“Frightening” estimates of the duration of the Ukraine war and its economic and human risks

Officials in the West have ruled out that the Russian-Ukrainian war will end soon, because the confrontation may last longer than expected, and may last for years or even two decades, which portends a heavy toll of losses, both materially and humanly.

Sky News Arabia quoted the American CBS network as saying that officials in the United States and the West do not expect the current war to be short-lived.

The source stated that the British Foreign Secretary, Liz Terrace, believes that this war may last 10 years, which threatens Europe with frightening troubles.

In the same vein, US lawmakers said in the Capitol building, on Monday, that this war may extend to 10 years, or perhaps 15 and 20 years, and then said that Russia will lose this war, in the end.

Westerners expect the war to be prolonged, because the Ukrainians have shown their attachment to the resistance, while many were betting that Ukraine, including the capital, would fall within only a few days, which did not happen.

Russian President Vladimir Putin attributed his invasion of Ukraine to being careful to ward off security risks to his country, in light of the West's insistence on annexing Ukraine to NATO.

Russia says it is determined to rid Ukraine of what it says is "Nazi rule", and also insists that Ukraine be a demilitarized state with a neutral stance.

And if the war is prolonged, it will be bad for Russia and for the Ukrainians alike, according to observers, because Moscow will have to enter a long and costly confrontation, while the Ukrainians will incur a heavy bill as a result of the continuation of military operations.

The former employee of the US National Security Council, Emily Harding, said that the United States and Europe should prepare for a conflict of 8-10 years, with its economic repercussions.

 The former official for the CIA's operations in Afghanistan, Michael Vickers, said that the number of Russian casualties would increase significantly if the West stood by Ukraine and went ahead with its assistance.

He added that the crisis may last more than the war that took place in Afghanistan during the eighties of the last century, pointing to the possibility of providing support to Ukraine so that it is able to confront Russia and harm it.

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