Final Word from Wednesday, November 22, 2023

Pres. Petr Pavel told army command yesterday that war fatigue will lead to increased pressure for an end to the conflict in Ukraine in the form of some kind of agreement. It was reiteration of his message from the Diplomacy and Security conference on Nov. 9, when he said that developments on the ground don't indicate that Ukraine will be able to gain military superiority and that initial peace negotiations could begin next year. Pavel's unstated assumption is that Vladimir Putin will be willing to sit down to the negotiating table, despite having the stronger position on the battlefield. This would require Russia to abandon its effort to "change the international order and to impose its own idea of global order," as attributed to it (and China) in the Czech cabinet's new Defense Strategy. If we are to take at all seriously what Petr Pavel says about the situation in Ukraine, we need to hear from him how entering into negotiations with Russia would serve to maintain the current world order. [ Czech Republic government peace talks negotiations ]