Leila Nezirevic
12 February 2024•Update: 04 March 2024
LONDON
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas warned that the war in Ukraine will continue until Russia realizes that winning is impossible, while urging Ukraine's Western allies to continue supporting Ukraine militarily and financially.
Russia is gearing up for a prolonged conflict and the West should not run into the “various traps” that have been set up by the Kremlin, said Kallas in an interview with the Austrian news outlet Der Standard, published Sunday.
“It is a mistake to believe that the war can be won quickly,” she added.
Kallas believes that negotiating peace with Moscow does not mean that “everything would be peaceful," as "If we accept the land grab, Russia's needs would be met.”
The prime minister further emphasized that being fearful of Russia would only provoke Kremlin further.
“Weakness provokes Russia, not strength," she said.
Her warning comes amid uncertainty over the long-term stability of Western aid to Ukraine.
As the country enters its third year at war, the long-term stability of Western aid to Ukraine is in doubt.
Since the beginning of the war, the US has been Ukraine’s largest supporter, however the military aid has been frozen as of Dec. 6 after the US Senate failed to approve the bill for financing aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan.
Last week a delegation of representatives from Estonia, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Latvia and Lithuania visited the US Congress to shore up continued support for Ukraine, however no deal was made since, and the aid remains blocked.
Kallas urged the West to continue supporting Ukraine in defending itself against Russia.
“We have to believe in a Ukrainian victory, not the narrative that Russia will win anyway. Russia wants us to believe that Ukraine cannot win, so we stop supporting it," Kallas expressed.
When asked if she fears that the US will turn away from Europe if former American Donald Trump gets reelected, she pointed out that elections are always turbulent times and that the European countries must continue to work with the allies, “no matter who they elect to lead their political leadership.”
“We survived when Donald Trump led the United States for the first time. We would survive it this time too if it came to that. But we must do everything we can to defend ourselves now, before these US elections,” said Kallas.
