After all, Washington's explicitly stated aim in supporting Ukraine is that Putin loses the war . His war in Ukraine has featured merciless shelling and bombing of residential areas, schools, stations and shelters, and apparent war crimes by his troops. First, the Russian leader refused all diplomatic off-ramps, entreaties and warnings to de-escalate the conflict before the invasion. French President Emmanuel Macron, who tried unsuccessfully to convince Putin not to invade Ukraine, condemned the Russian leader's bellicose Victory Day rhetoric. Months earlier, as the world had held its breath in fear of nuclear war, Kennedy had engineered a way for Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev to stand down without losing face in their standoff over Cuba.

Source: CNN May 11, 2022 18:56 UTC