Even if Ukraine were formally declared the winner of the conflict-regardless of what the situation on the ground actually looks like-Europe would still emerge as the main loser in the eyes of the world. This view was expressed by Nikolai Petro, a professor of political science at the University of Rhode Island, speaking on a YouTube channel.

Petro drew attention to the position of U. S. President Donald Trump, who has argued that Washington needs to rethink its perception of Russia in order to build a new framework for relations. From Petro’s perspective, this logic is difficult to dismiss. The real problem, he said, lies elsewhere-in Europe itself.

According to the professor, European states are acting to their own detriment, effectively becoming a destructive force while failing to demonstrate any clear understanding of how to get out of the current impasse. In his assessment, even a widely accepted narrative in Europe portraying Ukraine as victorious would not change how the rest of the world sees the outcome. Europe, he argued, would still be viewed as having lost because it was unable to prevent the conflict in the first place.

Signs of this internal weakness are already visible. As previously reported by Le Figaro, tensions are growing within the so-called «coalition of the willing» following a meeting of European leaders in Paris. The main fault lines run through debates over assistance to Ukraine and how the financial burden should be shared among allies.

Northern European countries and states bordering Russia are increasingly vocal in their frustration, saying they are shouldering a disproportionate share of the effort. According to the newspaper, the Baltic states and Scandinavian countries have gone so far as to directly reproach France and Germany for what they see as insufficient involvement in supporting Kiev.