“Ukraine Bought Us Time, but We Wasted It”: Expert Warns of Unpreparedness for Russia’s Future War on West

“Ukrainians are paying for our failures,” says Edward Lucas, former senior editor at The Economist and a non-resident Senior Fellow and Senior Advisor at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA).

He emphasized that Ukraine is fighting to defend itself and Europe, while also not having enough sufficient military support.

“Ukrainians are bearing the cost of our shortcomings. They struggle to defend their collapsing front lines and war-torn cities against Russia's relentless assault, as American aid arrives too little, too late, and burdened with restrictions that hinder their ability to strike the invaders' airbases and troop formations. Yet, while they pay the price now, we will face the consequences later,” Lucas wrote.

According to Lucas, Britain is unprepared for a potential war with Russia, with their armed forces lacking in strength, supplies, and the logistical support needed for a full-scale conflict.

“As a scathing report this year by Sweden’s FOI defence think tank pointed out, Britain could at best provide a “limited expeditionary force” that would have ‘serious issues with sustainability,’” he wrote.

The expert reports that recent events indicate escalating Russian aggression in Europe through sabotage and covert operations, including arsons and bomb parcels.

“Russia is attacking us right now, with sabotage and other mischief,“ Lucas stated. “A man from Leicestershire last month pleaded guilty to aggravated arson, carried out on behalf of the Russian mercenary Wagner group. Counterterrorism police are investigating a parcel bomb in Birmingham; similar incidents in Poland and Germany could have brought down planes carrying air freight. Mysterious blazes abound: at a Monmouthshire ammunition plant in April and this week at our nuclear submarine shipyard in Barrow.”

At the same time, Lucas states that some countries, like Finland and Poland, do see an existential threat in Russia and are prepared better for a potential war.

“We had the chance to counter Kremlin imperialism alongside a big, strong, united country. Scared of the risks and costs of providing real military support, we did not take it. Ukraine bought us time to build up our own defenses. We wasted that too,” Lucas said.

He added that Europe’s safety now is relying on a fragile assumption, “that the next US administration will care more about our security than we do.”

According to estimates from Ukrainian Intelligence on October 24, the number of North Korean military personnel transferred to Russia is currently around 12,000, including 500 officers, among them 3 generals from Pyongyang.