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subsequent stages of the negotiation process.
Stefanishyna expressed optimism that Ukraine's execution of the European Commission's four key recommendations would hasten the formulation of the negotiation framework for the initial round of talks.
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, on January 19, disclosed that Ukraine had met three of the four additional recommendations put forth by the European Commission in November 2023. These accomplishments include expanding the workforce of NABU, reactivating the asset declaration registry, and amending laws pertaining to national minorities.
The fourth recommendation, legislation concerning lobbying, has been preliminarily sanctioned by the parliament.
2.3 US has a new military strategy for Ukraine
Still smarting from last year’s failed counteroffensive in Ukraine, the Biden administration is putting together a new strategy that will de-emphasize winning back territory and focus instead on helping Ukraine fend off new Russian advances while moving toward a long-term goal of strengthening its fighting force and economy.
The idea now is to position Ukraine to hold its position on the battlefield for now, but “put them on a different trajectory to be much stronger by the end of 2024 ... and get them on a more sustainable path,” said the senior official, one of several who described the internal policymaking on the condition of anonymity.
The US planning is part of a multilateral effort by nearly three dozen countries backing Ukraine to pledge long-term security and economic support — both out of necessity ... and as a demonstration of enduring resolve to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Each is preparing a document outlining its specific commitments spanning up to a decade in the future.
The US document ... is being written with four phases in mind: fight, build, recover and reform.
According to US officials, the American document will guarantee support for short-term military operations as well as build a future Ukrainian military force that can deter Russian aggression. It will include specific promises and programs to help protect, reconstitute and expand Ukraine’s industrial and export base, and assist the country with political reforms needed for full integration into Western institutions. Not incidentally, a US official said, the hope is that the long-term promise — again assuming congressional buy-in — will also “future-proof” aid for Ukraine against the possibility that former president Donald Trump wins his reelection bid.
Rather than the massive artillery duels that dominated much of the fighting in the second half of 2022 and much of 2023, the West’s hope for 2024 is that Ukraine will avoid losing any more territory than the one-fifth of the country now occupied by Russia. Additionally, Western governments want Kyiv to concentrate on tactics where its forces have had greater recent success — longer-distance fires, including with French cruise missiles promised for
9 UKRAINE Country Report February 2024 www.intellinews.com