No lasting peace in Ukraine while Putin alive, Canadian general says
Lt. Gen. Christopher Coates (Photo: U.S. Strategic Command)
The death of Russian dictator Vladimir
Putin is necessary for a lasting peace in Ukraine, retired Canadian Lt.
Gen. Christopher Coates told Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform on June 11.
“The first necessary condition for long-term peace in Ukraine is Putin’s death,” Coates said.
“Unfortunately, I find it very hard to imagine lasting peace while Putin remains in power. The only more fundamental basis for such peace, I believe, is a military victory by Ukraine.”
Coates said he has grown increasingly skeptical that territorial concessions can produce a durable settlement.
“At best, they offer only a temporary pause. If Russia retains its imperial ambitions, it will rebuild its strength and return to war,” he said.
He described Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil infrastructure as strategically significant, saying they force Russia to disperse resources, cut its revenues and remind Russians that war has a cost.
Coates said Russia’s greatest vulnerability is that it is waging an illegitimate war.
“That may sound abstract, but it matters strategically,” he said.
“Russia is not fighting for its survival. It chose this war and is spending enormous resources for very limited gains.”
He acknowledged the Kremlin still can mobilize support through propaganda and media control, but said such mechanisms have limits.
“A system built on lies eventually begins to crumble from within. Sustaining a long war by choice becomes increasingly difficult, especially as human and economic losses mount,” Coates said.
“Right now, in my view, the initiative has tilted somewhat
toward Ukraine. Russia increasingly resembles a state losing strength and
looking for new ways to apply pressure. We are seeing attempts at what the
military calls ‘horizontal escalation’ — expanding pressure beyond the
immediate battlefield because achieving success in Ukraine is becoming harder.”
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