Led by Vladimir Putin, Russia invaded Ukraine three years ago. The Russians used military force to attempt to resolve their differences with Ukraine. The Ukrainians did not initiate the current fighting. Russia did.
President Trump has pointed out that from their point of view, the Russians were provoked into starting the war with Ukraine. Perhaps, but the fact remains that Russia started the military conflict. They were the ones that elected to use military force.
During the conduct of the war, Russia has committed war crimes. These include, but are not limited to, mistreatment of prisoners of war, targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure, rape, kidnapping Ukrainian children, and conducting roundups of Ukrainian civilians who opposed Russia and executing them.
The Russians have sustained heavy casualties. Reports indicate that nearly a million Russians have died in the current war with Ukraine. The Ukrainians have also suffered huge casualties and property damage. The responsibility for these losses falls squarely on Vladimir Putin and the Russian oligarchs who keep him in power. The casualties and devastation were unnecessary.
NATO is a defensive alliance. Even if Ukraine is accepted for membership, the other members are not obligated to defend her if Ukraine initiates military hostilities. Any belief to the contrary is nothing but a Russian paranoid delusion.
The poet Joseph Addison is widely credited with popularizing the idiom that, “He who hesitates is lost.” It might have been possible for Ukraine to have a military victory if US President Joe Biden and some of our NATO allies had provided them with the weapons, ammunition, and other material necessary at the beginning of the war. Since all the needed weapons systems, aircraft, and ammunition were not provided to Ukraine in a timely manner, the conflict has descended into a drawn-out war of attrition … a war that Ukraine cannot win.
Therefore, President Trump is correct that a negotiated settlement is in the best interest of both Russia and Ukraine. However, Vladimir Putin will proclaim victory to the Russian people and the world if that settlement allows any benefit or reward to Russia for initiating this war of aggression and the criminal way in which it has been conducted.
If Russia can snatch any kind of victory from the jaws of its defeat in Ukraine, Putin will use it as a justification for this war and for further aggression in Eastern Europe. Certainly, all European nations will become aware that the willingness of the United States to defend them has limits. They will look at what has happened to the Ukrainians when they resisted, and they will not want the same thing to happen to them.
An unduly punitive settlement will only lay the seeds of another conflict. However, it is suggested that, at a minimum, any settlement should provide for the return to Ukraine of the lands in Eastern Ukraine now occupied by Russia. Russia must be required to pay reparations to Ukraine for the lives and property destroyed during the war and to return the kidnapped Ukrainian children. Since the voters in the 2014 referendum in Crimea were intimidated by covert Russian operatives, a genuine, free, and honest referendum must be held in Crimea to determine whether the people there want to remain annexed by the Russian Federation, or to return to Ukraine. The settlement must set Ukraine’s Eastern border with Russia, and guarantee national sovereignty to Ukraine – in perpetuity. The Russians must pledge that they will not interfere in Ukraine’s internal affairs, and that Russia will not harm President Volodymyr Zelensky or any other Ukrainians who fought against Russia.
The Russian people have suffered the loss of loved ones and economic privation. Reports indicate that fully one third of Russia’s productive capacity is being diverted to military purposes. Russia’s national debt is mounting, they have high inflation, and their currency is losing value. They would have folded long ago if China had not come to their aid. They are not able to come to the conference from a position of strength, unless President Trump hands it to them.
It is interesting that Donald Trump continued Barack Obama’s policy of disengaging from Afghanistan, and that American Conservatives are advocating reducing our aid to Ukraine, due to their belief that our money should be used for domestic needs. At the same time, President Trump is suggesting that the US should spend billions of dollars rebuilding Gaza. The irony of that is just beyond belief.
The United States and the European Union must exert every economic and political pressure short of the commitment of NATO military forces, to compel Russia to agree to a ceasefire in its war of aggression against Ukraine, and to achieve an equitable settlement that rewards the brave Ukrainian people for their resistance to tyranny. Anything less will be a travesty.
The phrases “just and durable peace” and “just and lasting peace” are being used as we enter into a peace process in the Russian war on Ukraine. Where have I heard those words before? Oh yes, they were used by the Nixon Administration to describe the Paris Peace Accord that was supposed to end the Vietnam War.
Then what happened? The United States withdrew our troops from South Vietnam. A short time later, the North Vietnamese invaded. The South fought bravely until they ran out of weapons and ammunition. To our everlasting shame, the US Congress refused to appropriate the funds for more military aid to South Vietnam. The Communist North Vietnamese defeated the South. Now we are supporting the Communist government in Vietnam by conducting extensive trade with them.
Are we doing the same to Ukraine? I’d bet real money on it.
Donald Trump has put his
credibility and prestige on the line by promising to quickly end the
Russia/Ukraine war. It can be done – if Vladimir
Putin is given everything he wants. That
may happen, but it is unacceptable because it is fundamentally unfair to the
Ukrainian people, and it will lay the foundation for further Russian
aggression.
