The conflict between Russia and Ukraine continues to rage, with no resolution in sight.
With peace talks stalled, Russian drones recently targeted Ukrainian power infrastructure in both northern and southern regions, cutting electricity to approximately 60,000 people. In response, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy promised counterstrikes far beyond Russian’s borders.
After three and a half years of war, questions linger about potential paths to peace, while concerns continue to mount over how much the American military should be involved. Last month, President Donald Trump said a peace deal with Russia would not include deploying U.S. troops to Ukraine’s borders.
Retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Darin Gaub, a former UH-60 Black Hawk pilot and battalion commander, agrees with the president, telling Fox News “‘boots on the ground’ in Ukraine is not necessary.”
WorldNetDaily spoke to Gaub in-depth to flesh out what is really happening right now in the Russia-Ukraine war – and America’s involvement.
“Trump’s primary leverage – one that he’s been using lately – is economic,” Gaub explained. “The key thing the U.S. can do is tie ourselves to Ukraine economically and help them use their own resources to build themselves up economically and rebuild their own country.” By doing that, he said, the Eastern European country could rebuild its military and take a formidable stance against Russia.
“The challenge in this conflict is that Russia saw this coming for years and built an alliance and economic system to survive the inevitable sanctions,” Gaub explained to WND. “Not only did he invest heavily in golds and silvers, but he also tied himself closely to China and Iran.” As the retired Army officer explained, “Through these nations, he’s still able to sell energy and fuel his economy and war industry.”
Additionally, Gaub considers it “unfortunate” that “Trump has placed around himself some bad actors providing equally bad advice.”
Despite these setbacks, it still appears only the weight of American influence could compel Vladimir Putin to change his course of action. “This takes time and there has to be some security guarantees in order to make this possible,” said Gaub. “A calculated discussion about the use of intelligence assets – space and airborne – could enforce a no-fly zone, for example.” But, he added, “To think you need to have U.S. troops patrolling some sort of demilitarized zone between Russia and Ukraine is absolutely ridiculous and should never happen.”
“Sadly,” Gaub explained to WND, “European politicians talk one way to Trump, and act another way at home. They are content to let Ukraine fight on until the last standing Ukrainian.” Why? “Too many European nations still benefit economically from the war,” said Gaub, “and continue to make unrealistic demands that serve only to keep the war going, such as refusing to accept that Ukraine would have to make land concessions and that the Crimea be recognized as Russian.”
“Ukraine is not in a good place militarily,” Gaub pointed out, noting that “continuing to destroy Russian oil infrastructure will only serve to push Russia into a corner where they will fight harder.”
“History is full of lessons that teach us the things we shouldn’t do, but it seems many are attempting to recreate history in hopes this time it will work out differently,” Gaub said. He concluded on an idealistic note: “Ultimately, I hope this war ends soon and we are able to see nations elevate each other through economic interchange and trade, rather than looking at each other as opponents.”
