UK Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron described facing Vladimir Putin and his illegal invasion of Ukraine as “the challenge of our generation”.
Lord Cameron, who has already visited Kyiv following his return to government in November, likened the current war in Eastern Europe to the crisis sparked by Adolf Hitler in the 1930s as he was expanding Germany’s borders.
Appearing on the Politico’s Power Play podcast, Lord Cameron said: “To me, Ukraine is the absolute number one priority, this is the challenge for our generation, this is like being a foreign minister or a leader in Europe in the 1930s, we have got to not appease Putin, we have got to stand up to the evil that his invasion represents.”
Speaking from the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday, Lord Cameron said there is a “lot of attention, unity and purpose” across the world when it comes to supporting war-torn Ukraine.
Lord Cameron added the Russian President “isn’t winning” the war as he pointed out what the invasion has so far brought upon Russia.
He said: “He has lost 300,000 people, he’s lost a fifth of his Black Sea Fleet, he has added two very important, powerful and well-trained members to NATO.”
Neither Russia nor Ukraine share their military losses but, as noted by the Foreign Secretary, Moscow is believed to have experienced well above 350,000 casualties since February 2020.
Despite the disparity in their armies, Ukraine has also been able to recapture some of the territories conquered by Russian troops in the first days of their invasion.
Another major victory was achieved in the Black Sea, where Ukraine forced the Russian Black Sea Fleet to partially withdraw from Crimea, which allowed Kyiv to reopen its ports to grain vessels.
Kyiv is scrambling to keep the military aid it needs to face Russian troops coming but has been hit by two major setbacks in recent months.
In December, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban blocked a £42 billion funding package for Ukraine, which is now forcing the European Union to try and circumvent his veto.
Members of the Republican Party in the US Congress have also been obstructing for weeks attempts to approve the aid pledged by President Joe Biden to Ukraine. The decision to block aid to Kyiv was noted in Russia, with propagandists celebrating the move.
The US presidential elections in November may seal the fate of the American military aid to Ukraine, as Donald Trump has already pledged he would bring an end to the hostilities and would no longer provide weapons to the eastern European nation should he win the race.
Without mentioning Mr Trump, Lord Cameron said: “We are not in control of what happens in America and Britain will work with whatever the Americans decide, but I think one thing we can do if we get the money out of Congress, the money through the EU, our own approach, and you see this incredible unity of purpose amongst the Ukrainians is demonstrate during the course of this year that Putin isn’t winning – and he isn’t.”
Pushed by his interviewer to comment on whether the election of Mr Trump could have a massive impact on the future of Ukraine, particularly given the fact he has been critical of the NATO alliance, Mr Cameron replied: “If you show during the course of this year a level of commitment and success and continue to demonstrate the vulnerability of Putin’s Russia, I think that whoever takes over the presidency at the end of this year will have to be able to look at the situation as it is not at the narrative that perhaps is going on at the moment.”
