Photo: VCG

Editor's Note: 

February 24 marks the anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which has been ongoing for three years. Why has the conflict lasted for such a long time? Is it approaching a turning point now that the US and Russia have come to the negotiating table? How will the conflict evolve under new circumstances? As the three-year anniversary approaches, the Global Times (GT) has gathered insights from experts in the US and Europe.

In the second interview of the series, Earl Rasmussen (Rasmussen), former Lieutenant Colonel of the US Army and an international security consultant, shared his insights. He believes that the Ukraine crisis is a tragedy that should have never started. The West needs to stop posturing and acknowledge the reality and should refrain from fostering divisions, he says. 

GT: The US and Russia held talks this week in Saudi Arabia and agreed to work toward ending the conflict. How do you view the outcome of the talks, and how do you see the prospects for the conflict?

Rasmussen: I think we had some positive moves in barely a week, at least they are talking now. It's a very positive dialogue. There's a lot of disagreements, but at least they're in the process of reestablishing formal diplomatic channels. The trust has been damaged a lot between the West and Russia, and trust is very important on diplomatic communications and making positive moves forward. 

I was really kind of negative for a while before the discussion between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, and I don't know if it'll come out positive. But I think there's a glimmer of hope that we could see something positive coming out of this, and I think that's best for the world to do so. So we'll see where this goes the next two weeks.

Earl Rasmussen Photo: His LinkedIn account

 
GT: As US-Russia talks were conducted without Ukraine and Europe, what do you think of the situation for Ukraine and Europe? 

Rasmussen: Europe is probably paying the price more. Almost every European country is in recession, we've got a Europe in disarray. Ukraine just doesn't have the manpower, it doesn't matter how much equipment and how much ammunition they have. There're certain kinds of difficulties for Russia, but I went over there a few months ago; its business and economy is thriving. The Ukrainian forces can't match the logistical capabilities of Russia, even with the support of the West. They're going to send young boys into battle untrained along the front lines. It's just a waste. It's a conflict that should have never started, and it's just a tragedy. We need to avoid conflicts, and we can do a lot more for the world if we work together and cooperate.

GT: Under what circumstances will the war end? Can any ceasefire be long-lasting?

Rasmussen: President Trump and President Putin both agreed that they want to stop the war. Unfortunately, Ukraine and many of the Europeans are not supportive of that. If they don't get on board to the initiatives being set by Russia and the US, the war will continue. So it's a poor situation, but I think they need to come to an agreement. They need to stop posturing and understand what the real situation is. I don't think they really realize the ceasefire is there or what it is. I think they're still thinking in a Cold War mentality, but we need a complete peace agreement. If they don't come to a peace agreement, we're going to have more people dying.

GT: It seems that many ordinary Americans have a one-sided view of the conflict. Why do you think this is the case? 

Rasmussen: It was the US and the West in general provoking the situation. Russia hasn't really tried to expand. I don't think Russia wanted the war to go this long. I think they wanted to have it settled early up. And when it looked like it was going to, unfortunately, the West stepped in and disrupted the peace negotiations early on. 

But we've shut down a lot of the opposition media. Independent media people were demonized on their social media platforms. We see a lot of media are completely controlled by and paid by the US government. They say almost the exact same thing in certain topics. It's like the same scriptwriter. People were fired, they lost their jobs if they questioned what the government was saying. And now we can find out the government was deceiving us. 

Some of the records are coming out, and the truth is coming out more. It was all misleading. It's really sad when you're brought up thinking the government is one way, you find out it really isn't. And we actually begin to find out what's really going on. I think the American people in general only heard one side of the story and I think it's important that they hear both sides of the story and make their own decision.

GT: There is speculation that the US will readjust its foreign policy and aims to sow discord between Russia and China. What's your take on this rhetoric?

Rasmussen: I think the West should try not to create divisions, facing up to the fact that the world is going to be a more multipolar one. We need to live with and accept the rest of the world and work together. I get upset with the West on how they want to dictate things around the world rather than working together where there's mutual benefit to everyone under win-win situation and promoting economic growth.

I think working together is a better direction, but there's a lot of papers from think tanks that talk about the ways to weaken Russia and China, which is unfortunate. Hopefully they don't actually implement those plans. If they do, it'll end up failing and backfiring on them.