One and half month of war in Ukraine

 If someone is prodded to attack me, then hits me, he may give me a few punches having the initial advantages before I start retaliating. But chances are he may not stay motivated for long enough though he is the bigger bully, for he is not on a mission on his own and is fighting  someone else's war. On the other hand I being at the receiving end will stubbornly fight back as I have nothing to lose with everything at stake to protest, whereas my much powerful opponent has everything to lose being the aggressor. The more the fight lingers on, the more confidence I gain by keeping my opponent engaged and slowly dragging him into a quagmire. 

Same is happening between Russia, the aggressor and Ukraine the defender. After one and half months of the war it is quite apparent that Russia hasn't made the progress it aspired for. Without any tangible gain it seems to be on the back foot looking at a stalemate. Usually the side at the receiving is more motivated to defend its territory. That's exactly what Ukraine is doing as happened in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan when the fancied USA and Russia after some initial success their soldiers lost their appetite to fight on long run. The underdogs familiar with their home terrain launched classic guerrilla warfare frustrating their assaulters, resulting in an eventual insulting and ignominious exit of the superpowers.

Same could be happening to the Russian forces. Who wants to die for a dictator Putin's whims and fancy, whether a country named Ukraine joins NATO or not ? A la Bhishma's wise councelling in Hindu epic Mahabharat - "YUDH KI BAAT KARNA EK BAAT HAI, YUDH KARNA AUR EK BAAT HAI". It is one thing to talk about war, another to actually fight a war.

The only motivated people fighting on Russian side I see now are the keyword warriors and self proclaimed Bhakts-turned-Putin fans who have never stepped a day in their life on a battlefield. They seem to be the ones who are excited about this war, backing Russia because it backed us during the 1971 war with Pakistan. They are conveniently forgetting that both Russia and Ukraine were part of the erstwhile superpower Soviet Union who helped us during Bangladesh war. But what more to expect from our Whatsapp University graduates !!!

The real soldiers who have stepped on the battlefield do not want their asses on line for the whims and fancies of a megalomaniac oligarch and seem to be low on their mojo to carry on forward. On the other hand the gritty Ukrainians have a lot to fight for and resist about as the needless war drags on and on. The longer this skirmish continues it will be advantage Ukraine and disaster Russia.

In the game of Chess in which the Russians are known to excell, the opponents go for a draw when they see a deadlock situation is reached from which no one can win. Hence it's high time for Putin to realize the folly and end it with a face saving gesture. A dictator with billions of dollars stashed abroad may have nothing to lose, but his poor countrymen have everything to lose. He should call it a draw to end the stalemate with a graceful exit. It will be good for him, good for the world.