Aggressor's Peace with Windfall for Mediator

Ukraine's only hope of survival is the revival of Europe as a credible guarantor of Kyiv's and its own security

- Atul Mishra

The American and Russian presidents have spoken about a ceasefire in Ukraine. Russia has agreed to a limited ceasefire, restricted to stopping attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. And America has expressed hopes that their ongoing talks could ultimately produce a "full ceasefire and permanent peace." This appears to be progress. But in reality, we may be seeing the makings of an aggressor's peace and a mediator's windfall.

The stated goal of American diplomacy since Donald Trump took office is to stop the daily killings of Ukrainian and Russian soldiers in a war that has likely claimed close to a million casualties. A noble goal, but ending any war requires much more than ending the killings. It requires a sense of justice restored to the wronged. And justice can only come when the aggressor and the victim are correctly identified. Unfortunately, moral reasoning over the Ukraine war is so distorted by power and anti-Westernism that the victim and the aggressor have been misidentified, making the looming sundering of Ukraine take the appearance of justice.

Facts are not facts in the post-truth world. President Trump has called Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky a dictator and blamed Ukraine for causing the war. He has also questioned Zelensky's legitimacy given the latter's presidential term ended last year. The falsity of these alternative facts becomes plain upon comparison: Between Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin's leadership styles and records; between the Ukrainian and Russian political systems; and between Russian and Ukrainian behaviour since February 2022.