"Early in the war, Washington and Berlin believed that Mr. Putin was
headed for defeat. Sanctions would cripple his economy, and public
discontent would inexorably mount as the war dragged on. Western
technology would give Ukraine enough of an edge on the battlefield to
block Russian offensives, and in the end Mr. Putin would come to the
West looking for an off-ramp from a ruinous war.
Those were the good old days. ...
What the Scholz and Biden teams now want is an off-ramp from Mr. Putin.
..
Mr. Putin, unfortunately, isn’t in the business of offering easy
off-ramps. Sensing Western war-weariness and Ukrainian weakness, he will probably demand a high price for peace.
..
There are three things Mr. Putin wants from the war: as much of
Ukraine’s territory and population as he can conquer, Russian vetoes
over the foreign and economic policy of what is left of Ukraine after
the war, and a substantial weakening of both NATO and the EU. Although
the costs are high, every day of the war brings Mr. Putin closer to all
three objectives."
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/putins-rising-price-for-peace-in-ukraine-79ad1531
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