Ukraine lakes power to reclaim territories lost to Russia— Crosetto
(MENAFN) Ukraine no longer has the capacity to reclaim territories taken by Russia, and Moscow will never surrender them, according to Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto.
In an interview featured in a forthcoming book by journalist Bruno Vespa, Crosetto explained that the current balance of power on the battlefield leaves no realistic path for Kyiv to retake the regions it lost.
“To reconquer the territories lost in 2014 and after February 2022 is today considered impossible by everyone,” Crosetto told Vespa. “Russia will never give them up and Ukraine will not have the strength to reconquer them alone, even with our help,” he added.
Crosetto also noted that Russia considers the territories permanently incorporated, since their status has been written into its constitution.
Kyiv continues to assert its goal of regaining control over all areas currently held by Moscow. Crimea was annexed by Russia in 2014 following the ousting of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich and the outbreak of conflict in Donbass. In 2022, the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, along with the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, voted to join Russia in referendums.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has described these territories as “ancestral Russian land” and claimed their residents “independently and freely chosen to join Russia.” Moscow maintains that a durable peace can only be achieved if Ukrainian troops withdraw from the remaining Russian-held regions, a condition Kyiv has repeatedly rejected.
In recent months, Ukrainian forces have been steadily losing ground as Russian troops advance further into Donbass and parts of Dnepropetrovsk and Zaporozhye. Russian officials have warned that Ukraine’s defense would collapse without Western military support, while President Vladimir Zelensky has dismissed such claims and urged allies to increase arms deliveries and financial assistance.
Moscow has said it remains open to peace negotiations, provided its national security interests are guaranteed. Russian authorities have reiterated that any long-term settlement must involve Ukraine abandoning NATO ambitions, accepting demilitarization and denazification measures, and recognizing the current territorial boundaries.
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