Karen Zwart: Why the United States, its people need to support Ukraine

Background: In 1991, having gained independence from the Soviet Union, Ukraine inherited an impressive number of nuclear weapons. Three years later, under pressure from Russian President Boris Yeltsin, U.S. President Bill Clinton, and Great Britain, Ukraine agreed to turn that nuclear arsenal over to Russia for dismantling.

Today, not only would that nuclear arsenal be worth billions of dollars, it would also have served to protect Ukraine from invasion and assure them a place in NATO. But Ukraine trusted the promise of the countries pressuring them to give up their nuclear weapons — the promise that in return for Ukraine giving up their nuclear arsenal, Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom, and other countries would guarantee Ukraine economic support and national security. That promise is called the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances. It was
signed on Dec. 5, 1994.

Nevertheless, in 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin, who came to power in 2000, refused to honor that promise. Russian soldiers seized control of key areas and key buildings in Crimea and then, after a questionable vote in Crimea that supposedly showed the people of Crimea favored becoming a part of Russia, Russia formally annexed the whole peninsula. Many countries in the international community condemned the annexation as a crime, refused to recognize Crimea as belonging to Russia, and imposed sanctions on Russia. Russia’s membership in the G8 was also suspended. The G8 (Group of Eight), a coalition of the world’s major democracies who meet annually to agree on issues of global importance (such as economic and energy policies) has since become the G7.

The condemnation of the international community, however, did not prevent Russia from a second invasion of Ukraine. That second invasion occurred in 2022. Dreaming of an empire, fearing that Ukraine was becoming too close to its democratic allies, and coveting the vast wealth of Ukraine’s resources, such as its agricultural lands and rare earth minerals, Putin apparently could not resist invading Ukraine again. According to an AI summary, having Ukraine would give Russia "increased regional dominance, access to all of Ukraine’s valuable
resources, a boost to Russian nationalism, and potential for further expansion.”

Apparently, Putin thought taking over Ukraine would be easy. He had no idea how hard the people of Ukraine were willing to fight to protect their sovereignty as a nation. And this brief summary brings us to the reasons why the American people and the United States as a nation need to support Ukraine and not let Russia win:

1. Because we promised Ukraine our support and protection in return for Ukraine giving up its nuclear weapons.

Ukraine has not only become our ally; Ukraine has become our friend.

2. Because our support for Ukraine will prevent future wars and protect the world from what could become expanded wars.

As someone pointed out, “Backing Ukraine is not an act of charity; it is a strategic deed to safeguard global security.” Note: Because Ukraine is defending a world order based upon law, Ukraine is a “test” that the whole world is watching. In that sense, Ukraine is defending not only its own integrity, but the integrity of every vulnerable country. We must never doubt that Putin, in wanting to rebuild the Soviet empire (once called the “Soviet Union”), has his eyes on all the independent-but-vulnerable countries close to Russia’s borders — Belarus, Bulgaria, Finland and so many others. We must never doubt that China has its eyes on Taiwan, the Philippines, and other countries in its region. We must never doubt that other nations, too, are eyeing their more vulnerable neighbors (including our own current administration). We cannot risk letting Russia win this war and setting the precedent that it is not only OK for a
strong country to invade and take over a more vulnerable neighboring country, but also that the strong country will benefit from such a takeover.

3. Because our support for Ukraine proves that we want to promote democracy and peace, not dictatorship and war.

At this point in history, making sure Ukraine remains independent seems the best way for us to promote democracy and peace.

4. Because our support for Ukraine will bring about a just peace to end the war in Ukraine.

The only way to motivate Russia to negotiate a just peace is to make sure Putin understands we will support Ukraine and not let Russia win. Note: Peace at any price is appeasement. And appeasement leads to more aggression and more wars. Many historians point out that appeasing Hitler’s aggression led the world into World War II. These historians caution us never to repeat this mistake.

5. Because we not only have the power to stop Russia and defend Ukraine, we also have the resources — military as well as economic.

Note: Since it’s hard to wrap our minds around billions and trillions, let us consider a particular situation involving billions of dollars: What did we, as a country, spend on Christmas in 2023? According to the National Retail Federation, it was a little over $964 billion on Christmas. That is almost $1 trillion. What did we spend on Ukraine? Congress allocated $175 billion for Ukraine. You will also discover, however, that there is a difference between what was allocated and what was disbursed. For example, some of what was allocated has been withheld and has since expired; some is still being withheld; and some has been used to resupply our own military arsenal. According to an AI summary, as of March, only $83.4 billion has actually been disbursed to Ukraine. We know financial matters can be much more complicated than they seem. Nevertheless, if these figures are correct, comparing the $964 billion we spent on Christmas in one year to the $83.4 billion we have disbursed to Ukraine over three years gives us a perspective on the cost. In other words, if these figures are correct, what we spent on Ukraine in three years is only 8% of what we spent on Christmas in one year. Note: When we look at the ever-increasing wealth gap in the U.S., it is not surprising that so many Americans wonder if we can afford to support Ukraine. The statistics of this wealth gap are staggering. The top 1 percent holds approximately 30% of our wealth. The top 10 percent holds 60-70%. The top 50% holds about 96%. What does that leave the other 50% of our population? 4%. That means out of every $100, 50 % of us get to invest and live on at least $96. The other 50% have to eke out a living on $4. No wonder so many Americans think that we have a weak economy and that we really can’t afford to help Ukraine. This staggering wealth gap not only hides how wealthy we are as a country, it also
indicates that our economy is failing to spread prosperity. (And by extending the tax breaks for the wealthiest among us, this administration is increasing that wealth gap.)

6. Because we want to do the right thing.

Maybe just “doing the right thing” is the most important reason for supporting Ukraine. We need to do the right thing for the sake of the heart and soul of our country. If we don’t, we are standing by and watching a bully pummel our friend and ally, even though we have the power to stop it. How could that build our self-esteem as a country? How could that inspire confidence in our other friends and allies?

In summary, for the good of Ukraine, for the good of our own country, and for the good of the world, we need to make sure that Russia does not win this war and that Ukraine remains free and democratic.

— Karen Zwart is a member of Lakeshore Women for Peace. For more information on the group, email lakeshorewfp@gmail.com.