Support is firm now, but Ukraine and West have different end goals: Ignatieff

Now linked by extensive military and economic ties, the West and Ukraine still have different “primary goals” about ending the war, former Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff has said.

In an interview that aired Sunday on Rosemary Barton Live, Ignatieff said that Ukraine’s hatred of Russia is “deep and true” and that they are fighting to survive. He said he hoped Ukraine would regain its territory and Russia would realize it could not conquer the country.

“The unfortunate thing to see is that Ukraine wants to win. And the West wants Ukraine to survive — and those are not the same goals,” Ignatieff told CBC political correspondent Rosemary Barton.

Ignatieff, who led the Liberal Party of Canada from 2008-2011 and is now a professor at Central European University, said leaders like US President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz must respond to domestic political pressures as well as consider the geopolitical future. .

“Biden and Scholz live in a world where, when it’s over, they have to live with Russia. And at that point, there’s a difference between what Biden and Scholz want and what they want. [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelenskyy wants,” he said.

“It’s just inevitable. It’s not a matter of betraying Zelenskyy. It’s just that outside powers and Ukraine have different main goals here.”

Ignatieff said he understood and sympathized with Ukraine’s desire to rid the entire region of Russian occupation, but noted that Western leaders also had other factors to consider.

“[Biden and and Scholz] may even want Russia that has Putin at the end of the day in power, instead of right-wing enemies and terror in the seat in Moscow. Or worse, a divided Russia into civil war after Russia’s defeat.”

Now more than a year since Russia’s full-scale invasion, the war in Ukraine is locked for the moment in a bloody stalemate, with heavy fighting in the eastern part of the country, especially around the city of Bakhmut.

Biden and Scholz met on Friday and reaffirmed their strong support for Ukraine and their commitment to further help strengthen the embattled country.

“At this point, I think it’s very important that we send a message that we’re going to keep doing it,” Scholz said.

Domestic pressure factors

The Canadian government has taken a similar line, committed to supporting Ukraine as long as it is needed. In a speech marking one year since the start of the full-scale war, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada would support the country “for however long, as needed.”

Canada’s top military officer, General Wayne Eyre, recently traveled to Ukraine, and Canada announced in February that it would send the country four additional tanks, along with artillery ammunition.

Ignatieff said he was “disappointed” Canada could not provide more in terms of military support, adding that Canada should be prepared for years of aid to Ukraine.

“I think Canadians have to swallow it and realize that [when] It’s not going to be easy for Canada, if we have to keep our decade-long commitment to rebuilding Ukraine if the shooting stops,” he said.

Anti-war sentiment gained some attention in key allies, such as the United States, where Republicans were divided on the issue. While a Republican delegation recently visited Ukraine to show support, other delegates, like Florida representative Matt Gaetz, called for help to stop it.

Ignatieff said that Biden and Scholz are always aware of domestic political issues.

“These are politicians. They have to read public opinion. And I think there are signs that in the United States and in Germany, people are asking ‘how long will this go on?'” Ignatieff said.

Ignatieff also argued that despite showing a difference of interest in the end, “it is not true. [for] an outsider like me to pontificate about what Ukraine should or shouldn’t do.

“I don’t think anyone knows how it will end, it will be decided on the battlefield.”