Debate U.S. role in Ukraine war

To the editor:

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and his military’s war crimes are not reasons to avoid critically examining President Joe Biden’s policies. The American people deserve a serious debate about the costs of this war, and the benefits of ending it as soon as possible. 

What constitutes a Kyiv victory in this unpredictable war? What does Biden mean when he says, “I’m here to show our unwavering support for the nation’s independence, their sovereignty and territorial integrity”? What does Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen mean when she says, “providing the support … necessary for Ukraine to win … is certainly something … we really can’t afford not to do”? President Volodymyr Zelensky agrees with the administration” “I am certain there will be victory.” 

Eugene Rumer, at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, observed that while Russian President Vladimir Putin is committed “to his grand victory,” Ukrainians are equally “as committed as ever to defeating Putin. Given such irreconcilable narratives, how can this conflict end, as Russia, Ukraine and NATO, led by Washington’s military and economic might, dig in for a protracted, escalating war?

To make matters worse, Russia has suspended its participation in the New Start treaty, the sole remaining nuclear arms agreement between Washington and Moscow. Biden repeatedly mentions that the U.S. will implement Article 5 of NATO’s charter if any member is attacked, and his administration has warned China of serious consequences should it militarily support its Russian ally. Finally, there has been a significant increase in the militarization of countries in Europe and Asia. This is the result not only of the terrible Russian invasion, the rising power of China, and North Korea’s nuclear missile program, but also Washington’s black and white and contradictory views of the world, divided into democracy and autocracy.

Historian Andrew Bacevich points out that since World War II, Washington has used the military “to serve as an instrument of global power projection … and not primarily as a force designed to protect the American people.” None of the above bodes well for creating a world that “makes life on earth worth living” unless, as President John F. Kennedy said, we reject “a Pax Americana enforced on the world by American weapons of war.”

Howard Elterman