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UK army chief predicts Ukraine stalemate
I'm waiting to see how this next phase goes, but I can totally see how it turns into a stalemate. I think Russia is able to slowly grind its way west from where the lines are currently drawn, but they might not gain very much territory short-term.
The head of the UK’s army has predicted the war in Ukraine could end in what he called “a military, tactical stalemate”.
General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith also suggested the conflict should prompt a rethink of the government’s decision to cut the size of the British army.
The chief of the General Staff told the Policy Exchange think-tank that Russian forces were at “an operational pause” as they regrouped ahead of an expected offensive in eastern Ukraine.
“Whether that proves to be the decisive battle or not, we are currently measuring this campaign in days. We ought to expect to measure it in months, if not – in the scheme of things – in years,” he said.
“The most likely immediate and interim outcome is a military, tactical stalemate in the Donbas, with a Russian regime able to claim some measure of success, and that potentially acting as a potential launch point for a subsequent campaign.
"I don’t think the international community and Europe, of course, is going to be able to live comfortably with a frozen conflict in Europe.”
General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith also suggested the conflict should prompt a rethink of the government’s decision to cut the size of the British army.
The chief of the General Staff told the Policy Exchange think-tank that Russian forces were at “an operational pause” as they regrouped ahead of an expected offensive in eastern Ukraine.
“Whether that proves to be the decisive battle or not, we are currently measuring this campaign in days. We ought to expect to measure it in months, if not – in the scheme of things – in years,” he said.
“The most likely immediate and interim outcome is a military, tactical stalemate in the Donbas, with a Russian regime able to claim some measure of success, and that potentially acting as a potential launch point for a subsequent campaign.
"I don’t think the international community and Europe, of course, is going to be able to live comfortably with a frozen conflict in Europe.”
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