The Russian war in Ukraine, the most devastating military commitment in Europe since 1945, has persisted for three years, and the perspective of its resolution, with the Trump administration that opens the conversations with Russia, has not generated a generalized optimism.
In a recent interview with the Financial Times, the Polish President Andrzej Doubt warned that the conclusion of the war, if treated, could unleash a wave of organized crimes that flood Poland and then extended in Europe and even in the United States, His concerns echo a feeling for a long time whispered in Western political circles. He compared the situation with the 1990s in Russia, when the return of the Veterans of the Soviet-Afghanistan war fed violence in the former USSR.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine delayed, calling their unfair comments: “Ukrainian soldiers and veteran are not a threat but a security factor for Ukraine, Poland and all of Europe.”
The comparison of doubt, however, can underestimate the dangers ahead. The Soviet war in Afghanistan lasted a decade, but did not produce the level of social agitation that Russia's invasion has inflicted Ukraine. The country's army now has 980,000, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky, and hundreds of thousands of hardened soldiers and with battle scars will return to civil life, many with lost limbs, many more with deep psychological wounds, and all to a country in A country in remains. Where will they go? What will they do?
Ukraine has already experienced the subsequent effects of postwar mental health problems. In April 2018, when Russia's aggression was not called a war, but a “terrorist” action in the Donbas, the data revealed that more than 1,000 veterans of Ukraine of those less intense battles had committed suicide.
Now the Ukrainian Ministry of Health estimates that almost 15 million people, in a population of less than 40 million, will require psychological support due to war.
However, the destroyed economy of the Nation, its public debt reached $ 166.1 billion in December, raises serious doubts about its ability to finance essential services, including mental health programs. Last year, in the midst of a lot of fanfare, Ukraine legalized medical cannabis in part to help troops and civilians suffering from PTSD and other mental illnesses related to war. But medicinal marijuana is little more than a curite in a gunshot wound for an army in which, According to a studyThere is only one psychologist for every 400-500 service members.
Before the war, there was an estimate of 4 million firearms in Ukraine, most of them not registered, and an incalculable number that circulated in the black market. After the invasion, the laws of possession of weapons were liberalized and Zelensky promised that the government would give a weapon to anyone who would like to defend the country. Only in the Kyiv area, 18,000 rifles were distributed to civilians, and encouraged the militias of the home. When thousands of active service troops are demobilized, military degrees can increase the increase in armed civilians and the risks of higher crime rates.
Despite Powderkeg's potential, the Ukrainian government seems more focused on political maneuvers, both in internal power struggles and international diplomacy, than in the preparation of the sequelae of the war. Officials often make statements about global policy and security alliances, but significant efforts to address the reintegration and well -being of veterans remain remarkably lacking.
A peace agreement received as a capitulation could further erode national morals that are already at a low point, with the levels of troops that fall and the recent Russian first -line profits in the fighting. History shows that in such moments public disappointment often grows, weakening confidence in leadership. During these periods, extreme factions, stealing riots and waiting for a fragile order may arise.
When Russia launched their complete invasion in February 2022, the Ukrainians joined under symbols that had previously divided them. The slogan Slava Ukraini! (Gloria to Ukraine), once associated with the nationalist movements of the ultra right wing during World War II, it was accepted throughout the country, even in regions where nationalism had been controversial.
But in 2025, the extreme nationalist fervor has decreased. This could be a temporary pause before another eruption of disturbances, caused by postwar trauma, difficulties and disappointment. That, combined with an armed population and a generation of young men forged in war, could threaten Ukraine as much as Russian aggression.
It seems sure that once the war ends, Ukraine will face a new battle: the internal struggle. Vladimir Putin, without a doubt, is taking into account this in any peace agreement. What he did not achieve through his “special military operation” can try to achieve from the inside.
Ukraine will need significant western support to navigate these challenges. Financial aid, infrastructure development and integral mental health services will be crucial to reintegrate veterans and maintain stability.
However, support for Ukraine “until winning” has decreased in Western Europe and the United States. A recent one Survey It highlights a strong decrease in enthusiasm, coinciding with the growing doubts about the foreign and military aid of the United States. If the allies will take a step forward to avoid a postwar collapse in Ukraine, or let it be unraveling from the inside, it is still an open question.
Peace can come, but there is a real concern that the sequelae of war could be almost destabilizing for Ukraine as its beginning.
Sergey Maidukov, author of “Life on The Run: One Family's Search of Peace in War Torn Ukraine”, among other books, is based in kyiv.
