In 1939, Europe got a taste of what dictators are capable of. Totally unprovoked, Nazi Adolf Hitler and Communist Joseph Stalin jointly invaded Poland. Further proceeding on his own, Stalin continued his aggression with the invasion of Finland.
Fast forward to 2022 and we discover that we have another Russian dictator, with outdated and idiotic objectives, who, unprovoked, proceeds to invade Ukraine.
The invasion, pure aggression, aims to strip extensive mineral-rich territories from Ukraine and integrate them as Russian possessions.
The invasion, or as euphemistically called, the ‘Special Military Operation’, would also allow Vladimir Putin to remove alleged Nazi elements from the democratically-elected Kiev government. He also intended to put an end to any EU or NATO aspirations Ukraine might have had.
What was intended to be a fast one-week blitzkrieg operation, Nazi-style, revealed a pathetic Russian conventional army bogged down for months by an incredibly patriotic and valorous Ukrainian resistance, supported by the US, the EU and NATO.
Initially, Putin’s invasion of Ukraine revealed a US, an EU and a NATO wholly unprepared militarily to stand up to this outrageous behaviour. At least there now seems to be an awakening, with serious commitments to increase the conventional military ability of free and democratic Europe to resist threats from dictators. It is reassuring to see Sweden and Finland discard their trust in a treacherous Russian dictatorship and seek membership of and protection from, NATO.
As happens in dictatorships, Putin and his generals believed the propaganda concerning the preparedness of the Russian army. On realising how disastrously ill-equipped and untrained Russia’s army was, Putin proceeded to make widespread use of missiles, showered criminally even on civilian targets.
As the conventional Russian military machine proved ineffective, Putin did not hesitate to threaten a use of nuclear weapons, a most despicable and desperate escalation. This threat confirms that, in this day and age, without its nuclear arms, Russia does not count for much. Furthermore, in the 1980s and 1990s, with the loss of its European communist empire, Russia also lost its economic clout. This situation calls for even more caution and vigilance when dealing with such a desperate rogue dictatorial state.
Vladimir Putin’s internal propaganda machine is pathetic in its assertions- Arthur Muscat
The reign of Tsar Nicholas II, and Russian aristocracy, came to an end in 1917, only to be replaced by a new aristocracy, a communist one, with Stalin as the Tsar. Putin and his oligarchs want to re-establish such a set-up. Since 1917, politically and socially, Russia appears to have made insignificant advances. It is about time that a free and democratic European Union wakes up to this highly dangerous situation.
In the meantime, the Ukrainian population is being subjected to a bestial aggression that is causing a total destruction of its country. The military and civilian casualties run into thousands and a rehabilitation of Ukraine is going to take years.
The dictatorship of Putin and his oligarchs is not managing to hide the cruel deaths of thousands of conscripted Russian soldiers.
Neither can they hide the negative economic effects of the refusal of Europe and the US to relate to what is now a pariah State. Putin’s internal propaganda machine is pathetic in its assertions. Europe has woken up to Putin’s warped and outdated imperial mentality and now has no choice but to seriously commit to defend its democratic set-ups.
Since Russia is a dictatorship, we must not make the mistake of blaming all Russian citizens for the tragedy in Ukraine. So many Russian citizens disapprove of Putin’s war but are practically unable to voice their opposition.
It takes a lot of courage to revolt against an oppressive system that punishes whoever tries to rebel.
I still recall, with respect and admiration, that valorous lady, Marina Ovsyannikova, who displayed an anti-war poster during a Russian television news transmission. What a show of incredible courage!
After a vile assassination attempt, that opposition superhero, Alexei Navalny, voluntarily returned to Russia to continue his opposition mission, knowing full well he would be immediately imprisoned.
Finally, in a free Europe, we need to contrast some nostalgic, outdated, Communist intellectuals who still embrace a confused vision of a glorious and heroic proletarian Russian empire.
Incredibly, some of these misguided intellectuals even attempt to give a justification for a shocking and unpardonable aggression.
Nevertheless, Europe must not completely shut out Russia. Efforts should continue to assist Russia to move back towards an accountable system of government, a system that does not depend on the whims of one person surrounded by oligarchs.
Angela Merkel, perhaps naively, in supporting the Nord Stream gas pipeline, was giving Putin an opportunity to get closer to the EU democracies. Putin responded with an ingrained anti-west behaviour.
Perhaps someone should explain to Putin how to better identify threats to Russia. Maybe he should be looking east, not west, for threats.
Perhaps Putin should better watch his back door, outside which lurk some notable nostalgic ‘Communist’ oligarchies.
Arthur Muscat is a human resources and industrial relations specialist.