I would like to say a few words about Shura Burtin’s report from Ukraine. It is two months of conversations on the front and on the home front, in the capital and in the provinces with military men, civilians, deserters, evaders, women, doctors, cab drivers, volunteers, and refugees. Overall, this strong human document demonstrates how tired the whole Ukrainian society is of the biggest armed conflict since World War II on the European continent.
The report is discussed as a phenomenon. In fact, every major war of the twentieth century has such a testimony. Of course, it could only have appeared in neutral Switzerland. In Ukraine or Russia, where considerations of censorship and self-censorship severely restrict the author, it would hardly have come out.
The state of people in Ukraine three years later is an exact correspondence to Svechin’s term of “strategy of exhaustion”. Russia’s military and political leadership has staked on exhausting the enemy in every sense. This year, if we extrapolate the phenomenon described by Burtin, may become decisive.
This means that Moscow will be able to negotiate peace without a break, which the enemy needs so much (if we believe Burtin). Or to bargain a very large concession for a respite. Reading other options does not give birth to other options.
As for the humanistic content of Burtin’s reportage, the most famous war of attrition is World War I. And the most famous book on psychological fatigue and exhaustion is On the Western Front Without Change. Remarque wrote it for that purpose, as it became clear later, so that all its horrors would not be accidentally forgotten.
But they were forgotten in order to return to them again and again. Since the publication of “On the Western Front Without Change” has passed a century without a little. Russia is not rich in monuments to the dead of the First World War.
This report really puts a human face on the conflict. It’s so important to understand the toll it’s taking on ordinary Ukrainians. Thank you for highlighting Burtin’s work.
Burtin’s work is a valuable contribution to our understanding of this conflict. I hope it will influence policymakers and the public to push for a peaceful
It’s crucial that this report was published in a neutral country. It allows for a more honest and unfiltered perspective on the situation. More journalists need to pursue such objective reporting.
The strategy of exhaustion is a cruel one, and it’s heartbreaking to see the impact on Ukrainian society. I hope a peaceful resolution can be found soon.
This analysis is insightful. The point about Russia potentially leveraging Ukraine’s exhaustion for negotiations is something to consider. It’s a difficult and complex situation.
The comparison to ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ is spot on. We must never forget the lessons of history. Burtin’s report is a stark reminder of the cost of war.