Retired U.S. Military Intelligence Special Agent, Iraq War veteran and geopolitical analyst David DeBatto believes if NATO were truly interested in the victory of Ukraine and the defeat of Russia, they would have already provided everything necessary to the Ukrainian forces weapons, including modern fighter aircraft and long-range ATACMS systems.

"I have been very vocal with my frustration over the restrictions placed on Ukraine in defending itself against Russian forces. That frustration (and occasional anger) is especially directed at the glacial pace of the Western allies in providing Ukraine with the weapons systems and ammunition needed to win the war against Russia, not just to survive another other bloody day," he told Interfax-Ukraine.

According to DeBatto, this is about modern jet aircraft, "such as, but not limited to" the F-16, in numbers over 100; long range missile systems like the ATACMS and longer range HIMARS missiles; large numbers (200-300) of M1 tanks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles and Stryker's; "sufficient numbers" of combat engineering and mine clearing vehicles; several squadrons of attack helicopters.

"If NATO were truly interested in supporting Ukraine to win the war and defeat Russia, they would have supplied all of the above (and more) already. Obviously, they are not interested in Ukraine winning the war, but merely fighting Russia to a stalemate with neither side becoming the winner or loser, but simply being bled to death," the retired U.S. military counterintelligence special agent said.

He also said that in this scenario, Ukraine would be at a disadvantage, since its population is much smaller than that of Russia. DeBatto called it "a dangerous game being played by the West for not ensuring a Ukrainian victory and a Russian defeat."

"It is truly Western cowardice and hypocrisy when telling Ukraine not to defend itself by attacking the very locations inside Russia that are launching continuous deadly attacks on Ukrainian cities and infrastructure. If the situation were reversed, would NATO countries not respond in kind to attacks launched against their cities and infrastructure from locations inside Russia? Would Ukraine tell them not to defend themselves as NATO is now ordering Ukraine to do? I doubt that very much," DeBatto said.

Speaking about the successes of the Defense and Security Forces of Ukraine, he called the actions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and Ukrainian special services "extraordinary." At the same time, DeBatto called himself "one of the few Western analysts that have not been surprised by the performance of Ukrainian forces since 24 February 2022." According to the official, he visited Ukraine several times and was familiar with "training and motivation of Ukrainian soldiers."

However, DeBatto pointed out that since the full-scale Russian invasion, Ukraine has received significant foreign aid for military and intelligence services, as well as much more detailed intelligence and intelligence-gathering equipment from the United States and other NATO allies. He said this intelligence has significantly helped Ukraine both in planning military and intelligence operations and in targeting Russian force concentrations, as well as their control, command and logistics centers.

"As for singling out Ukrainian Special Services and their performance thus far, I can say unequivocally that they have shown the entire world their unparalleled spirit, iron will, courage, flexibility, and unique inventiveness in planning and then attacking Russian assets in both covert and overt operations. Actions such as the attack on the Kerch Bridge, the many drone attacks in Russia and recently in Crimea and the Black Sea, and the complex but crucial investigations and arrests of high-level criminals and traitors among the ranks of ultra rich Oligarchs (and even some members of parliament and the judiciary), speak to the professionalism and integrity of all the agencies within the Ukrainian Special Services community," DeBatto said.

However, he said fighting corruption, especially during war, is extremely important not only for winning the war, but also for subsequently achieving peace by establishing a stable democracy and "setting Ukraine on a clear path to membership in NATO and the European Union."

Speaking about the Russian threat, such as bribing the Western establishment, financing it and helping it come to power, the analyst recalled that several high-ranking leaders in Europe, both in the public and private sectors, had "very lucrative contracts and even employment with Russian businesses, some closely connected to the Kremlin."

According to DeBatto, in Germany for many years there has been "obvious conflict for many years, with Chancellors, members of parliament and regional officials receiving large financial benefits from consulting contracts with Russian companies, most notoriously, Gazprom, the state-controlled energy company."

"However, well placed government and business leaders in several EU nations have also held positions on the boards of large Russian multinational companies for years and have expressed a 'both sides' attitude when it came to taking a stand on Russian aggression. Two examples of this abhorrent behavior are former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and ex-chancellor of Austria, Wolfgang Schüssel. When asked about the 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Schröder stated that there were 'many mistakes — on both sides.' When presented with the same question, Schüssel said he saw no reason to quit his position on the board of the Lukoil, a Russian multinational company. Disgraceful," DeBatto said.

As the expert noted, these "dangerous and cozy relationship got to the point that Germany was almost within just hours of approving the final connection of Nord Stream 2."