As the world watches the slow moving brutal Russian invasion of Ukraine in abject horror, people around the world are repulsed and stunned, but as the arbitrary carnage against innocent civilians unfolds, that disgust and shock harden into anger and resentment. Many are asking how this could happen. The short answer is western nations have lost the convictions of their principles of democracy and freedom, have grown lazy and weak, and again deluded themselves into thinking evil may not exist. Western leaders erroneously believe they can accommodate, control, or negotiate with evil. And that’s exactly where evil wants you when evil pounces.
Europeans have had little control of their destiny since WWII without American leadership and strength, so when the United States left the world stage with a corrupt decrepit president that has been clueless and gutless for half a century, evil actors around the globe knew their opportunity had come. Everyone knows Biden’s corruption, indecisiveness, and weakness invited Putin’s current depredation and emboldened China, but that’s where we are, and we can’t change that embarrassment anytime soon. So, what can, or should we do now?
First, we must assess what we know. Vladimir Putin is a dictator, murderer, and thug, and now he is a certifiable war criminal attacking a peaceful neighbor without cause and indiscriminately slaughtering civilians in his pure lust for power. Putin has made no secret of his goal to restore the Russian empire. He cheated and murdered his way into power and installed himself as dictator for life. We should have recognized his evil designs when he would not leave power and as he gobbled up Georgia and Crimea. Proving again he is ruthless by indiscriminately targeting Ukrainian civilians and trying to assassinate Ukrainian President Zelensky, no one should be surprised.
There are no easy answers after the United States has so grossly misplayed its hand and thrown away too many cards, but there is a shameful hypocrisy for the U.S. to just watch Ukraine cruelly slowly beaten into submission. After the fall of the Soviet Union, Ukraine had the third-largest stockpile of nuclear weapons. In 1994, Ukraine agreed to nuclear disarmament because the United States guaranteed that it would assure their sovereignty and defend an independent Ukraine. Twenty-eight years later, Ukraine is begging for help and realizing aid may be too late if it even comes at all. We were probably stupid for making that promise, but we should be ashamed for not keeping it in the face of such a senseless vicious attack.
Putin is certainly evil, and he may be an evil genius. He is calculating the west lacks resolve in the face of naked aggression. Contrast Iraq’s 1991 invasion of Kuwait with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Both countries are arguably inconsequential to vital American interests, but both unprovoked invasions destabilize their regions and naked aggression left unchecked only invites more naked aggression. President Bush the elder assembled an international coalition to oust Saddam Hussein and did so in short order. Why is not a similar response galvanizing for Ukraine? The short answer is Russia has nuclear weapons.
Putin has insinuated he will resort to nuclear weapons if the west intervenes, so we cannot ignore that grave threat and that only emphasizes the importance of strong policies to preempt this almost impossible situation. But it also illustrates that diplomacy will not resolve this crisis. Russia can only be stopped militarily and maybe economically if Ukraine can hang on for weeks, but economic sanctions probably need months to have an effect.
At this point, economic sanctions are the only tool on the table, so it’s imperative we get serious immediately and stop the flow of Russian oil. As long as we buy Russian oil, we are financing their military operations in Ukraine. Biden’s dithering on sanctions is cowardly and unconscionable. Until we cut off Putin’s oil money, there’s no reason to take us seriously.
Russia must and should be isolated, but the international community must also call out China for supporting Putin and his military adventurism in Ukraine. They are buying Russian coal and other goods and helping Russia move money since international banks are locking them out. China is watching closely and calculating its designs on Taiwan by how the world handles Ukraine. China must be put on notice and held accountable for complicity.
Russia surely thought they could conquer Ukraine in days, but they are stumbling, and Ukrainian resistance is much stiffer than anticipated. While the Russians are still quite dangerous, we are learning the Russian bear is not as capable as we or they thought. Again, Putin only responds to military strength, so NATO must put some teeth into their demands. NATO does not have to engage, but they can arm Ukraine and provide them with military intelligence now. And to really get Putin’s attention, NATO should mobilize now and show they are absolutely serious about containing this catastrophe and that his aggression is intolerable.
NATO understandably wants to avoid a nuclear confrontation, but NATO must understand that Putin will not stop in Ukraine. It may take a while, but Putin will not be satisfied and will come for more. Until someone puts a dagger to Putin’s throat, he will not relent. There is hope if Putin is thwarted in Ukraine, the Russian threat will be neutered for at least a generation.
Ukraine has been a den of corruption and therefore a dilemma, but Putin is the embodiment of evil – he must be challenged. These are all very difficult decisions, but WWII taught us that if we don’t confront evil early, the price later will be exorbitantly high and sooner or later we will have to pay a price to defeat evil. With the knowledge of WWII, would the world have moved to stop Hitler in 1936 when he took Austria or 1938 when he invaded Czechoslovakia? We are facing the same situation again, so there is no time for inaction or tepid action. The world must act boldly to face down evil, or it will continue to advance.
“So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” James 4:17
Pete Riehm is the host of Common Sense Radio heard 8pm every Thursday on FMTalk106.5 or streaming at fmtalk1065.com. Email him at [email protected] or on MEWE @PeteRiehm or read all his columns at http://www.renewamerica.com/.kraien
Riehm is also a Republican hopeful for Alabama Senate District 33
