Russian Leaders Have Habit of Going 1 War Too Far

t is not yet clear how the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War will end. What is clear, though, is that Vladimir Putin’s February 2022 intervention did not achieve the quick, low-cost victory that many (including Putin himself) appear to have anticipated. After the failure of his initial attempt to take over most (if not all) of Ukraine and bring about the downfall of the Zelenskyy government, Russia has concentrated its efforts on expanding its control over eastern and southeastern Ukraine. Though Russian forces are reportedly making slow but steady progress, Ukrainian forces—with weaponry provided by the United States and several other Western governments—are putting up fierce resistance against them. It is not at all certain that Russia will be able to gain or retain much more Ukrainian territory than it has occupied already. On the other hand, Ukraine does not seem capable of retaking all the territory it has lost to Russia (including Crimea and eastern Ukraine in 2014) that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has declared as his goal. The most likely prognosis for the war, then, is that it will continue—perhaps for months or even years.