Volodymyr Zelensky He left Ukraine with the idea of visiting three countries before the end of the day. For months, the president warned the world about crafting a “plan for victory” that his allies would have to embrace as the road map to reaching “a just end” to the war. The first people to know about his plan were, at the end of September, the still president of the United States, Joe Bidenand the two candidates to replace him after the November elections, the Democrat Kamala Harris and the republican donald trump.
The trip was worse than expected. Zelensky returned to kyiv unimpressed with his main military and diplomatic support, and with the feeling that whoever succeeds him will be less sensitive to emergencies on the ground.
The plan is not public, but some media discovered some of its points. Namely, Zelensky calls for authorization to use long-range missiles to hit positions inside Russia from which its enemies attack the country’s cities and strategic infrastructure. Biden refused to grant it for fear of the fury of Vladimir Putinwhich resorted to the nuclear threat to dissuade the American president.
Zelensky, in turn, wants an invitation to NATO. The new secretary general of the Alliance, Mark Ruttedemonstrated good disposition by choosing kyiv as his first destination in office. He went so far as to say that “Ukraine is closer to NATO than ever.” But the reality is different. Few countries in the club are willing to take that risk, fearful that it will mark the beginning of a direct clash with the Russians.
In this way, Zelensky was yesterday in London, Paris and Rome to meet with the leaders of the three European powers most committed to the defense of their country and obtain from them something more than the coldness of Washington.
In the morning, he received promises of support from premiere British, Keir Starmerwith Rutte as a witness. “This fight,” he heard, “is as important to you as it is to us.” What Zelensky did not receive, however, was permission to use his Shadow Storm against Russian positions that are not inside Ukraine itself. In the afternoon, with the French president, Emmanuel Macronheard something similar, without news of Scalps missiles that would contribute to the “just end” he seeks. In the evening, it was the Italian Prime Minister’s turn, Giorgia Meloniwho picked up the gauntlet: “The objective of our support is to put Ukraine in a position to build a peace table, a peace that cannot mean surrender, as so many cowardly suggest. This presupposes military support and support for the energy sector.”
El apoyo al sector energético es fundamental porque, a semanas de termómetros bajo cero, la mitad de las plantas de producción energética están inoperativas. La situación es particularmente difícil en las regiones del este, más cercanas a Rusia, lo que explica la insistencia de Zelenski en sus peticiones: “Los sistemas de defensa nos ayudan a salvar vidas”.
El ánimo no es el mejor a las puertas del invierno. Los rusos progresan a mayor velocidad en los territorios ocupados del Donbás que un año atrás. Muchos ucranianos, como informó este periódico, empiezan a perder la paciencia con el suministro por goteo de las potencias occidentales, y ven como un agravio comparativo el compromiso de Estados Unidos con Israel, a quien protegen de los mismos misiles y drones iraníes que machacan las ciudades ucranianas, a menudo desde las posiciones rusas que Biden evita que Ucrania golpee.
En ese sentido, las palabras del saliente secretario general de la OTAN, Jens Stoltenberg, son llamativas. “Esta es una guerra de agresión rusa contra Ucrania”, declaró ayer en una entrevista para la revista Politico. “Es una violación flagrante del derecho internacional y, según el derecho internacional, Ucrania tiene el derecho a la autodefensa, y ese derecho incluye la capacidad de atacar objetivos militares legítimos en el territorio del agresor, Rusia”. Así que, continuó, “me alegra que algunos aliados no tengan restricciones, mientras estén dentro de los límites del derecho internacional”.
Lo cierto es que Francia y Reino Unido, a diferencia de Alemania, estaban dispuestos a dar ese paso, sólo pusieron una condición: Estados Unidos debía estar dispuesto, también, y no lo está. El plan de Zelenski sigue adelante, entonces, sin que sus puntos esenciales tengan apenas opciones de prosperar, y muchos ucranianos temen que un cambio de administración en Washington dispare las presiones para negociar una paz con Putin que signifique una forma de rendición, algo que la mayoría no está por la labor de aceptar. Zelenski, mientras tanto, se reunirá este viernes con el papa Francisco, un hombre partidario de esta vía.
Add Comment