Saving Ukraine from Russian defeat and devastation
The world looks shockingly helpless and confused as Ukraine is pounded daily by the Russian assault on their land. Some key cities like Kherson, Melitopol are under Russian control while Kharkiv, Mariupol, Chernihiv are under siege and bombardment.
Ukraine nuclear plant, the biggest in Europe has been seized signaling some successes for the Russians in the on going war. Russia has shown superiority in many fronts including overwhelming numbers of personnel, hardware’s and have air dominance over the skylines of Ukraine. The assaults have intensified lately in the two biggest cities of kieve and kharkiv.
Refugees are flooding into Poland and Romania on daily basis showing the hopelessness of the war and the human toll. More and more volunteers are crossing into Ukraine to take up arms against the Russians. The war has entered into the second week with no end in sight as the Ukrainians continue to put on gallant resistance and enormous bravery against the Russian advance. But the war has taken it’s toll on the people of Ukraine with lots of destruction and deaths occurring on their side.
Ukraine has called on NATO and the West to enforce a no fly zone on their airspace to help protect civilian population and reduce the human catastrophe that is unfolding. Intense diplomacy continues in finding a way to end the war.
Vitali klitschko the Ukrainian boxing legend and mayor of Kiev has issued a number of appeals to the world community to come to their aid to stop the war that is devastating his country.
But Ukraine needs to accept reality now the chips are down. They can’t win this war because their allies, US and NATO seems to have abandoned them to fight the war alone but are happy to provide weapons and hardware to aid the prosecution of the war but are unwilling to participate directly, for fear of retaliation by Russia which they fear may lead to third world war.
Ukraine was misled into making the choice of entering this war with the Russians by refusing to heed to their request to abandon their ambition of NATO membership and remain a neutral nation even if they don’t want to be their friend.
However Ukraine seems to have miscalculated the actual support they will have from NATO if this war broke out as currently unfolding. The seemed to have placed so much trust on the alliance with NATO and US which unfortunately have falling shot.
Ukraine held military drills with NATO which seems to have bolstered them and gave them false confidence on NATO's participation if war broke out with the Russians.
But that has not been the case, you then find it difficult to understand the essence of such joint military drills with a non-NATO member fot which they have now failed to support, by directly participating in the on going war.
Ukraine now has to come to terms with it's predicament and save it’s people from further Russian onslaught, call a truce, enter negotiations with the Russians and agree to maintain neutrality as well as relinquish their NATO ambition for sake of peace.
But they would have paid the ultimate price of intransigence for refusing to recognize their unique position as a country that shares common border with Russia, and a former nuclear power that still have the capability and potentials to become a nuclear power again thereby posing a direct threat to Russia.
It’s ironic that Ukraine gave up it’s nuclear arsenal in exchange for security guarantees from Russia, US, and UK and now being attacked by Russia, one of the signatories to the agreement. How time changes. It’s now obvious such international guarantees are worthless and can’t be enforced if any of the super powers decides to invalidate it as being played out.
For the sake of it’s citizens, Ukraine needs to call for a truce while peace negotiations take place to stop the war and save it’s people from further punishment. But Russia now holds all the aces and will definitely make more demands since they have the negotiating advantage on account of victory being on their side.
Ukraine must then agree to refrain from warming up with the West, avoid undue Western influence and chart it’s own national path.
NATO and the West have to also cease to supply arms and hardware to Ukraine which prolongs the war and causes more devastation on both sides. They should encourage the cessation of hostilities with intense diplomatic negotiations to end the war.
Russia and NATO must come to an agreement as regards to Ukraine and other Russia’s neighbors who nurse the ambition to join it’s membership. It’s imperative they understand on account of their geographic location that the ambition has to be forgone in the interest of peace and Russia’s security. NATO has to understand Russia’s situation and give in to their demand for peace to reign.
It’s unfortunate the Ukrainians refused to learn from the experiences of the Georgians with the war with Russia and has fallen into the same pit as they did on account of their relationship with the West and NATO.
Let’s hope that the Russian demands will be reasonable and lenient for Ukraine to accept otherwise Russia may decide to take the territories it has captured and consider them defeated and vanquished.
Ukraine may seek reparations in future from Russia, US and UK in the international court of arbitration for failing to guarantee it’s security and sovereignty as pledged by the three nations.
Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.