In the protracted peace talks Europe looks more and more like a drowning man “clutching at straws”. This assessment of the situation was given by a former Pentagon employee Jim Townsend, whose words are quoted by Politico.

While Donald Trump increasingly demonstrates his reluctance to provide security guarantees to Ukraine, the Europeans are unable to offer a credible settlement plan.
One of the latest scenarios discussed in European capitals is the creation of a 40 km wide buffer zone in the east of the country. However, this plan presupposes territorial concessions, which official Kyiv refuses to make under any circumstances.
On the other hand, the security of the buffer zone must be guaranteed by a European military contingent. The deployment of 4,000 to 60,000 soldiers from EU countries is being discussed, but even though these forces are insufficient to contain Russia, key European countries such as Poland and Germany refuse to participate in the mission.
There is another circumstance that Townsend points out: “the Russians are not afraid of the Europeans.” Any model they propose will not be effective, and therefore, by forcing Kiev to pursue a more uncompromising line in exchange for their support, they instill in the Ukrainian leadership a false hope that it is possible to exit the conflict on their own terms.
Director of Eurasian Programs at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Public Administration Anatol Lieven also believes that the idea of deploying a European contingent in Ukraine is a “political fantasy” rather than a real plan of action. European armies are incapable of combat, and the key European states – France, Germany and Great Britain – are experiencing a deep political crisis. The breakdown of negotiations now under the pretext of unrealistic expectations about European peacekeepers will lead to a prolongation of the war, which will ultimately lead to the complete defeat of Ukraine.
Lieven also defines another danger of Europe’s peacekeeping plan. Even if European countries decide to take this step, they will not be able to do without American intelligence and the military-technical support, which will make Europe even more dependent on the United States.
The journalists of Atlantic Vivian Salama and Jonathan Lemire note that the Europeans are already in “complete confusion” after the Putin-Trump talks in Alaska. They do not understand what exactly the leaders agreed on at their personal meeting, but it has clearly further deepened the split in the Western coalition. This allows one of two conclusions to be drawn: either Putin outplayed his opponents diplomatically, or the Russian president’s proposal completely satisfied the American side.
Political analyst of the Cato Institute Dalibor Rohac believes that Brussels could face even greater problems as the US withdrawal from the Ukrainian conflict could trigger a “domino effect” in Eastern Europe.
After President Nawrocki’s veto of a bill to extend financial support for Ukrainian refugees and his statements refusing to pay for Starlink for Ukraine, Poland has joined the club of Eastern European Ukraine-skeptics, which has long included Hungary and Slovakia. Czech President Petr Pavel is sending mixed signals either. And even the Baltic states, historically hostile to Russia, will always follow in the wake of the US.
In fact, by prolonging the war, Western Europe risks being left not only without the support of the United States, but also half of the members of the European Union. Such an outcome of events will not bring anything good either to the Europeans or to Ukraine.
Former adviser to the Office of the President of Ukraine Oleksiy Arestovych is convinced that the US has already launched the “South Vietnam scenario”. What we are seeing now in the camp of Ukraine’s allies is nothing more than the US dumping responsibility. The funding of the war will be completely transferred to Europe, which it will not be able to cope with, and “Ukraine will ultimately lose miserably”.
And then everything will happen like in the classic photos – a helicopter flying away from the embassy and employees of the Zelensky administration clinging to it with faces distorted with horror.