This past Saturday, Feb. 24, was the second anniversary of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Initially, Congress held widespread and bipartisan support for Ukraine. Now, however, the United States has become less of a staunch ally for democracy and more of an enabler for Russian aggression and expansion. American far-right politicians have unified behind depriving Ukraine of every cent and disinformation about the war abounds. The House of Representatives and its attempts to send aid are blocked by several members who admire Vladimir Putin’s stranglehold on power.
Above all, this war is more than dollar signs. Ukraine and its people did not want this invasion. They did not ask to be fighting for their lives and their independence. Thousands of innocent civilians, not to mention tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers, have been killed because of pure Russian aggression. These people would still be alive today if not for Putin.
Under Putin, Russia is an authoritarian dictatorship. There can be no argument about it. Members of the country’s political opposition are jailed, exiled or murdered. Citizens are arrested for simply laying flowers down at memorials to political repression or for protesting this senseless war. Those who make excuses for Putin’s despotic government either want his oppression in Russia to continue or desire to bring it over here to the U.S. as well.
Everyone must understand that Ukraine’s fight for democracy is our fight for democracy. Helping them secure their freedom secures our freedom at home. We claim that our great country stands for freedom, liberty and rights. Those are the very ideals Ukraine is fighting for. If we abandon Ukraine, we will be opening the door for complete and utter aggression by Putin and other dictators. He is bent on expanding Russian territory through brutal military force. There is no place for wars of expansion in the 21st century.
Some tell Ukraine to just let Russia have the territories it currently occupies — about 25% of the country. But the world has tried appeasement before. It allowed an emboldened Adolf Hitler to launch a war over the entirety of Europe and kill millions. If Putin is given a little bit of Ukraine now, what’s to stop him from invading again in a few months or years? We tried to negotiate with him after he illegally annexed Ukraine’s Crimea a decade ago in 2014. He invaded the rest of the country anyway.
Our world’s peace — own national security — is built on territorial integrity and sovereignty. If we leave Ukraine to Putin, we acknowledge that we do not care for other democracies. This acknowledgment only strengthens our enemies and places American troops in harm’s way. Abandoning Ukraine sends a clear message to the world that we will not protect our allies. NATO will face a crisis of confidence. Smaller democracies like Taiwan may face destruction at the hands of autocratic regimes such as China. If we lose allies and fellow democracies overseas, there is no advantage to our national security.
We applaud past American generations for standing up to authoritarianism abroad. We celebrate the fact that American money and weapons helped keep Britain in the fight against Nazism when the island stood alone. We even have a special name for those who didn’t back down to dictator: the Greatest Generation. How will future generations look back at us if we leave Ukraine and other democracies to dictatorships? The history books will not be kind in their assessment.
The main argument of the far-right is that we are wasting American tax dollars and need to focus only on issues at home like the southern border. Firstly, our taxes are going towards preventing future wars that would entangle us directly, jeopardizing the lives of our troops. The uncomfortable truth, one even mentioned by Ukrainian leaders, is that Ukrainian soldiers are dying right now so that American troops don’t have to. They are trying to stop continued Russian aggression against the U.S. and our allies. Ukraine is fighting a war for our security as well.
Secondly, we constantly boast that our country is the greatest in the world. We say that America can achieve whatever it sets its mind to. But if we say that we can’t concentrate on foreign and domestic issues, are we truly great? The fact is that the U.S. is a very wealthy, smart and able country. We can do multiple things at once. We can assist Ukraine and solve the problems at our southern border and elsewhere in our country. They are not mutually exclusive.
Tennessee’s delegation to Congress has been assisting Putin’s fight against Ukraine through their votes and words. Both Tennessee senators, Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty, voted against the bipartisan Ukrainian aid bill that passed on Feb. 13. Our House members consistently support isolationist policies and will likely vote against the Senate’s bill if it ever comes up. Putin is predicting and hoping that the U.S. will fail to help Ukraine. Tennessee’s senators and House delegates are helping him win.
Every Tennessean should call, email and write their representatives and senators to tell them to support democracy over authoritarianism. If they continue to enable Putin and embolden dictators, we must vote them out. Blackburn and every representative are up for reelection in November. Use the ballot box, and elect leaders who actually believe in freedom.
After all, freedom is a universal, not just domestic, issue.
You can also help by donating to a local Knoxville Ukrainian charity titled koloHUB.
Walker Kinsler is a junior at UT this year studying political science and history. He can be reached at [email protected].
Columns and letters of The Daily Beacon are the views of the individual and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Beacon or the Beacon’s editorial staff.
