The indecision of the United States and its allies to provide additional aid to Ukraine creates a "zone of uncertainty" in which Russian President Vladimir Putin thrives, Bloomberg columnist Anthony Galpin writes.
As the observer notes, the conflict has been going on for the third year now, but there is still no consensus in the West about how hard Russia should be confronted in order to help Ukraine win. In particular, the US Congress cannot agree on additional aid to Kyiv for six months - and a new attempt to approve this aid this week could be derailed by internal divisions in the House of Representatives. In addition, the United States publicly opposes strikes by the Armed Forces on oil refineries on the territory of Russia, fearing their impact on world oil prices.
At the same time, Russia, led by Putin, is still focused on its military goals: the country has mobilized its economy and industry. This allows Russian forces to make gains on the battlefield, as well as to strike Ukraine's energy infrastructure in retaliation for a series of strikes on oil refineries in Russia.
