There is a lot to be said about the situation in Ukraine, especially because I’m a nerd who loves foreign policy. But I’ll be brief and make just a few salient points. After all, by the time you’re reading this, the invasion might have begun.
Nobody should want a war in Ukraine between the United States and Russia. Russia is our deadliest adversary and a nuclear power. Even if our military is adequately prepared, we as a country are not prepared for a conflict that would quickly eclipse casualty counts from Iraq and Afghanistan.
If someone is proposing we should go to war with Russia to defend Ukraine, ignore them. They are not a serious person. This is not the time of Desert Storm where we could’ve rolled over any non-western army without trouble.
Putin is not scared of our country’s leadership. Why should he be? The Afghanistan debacle showed that our political leaders are easily caught flat-footed and have no ability to be flexible. Not to mention that our response after the Colonial Pipeline cyberattack was nothing more than words.
Putin finds it beneficial to himself and Russia to be seen opposing the US. This is a failure of our policies towards Russia since the USSR disintegrated. Until we can change the incentive structure then we will face a world where we are supposed to counterbalance both Russia and China.
If we really wanted to send a message to Russia, we would immediately remove all restrictions on drilling for oil and natural gas while sanctioning the Nord Stream pipeline. With the express purpose of destroying OPEC+. With the way things in Europe are going, they are going to need supplies of energy. They can either get them from us or from Russia.
Peace through Strength.
Reagan understood that weakness would not lead to peace but would instead encourage war. Nothing in our country screams strength on the world stage right now. We are deeply divided. Our military leaders are more concerned with woke propaganda than winning wars. Ex: Afghanistan.
Our political leaders are more concerned with woke propaganda than winning wars or with protecting the American economy. Ex: Afghanistan and your local gas prices. Some conservatives have decided that since Reagan didn’t prevent all the abuse of government since his time ended, that he was not the great president he was. Personally, I think we should pay more attention to his foreign policy since he ended the Cold War without going to war with the USSR.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” – Matthew 5:9