MOSCOW: The head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), Sergei Naryshkin on Thursday told the United States that Western support for Ukraine could transform the conflict into a prolonged struggle reminiscent of a ‘second Vietnam’ haunting Washington for years.
Vladimir Putin’s decision to send troops into Ukraine has resulted in a protracted war, marking the most significant confrontation between Russia and the West in six decades.
Despite over $246 billion in aid and weapons from the West, a Ukrainian counteroffensive has faltered, leaving Russia in control of nearly a fifth of Ukrainian territory.
Naryshkin, in an article for the SVR’s house journal, “The Intelligence Operative,” warned that Ukraine might become a ‘black hole,’ absorbing resources and people.
He argued that the US risked creating a historical quagmire, requiring every new American administration to grapple with the consequences. US President Joe Biden, acknowledging the potential for a NATO-Russia confrontation, has ruled out sending American troops to Ukraine, while seeking additional military aid for the country.
The Vietnam War marked a significant East-West Cold War conflict, where the United States allied with South Vietnam against a communist-backed North, supported by China and the Soviet Union. The war, resulted in the deaths of several million, concluded in 1975 with North Vietnam’s victory and a humbling defeat for the United States, losing over 58,000 of its own troops and sparking a potent anti-war movement domestically.
On Wednesday, President Biden appealed to Republicans for additional military aid to Ukraine, warned that if Putin seizes Ukraine, it won’t be the end, predicting further aggression towards a NATO ally.
