“War in Ukraine: Emasculating NATO before it reaches Russia’s doorstep”

“War in Ukraine: Emasculating NATO before it reaches Russia’s doorstep”



By Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy


THE on-going war between Ukraine and Russia cannot be reduced entirely to the aggression of the latter. I believe that war between the two countries started way back when Russia unsuccessfully sought to install leaders who could be its allies.

The present Russian aggression albeit on a larger scale is a continuation of the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the recent annexation of the two pro-Russian “republics” in the east of Ukraine.

While the Russian president Vladimir Putin should be responsible for the aggression against an independent state of Ukraine, the conflict itself is multidimensional one.

Historically, Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union until its break up in the 1990s. In 1991, as the other Soviet republics were declaring independence, Ukraine followed suit.

In any case, I do not think Russia would have contemplated invading if Ukraine had not tilted towards the West. Even though Russia attempted to install leaders who would be amicable to the country, it failed.

The concern of Putin was not Ukraine per se, but the slow but sure movement of Ukraine into the Western orbit.

After the fall of the Soviet Union, the North-Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) successfully incorporated some of the eastern European countries under its security and defence shield.

The Western powers namely the US and the European Union were slowly knocking on the doors of Ukraine. Matters became more complicated with the ascension of Volodymyr Zelenskiy as the president in 2017.

Zelenskiy, unlike the earlier presidents who sought to maintain some good relations with Russia, was blatantly pro-West. In fact, it was during his administration that tensions increased between Ukraine and Russia.

The straw that broke the camel’s back was when Zelenskiy openly asked the US for Ukraine to be admitted into NATO.

In June 2020, much to Putin’s chagrin, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a US$5 bil lifeline to Ukraine.

From early this year, given the pro-West move of Zelenskiy, Putin started amassing troops for the final showdown.

The fact that NATO was not able to give a guarantee by way of a legal binding agreement from stopping military activity in Eastern Europe and Ukraine, merely confirmed the worst fears of Putin that his country might be encircled by hostile powers.

The growing nexus between Ukraine and the Western powers was cause of concern to Putin. In many of his speeches, Putin declared that Ukraine was not just another country, but a state that was culturally, linguistically and politically inseparable to the Russian history.

The West to be blamed too!

For Putin, any attempt to carve out Ukraine from the Russian sphere of influence was not acceptable, even if war was inevitable.

In 2014, Crimea was brought under Russian control by way of a referendum. Small scale wars were fought to support the pro-Russian republics in the eastern part of Ukraine.

Lately, before the outbreak of a full-scale war, these two regions have been brought under the Russian control.

The present war has roots in the long history of Russia. While we can blame Putin for the aggression, the Western powers are not innocent bystanders.

Functioning under the security umbrella of NATO, they are also responsible for pushing the Russians to war.

Ukraine president Zelenskiy is no saint, knowing very well the Russian sensitivity about ties with NATO, he openly declared his intention to join this security establishment.

Maybe he thought that with the support of the US and other Western powers, he could neutralise the Russians. Perhaps he underestimated Putin, who is bent on regaining the glory of the former Soviet Union.

Let us see whether the Western imposed sanctions will cause the pullback of Russian troops from Ukraine. – Feb 26, 2022