The Choice to End the War Isn’t Ukraine’s. It’s Putin’s and the West’s
When Graham Allison, the Douglas Dillon Professor of Government at Harvard University, talks, it’s wise to listen—even if he’s wrong.
And a recently published article in The National Interest shows just how wrong he can be.
The point of the piece is straightforward: Ukraine would do well to consider handing over that part of Donetsk Province it still controls in exchange for peace: “The question his [Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s] government now faces is whether to accept an option that will end the war sooner, with all the liabilities that entails, or to continue fighting and risk losing more warriors, citizens, and territory.”
Would that the choice were so simple.
Russia’s illegitimate president, Vladimir Putin, has made it very clear that nothing short of Ukraine’s capitulation and transformation into a demilitarized, Russian-speaking vassal of Moscow will do. His minions have made the same point as well.
What the Ukraine War Is Really About
Which is to say that Putin’s war isn’t, and has never been, about territory. Lord knows Russia has more than enough of it. Rather, the war is about the existential impermissibility of a democratic, pro-Western Ukrainian identity and its holders, Ukrainians. Putin doesn’t need or want Ukraine. He just wants it to be bereft of Ukrainians.
Ending the war “sooner” won’t work, because Putin has no interest in ending the war until the Ukrainian “problem” has finally been resolved.
Allison then superimposes a map of Russian-occupied territory on a map of America’s northeast and notes that it extends from New England to southern New York. In another map, he superimposes Ukrainian-held Donetsk Province on Delaware, the point being that such a sliver of territory may not be worth fighting for.
The Territory Trap
By reducing everything to territory, Allison falls into a trap of his own making. After all, that bit of real estate is home to at least 216,000 Ukrainians.
Some might welcome a Russian occupation, some might settle for peace at any cost, but many would surely be distraught at the prospect of Russia’s genocidal policies toward Ukrainians—them.
Is Allison recommending that they all be forced to live under Putin’s tutelage? That would be an endorsement of genocide, surely no option for any policymaker outside of Moscow, Beijing, or Pyongyang.
Or is Allison recommending that the Ukrainians be compelled to leave? That would be an endorsement of ethnic cleansing.
Tu-160 bomber. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
These are the choices Ukraine faces.
Ultimately, the problem with Allison’s analysis is that he frames the question of peace as a Ukrainian choice. But just as Ukraine never chose to be attacked, so too it can’t just make peace by choosing it to happen.
Unfortunately, the choice is Putin’s and the West’s. Putin could end the war tomorrow with a phone call to his generals. And the West could make Putin make that call sooner by making it clear to him that it will support Ukraine for as long as it takes for the Kremlin to realize that the war is unwinnable for Russia.
Until one of these outcomes happens, Ukraine can only choose to live.
About the Author: Dr. Alexander Motyl, Rutgers University
Dr. Alexander Motyl is a professor of political science at Rutgers-Newark. A specialist on Ukraine, Russia, and the USSR, and on nationalism, revolutions, empires, and theory, he is the author of 10 books of nonfiction, including Pidsumky imperii (2009); Puti imperii (2004); Imperial Ends: The Decay, Collapse, and Revival of Empires (2001); Revolutions, Nations, Empires: Conceptual Limits and Theoretical Possibilities (1999); Dilemmas of Independence: Ukraine after Totalitarianism (1993); and The Turn to the Right: The Ideological Origins and Development of Ukrainian Nationalism, 1919–1929 (1980); the editor of 15 volumes, including The Encyclopedia of Nationalism (2000) and The Holodomor Reader (2012); and a contributor of dozens of articles to academic and policy journals, newspaper op-ed pages, and magazines. He also has a weekly blog, “Ukraine’s Orange Blues.”
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Jim
September 6, 2025 at 8:53 pm
“The Choice to End the War Isn’t Ukraine’s. It’s Putin’s and the West’s’
I agree.
What will happen?
It’s up in the air.
Security guarantees as Europe would like them don’t seem likely to happen.
Russia will continue the war as long as the West insists on a demarcation which leads to a NATO-ized Ukraine.
So… war will continue and will get more dangerous as time goes by… because of stratagems to “change the game” from the West (Russia is satisfied with the present direction).
I see no willingness on the part of the West to accept a neutral Ukraine at the present time.
So the war continues.
At its present trajectory.
Where will that end?
Swamplaw Yankee
September 6, 2025 at 9:21 pm
The op-ed readership is again in benefit of the re-appearance of a genuine Ukrainian-American long time op-ed contributor. His comments on the Ukrainian angle are often unique, always rational, and stand in contrast to the huge army of instant experts on Ukraine. These self-deceived scribblers are counterfeits who plug up the media space! Why? Well, one can only make a wild guess: because they took a russkie language course, perhaps dated a russkie.
The Doctor does make a major error in language! There is no war! There is a re-start of the ancient 1000 year old Genocide of Ukrainians by the peasant russkie muscovites.
The major episodes of this Genocide of Ukrainians are many. Depending on which Halloween the ruskkie butchers appear, the russkie will wear a different costume, depending what century they rise from their genetic need to kill Ukrainians.
The major Genocide of the last 100 years is the mass starvation of 20,000,000 Ukrainians in 1932-1933. The Russkie peasant dressed up in a Halloween costume ” Stalin style ” as they staggered Zombie like from Ukrainian home to home seizing every last bit of food out of every little child’s mouth, so they could seize all the cows, chickens, pigs, wheat, grain and send it back home to Moscow. And, the russkie would shoot the Ukrainians dead if they were found off their homes on the public street. Starve in your own kitchen was the tune that Putin’s grand father whistled.
Ukrainian Fathers of 1616 had to rescue tens of thousands of little Ukrainian children that the Russkie “harvest” butchers personally abused then, when satiated/bored, sold into slavery to the muslim sex/slave traders.
The USA is a brand new concept, the US Constitution a brand new wonder. That so many professors in the WEST cowardly hide behind
their instant vile misinformation means that they are thrilled that they can not be held accountable.
That Harvard allows well paid staff to emit such affronts: this is not theirs, not their home-land to give away in idiotic harmful fabrications.
The USA can rest assured that Harvard will not discipline this and others who create harm and damage with a free hand to protect themselves using freely their employers Harvard name. -30-
Bankotsu
September 7, 2025 at 4:17 am
You mean like Israel is erasing Palestine?
Why is that a problem for U.S.?
This is dumb like F.
Roman Solchanyk
September 7, 2025 at 4:46 pm
Prof. Motyl is quite right that Putin wants to erase Ukraine in the sense of transforming it into a vassal state of Russia with no agency. But that does not preclude Putin’s designs on Ukrainian territory. On numerous occasions—e.g., in his 2013 Valdai remarks,in his 2021 pseudo-historical essay on Ukraine, in his criticism of Lenin and the Bolsheviks for “giving away” Russian land, in his statements about “liberating” Donbas, in his frequent remarks about a “great historical[imagined] Russia,” and most pointedly in his conviction that Ukraine and Ukrainians are fictions created by a Russophobe West—Putin has demonstrated that Ukraine, all of Ukraine, “belongs” to Russia.
Jim
September 8, 2025 at 11:12 am
Did Ukraine have no agency when it was neutral and non-aligned from its 1991 independence until the 2014 bloody, violent, overthrow of the duly elected president?
Russia’s demands have been consistent since the February 24, 2022 invasion: neutrality, de-Banderization, limited military, and equal rights for Russian speaking citizens within Ukraine, plus, territory gained by Russian force of arms remains in Russian possession.
Austria has been neutral since 1955, yet had friendly relations with the West, and thrived as an independent country. I never heard or read reports Austria was chaffing under neutrality or it limited its economic potential or viability.
It seems Ukraine supporters have a tendency to claim the worst from various Putin statements, but then refuse to actually consider Russia’s demands, meanwhile Ukraine loses more territory, men & material.
There is one exception to the idea Putin and the West control Ukraine’s fate: Ukraine can accept neutrality, lost territory, and equal rights for all citizens, itself; and de-Banderization and a limited military can be negotiated.
But it seems clear those in power in Kiev and its sponsors in the West would rather see Ukraine destroyed and Ukrainians killed em mass than see a neutral Ukraine. (This seems entirely self-defeating and callous towards the welfare of average Ukrainians.)
If so, then the fate of Ukraine rests in those hands and the final result will be their responsibility as well.
Swamplaw Yankee
September 8, 2025 at 11:41 am
Hanging around Harvard 60 years back, I thought one could speculate the staff were adroit, at least alert. But not in 2025. The internet seems to have invaded Harvard like a Zika virus.
Re-reading the above Harvard staff publication is somewhat ridiculous.
Federation muslims, christians, whatever from what ever captive ethnic group controlled by tsarling Putin is not even in this “instant expert” universe.
It is really like an adult first – time visiting a grade one class. The professor can walk + run about Harvard Square bookstores as if he was an adult. Mentally, the reader can not expect the well paid Harvard professor to even comprehend polysyllabic words and concatenated cognitive data. Ukraine, hmmm. The professor has just joined John Carter on the magic zip to planet Mars, where his version of Ukraine is located. Yes, the Harvard professor can keyboard a few basic facts and many misconceptions and publish the blather next to the Harvard brand name.
Perhaps the Harvard staff all round need to read a least a decades worth of op-ed from the mind of Doctor Motyl. Even going back more would not hurt these kindergarden level professors. The Genocide of Ukrainians by orc russkies goes back 1000 years with many numerous huge genocide events that killed tens of million Ukrainians. The HARVARD staff in the HARVARD Ukrainian faculty should have vetted this rogue keyboarder.
The University system of the Yankees seems to need the legally mandatory French state approach. DST = Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire.
Proofs of all papers must be submitted before publication. There is zero concept of free lance writers/ journalists in France. Nil. Big Zero.
The US Constitution is a unique USA treasure that allows blather to be freely published. This staff fella would be closely watched, as if in junior kindergarden, if tenured inside legal France, bet on that. -30-
Swamplaw Yankee
September 8, 2025 at 12:15 pm
Someone linked the Allison concept blather about his God like thoughts about the soil of Ukraine/Ukrainians to his own hand out.
That whatever percentage of Ukrainian soil is illegally occupied, that is the exact percentage number that every USA University staff remuneration goes down.
So, if Allison pretends he is is a race track tout, Harvard places the bet of all the Harvard staff in the big “salary pool”. If Allison plays the numbers, the staff salary goes down by the same number. Also, the physical square footage of Harvard must be reduced by the same percentage.
So if Ukraine’s soil is trimmed by MAGA POTUS Trumpkins 25%, every University/College in the USA must have its land holding reduced by 25 %.
At this point, cognitive mapping could show HARVARD trustees how much land of Harvard they must sell. A graphic on-line web site could show all staff what level of shrinkage their personal salary “MUST” shrink.
Alison could be made busy running this Harvard site, as Alison shows great ability in this type of academic work. In the staff Cafeteria, Alison should be posting daily, his graphics of MAGA POTUS Trumpkins latest Ukraine soil giveaway numbers to the ethnic Genocider, tsarling Putin.
All 100% of Harvard Staff could plan ahead as they view the latest Allison graphics as to their new, now efficient, reduced salary levels. Every University in the USA must be in lock step with these Alison MAGA POTUS Trumpkins giveaway of Ukraine Graphics.
Alison would be a celebrity in every Faculty of every College/University in the USA. What a great cognitive Genius, Allison, that shines forth from Boston’s prime University: Harvard!
Yes, readers, why should 100% of University staff across America not follow in legal lock step the same percentage game that Alison so glibly advises far away Ukrainians to swallow. Put your money where your mouth is Allison, is the mantra of the racetracks in Boston, + across America.
Remember, MAGA POTUS Trumpkins has maps with percentages too, that Trump is sharing with the elite MAGA Cabal and then, ole buddikins, Genocider Putin. -30-