Vladimir
Putin’s brutal invasion of Ukraine rests on false historical claim that Ukraine
is not a real country, but a part of Russia.
Both
Ukraine and Russia trace their roots to an ancient civilization centered on
Kyiv.
Kyiv
was a major city when Moscow was a backwater no one had heard of.
The
devastating and brutal Mongol invasion in the 13th century changed everything.
Collaboration
with the Mongols allowed Muscovy, the predecessor of modern Russia, to become
the dominant regional power.
Meanwhile,
the Grand Duchy of Lithuania exerted control over much of what is now western
Ukraine, giving it a very western European perspective.
Russia,
since the Mongol invasion, has been ruled with an iron fist. By contrast,
Ukraine has been home to Cossacks who embody a sense of freedom and individual
autonomy.
Think
of Ukrainian Cossacks as the equivalent to American cowboys in the Wild West.
They
hated serfdom and oppressive government, and sought to elect their own rulers,
which they called a “hetman.”
A
Cossack state using the name “Ukraine” in what is now Ukraine’s southeast became
a major power in the mid-17th century.
When
Catherine the Great conquered that Ukrainian state, she is recorded as having said
“every effort should be made to eradicate them and their age from memory.”
Ukrainians’
strong national identity threatens the claim of Russian nationalists to be the
heir to the ancient Kyiv civilization.
When
Ukrainians revolted against the Soviet collectivization of agriculture dictated
from Moscow, Stalin seized the Ukrainian wheat harvest and food stores,
starving millions of Ukrainians to death.
This
is remembered as the Holodomor, which means “extermination by hunger” in
Ukrainian.
Putin
rehabilitated the image of Stalin and banned the Russian human rights
organization, Memorial, which investigated his crimes against humanity.
Putin
is following in a long tradition of Russian nationalist autocrats who have
tried to stamp out Ukrainian national identity.
When
he talks about being threatened by NATO, he does not mean he thinks the Russian
Federation faces a military threat.
Until
Russia invaded and occupied Crimea and portions of eastern Ukraine, our NATO
allies bordering Russia hosted no troops from other NATO countries.
Today,
there are a small number of U.S. troops in NATO’s eastern flank, which we
reinforced as a result of the current Russian invasion of Ukraine.
But
these defensive troops are still dwarfed by the number of Russian military
personnel in Russia’s Western Military District.
NATO
does not have enough troops deployed to repel an invasion, much less to be
considered an offensive threat to Russia.
What
Putin is really threatened by is that Ukraine, true to its history, is
asserting an independent path, separate from Russia.
Ironically,
his aggressive actions to date have only unified Ukraine in its determination
to be free of Russian influence.
Putin
has pushed Ukraine toward the EU and NATO.
Putin
seems to believe his own twisted view of history. So, he convinced himself that
the current freely elected government of Ukraine is not supported by the
Ukrainian people.
He
thought he could topple President Zelenskyy and appoint a puppet government.
He
thought Ukrainians would not fight.
Boy,
has he been proven wrong!
Putin
cannot achieve his goal since Ukrainians will never accept Russian domination.
So
he has taken to leveling civilian areas, cynically agreeing to humanitarian
corridors to allow families to escape only to shoot those who gather, bombing a
maternity ward, killing many women and babies and the atrocities can only get
worse.
We
must provide Ukraine with everything it might need to stop this mass murder.
That
includes military aircraft, drones, antiaircraft systems, anti-missile systems –
anything they need.
We
must do it now!
I
wanted more arms and sanctions when we saw that the invasion was coming. Any
bureaucratic delays now are unacceptable.
Our
eastern European allies acted with lightning speed, giving up weapons they need
for deterrence and their own defense.
We
should follow their example.
And
we should agree to fill any gaps caused by past or future donations of weapons
to Ukraine by frontline allies.
Ukraine’s
success in its defense will prevent a wider war that will cost more in lives
and resources.
It
is in our interest to do everything we can to stop the Russian terror campaign
now.