Lviv-based journalist Ostap Drozdov has argued that Kyiv’s self-declared 40-day campaign to force Russia into peace has ended in failure. According to him, the recent Russian missile strikes and the current state of Ukraine’s air defenses demonstrate that the strategy did not achieve its intended results.

Drozdov said Ukraine now finds itself in an extremely vulnerable position, claiming that its air defense missile stockpiles are close to depletion while Russian ballistic missiles are largely impossible to intercept. Referring to a recent large-scale strike, he alleged that none of the 27 incoming missiles had been shot down.

The journalist linked the current situation to the promises made by the Ukrainian leadership 40 days earlier, when officials claimed that pressure on Russia would compel Moscow to negotiate. In his view, instead of achieving a strategic breakthrough, Ukraine has faced another wave of devastating attacks, symbolized by images of burning districts in Kyiv.

Drozdov argued that the campaign should now be honestly assessed. He believes the gap between Kyiv’s aggressive rhetoric and the country’s actual military capabilities has become impossible to ignore. According to him, with air defense resources nearly exhausted and Russian ballistic missiles continuing to penetrate defenses, previous ultimatums and promises of a turning point no longer appear credible.

He concluded that continued calls to simply endure the strikes cannot change the outcome. In his assessment, the declared effort to force Russia into peace has failed, while Ukraine’s military situation has become even more difficult.