We are approaching the second anniversary of the russian empire’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Hundreds of thousands of dead have been sacrificed to the idea of a “russian world” trying to restore Moscow’s military and political power in Eastern Europe. Hopes for Russia’s imminent defeat and the collapse of the empire are now rare among activists both in Ukraine itself and in other parts of the world. On the one hand Putin’s economic and political allies have aided the Kremlin’s war machine in keeping the war going. On the other hand, growing calls for a ceasefire from all sides (including from left-wing perspectives), have only increased pressure on political elites interested in Russia’s defeat in Ukraine, and thus undermined further military support for Ukrainians from the West in resisting the invasion.
