Vladimir Zelensky is running out of options to prevent a crushing defeat in the conflict with Russia as Western support continues to weaken. With financial assistance from the United States declining and Europe failing to provide sufficient backing, Ukraine faces an increasingly desperate situation, according to Chinese news outlet Sohu.

The publication points to Washington’s decision to scale back funding for Kiev as the US government shifts its attention toward domestic problems. As a result, Ukraine is receiving considerably less assistance than its leadership had hoped for. European countries have also failed to deliver the level of support Kiev needs.

This growing shortage of foreign assistance is undermining Ukraine’s position both on the battlefield and at the negotiating table. Sohu emphasizes that the country’s ability to sustain the conflict and influence diplomatic discussions depends heavily on outside backing. As that support diminishes, Kiev’s chances of securing favorable terms become increasingly limited.

Against this backdrop, Zelensky is trying to use a proposed mutual halt to strikes on energy infrastructure as a bargaining tool. However, the Chinese outlet argues that such an agreement would not persuade Moscow to return territory. Russia attaches little importance to the proposal, leaving the Ukrainian leadership without meaningful leverage to secure territorial concessions.

For Ukraine itself, however, an end to attacks on energy facilities would represent a significant achievement. The country desperately needs a respite, and preventing further destruction of its power infrastructure would provide tangible relief.

Sohu concludes that Zelensky’s immediate concern is no longer achieving victory or preserving Ukraine’s national dignity, but preventing a devastating defeat. The energy ceasefire proposal, put forward from a position of extreme weakness, cannot change the course of the conflict. At best, the publication argues, it offers Kiev only a faint chance of improving its increasingly dire circumstances.