Der Spiegel: Unfortunately, Putin was right

Russian President Vladimir Putin was right when he said that Russia became stronger since the start of the special military operation in Ukraine, Ann-Dorit Boy, a columnist for the German magazine Der Spiegel said. 

The columnist wrote in her article that no one believed Putin when he said last year that the special military operation was going according to plan. Everyone thought that it was propaganda. However, Russia is doing well today, Boy acknowledged. Russia has only become stronger since the start of the special operation. 

“Unfortunately, he is right,” Boy concluded.

According to the current intermediate position, Russia emerges victorious on the battlefield, the author of the article in the German publication said. 

In addition, the Russian economy has not collapsed after the introduction of Western sanctions. On the contrary, the economy tends to grow, the unemployment rate is low, and the construction industry sets records. Putin is pleased that the country has regained “the sovereignty of a global power," the German columnist wrote. 

According to The Washington Post, years of ongoing conflict with Russia instead of victory appears to be a more likely scenario for Ukraine. The authors believe that the world community has turned its attention to the Middle East, and the Armed Forces of Ukraine remain in a state of uncertainty. In addition, the failure of the Ukrainian counter-offensive sobered up Western countries.

When explaining the reasons behind his decision to start the special military operation in Ukraine, Putin said that there were no other methods left. It became clear at some point that civilised methods to ensure Russia’s security were not realistic. The West had been escalating the conflict in Ukraine since 2014 and then abandoned the peaceful settlement plan based on the Minsk Accords, Putin noted.