Ukraine must accept they cannot win the war against Russia and the only way to end the conflict is to enter into negotiations, a retired lieutenant colonel has said.
Daniel Davis, a military veteran and senior fellow at Defense Priorities, told Fox News the war in Eastern Europe is "militarily lost" and that the "open-ended, for as long as it takes" support strategy to try to help Ukraine win will not work.
Davis, a supporter of Donald Trump, appeared on Fox Report with Jon Scott to discuss the president-elect's pledge to end the near three-year war in one day once he enters office. Trump has given a major indication how intends to do so, with critics suggesting it would have to involve negotiating with Ukraine to hand over its land to Russia.
When Scott asked Davis whether any peace negotiations would ultimately end up with Ukraine "losing huge chunks of its very valuable territory" to Russia, Davis replied: "People say that in the current administration, as though there's actually a choice to be made.
"There is not. This war is militarily lost, and it has been really since late 2022 and even before this disastrous offensive took place in 2023.
"It was irrational to keep going down a path that couldn't succeed," Davis added. "But the bottom line is there is no path to where if we just give them more stuff, or help it in this way, that somehow it's going to change the course of a war. It's not going to, it's irrevocably in Russia's favor."
Newsweek has contacted the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine for comment via email.
Scott also asked Davis if the world would be "rewarding Russia for invading a sovereign nation" by granting them some of Ukraine's land in order to stop the war.
"Absolutely not, not rewarding Russia for anything. It's recognizing the reality," Davis replied.
"Because the alternative is to say, 'Well, I don't want him to win, so we're going to keep going down this path.' The one we've been on, if we keep going, it's going to be more Ukrainian people killed, and ultimately they will lose the war," he said. "That's what the stark reality is. It's not rewarding, but it's acknowledging reality."
The U.S. has sent more than $64 billion in military aid to Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022, according to the Defense Department.
Russia escalated the war this week by launching a hypersonic missile attack on the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky recently said he believes the Ukraine-Russia war will end "sooner" once Trump is back in the White House than it otherwise would have.
"It is certain that the war will end sooner with the policies of the team that will now lead the White House. This is their approach, their promise to their citizens," Zelensky told Ukrainian media outlet Suspilne, via the BBC.
He added that Ukraine "must do everything so that this war ends next year, ends through diplomatic means."
Zelensky also said that he and Trump had a "constructive" phone call soon after the president-elect won the 2024 election, but did not reveal if the Republican put forward any suggestions with regards to negations with Russia.
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