A friend of mine” translated” Zelensky’s UN speech as follows: Force Russia to the negotiating table, return all territory taken by Russia to Ukraine, have a war crimes trial for Putin and his cronies, send more weapons and money to Ukraine.
I think his description is good enough. However, it is not the actual words. Zellensky genuinely believes that he can persuade NATO ( led by the United States ) to send air force and troops to Ukraine to battle.  ,
Because he is aware that Kamala Harris ‘ supporters wo n’t be able to dispatch their forces until after Harris wins the November election, he is campaigning for him in US swing states, including Pennsylvania.
How do you push Russia to the negotiating stand, you ask? You systematically bomb Russian country with a lot of long-range missiles, destroying system and causing significant casualties for the population.  ,
These, again, there is a undertone. Putin is poor and unhappy, the Russian position is crumbling, and if things get worse he may be ousted from power, opening , the means for a more affordable and praised Russia.
Zelensky and others in Ukraine, such as Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine’s military knowledge, and their friends in the UK, maybe some at the NSC, promote the idea of an overthrow of Putin supporting the essay by citing the case of former Collins head Yevgeny Prigozhin, who died in a jet plane explosion in August 2023 shortly after leading a “revolt” against Putin.  ,
After Prigozhin claimed that the regular army had subdued him and that hundreds of his men had been sacrificed in the Battle for Bakhmut, he was accompanied by a squad of malcontent Wagnerians led by Prigozhin, a visible leader of the Wagner group, an illicit billionaire, and a “friend” of Putin, to launch an invasion of Russian territory without air support and artillery support.  ,
His forces were welcomed, it seems, in Rostov-on-Don, although coming off a victory in Bakhmut made them national heroes, not exactly revolutionaries. Starting a military drive to Moscow, Putin was prepared to destroy Prigozhin and his forces, but Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko, brokered a deal.
Prigozhin broke the news and, on one of his forays in Moscow, boarded his plane that appeared to have exploded in a flight not far from Russia’s capital.
Alexei Navalny, a former Russian prime minister, is the other candidate to overthrow Putin.  , He represented the left opposition to Putin. He did run for mayor of Moscow in 2013 and garnered around 27.2 % of the vote.  , He had been out of Russia for medical treatment after being poisoned with Novichok, a Russian-developed nerve agent.  ,
Navalny was told not to go back to Russia, but he did it anyway. He was arrested, put on trial and sent to a high-security prison where he died.  , Navalny campaigned on an anti-corruption theme and directly attacked Moscow’s leaders as thieves and crooks.
Navalny produced sophisticated presentations that narrated and produced speeches that tried to demonize Putin and Dmitry Medvedev, the former Russian president and deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council.
Navalny undoubtedly benefited from the support of the West, but little is known about the kind of assistance he actually received. Putin could n’t be defeated by Prigozhin or Navalny.
At present, there is no candidate to do so beyond these two deceased players. What is peculiar about the Zelensky thesis is that it is supported by senior UK officials and intelligence. It’s unclear how much real support it actually has from the CIA and the NSC.
Assassins and murderers in Russia appear to be the real threat, including those from terrorist organizations that have been able to bomb important industrial, military, and infrastructure locations, kill Russians, political, and military officials, and support Russian nationalists, as well as those who carried out the brutal attack last March on the Crocus theater complex, which left at least 60 people dead.  ,
In some cases, Russian citizens have been hired by Ukrainian intelligence agencies to carry out terrorist attacks.  , In the Crocus attack, the shooters were linked to ISIS ( from so-called Khorasan province, ISIS-K, in Afghanistan and Pakistan ) but the Russians claim that they were backed by Ukraine.  ,  ,
None of the items above suggests a threat significant enough to compel a change in leadership for the current regime. Even less certainty or clarity exist regarding the organization that might take over the Russian presidency if Putin were to win the election or die. You wonder what would happen if some Russian politicians and TV personalities were actually in power when you hear their rants.  , Would they use nuclear weapons, blaming Ukraine, the UK and the United States?
In the same way, the calls for deep strikes on Russian soil also raise the possibility of Russia using nuclear weapons. Putin’s use of these weapons is unlikely, but the same cannot be said for his replacement by more extreme leaders.
Zelensky’s “dream” of replacing Putin or even putting Putin on trial is just political theater, and not very smart theater. His chances of succeeding are essentially nonexistent.
Of course, the idea of sending in NATO and US troops is even worse as an alternative because Russia would start a war against Europe and the United States. Everyone is aware that this is the case, but it could still occur as the Ukrainian army crumbles and no one would want to accept defeat, let alone a new president Harris.  ,
The Biden-Harris administration is following Zelensky down the rat hole rather than supporting a diplomatic initiative.
Stephen Bryen is Asia Times ‘ senior correspondent. He also served as the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s staff director and as its deputy undersecretary of defense for policy.  ,
This , article , was originally published on his , Weapons and Strategy , Substack, and is republished with permission.