Victory begins with honesty
The strategy for our victory begins with honesty with people and the acknowledgment of our problems.
On the second anniversary of Russia's large-scale invasion, Ukrainian society is filled with a mixture of fear, despair, and pain as the war drags on and the burden of casualties mounts. This is all inevitable. Another reason for this mood is uncertainty, which generates fear.
One of the reasons for this fear is the state information policy that has placed society in a "warm bath." Promises to sunbathe in Crimea in the summer, lulling voices of politicians at the telethon, overconfidence in a successful counteroffensive, unwillingness to discuss real problems and communicate with society as adults - this strategy does not help to win.
As long as people live in a fictional reality, they will not prepare for real threats. It is time to start an honest conversation about what is happening and our future prospects.
The President records appeals every day. This is more than 700 appeals over two years of large-scale invasion. How many of them did the Supreme Commander-in-Chief say that we will never win if we don't mobilize?
Politics in wartime cannot be the same as in peacetime. If you want to win, you can't think about ratings, whether people like you, or whether you will win the next election. Now, we need to ensure that we have a country where these elections can be held at all. To win, you need to stop hiding from problems. The first step is to be as honest as possible.
Improving electronic warfare and the army of drones is good and makes the fight more effective. But our land is held by infantry. A drone can save a soldier's life, but it cannot replace him. The truth is that we need people, and we are constantly lacking them.
There are questions about the training of personnel and the management of troops. After all, almost everyone now has relatives or friends who serve in the army and openly talk about what could be done better.
Honesty and frankness are about recognizing that there will always be problems. But our victory depends on whether we can solve them effectively.
We cannot hide forever in the warm bath of the joint news telethon
We cannot hide forever in the warm bath of the joint news telethon. We must explain that the military is mobilizing people not because someone wants to - the state has no other option.
In a country with a full-scale war, officials have to communicate very clearly: we have done everything to ensure that you are prepared and provided for, and we will take care of your family while you are on duty. And, of course, do it.
Being honest does not mean disclosing the strategic plans of the Armed Forces command. But, we cannot remain silent about what is uncomfortable to talk about. If the Ukrainian media keeps silent about the reality, people will go looking for information from other sources, even Russian ones. After all, almost everyone has the Internet. Despite everything, we remain a democracy.
The strategy for our victory begins with honesty with people and acknowledgment of problems. Of course, there are things we shouldn't discuss because the enemy will use them against us. But issues need to be solved, not pretended not to exist.
In 1940, Churchill did not promise that the British would be in Berlin in a year. He spoke of blood, sweat, and tears. This has been Ukraine's reality for the past 10 years, and there is no telling how many more there are.
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