Why Help Ukraine?
By Hal Lindsey
With the murder of yet another perceived rival in Russia, Vladimir Putin has again proven that he belongs among the ranks of history’s most evil men. But it should be noted that none of the others on that list had the world’s largest nuclear arsenal a button away.
On August 8, 2008, Russia invaded Georgia. There were the usual press statements from various nations condemning Russia, but little action. In the United States, George W. Bush was in the last days of his presidency while dealing with the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Instead of getting tough with the Russian aggressor, the Obama Administration entered office a few months later calling for an immediate reset of the US relationship with Russia.
Putin’s aggression received the world’s approval, and he never forgot it. Russia supported Bashir al-Assad in the Syrian Civil War, heavily contributing to the violent catastrophe there. More than a half million people died. Thirteen million were displaced from their homes with half of those having to leave for other countries.
In early 2014, Russia invaded Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula, and then annexed it. Despite previous US promises to protect Ukrainian sovereignty, the Obama Administration refused to provide meaningful support. No US President wants the United States to directly confront Russia with troops. But Obama’s appeasement of Russia kept him from even sending the kind of weapons Ukraine needed. That failure made future aggression by Putin inevitable.
Even with a huge Russian invasion force amassed on Ukraine’s border, President Joe Biden continued his former boss’s policy of giving limited military aid to Ukraine. When Russia invaded, he and most other observers seemed to expect Ukraine to quickly fold.
But instead, something amazing happened. The Ukrainians refused to be trampled over. They stood up against what some believe to be the second most powerful military on earth. Their bravery and selfless determination while confronting such an overwhelming force stunned the world. Faced with Russia’s ugly, unprovoked invasion and Ukraine’s amazing response, the US and Europe finally began to send real help.
And now, some suggest that the US should stop its support of Ukraine in order to provide help to Maui… as if we can’t do both. Of course, we must help our own people in Maui. And, without a doubt, we need to secure our own border. But at the same time, we must also stand with the people of Ukraine. Doing so makes the world safer for ourselves and for future generations.
I do have a caveat here. We need to look carefully at the level of spending. Remember President Eisenhower’s farewell address warning about the “military-industrial complex.” We need to closely monitor every dollar spent on Ukraine. Some politicians and bureaucrats take their marching orders from people who derive power and wealth from the creation of weapons. The US must send what Ukraine actually needs — not just throw money at them. Act strategically.
I also recognize that Ukraine is not perfect. But with all their flaws, they are doing something strong and heroic. We can’t send troops because that would lead to nuclear war. But we don’t need to send troops. Ukrainians are already doing the job. We just need to hang in there with them and help them finish it.
Russia and its primary ally, China, have shown that they will be as aggressive as they are allowed to be. Appeasement does not work! If we don’t stop them in Ukraine, we will have to stop them somewhere else — maybe here. And if the confrontation involves any NATO nation, we will find global thermonuclear war suddenly staring us in the face.
