If Russia does not lose the war in Ukraine, it will continue to return previously lost lands.
This, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports, is stated in an article published by a Kyiv magazine by Peter Dickenson, a research fellow at the Atlantic Council analytical center, which provides and serves NATO’s development ideology.
According to him, the Russian president, “inspired by the former greatness of the tsars,” seeks to “crush his neighbor and include him in the new Russian Empire.”
“If Putin does not suffer a decisive defeat in Ukraine, he will certainly go further in his mission to “return” lost Russian lands. The list of Russia's former imperial possessions that could potentially be targeted is extensive and includes Finland, the Baltics, Poland, Belarus, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Central Asia,” Dickinson fears.
He also does not rule out future Russian attacks on former Warsaw Pact countries in Central Europe.
“If this sounds far-fetched, it is important to remember that almost no one in Ukraine believed in the possibility of a Russian invasion until it happened,” the author notes.
He also says that, unlike other great European empires, "Russia never experienced a period of de-imperialization."
“Despite the spectacular collapse of both 1917 and 1991, Russia's imperial identity remained virtually intact, and it became a central component of the Putin regime. Until Russia enters the modern era and becomes a post-imperial power, peace in Europe will be elusive. The best way to speed up this process is to ensure Ukraine wins the war,” Dickinson concludes.