How grateful the British and U.S. and all Western peoples must surely be to live in a free, stable, well-off and privileged society. Ukrainians are prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice to retain the possibility of emulating these societies. Will observing the evil that is Putin’s war bring peoples of the world down to earth to cherish what really matters and face the realities of dangerous risks that always exist? A senior Labour MP was quoted in the Observer of 27 February “Talking about parties any more would be ridiculous. It would sound utterly trivial”. Covid restrictions themselves are in the same trivial category relative to war.
The UK Parliament is at last focussing, as it always should, on matters of State of utmost gravity. Can we now see the end of all trivia occupying the leadership of nations? Could it be that it takes the tragedy of a war in Ukraine to awaken the UK and elsewhere, such as Continental Europe, to devote proper attention and energies to fundamental values and principles, abandon ideological disagreements, and put in perspective the self-indulgent obsessions with relatively minor problems which pervade daily life? The world is now faced with the most extreme cancel culture of fascism, with the indiscriminate murder of a neighbouring nation by the Putin gangsters, seeking to cancel all basic freedoms and a nation’s existence. Can those who would cancel the freedoms of others and their views and speech, such as for the sake of a pronoun, see the badness of the space they occupy?
THE INSPIRATION OF UKRAINIAN COURAGE
At the UN assembly, the Ukrainian Representative, Sergiy Kyslytsya, likened the invasion to the Second World War, equating Putin with Adolf Hitler. That war, and Adolf Hitler, as well as the Ukrainian suffering under Stalin of Russia, will be most firmly embedded in Ukrainian history and minds. It is estimated that in WW2 just under 9 million Ukrainians were killed, the vast majority civilians, including 1 million Jews in the Holocaust. Compare the loss of UK life numbering under 500,000, and how the UK is so concerned that is not forgotten. Ukrainians’ concern must surely be a consuming passion. Not long before, in 1932-33, in the Holodomor, the famine, in effect manufactured by Stalin for political purposes, Ukraine lost close to 4 million citizens. That resilience and determination against a foe, which seeks to annihilate again, seems to be in Ukrainian DNA should not surprise.
The Ukrainian reaction to the outrageous invasion and murderous intent of Putin is a salutary lesson to all Western democracies and each individual enjoying democratic freedoms. It is epitomised by the resistance of the defenders of the small Ukrainian island in the Black Sea, known as Snake Island. Confronted with a Russian naval vessel which threatened to wipe them out and urging them to surrender, the response was “Russian warship, go f**k yourself”. It is reported that fortunately they were captured, not murdered. The resolve being shown to resist an overwhelming force, whether by civilians, soldiers or politicians, young and old, to defend freedom is a privilege to witness. Their President Zelensky, once a professional actor, has displayed remarkable determination, courage and patriotism. With his simple and honest messages, so clear, no grandstanding, and his remaining in the eye of the storm, exhibit remarkable true leadership. He does not seek applause and praise, just help from abroad and to inspire his electorate to endure. Much can be learnt from that by those who so often indulge in virtuous rhetoric.
It surely moves all viewers to see the broadcast footage of queues of men and women registering to get a weapon to do their bit; of women (mostly) working in the marketplace of Dnipro as tanks approach, assembling Molotov cocktails; and of the steadfastness of women and children fleeing as refugees, mostly leaving men to fight. This is attracting the greatest admiration of free peoples around the world. Should we expect to see grandmothers standing in front of tanks, berating Russian conscripts to go back home to their loved ones? Quite possibly.
Of course, it would be wrong to pretend Ukraine is the perfect democracy, the darling of the free world. Its history and its poverty mean corruption will be a way of life. For so long part of the USSR, it remains the second most corrupt country in Europe, after only Russia itself, according to those who measure such things. It is judged to be perhaps the second poorest country in Europe. But it aspires to join the EU, and its people have smelt freedom of speech and free elections. The vast majority of the country seem to want to keep their freedoms and to develop the wealth of the nation for themselves, having broken free from Russian oppression decades ago. That they are being forced to defend against a totally amoral invader in Putin, as the front line for all of Europe, earns them the empathy and respect of the free parts of the world. The Ukrainians have had to examine what they hold dearest, and have decided it is worth defending. Perhaps, it is a good time for the UK and other nations to undertake a similar examination, be thankful and decide to defend important values against those who would undermine them from within.
REVELATIONS AND CONSEQUENCES
This crisis is proving an eye-opener and perhaps a “lightbulb” moment in many respects in Western countries. Fortunately, in the UK, the Conservative Government, Labour and all serious opposition parties stand united in condemnation of Putin and in support of Ukraine, short of combat with Russia. Extremists have been outed for their anti-Western values. That Jeremy Corbyn, John McDonnell and Diane Abbot, as well as certain Union leaders and a few other Labour MPs, signed a statement effectively blaming the British Government and NATO for Putin’s behaviour shames them. Why left-wing extremists support fascism which Putin and his acolytes stand for is a mystery, unless their agenda is to destroy the UK way of life or perhaps their agenda is equally fascist. Fortunately, Keir Starmer has distanced the Labour party from them in strong terms. At the other end of the spectrum, Nigel Farage, perhaps to follow Donald Trump’s respectful admiration for Putin, blamed the EU and NATO, declaring, it is reported, that Putin had no wish to invade Ukraine. That Nigel Farage stands close by Putin is less of a surprise, and makes his subsequent attempt to row back disapproving of the war hardly matter.
A backfire to Putin for his violence is that NATO, and its component countries, now realise its importance and that the reality of the world and of the malevolence of undemocratic autocrats means being able to defend oneself remains a necessity. So, NATO is reinvigorated, and is reinforcing with armed forces the Eastern borders of Europe, the exact opposite of one of Putin’s core demands that NATO withdraw.
And Germany initially tiptoed around Putin’s blatantly threatening behaviour as the invasion forces assembled, and was unwilling to be seen to provide any meaningful aid to Ukraine, desperate to preserve Putin’s goodwill and protect their trading relationship and energy source. But in the wake of the reality of the invasion and the persistent outcry of Western and other free countries, the penny has not only dropped, but the new Chancellor of Germany, Olaf Scholz, sees the need for a complete strategic U-turn and that the cost of defeating Putin will be less than the cost of his succeeding. Germany will now provide lethal weaponry to Ukraine, will reduce dependence on Russian oil and gas, is backing all the now tough sanctions, and has overturned German military policy of the last decades: Alfons Mais, head of the German army, had already apologised for the parlous state of the German armed forces, and now a Euro 100 billion fund is being established to re-equip them, and Germany will at last contribute its due share to NATO. Another major backfire for Putin.
The UK, especially London financial institutions and related service providers, has been, for decades, a safe harbour for Russian criminals, termed sometimes oligarchs and now kleptocrats, but now this appalling dishonourable mistake may be rectified. It Is important, however, not to brand all Russians with this brush and distinguish those, even some who may be wealthy, who are not Putin cronies, being wary of this becoming a racist not a honed attack. The assets of kleptocrats, and their families one assumes, are to be identified and, where possible, frozen. It is to the disgrace of the UK that this had to be rather forced on the UK Government by a brutal invasion rather than their seeing the light proactively. It is essential that the Government both does and is seen to energetically, quickly and ruthlessly apply the sanctions to these people. Parliament must hold feet to the fire on these actions and relentlessly seek an account of what is actually achieved. Of course, Russian kleptocrats are not the only people in the category of criminals with assets pillaged from their country. Perhaps every autocrat in the world uses London in the same way for their ill-gotten money, See Sherbhert article THE UK, A PRIVILEGED PLACE TO LIVE BUT HATE AND CORRUPTION THREATEN. Eventually the same attack needs to be directed to these people if UK values are to be restored to respectability. The same principles probably need to be applied to a number of other Western cities.
Is perhaps the plainest lesson to the West from Ukraine that it is time to recognise some home truths and reverse the complacency, self-satisfied righteousness and self-indulgence which has softened the ability of democracy and individuals to attend first to the basic fundamentals which underpin a free society?
SEIZING THE DAY
Is the Ukraine war a chance not to be missed when reassessment and action could transform societies’ paths? Fears of truths like the inevitability of death and that the world cannot keep everyone safe from everything bad can be confronted. Politicians can embrace statesmanship instead of trivia. Determination to resist not placate, or turn a blind eye to, immoral and disgusting behaviour by autocratic rulers can be reinforced. Strategic dependency on those who would do harm will be rejected. Those with decent common purpose can unite and embrace their values to resist the decadence and corruption that is a cancer growing globally. A rethink and reset are needed on so many fronts. First, however, the evil aggression of Putin and his cronies must fail. More countries such as India need to make him a pariah. The determinations of sanctions and other supports for Ukraine must be sustained for as long as it takes. Democracies will have to suffer pain in the cause of winning, but that pain will be insignificant compared to that of millions of Ukrainians.
If lessons are truly learnt, the ultimate cancellation, the cancellation of a nation, will surely fail and perhaps even, after some have paid a heavy cost, some lasting improvement in world behaviour will emerge. However, before that can happen, democracies and NATO may have to examine morality and reconsider their decision not to engage directly in conflict with Russia, when they witness, as is feared, an attempt to annihilate Ukraine with the war crime of mass murder of civilians, and so risk Putin’s control of the nuclear button.
See also PUTIN BRINGS DESTRUCTION TO 44 MILLION PEOPLE,
