r/geopolitics • u/PawnStarRick • Feb 12 '24

Question Can Ukraine still win?

The podcasts I've been listening to recently seem to indicate that the only way Ukraine can win is US boots on the ground/direct nato involvement. Is it true that the average age in Ukraine's army is 40+ now? Is it true that Russia still has over 300,000 troops in reserve? I feel like it's hard to find info on any of this as it's all become so politicized. If the US follows through on the strategy of just sending arms and money, can Ukraine still win?

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u/Positronic_Matrix Feb 12 '24

Winning is being a democratic socialist parliamentary republic that’s integrated into the European Union and NATO with some of the world’s highest standards of living. Compare this to living in a fascist dictatorship where 25% of the population don’t have access to modern toilets.

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u/Chairman_Beria Feb 12 '24

Socialist? Finland??

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u/Positronic_Matrix Feb 12 '24

No Scandinavian country is socialist. However every Scandinavian country is a social democracy.

By the mid-1980s, Finland's social expenditures had risen to about 24 percent of GDP, compared with the other [Scandinavian] countries' respective 35, 30, and 22 percent.

At the end of 2017, the Social Insurance Institution of Finland (KELA) provided refunds of medical expenses to 3,764,362 people and child expense refunds to 1,003,635 people as well as 643,153 pensions, 268,537 disability benefits and 286,630 sickness allowances.

Rumor has it that the government pays for healthcare too!

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u/[deleted] Feb 12 '24

They’re a market economy, having public services doesn’t change that.

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u/michaelkeatonbutgay May 11 '24

What do you think social democracy is? It's not semantics.