West must hold nerve in Ukraine

Boris Johnson’s call for Western leaders to steel themselves for a long war in Ukraine or risk the “greatest victory for aggression in Europe since World War II” is worth heeding. So is his appeal to do more to provide Kyiv urgently with the weapons and other resources it needs to “strengthen its ability to defend its soil faster than Russia can renew its capacity to attack”. Four months into the war, much remains heartening about the way the West has rallied to support Ukraine’s fight back against Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked assault on the sovereign, democratic nation. Last week’s defiant offer to Kyiv of candidate status eventually leading to full membership of the EU, along with the prospect of NATO membership, claimed by Mr Putin to be one of the main reasons for his attack on Ukraine, was a sign of the extraordinary support for the country.

But Russia has regrouped and is making slow but steady progress in the eastern Donbas. And Ukraine admits it is losing 100 to 200 soldiers a day, with half of its military equipment destroyed. Some Western countries need to do more to make good on their promises of weapon supplies. Even the Biden administration, which has done so much to help President Volodymyr Zelensky in leading the fight back against Russia, stands accused of failing to provide the weapons crucial to holding back the Kremlin’s advance in the battle for the Donbas. Ukraine is seriously outgunned in what has become a long-range artillery duel. It has been pleading for multiple-launch rocket systems to meet the challenge. It says it needs 60. Two months into the battle, it has been provided with only four.

There are other signs of serious shortcomings by Western alliance members that play into Mr Putin’s hands. A study published last week by the Kiel Institute in Germany showed that nation had delivered only a third of what it pledged. Unnerving for Kyiv, too, was polling last week showing that across 10 European countries, including Britain, more than a third of voters favoured a swift peace deal even if Ukraine had to cede territory to Moscow. Such wavering public support is what Mr Putin is counting on. The polling lends weight to Mr Johnson’s warning after seeing Mr Zelensky in Kyiv last Friday. His promise that, in addition to speeding up weapon supplies, the British Army will provide training for 10,000 soldiers every 120 days is one that should be followed by Western alliance nations. As Mr Johnson says, the challenge is to “enlist time on Ukraine’s side” and ensure it has the “strategic endurance to survive and eventually prevail”. The West must hold its nerve.