We all want the war to end. Of course, we would want it to end on our terms (the hostages released, Hamas no longer ruling Gaza, and Hezbollah moving north of the Litani River), but I think the country has had enough. This week, it was reported that 15–20% of reservists are no longer showing up when called. The war has been taking too much of a toll on family life and businesses. The soldiers have had enough. Their wives have had enough. It is only a matter of time before we no longer have the manpower to prosecute this war any further.
There has been a lot of talk of a ceasefire with Lebanon. I am not hopeful, but I am hoping I’m wrong. Gaza is a different problem since Hamas does not value life at all, so they have no incentive to stop unless it is on their terms. We can’t allow that, so I do not see an end there that lets Israel leave anytime soon.
In my mind, there is only one way to have any type of meaningful ceasefire, and that is to make a deal with Russia at the expense of Ukraine.
Indulge me.
I think it is plain to almost everyone that Ukraine will have to settle with Russia on terms they will not like. Disastrous European and American policies have ensured this. When Russia attacked Georgia in 2008, they were not stopped. When they captured Crimea in 2014, they were not stopped. When they attacked Ukraine again in 2022, they were not stopped, and worse, they were put in a position where they were never going to be able to win.
Russia knows no one is going to war with them over Ukraine, and the sanctions in place are not working.
They have won.
All that remains now is to make the Ukrainians see it.
Russia is not going to leave Crimea, and they won’t leave the Donbas or other recently conquered areas. The best the Ukrainians can hope for is a cessation of aggression and perhaps some guarantees that this will be the end of it—but I doubt they would trust anyone on that at all.
What I think would make Israel—and the whole world—safer is that this peace, which will need to be imposed on Ukraine by the EU and Americans, must come with the stipulation that Russia no longer cooperates with Iran and its proxies.
Today, it was reported that all over southern Lebanon, the Israeli army is finding Russian-made weapons. Russia allows the transport of these weapons through Syria, which they could stop at any time. It has also been reported that Russia is helping Iran with their nuclear program.
I have no doubt that the S-300 anti-aircraft batteries that Israel skillfully destroyed last month will soon be replaced with the more advanced S-400 system. This is most likely already in the works.
The world needs to once again isolate Iran, and this cannot be done without the help of Russia. The only incentive that would make them do that is ending the war with Ukraine on their terms.
I think the new American administration wants to end this war in Ukraine quickly. They have an opportunity to leverage this in Israel’s favor, which would make the whole world safer. One can only hope
Agreed 100000%.