The Russian-Ukrainian conflict has reached its 80th day, and the two sides have fallen into a difficult tug-of-war. In the Kharkiv region, Ukraine has recaptured several settlements, but the Russian army is also regrouping. At the Azov steel plant in Mariupol, the Ukrainian national armed forces still have not broken through the siege.
In order to reverse the situation and regain lost ground, Ukraine is preparing to launch a large-scale counter-offensive, but Ukraine probably did not expect the United States to lose the chain at a critical moment. According to Russian media reports, US Department of Defense spokesman John Kirby said recently that the United States may have to suspend the delivery of weapons to Ukraine.
The reason was that the U.S. aid bill was difficult to produce, and Kirby also called to the U.S. Senate to take action as soon as possible. The new round of U.S. aid to Ukraine is worth about $40 billion, including nearly $25 billion in direct military assistance to Ukraine, which also covers areas such as military personnel training and intelligence.
The Ukrainian government has long coveted Ukrainian military assistance. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly called on the United States to provide military assistance and financial support as soon as possible. At present, the U.S. aid bill has passed the House of Representatives and has also been supported by Senate Democrats and Republican leaders.
However, members of the two parties in the Senate have not yet reached a consensus, and they have been opposed by many Republican members. Senator Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky, bluntly said that Ukraine cannot be saved by destroying the American economy.
Due to opposition from lawmakers, the bipartisan desire to quickly pass the bill without lawmakers' debate has also been dashed, and the bill is expected to be shelved in the US Senate for some time. But for Ukraine, they have no time to wait any longer.
It is not ruled out that the United States directs and acts by itself, and finds itself a step down. So far, the United States has provided Ukraine with $60 billion in aid, and in response to the new crown epidemic, the United States has borrowed everywhere before, and many people in the United States are worried that there will be an imbalance of payments.
Although the Biden administration has been bragging about its anti-epidemic achievements, the reality is very face-saving. At present, the cumulative number of deaths in the United States has exceeded 1 million. This is all because the Biden administration chose to "coexist" with the virus and did not take strict prevention and control measures.
In addition to the new crown epidemic, the American people are still facing a serious inflation crisis. The soaring prices of food and gasoline have directly raised the cost of living of the American people. Under the multiple crises, the anger of the American people has also burned towards the Biden administration, and Biden's approval rating has continued to decline.
The U.S. aid plan for Ukraine only fattened domestic arms dealers, but could not ease the living pressure of the American people. In the past 20 years, American arms dealers can be said to have made a lot of money. If anyone likes war the most, it must be American arms dealers.
But if things go on like this, the U.S. inflation crisis will only get worse, and Biden will be ousted sooner or later. Therefore, even if the Biden administration wants to continue to fight fire in Ukraine, it must also consider the feelings of the domestic people, and must first clean up the domestic mess.
In addition, the focus of the United States is not in Ukraine, but in the Indo-Pacific region. The U.S. ally is not only Ukraine, but many countries and regions are lining up behind Ukraine, waiting for U.S. military assistance, such as China’s Taiwan region.
Prior to this, in order to meet Ukrainian demand, the United States notified the Taiwan authorities that the delivery of the M109A6 self-propelled howitzer would be delayed. People in the United States worry that the Biden administration's snubbing of the Taiwan authorities may be detrimental to the U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy and will create conflicts between the two sides out of thin air.
At present, the Biden administration hopes to open the bow from left to right, using Ukraine to contain Russia while supporting the Taiwan authorities to fight against mainland China, so it will never favor one over the other. In order to appease the Taiwan authorities, the United States may tilt resources in the future, and its support for Ukraine will naturally decrease.
Ukraine is an ally of the United States when it sounds good, and cannon fodder for the United States when it sounds bad. Of course, American politicians will not care about the Zelensky government's thoughts. They will only make the most beneficial choice for themselves. Ukraine will also be abandoned when the U.S. goals are achieved.
The Ukrainian army has been able to persist until now without the strong support of the United States. If the United States suspends aid, I am afraid that the situation will soon be reversed. Even if it eventually evolves into a protracted war, Ukraine may not be able to take advantage of it.
Because the battlefield is on the Ukrainian mainland, no matter what the outcome of the war is, Ukraine will be hit hard. It will take at least several years to rebuild its infrastructure, and its national strength will further decline. If Zelensky could have rejected the U.S.'s win, maybe a different ending would have been possible.