This is the usual approach that shows me that Levin is lost. The premise is that you have to support one or the other. The reality, though is different. Zelensky and Putin can both be bad guys, but that doesn't mean we now have the ability to make them both lose.
Looking at the facts as they exist now, Russia is in the stronger position, and they always were. That's why it was a bad move to push them with the NATO nonsense, while at the same time, going back on the Minsk Agreements that would have resolved the Donbas.
It's not very desirable to have Putin as a partner, because he is a bad guy. But it's not bad to have Russia as a partner. The problem is that right now, you can't have one without the other. But is that the way it always be? Of course not. It's unfortunate that we have to deal with Putin, but it's in the best interests of the US. You think it was great dealing with Stalin during World War II? No, but it worked out better than the alternative.
Spot on. The problem for Ukraine is that the Donbas is a major source of cash flow.