Putin Will Never Compromise on Ukraine

Russia’s president is too committed to his own fantasies to ever accept Ukraine’s independence.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is seen on a screen set at Red Square as he addresses a rally and a concert marking the annexation of four regions of Ukraine in Moscow on September 30, 2022. November 11, 2025, 2:45 PM Comment icon View Comments ( )

For years, there has been one guiding throughline to U.S. policy regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It wasn’t necessarily about allowing Ukraine to reclaim all of its territory, and it certainly wasn’t about a defeat of Russia outright. Instead, the West’s strategy centered on convincing Russian President Vladimir Putin that his invasion of Ukraine would ultimately fail. If Putin could be convi

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