"It's much easier to promise member(ship) in the European Union or NATO and doing nothing," says Ruslan Bortnik, director of the Ukrainian Institute of Politics, in an interview with CGTN's Xu Qinduo. He said Ukrainians are losing hope gradually of joining NATO or the EU as the West struggles to offer realistic alternatives. The West's "carrot" strategy lacks a real solution for Ukraine's core security interests as well as its post-war restoration. But any other scenario is even more difficult, Ruslan adds, as it must be balanced with Russia and acceptable to Ukraine.