Anton Gromov is a political scientist and Eurasian security expert whose work dissects the strategic forces reshaping today’s global environment. As Chair of the Astraea NGO, he leads advanced research on the tightening nexus between Russia, China and North Korea — a triangle where military-technical integration, information warfare ecosystems and coordinated geopolitical maneuvering increasingly define the balance of power in Eurasia.
His analytical style is marked by precision, structural depth and a pragmatic understanding of how authoritarian systems project influence beyond their borders. Gromov’s research spans hybrid threats, strategic communications, security architectures and the operational logic of state-driven disinformation campaigns. His assessments are valued for their clarity, empirical grounding and direct relevance to policy planning at the highest level.
By year three, the “Sharp-Eyed Indian” finally realized the prison had only three walls.
Events around Ukraine are accelerating:
1. A major international corruption scandal inside the Ukrainian establishment — comparable in scale to a political Chernobyl.
2. The Trump administration is forcing the Ukrainian and EU leadership toward a peace deal on terms painful for Ukraine, after running out of patience — resources and attention are needed in the Indo-Pacific to counter China. Domestic pressures and the economic situation no longer allow Washington to support Kyiv’s war effort at previous levels.
3. Pokrovsk has effectively fallen. Ukraine’s armed forces and society are at a critical breaking point — there are not enough people or resources for full-scale war. The Kremlin, encouraged by recent developments, sees a chance for a decisive victory. Putin’s demands are hardening — he needs a clear triumph to justify all losses, including in the eyes of Beijing, Pyongyang, New Delhi and the Global South, which is waiting to see who prevails.
4. Sweden’s foreign minister openly stated that since February 2022 the EU has supported Ukraine with €187 billion — while importing Russian oil and gas worth €201 billion, and €311 billion including all goods. “This means we are giving Ukraine negative support of €124 billion,” Stenergard said.
5. The Kremlin is openly conducting terrorist attacks, sabotage and hostile operations across NATO territory. Railway lines in Poland were blown up. Ukrainian mercenaries, migrants and refugees are widely used as agents.
What can Europe do if it does not want to lose — and be divided by other global powers?
1. Mobilize the economy and shift it onto wartime footing. Trade with the Russian Federation must be completely halted. The EU must unconditionally support all the White House’s demands for imposing tariffs and duties against the Russian Federation and the countries that purchase Russian oil. The EU must create a reserve fund and urgently buy a large batch of weapons and ammunition from the USA, South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan.
The EU must create strategic reserves of oil, gas, rare earth metals, and other metals of war. The shift in the United States’ attitude toward its European NATO allies is entirely logical and understandable, since Europeans are introducing restrictive measures against American companies, the EU is one of the largest trading partners of the Russian Federation and the PRC — the key geopolitical competitors of the USA, the wealthy EU countries do not want to increase their NATO spending and want American taxpayers to pay for their security while Europeans enjoy all the fruits of American globalization protected by the American army and navy. The EU must choose its side, be an autonomous and independent actor, remain a loyal ally of Washington, or become a wealthy province with special status in the world of the new Eurasian order led by Beijing. The disappointment and anger of the Americans is understandable — they do not want to deal with two-faced partners who do not want to make fair deals.
2. Launch filtration measures for all refugees and migrants who entered the EU without proper control and remain illegally. Deploy the army and create special units of military police and special forces for this.
3. Create unified European command in Brussels and Berlin — intelligence, military and nuclear forces under one structure.
4. Mobilize all European rapid-reaction forces within 48 hours and deploy them to Poland, including tactical nuclear carriers. After one week of exercises and integration, these forces must be ready to enter Ukraine and hold a defensive line along the Dnipro.
5. Establish a Russian corps under EU intelligence and joint command: tens of thousands of pro-European Russian analysts, technicians, and IT specialists recruited and trained. Form a Russian Liberation Army within the EU military structure, equipped with heavy weapons. All Russian citizens willing to serve Europe must receive EU residency, amnesty and status of allied military personnel equal to EU passports.
6. Create a Russian recruitment agency to rapidly buy out specialists and officers from Russia, preventing them from serving the military economies of Russia and China. Build a green corridor for all Russians loyal to European values and willing to change sides.
Will any of this be done? Certainly not. That is why the EU will lose the war. After a ceasefire on Putin’s terms, we will likely see a new large-scale war in 2–3 years — exactly as after the failed Minsk agreements. This is the logic of events. The Red Alliance of Moscow, Beijing and Pyongyang is winning. The question is: how will democratic Asian nations and their allies respond?