensive alliance." Putin is so adamant about NATO expansion that he says it's a "matter of life and death," and a threat to Russia's "very existence" and "sovereignty." He believes that NATO is a destabilizing force. He also seems to believe that the U.S. and NATO want to "get rid of Russia entirely." It's clear that Putin's greatest concern is NATO expansion.
• Putin has a long list of gripes regarding the U.S. and NATO, all of which add up in Putin's mind to "anti-Russia" and the destruction of Russia's traditional values.
• Putin has immense disdain for the Ukrainian government "oligarchs" who have ruled Ukraine since its declaration of independence in 1991. He blames them for the 2014 "coup" which ousted Viktor Yanukovych. He also blames them for the perceived economic, financial, social, and cultural decline of Ukraine, as well as the corruption, referring to them as "neo-Nazis."
• Putin firmly believes that Russia's attempts to have their concerns and proposals heard by the U.S., the EU, and NATO have fallen on deaf ears.
• As he did during his December 17, 2025 address, Putin absolves Russia from any responsibility for loss of life caused by the war.

After reviewing the long history of Russia's relationship with Ukraine, and looking at the situation from Putin's perspective, I think Putin has some good reasons for not trusting the United States, the European Union, and NATO. But Putin is dead wrong to believe that the United States, the European Union, and NATO want to "get rid of Russia entirely." Unfortunately, Putin has convinced himself that this is true.

Putin's denial of responsibility for starting the war and for the loss of life in Ukraine is particularly troubling. Assuming a peace agreement was reached, would Putin be willing to make reparations to Ukraine for all of the innocent Ukrainian civilians who have been killed or injured by Russian drone strikes and missile attacks, and to help rebuild all of the buildings and infrastructure that's been destroyed? In Putin's mind, if he didn't start it, why should he have to help pay to clean up the mess?

Since the start of the Russia/Ukraine war Russia has attacked, and continues to attack Ukraine's energy infrastructure with drones and missiles. To a much lesser degree Ukraine has done the same to Russia.

Russia's economy depends on oil and gas. If Ukraine had the ability to step up its attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure it would have a significant impact on the war. For this to happen, Ukraine needs cruise missiles that have the ability to strike deep and precisely into Russian territory.

On October 17, 2025 Donald Trump rejected Volodymyr Zelensky's request for Tomahawk missiles. Trump said he "doesn't want escalation" of the war, and that Russia and Ukraine should "stop the war immediately." Trump also said "And both sides should go home, go to their families, stop the killing. And that should be it."

I appreciate Trump's concern regarding possible escalation, but his comments about just simply stopping are unrealistic and don't help in any way shape or form to bring the war to an end.

In a March 2, 2025 post on HWR entitled "White House Meeting Between Zelenskyy and Trump Devolves, Ending with No Minerals Agreement Signing" I said:

A truly fair peace "deal" must hold Russia and Putin accountable. It must also include some sort of "ironclad" guarantee of future Ukrainian security to be provided by the United States.

I still stand by that statement, adding that now I think that Ukrainian security might better be served by Ukraine's membership in NATO which would expand the responsibility for security to both the U.S. and NATO countries.

All of the meetings and negotiations that have taken place since March of this year have resulted in little real progress toward a peace deal. To me the negotiations feel more like just posturing by Trump and his administration.

Still, the undeniable fact is that the interests of Putin and Zelenskyy are diametrically opposed, and no amount of compromise and negotiation is going to change that.

The Russia/Ukraine war will most likely continue for a long time until a possible "game-changer" like Ukraine's ability to use Tomahawk missiles, or something else becomes reality.