(Zero Hedge)—For those who understand the basics of attrition warfare, the outcome of the fight in Ukraine was obvious a long time ago. Russia’s superior logistical position along with its grinding offensive tactics have worn down Ukraine’s defenses and left the country with a desperate manpower shortage. The recent capture of the vital hub of Pokrovsk has now opened the door to an accelerating Russian advance.
The Russian offensive is gaining significant ground from Pokrovsk to the north, all the way to Kupiansk. The strategic city of Siversk is now largely under control of Russia according to geo-location mapping. Myrnohrad, also near Pokrovsk, has been flattened by artillery and FABs.
Ukraine’s ability to stall Russian forces is faltering, allowing the Kremlin to move troops in a swift manner closer to maneuver warfare instead of the slow and methodical process of attrition. Ukraine continues to deny they are in trouble, but the writing is on the wall.
This helps to explain Europe’s sudden interest in “peace negotiation”, but not for the purposes of establishing actual peace. First and foremost, we know Europe is not interested in peace because they largely refuse to engage directly with Putin and Russia in negotiations.
Instead, European leaders continue to pretend as if they can establish a peace deal unilaterally without involving the Kremlin. They have also consistently tried to sabotage Donald Trump’s efforts for a quick resolution by deluding Zelensky with promises of access to Russian assets.
The Europeans have in fact announced their plan to confiscate Russian assets that have been frozen since the beginning of the war, using them to help fund Ukraine’s military and infrastructure. Trump had initially intended to use those assets as a bargaining chip to convince the Russians to support his peace plan.
Zelensky and European officials have spoken often about sustaining the war for at least another two years, which is foolish given the current state of Ukraine’s front lines. Russia does not need to conquer vast swaths of territory to win, all Russia needs to do is kill Ukrainian troops until there aren’t enough left to maintain a proper defensive line. After that, Zelensky will lose the whole country, not just the eastern third.
Europe also continues to push for troop deployments, using NATO as a “peacekeeping force” as part of the negotiations. Putin has repeatedly stated that this would lead to wider war. After all, it was the encroachment of NATO into Ukraine over a decade ago that ultimately triggered the current war.
In a recent admission, Trump asserted that there will be no more handouts from the US to Ukraine, ending speculation on whether or not the hundreds of billions of dollars in US aid would continue under his administration. The statement comes just after Trump’s revelation that Zelensky “had not even read the US peace proposal” despite other Ukrainian officials supporting the plan.
NATO and EU leaders claim that Russia is in financial peril due to sanctions and other measures, but there isn’t enough evidence to support this theory. Russia has seen a slowdown in GDP and PMI, but so has 70% of all other national economies in the face of a global decline in economic activity.
Ukraine drone strikes on Russian infrastructure have been increasingly ineffective. Their most recent attack involved nearly 300 drones with minimal success. Ukraine called for a truce on attacks on energy infrastructure, indicating that their strikes are not doing as much damage as they would like. The Kremlin rejected the offer.
🚨🇬🇧 “The Defence Minister said – the UK is rapidly developing plans to prepare the whole country for war”
“The sense that war isn’t that far away from us – what does that do to people here?”
EU & UK Politicians along with NATO have seriously been ramping up the wartime… pic.twitter.com/N4DUWlptbS
— Concerned Citizen (@BGatesIsaPyscho) December 13, 2025
It would appear that the Europeans are trying to use peace negotiations as a way to stop Russia’s advance, arguing that there can be no peace until Russia agrees to a ceasefire. As any tactician knows, ceasefires are often nothing more than a way to stall an offensive in order to gain an advantage over an enemy who thinks you are sincere.
Europe’s behavior indicates they have no intention of ending the war. Instead, they seem hellbent on expanding the conflict and turning it into a world war.
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