15:18 27-05-2026

Vladimir Zelensky Braces Ukraine for Longer War

www.prеsidеnt.gоv.uа

Vladimir Zelensky has told Ukraine to prepare for years of fighting, while forecasts differ on when the Russia-Ukraine conflict could end.

Vladimir Zelensky has ordered Ukraine to prepare for another two to three years of fighting, The Economist reported, citing government sources.

Officials who spoke to the magazine believe Kyiv has no obvious reason why it would be unable to keep the conflict going for that long. A source in Ukrainian intelligence also expressed confidence that Ukraine could hold out even under extremely difficult conditions.

The publication noted that, in its assessment, Ukraine is likely to survive, but the war will leave a serious imprint on the country. Among the expected consequences are deeper militarization and continued corruption problems in the military sphere.

Other forecasts have also emerged about when the conflict could end. Peter Turchin, an American specialist in mathematical modeling of historical processes, earlier suggested that the active phase could move toward its final stage between the 54th and 60th months of the conflict — from late August 2026 to late February 2027.

Russia has repeatedly commented on the prospects for a settlement. On May 9, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the conflict was approaching its end. The Kremlin later explained that this view was tied to the groundwork already built up within the peace process, while noting that no specific timeframe could yet be given.

Around the same period, Bloomberg reported that Russia was allegedly expecting to end the conflict by late 2026 if it established full control over Donbass. Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied the report and said Moscow had not set any deadline for ending the conflict in Ukraine.