In an article in the British newspaper The Telegraph, it was stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin is betting that the West - by standing by Ukraine in its war against his country - is betting on sacrificing himself.
The article's writer, Cheryl Jacobs - editor of the newspaper - believes that Putin may be right in his bet. The truth is that "Ukraine is not on its way to achieving a complete victory." Rather, the situation, in her opinion, is quite the opposite, as it will not seem to be able to eliminate Russian forces.
It claims that the Russian army is superior to the Ukrainians, and that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's attempts to regain what his country lost in the war are faltering.
With the West reluctant to supply tanks to Kyiv, Zelensky will not have enough weapons to launch a preemptive strike before Putin steps up his military campaign in the spring.
Jacobs believes that despite the weakness of the Russian army, things are heading - for Ukraine - at best, towards a "catastrophic" dead end, and at worst, the Russians are continuing to achieve a decisive breakthrough.
With regard to the balance of power between the two sides of the conflict, the author made it clear that Ukraine has a sufficient number of fighters and the determination to uphold its sovereignty, but the Russians possess huge arsenals of weapons and ammunition.
Moreover, the Kremlin is reported to be preparing to mobilize half a million new recruits as it seeks to escalate the war using drones, artillery, warplanes, and tanks, which Jacobs considers a massive shift.
It indicates that these factors make it impossible to defend the current strategy of the West. The West has so far provided Ukraine with enough assistance to prolong the war in an attempt to weaken the Russian army. However, Western support has not reached the point of direct intervention that might change the outcome of the conflict in a significant way. Decisive.
"The old liberal order is hanging by a thread."
And while Russia is changing the dynamics of the conflict, Ukraine, which is "deprived of the necessary capabilities", may quickly suffer a "terrible" defeat after gaining the upper hand in the battles, according to a Telegraph article.
Jacobs goes on to say that the West's attempts to isolate and eliminate the Russian economy do not seem to have succeeded completely, as Russia has a record trade surplus, and its industrial sector has been able to withstand Western sanctions.
Despite all this, the West is not mentally ready to accept anything other than Ukraine's victory, as the author says, noting that Westerners do not want to acknowledge the "disturbing" fact that even if the final outcome of the war - for example - is vague, the myth of hegemony America will be destroyed according to the article.
The writer believes that with Moscow's long-term determination to revive the Russian Empire that prevailed in the Middle Ages, it is possible that a new era of ancient civilizations, not only Russian, but also Chinese, Indian, and perhaps even Shiite Iranian, will come to the world.
And with a volatile conflict raging on its borders, Europe will be in a permanent state of conflict, as the article states.
And if Westerners are fully aware of what is happening, and that the old liberal order is "hanging by a thread" and about to fall, then another model must replace it, a model with rooted qualities that are more evident in strategic flexibility, military prowess and a strong commitment to Western values.
The most important question remains - as Jacobs says - is whether the West is willing to make the necessary sacrifices to actually achieve this.
The author says that there is a disturbing difference between the West and Russia.
The latter, despite its economic decline and demographic decline, believes that it belongs to a culture that has not yet achieved its dreams.
As for the West, it has become submissive, regressing, and fed up with its own values, "including freedom." For this reason, Russia's ability to turn the world upside down should not be taken for granted, in the words of the article, which Jacobs concludes with a warning that the West appears to be far from Defeat President Putin and his approach.