The logic is misguided, but it is easy enough to grasp. Ukraine’s poorly equipped army cannot on its own inflict enough pain on the Russian-backed separatist insurgency to force an effective ceasefire that might lead to a negotiated truce. So America should help by sending defensive weapons, and some lethal ones too. Once body bags start arriving in Russian towns (the theory goes) President Vladimir Putin will relent, fearing a backlash from a public already unnerved by soaring inflation.

This is the case made by a group of former senior US officials, and it is reportedly being discussed within the Obama administration. It is, however, deeply mistaken. Intended to help a stricken country, it could instead prolong Ukraine’s agony and distract it from the vital task of reconstruction. It is highly unlikely to knock Mr Putin off his destructive course. And it would bring the US a step closer to direct military confrontation with Russia.

Russians support Mr Putin. The Kremlin has blamed the economic crisis on western sanctions, and it will blame military casualties on the west, too. There is nothing to suggest that Russians do not believe the Kremlin narrative. They are unlikely to abandon Mr Putin in his struggle against the west.