Former Defense Department Undersecretary Robert Wilkie told Newsmax on Monday that questions surrounding Ukrainian kids kidnapped by Russian soldiers is an issue that must be handled if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agrees to a meaningful ceasefire.
Wilkie told "American Agenda" there's currently a stalemate in effect. "So right now, I don't see that either side has an incentive to stop. And also, Zelenskyy's not going to stop until there's an accounting for the tens of thousands of Ukrainian children that the Russians have grabbed, kidnapped and taken back into Russia."
So far, said Wilkie, there's not enough of a reason for Zelenskyy or Russian President Vladimir Putin to push for peace. "For Zelenskyy, Putin's telling him he wants to wipe his country out. And for Zelenskyy, he hasn't really lost a lot. He's lost a couple of hundred square miles in three years."
Wilkie said that, in some ways, Zelenskyy has the upper hand. "He's inflicted over a million casualties on the Russians. And for Putin, it's the culmination of a 30-year — in fact, he's written it down so many times. I think George Will called it his Russian version of Hitler's 'Mein Kampf.'"
Short of President Donald Trump jointly with NATO leaders imposing tough sanctions on Russia, Wilkie said the conflict could drag on a lot longer. "Until the president and European allies unload economic sanctions to cripple what's left of the Russian economy, I don't think that Putin is going to stop."
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Jim Mishler ✉
Jim Mishler, a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director, has decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.
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