Retired U.S. Central Command Commander (2008–10), former CIA Director (2011–12), and Kyiv Security Forum (KSF) Security Council member David Petraeus has expressed the conviction that to achieve victory, Ukraine requires partners' assistance in overcoming several critical vulnerabilities, ranging from a shortage of interceptors to a defense budget deficit.
Petraeus called further pressure on the Russian Federation and the destruction of Russia's war economy the key to Ukraine's victory. He stated during a special meeting of the KSF Security Council in Kyiv that their task is to help Ukraine put Putin in a position where he realizes that the cessation of hostilities is just as necessary for him as it is for Ukraine. He noted that a sanctions package in the U.S. Congress has already been approved by an overwhelming majority in the Senate, which will complement the European Union's 22 rounds of sanctions. He added that if the European Commission can find a way to utilize the $300 billion in frozen Russian assets, that will also be a huge plus, and that other steps are needed to directly integrate Ukraine into the European military-industrial complex, which will benefit both Europe and Ukraine.
At the same time, the former commander highlighted Ukraine's impressive results at the front and deep in the enemy's rear. He noted that Ukrainian forces are currently monthly destroying or wounding a larger number of Russian soldiers than Russia mobilizes each month, that they are penetrating deeper into the enemy's logistics infrastructure, and that they are very effectively isolating Crimea by having destroyed 285 vessels that typically deliver goods, materials, and petroleum products there. He stated that in Crimea, electricity is disappearing, water is being cut off, and there will likely be no electricity this winter, making Crimea a burden for Putin.
Separately, Petraeus noted the unprecedented scaling of Ukrainian defense innovations, pointing out that instead of 8 million drones, there is a desire to manufacture 10 million this year.
The special meeting of the KSF Security Council was dedicated to the challenges awaiting Ukraine this winter. Its participants, in addition to Petraeus, included KSF Chairman and former Prime Minister (2014–16) Arseniy Yatsenyuk and former U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine (2017–19) Kurt Volker.
