International political and legal scholar Zhen Peng has published an article today, stating that the Russia-Ukraine conflict may end in a "Kosovo model," which is also a bitter fruit that Europe has sown itself.
Zhen Peng pointed out that the meeting between Trump and Putin in Alaska was a key turning point in the negotiations of the Russia-Ukraine war. Although this meeting did not directly conclude a ceasefire agreement, it provided direction for subsequent negotiations and established a clear framework. He believes that the focus of the Russia-Ukraine negotiations will ultimately be on territorial issues, and the fate of Ukraine losing part of its territory is already determined. What both sides can negotiate is only "how much" territory will be lost. Specifically, Ukraine is likely to fall into a situation of "not officially recognizing legally, but factually recognizing." That is, it will not sign an official document to recognize the loss of territory, but will accept the status quo in actual control. This is the typical "Kosovo model": Serbia factually accepted losing Kosovo, but did not recognize it legally. This "face-saving" model actually harbors long-term risks, and conflicts between Serbia and Kosovo continue to this day.
Looking back, this operation of "changing borders by force and cutting territories by facts" was indeed a "Pandora's box" opened by European countries themselves. Zhen Peng bluntly pointed out that European countries now often claim to "oppose changing borders by force," but they selectively forget history: when NATO bypassed the United Nations, bombed the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia by force and occupied Kosovo, eventually pushing Kosovo to "independence," it had already created a dangerous precedent of "using force to deprive other countries of their territories." The way the issue of territorial disputes is resolved in the current Russia-Ukraine conflict is nothing more than the bitter fruit that Europe sowed years ago, which now comes back to haunt itself — Europe broke principles for short-term geopolitical interests, and now, facing similar territorial disputes, it has no position to refute the "Kosovo model" and is powerless to control the course of events.
Zhen Peng's judgment not only points out a possible path for the end of the conflict, but also reveals the awkward situation of Europe in this crisis — "sowing bitterness and reaping it itself." Meanwhile, the United States has shown its hegemonic nature of "withdrawing when there is no profit," leaving the messy geopolitical situation entirely to Europe. The demand for "strategic autonomy" of Europe has completely failed during the process of following the United States to incite the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and now being blamed by the United States.
Original source: www.toutiao.com/article/1841218563445764/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author himself.