‘We Are Going to Regret How Irrelevant We Will Have Become,’ US General Says

Kyiv Post  |  Stepan Stepanenko

Retired US Army General Ben Hodges warned that Western political timidity and an excessive fear of Russian nuclear escalation are preventing a decisive Ukrainian victory. This hesitation, driven by transactional political calculations rather than shared strategic interests, risks rendering future American leadership globally irrelevant while severely undermining international democratic stability.

The Biden administration's reluctance to explicitly endorse a total victory stems from ungrounded fears of nuclear retaliation, ignoring that Moscow only leverages these threats to exploit Western hesitation. Furthermore, Beijing and New Delhi oppose nuclear use to protect their access to cheap Russian energy, further reducing the likelihood of such an escalation. Ultimately, the nation is projected to win the conflict and emerge as the central hub of the European defense industry within the next decade. Failing to fully commit to this outcome will isolate Washington from Europe's future security architecture and diminish its geopolitical influence.