A Putin-Waged War and the Devastating Consequences it is Having on Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin has invaded his neighbor Ukraine and waged war on the country in what appears to be a bid to reclaim nations under the Soviet Union. Russia under Putin has been particularly distraught for Ukraine, having led to the annexation of Crimea a few years back. Putin has always had a bone to pick with Russia’s less-resourced neighbor and the situation has become worse after the election of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a non-conformist to Putin.

The Question of Ukraine to Russia

Ukraine is one of the closest nations to Russia both in principle or way of living, culture, and historical ties. A good number of the Ukrainian population is Russian, almost half the country. The historical ties between the two nations are so deep that Ukraine typically faces identity issues that culminate in debates on whether to use Russian or Ukrainian as the formal language in some places. Consequently, the question of Ukraine for Russia is more than that of reclamation and ‘re-unification’ more than Ukrainians would like to admit.

A Corrupt Dictator Waging War to Meet his Agenda

Putin is a corrupt dictator who is waging war to meet his agenda. Putin wants Ukraine to be part of Russia because Russia is already almost half of Ukraine in language and origin. As a result, Putin feels that Ukraine should be a sub-state of Russia since so many of his ‘citizens’ are in Ukraine. His twisted belief in the supremacy of his Russian countrymen does not let him accept that they would be led under a foreign country or under leadership that dispels the values of communism.

Why Now?: Why Russia is Invading Ukraine in 2022

Typically, Russia enjoys the collaboration and unfortunate emasculation of the Ukrainian government embodied in ‘good relations’ with the country’s president. That was the case with the former president of Ukraine who was a Putin collaborator. Due to the influence and obvious ties between the two nations, the Kremlin has always felt it necessary to have control and shadow authority in the leadership of the country, seeing it as a way to protect its people — Russians in Ukraine.

This shadow authority was by no means a fair or egalitarian consideration or conventional diplomatic ties with Ukraine, it was an emasculation and a bending of the country’s leaders to the Kremlin’s will and whims. That is why Russia had the guts and wither withal to annex Crimea, a peninsula of Ukraine between the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.

Enter Zelenskyy; A High-Energy Anti-Putin President who Refuses to Conform to Russia

Fast forward to 2022 and Ukraine is under a leader who is openly against Russia and its leader Putin. Zelenskyy is openly critical of Putin and was elected partly due to his anti-Putin manifesto and ideation. Zelenskyy won the election, despite having no political experience and only having been a teacher, due to his promises to defend Ukraine from Russia and ensure its political and economic independence away from reliance on Russia.

Constant Border Attacks and Violence

Russia has always been attacking Ukraine on its borders with the country. Countless Ukrainian lives have been lost in a relentless push by Russia to always pressure Ukraine on its borders and kind of push in forcibly. Ukraine, on its part, has always resisted this border tyranny and tried all it can to defend itself and the integrity of its borders. Even so, it is by no means militarily comparable to Russia as Russia is far more superior in its military resources and might.

The Question of NATO for Ukraine

Enter now the question of NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and whether Ukraine should be allowed to join the alliance and enjoy its —military alliance— benefits. NATO is a group of nations that came together to essentially form a single army to protect their common agenda and interests.

It even has a policy termed “attack one, attack all” where it considers an attack on a single member as an attack on all members. Membership in NATO would give Ukraine the military backing and political support it needs to deal with an aggressor such as Russia, something that Putin is very aware of, leading to his vehement opposition to Ukraine, Poland, and Sweden joining NATO.

Should NATO Help Ukraine as a Matter of Principle?

Ukraine is yet to be a member of NATO. Even so, we are left wondering whether NATO should assist Ukraine and help it avoid the massacre that is already underway in a war with Russia. The UN should surely help and there have been calls that the agency should send peacekeepers to the nation. However, the question of NATO’s involvement is the most pressing as NATO has the resources and reach in Europe to essentially shift the tide in this imposed war on Ukraine.

The People are the Ones Who Will Suffer the Most

The people of Ukraine will be the ones to suffer the most in this war with Russia. Countless people have already lost their lives and hundreds of thousands more have already fled their homes seeking refuge from the conflict. Children will and have already ended up in refugee camps and in uninhabitable living spaces fighting to survive another night without food, shelter, and water.

A Looming Refugee Crisis in Ukraine

Entire families have been uprooted from their lives and have had to abandon their livelihoods to escape the raging machine of war that Russia has deployed in the country. Aid agencies are caught unawares, chasing their tails to conjure enough a response to meet the growing refugee and humanitarian needs in Ukraine. We ask, however, is one man’s war unstoppable? Is the world that cruel that a single man could wage war on an entire country? We pray not but it’s already unfolding in front of our very eyes.

The People of Russia and Where They Stand on the Ukraine War

The people of Russia do not want and did not want a war with Ukraine. Every Russian likely has a tie to Ukraine, maybe a relative, friend, or even close family member who resides or has family in Ukraine. Ukraine is essentially a sibling of Russia and the people of Russia are not supportive of waging a war against it. The current Ukrainian invasion and Russian military campaign is purely a construct of the Kremlin and Putin.

Is World War 3 Inevitable?

What makes the war so risky and potentially world-changing is how easily a conflict like this could turn into an all-out global war. Russia is notorious for its efforts to invade Ukraine and the allies of Ukraine, especially its Western allies could feel responsible in terms of lending a helping hand to the outgunned country.

As a result, a Western nation could join the conflict and aid Ukraine in fighting the Russian invasion, leading to conflict between the helping nation and Russia. If the helping nation is also a superpower and has enough nuclear arsenal and launch capacity to deploy nukes that span continents, then World War 3 could become a fact and you can imagine what a terrible war that would be.

Advanced Military Technology and Weaponry

You can imagine all the technology and advanced weaponry systems that would be deployed. The terror and the panic that would bring to the world. The West and the United States in such a situation would come to Ukraine’s aid as nations with poor human rights facilitation such as China back Russia. The combination would produce World War 3 and you can imagine what a trigger-happy Kim Jong Un would do to bring North Korea into the conversation and in his view, earn some ‘respect’ at last.