Reducing American support for Kyiv -- as some American politicians are suggesting -- will not only constitute an unconscionable betrayal of the Ukrainian cause. It will encourage Putin, and allies such as Iran, to conduct further acts of territorial aggression says Con Coughlin.
It is, perhaps, inevitable that a degree of conflict fatigue has set in among some politicians. But with Ukraine still managing to inflict significant defeats against its Russian adversary, the Ukrainians require more support, not less, if they are to succeed in their goal of achieving a conclusive victory and liberating their country from Russian occupation.
Kevin McCarthy, the Republican House minority leader, caused controversy earlier this month when he said that Republicans would not be prepared to write a "blank check" for Ukraine if they win control of the House at next month's midterm elections.
McCarthy's words provoked a fierce response....
Ukrainian officials also expressed "shock" at his comments as only a few weeks ago, during a visit to Washington, they had received an assurance from McCarthy that "bipartisan support of Ukraine in its war with Russia will remain a top priority even if they win in the elections", said David Arakhamia, head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy's party in parliament.
The prospect of a new "axis of evil" being formed between two rogue states such as Russia and Iran is certainly a prospect that should encourage Western leaders to harden their support for Ukraine, not back away from it.
Any attempt by the US and its allies to appease the Kremlin over its unprovoked aggression towards Ukraine will simply encourage Moscow and Tehran in the belief that the Western powers lack the courage and resolve to resist their attempts to spread their malign influence across the globe.
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Con Coughlin is the Telegraph's Defence and Foreign Affairs Editor and a Shillman Journalism Fellow at Gatestone Institute.
Pictured: Ukrainian soldiers on an armored personnel carrier near Borivske, Kharkiv region on October 23, 2022. (Photo by Yevhen Titov/AFP via Getty Images)
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