Whose war, at what cost?

To the editor:

Recently it was revealed that private citizens (former top American national security officials) and high-ranking Russian officials met to discuss negotiations to end the horrific war in Ukraine.  These talks were not sanctioned by the Biden administration.  

The administration continues to fight a proxy war costing tens of billions of dollars. Despite repeatedly arming Ukraine with advanced weapons, the war has ground to a stalemate. Ukraine had no spring offensive and its summer offensive has only made incremental progress. The New York Times describes a “grim picture in the South with vast fields of mines hinder[ing] Ukraine’s forces.” 

The cover of Foreign Affairs’ July/August  cover asks a pertinent question: “Tell Me How This Ends. Is There a Path for Victory in Ukraine?” Biden’s response at the NATO summit was pure bull. He said Washington and its allies would defend Ukraine and other vulnerable parts of Europe “as long as it takes. … Our commitment to Ukraine will not weaken. …We will stand for liberty and freedom today and tomorrow.”  “As long as it takes” sounds like another forever war.

Also, Biden’s claim that we stand for liberty and freedom is not consistent with the record.  Turkey, Poland and Hungary, three NATO nations, have authoritarian governments, as do our allies India and some Central American nations. We also support brutal dictatorships in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, and give unconditional support to a right-wing extremist government in Israel whose policies in the occupied territories have grievous consequences for five million Palestinians.

It's a travesty that there is no debate by Democrats in Congress over Biden’s $886 billion military budget, the proxy war in Ukraine, and his policy to confront autocracies such as Russia and China. These are efforts to ensure the United States remains the world’s monolithic superpower, but at what cost?

Howard Elterman