US and G7 allies now expect Ukraine-Russia war to grind on for years

Joe Biden called on world leaders to stand by Ukraine in its struggle to eject Russian troops, even as Kyiv’s allies said they now expect the war to last for years to come.

The US president’s appeal came amid growing questions at home about the cost of backing Ukraine’s fight and rising pressure from major developing countries for a quick end to the conflict.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also made his case for pressing on with the war effort Tuesday at the United Nations General Assembly in New York and will do so in Washington this week.

But with his troops struggling to make major gains on the battlefield despite tens of billions of dollars in weapons, training and other aid from the US and its allies, Zelensky is likely to face tougher audiences in both cities.

Accusing Russia of turning everything from food and energy to children into weapons of its war, Zelensky told the UN: “Weaponisation must be restrained. War crimes must be punished. Deported people must come back home. And the occupier must return to their own land. We must be united to make it. And we will do it”.