Five months ago, when we wrote that Bakhmut would eventually fall to the Russians, some readers of these pages scoffed at us. Didn’t we understand that Ukraine was winning the war? Well, the Ukrainians put up a remarkable defense in what has become the bloodiest battle of the 21st century, but most of Bakhmut, including the vital rail lines, has fallen.

Ultimately, we are not generals, but we do understand economics. It has always seemed extremely unlikely to us that a nation with a 2021 GDP of $200 billion and a population of 44 million could defeat a nation with a GDP of $1.8 trillion and a population of 145 million. This would seem particularly true if only the larger nation, that is Russia, possessed a sizable air force, significant defense industries, and nuclear weapons.

According to World Bank statistics, Ukraine had a population of 44 million when the war began, but today barely half that number are still in their homes. Eleven million Ukrainians have fled to Europe or are internally displaced. Several million more have fled to Russia and millions more now live in areas under Russian control.

Newsweek After Bakhmut: Draining Battle Leaves Ukraine Battered, Russia Rising | Opinion

So Ukraine with 22 million people left, cannot ‘win’ against Russia with 155 million? Who would have guessed?

So Ukraine with ZERO nuclear weapons cannot ‘win’ against a nuclear armed Russia? Who would have guessed?

So Ukraine with 150 Billion GDP cannot ‘win’ against oil/resource rich Russia with close to 2 TRILLION GDP? Who would have guessed?