Commentary
Ukraine is in dire straits, not least because Russia invaded the new democracy in 2014 and is still there, violating its borders on a daily basis, and shooting off missiles at Ukrainian soldiers in the country’s east. So, Ukraine looks for support anywhere it can find. The United States, Britain, and NATO generally have been soft on Putin, when they should have rushed into the Ukrainian breach and helped the inspiring young country with all we’ve got. This failure of Ukraine’s democratic friends follows a sorry path in history of democracies as reluctant allies to each other when it means risking their own skin, as opposed to glittering photo shoots for politicians at alliance summits in each others’ palaces and presidential mansions. That said, Ukraine must not break ranks with its democratic supporters to such an extent that it appears to be doing the bidding of China, which is the biggest long-term threat to global democracies.
