Without Kyiv's membership in NATO, civilized world will lose

This is a chance to mobilize all the resources of the West in the fight against the Kremlin's imperialist convulsions. Otherwise, not only Ukraine, but also our Western partners will lose. 

So far, Ukraine's prospects for joining the Alliance have been viewed through the prism of "collective thinking" imposed by the United States and Germany: "after the war", "reforms are needed", etc. But over the past few weeks, former government officials, independent experts, and some government officials have begun to question this official logic of Washington and Berlin. 

"The North Atlantic Alliance should accept Ukraine as soon as possible. Delaying Ukraine's accession to NATO encourages the Putin regime to continue the war indefinitely... It's time to send the exact opposite message... Then the continuation of this war will be pointless for Putin and destructive for Russia," said Kurt Volker, former US Ambassador to NATO.

There are more and more statements about the expediency of opening the doors of collective security for Kyiv, and I have collected only a modest part of them here. 

"Ukraine's path to NATO membership is part of a winning strategy for both Ukraine and the entire bloc. Even before the occupied part of Ukraine is completely liberated, the Alliance could extend the NATO umbrella to the territories controlled by the Ukrainian government. Helping Ukraine defeat Putin is a vital US interest. After all, more than 800,000 American lives have been lost in previous wars in Europe. It is Ukraine that can prevent this," said former Pentagon official Jan Brzezinski.

"The best way to ensure lasting peace and stability in Europe is for Ukraine to join NATO. Next summer, the Alliance will celebrate its 75th anniversary at a summit in Washington. An invitation for Ukraine to join would be the perfect way to celebrate," said former NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.

Rebeccah Heinrichs, Hudson Institute: "Let's allow Ukraine to fight this war the way we would! In other words, Ukraine should gain air superiority, get longer-range drones, and speed up the delivery of F-16s." Similar statements were made by the former commander of the US Army in Europe, Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, and former CIA Director David Petraeus.

It is the fragmentation of Europe and the United States that allows the Kremlin Fuhrer to think about a possible attack on NATO in 6-7 years. Meanwhile, the economic potential of NATO member states makes it possible to support Ukraine, but it is not fully utilized.

"Add up the economies of the countries that support Ukraine in its fight against Russia, and we will outnumber (Russia - Ed.) 30 to 1," British Foreign Secretary David Cameron says. He is flying to Washington with the idea of mobilizing all allies, according to WSJ. Moscow has mobilized the economy. Not only has it increased its military check to a record $100 billion next year, but it has also switched a significant portion of civilian factories to producing tanks and drones. The West, on the other hand, is very weak and unable to fulfill even its obligations to Ukraine. 

Other officials also call for mobilization. For example, the head of the Dutch Ministry of Defense, Kajsa Ollongren, says that no country can cope with modern security threats alone. 

In March-April 2022, the "collective mind" also tried to fence itself off from the war in Ukraine with the mantra of "not wanting to be a party to the conflict." But Ukraine's voice, as well as statements by high-ranking experts and some progressive government officials, changed the West's position. It seems that we are now experiencing a second wave, as a result of which Washington and Berlin will be forced to abandon the convenient mantra in favor of the security of the whole world.

Source

About the author. Orest Sokhar, journalist, editor-in-chief of Obozrevatel.

The editors do not always share the opinions expressed by the blog authors.