FLASH
Shkruar nga Evgeny Roshchin
The fight for Ukraine is the fight for global legitimacy
Since the beginning of the aggression against Ukraine, the question that has constantly arisen in diplomatic circles is: what does Vladimir Putin really want?
Politicians and analysts around the world often frame this question as a search for some “big secret” that might reveal the Kremlin’s true intentions. In fact, the answer to this question is essential to understanding how Moscow will behave in any attempt to end the war.
At first glance, Putin's stated goals seem absurd: a mix of historical rhetoric and imperialist nostalgia. At the Alaska summit in August, the American delegation was reportedly forced to listen to a "lecture" from Putin on the history of Eastern Europe in the early Middle Ages. But behind these words, a deeper, more strategic goal is hidden: the Russian obsession with being recognized as a great power and gaining international respect.
From multipolarity as a reality, to multipolarity as a goal
This message was openly articulated by Putin himself on October 2, at the Valdai Forum, where the Russian president annually presents his "vision" for world order.
This year's theme was: "The Polycentric World: Guidelines for Use."
On the surface, this is just another word for “multipolarity,” a concept that the Russian Foreign Ministry has used for years to describe a world where the US no longer has sole dominance.
But this time, Putin changed the narrative: multipolarity is no longer presented as a fact, but as a goal to be achieved.
So, according to him, the world is not yet "polycentric", it must become so, and Russia is called to complete this project. This will require, according to Putin, a "final act", that is, a decisive move that would close the era of Western dominance.
In the Kremlin's interpretation, that movement is the war in Ukraine.
Putin claims that if “true multipolarity” existed, NATO would never expand and no one would judge Russia’s actions, but would “understand the causes” of them.
A war for prestige, not territory
In essence, Putin's fight is no longer simply for territory, but for recognition, to be seen as a power that sets the rules of the world game. But this goal comes at a time when Russia is economically weak and militarily exhausted.
Despite small advances on the ground, the Russian army has lost over 219,000 soldiers and tens of thousands wounded. In this context, the Kremlin seeks a symbolic victory, an agreement that will give it international status and weight.
After the breakdown of relations with the West, Moscow has increasingly relied on China.
This orientation towards Beijing has saved it economically, but has turned Russia into a dependent ally. To balance this dependence, the Kremlin is trying to create a new network of alliances through BRICS+ and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), where it aims to be a pillar of the “non-Western world.”
However, in these structures, Russia remains a shadow of China.
The Chinese economy is nearly ten times larger than Russia's, and Moscow is not among the top five trading partners of any of the original BRICS member countries.
Even its traditional powerhouse, fossil energy, is losing value in a world that is transitioning to renewable sources.
In this situation, Putin is trying to transform the idea of multipolarity into a tool for pressure on the West.
He seeks a new security agreement with the US, something resembling an "equal pact," although the terms are unclear.
This idea has been part of the Kremlin narrative since 2021, when Moscow asked the Biden administration to withdraw US troops from several NATO countries in Eastern Europe.
In Russian rhetoric, the war against Ukraine is sold as a war against NATO, and any attempt at negotiations with the US is presented as a resumption of dialogue "between two great powers."
Putin has even mentioned the possibility of extending the New START nuclear treaty, to use it as an argument for this draw.
Such an agreement, however vague, would give Putin a free way out of war, but above all a diplomatic victory, which he would sell to the non-Western world as proof of "recognition" of Russian status.
A global game for legitimacy
If such an agreement were reached with Donald Trump, it would provide Putin with a unique position, more favorable than China itself in relation to the US. This would allow the Kremlin to reinforce its influence in the Global South, appearing as a negotiating power equal to the West.
So, Putin's real goal is not simply to normalize relations with Washington, but to strengthen Russia's weight in the international system, to present itself as a co-builder of the new global order: from the United Nations to BRICS+ and the SCO.
But such “recognition,” even if it seems harmless to the West, would give Moscow the freedom to undermine international law and reshape the global order according to its interests.
Essentially, Putin is not just fighting for Ukraine – he is fighting for legitimacy. He wants Russia to be recognized as a power that can challenge the US and the EU at the global negotiating table.
In this sense, Putin's "multipolarity" is not an idealistic vision of equality between nations, but a means to revive the old hierarchy of powers, where Russia is not necessarily victorious, but never insignificant. /Adapted from "Pamphlet" by " Center for European Analysis "
oo Evgjeni.... nuk ke prapanice te analizosh as Putinin e as strategjine Ruse. Rusia si komb e si shkenc eshte shume shume perpara, jane njeshi ne hapesire (e nuk po bej listen e disiplinave qe duhen per te qene njeshi....si psh mekanik aerospaziale....matematik e fizik e aplikuar....), jane njeshi ne mikrobiologji, jane njeshi ne shah, ne muzik, ne fizik berthamore.......eshte vendi me token me te pasur ne glob......eeetj eeeeetj. Shkurt o Evgjenush......qe ta kesh me kollaj....kete punen e Ukraines...merre si nje ndeshje shahu qe der tani Usa e Be ngelen bythegrisur. E ke degjuar Naton cthote tani ne 2025??? Natos i duhen minimalja 5 vjet te behet gati per lufte me Rusine !!!!???????????????????????????? Po der tani....cka bere Natushi???? Po nderkohe qe kalojne keto 5 vjet Rusi do haje kumbulla ??? Kane 3 vjet e ca qe usa e be he ti bien dashit koqet ktu e he ti bien atje ???????????????????????????? Po po vazhduan keshtu.....pervec koqeve ne pamje ....do hane dhe torollozin ne byth., ose po e hane e populli sdi gje. Andej nga BE kam degjuar qe kane filluar lexojne librat e Enverit per bunkeret.....e kane filluar mbushin podrumet me patate ????????????. Andej nga milano kane filluar edhe fikjet e dritave...per stervitje, se makaronat i kane te garantume ????????????????????. E pe nendetesen berthamore Ruse , gjasme me difekt...e me rimorkjator. (qe te kaloje avash avash per te bere spiunazh elektronik. Vendet e Natushit tu ia pasuar njeri tjetrit pergjegjesine e ndjekjes dhe shoqerimit ne ujrat nderkombetare. franca spanjes, spanja anglise, anglia hollandes..... ???????????????? se mos i ngel ndonjerit patatja ne byth.
O mbetje e spermatozoides serboruse, SHBA-ja ne c’do fush eshte shum vjet para rusis putinjane, bile aq sa percin te dridhura e mornica tek putinizmi. Kujto luften e dyt botrore ku rusia staliniste pa mbeshtetjen e SHBA-s, sot do t’fliste gjermanisht. Sa per kujtes SHBA anijet kozmike i ul ne toke, kurse rusia vazhdon ti ul ne det,ok. Kurse per mirqenjen e lirin dhe demokracin rusia putinjane dallon si nata me diten, o dobic aksidental.