In my wanderings through comments sections attached to Ukraine war news I have come across two things that I think need to be addressed and so I am putting both in a post. The first is a belief and the second is a question. They are very much related.
I think like most Americans I have not really understood the make up of the Russian Federation. I found this rather informative video on some of the Republics that are part of it. If you read through the comments you may notice that I stole my title from one. Take a few minutes to view it, it is not long.
So that brings me to the belief that I keep running across. That is that there is no difference between the war in Iraq initiated by the US and the war in Ukraine initiated by Vladimir Putin. There is no doubt that war in and of itself brings death, injuries, destruction and ruined lives for so many. But there is one type of war that is so profoundly destructive that it destroys a people. That is the war of conquest to acquire territory, which in the process erases the identity of those who live there. When the United States invaded Iraq its purpose was not to make that country part of the United States. It never intended to erase Iraq's identity or its sovereignty. We never forced anyone in Iraq to acquire a US passport or to become a citizen of the US. That, however, is what Russia is doing to Ukraine. As far as Vladimir Putin is concerned Ukraine as a country doesn't exist, it is part of Russia.
I believe the majority of Ukrainians beg to differ. That leads me to the question I have seen posed in comments sections. What would victory mean for Ukraine? The implication is that if they were to force Russia to withdraw there would be such a large loss of life and infrastructure that the fight would not have been worth it. Especially if Russia were to use a tactical nuclear weapon. The answer to this question is actually quite simple. Victory for Ukrainians means keeping their identity. Lives cannot be brought back, but the future can be made possible for future generations.
The vision of Putin is one of empire. He will use any means to make his vision come true. We have seen his use of energy to blackmail Europe. We see the same in his theft of Ukraine's grain and his blockade of Ukraine's ports, at the expense of the poorer countries in the world, to try to force the West to lift sanctions.
The person who called the Russian Federation a prison of nations was spot on. Does the world really want to become vassal states of Putin's Russia?
Slava Ukraini!
