Ukraine is fighting a war that experts thought they could never win. The Russian military is so much more superior. The reason for the attack is easy: Vladimir Putin. And with the murder of Alexei Navalny, while he was prisoner in Russia, the whole world sees what a monster Putin is.

I posted about how Chechnya had lost its independence to Russia through a corrupt and repressive leader, Ramzan Kadyrov and is today subservient to Moscow.

The US commitment to Ukraine should be rock solid. Unfortunately, the Republican party which used to be the most vocal against the expansion of totalitarian extremists, like Putin, are frustrating the military aid package. Our support for NATO should also be beyond question.

Putin will not be satisfied with just Ukraine. I posted about the inroads to Moldova and Transnistria, by Russia. And, there will be more. Belarus is another example of a country under Russian control. They had no problem of allowing their country to be the staging ground for the initial attack on Ukraine.

Putin is joined by other power hungry dictators around the globe. It may not be same form as the repressive communist regimes of Stalin and Khrushchev in Russia’s past, but they are equally repressive and can not tolerate any dissent. Chechnya President Kadyrov arrests not only dissenters but in 2022, he arrested approximately 50 family members as well. Kadyrov sent his military to fight with Russia. Why? Just to show his loyalty to Putin. Thousands of Chechen soldiers died in the initial attack of Kyiv. In return, Kadyrov became a rich man.

It is pretty obvious why Finland desperately wanted to be part of NATO as it shares a 830 mile long border with Russia. They also closed their border to Russia because of the illegal border crossing. Finland accused Russia of purposely transporting migrants to the Finnish border (see links at end). There is nothing Russia would like better than Russian community within Finland, as a pretext to attack Finland. I am very glad to see Finland a part of NATO.

The Esequibo dispute alarmed me. The build up along the border of Venezuela alarmed me, and I posted about the potential of an invasion of Guyana along their border. The Madura regime can’t stand to see the democratic state of Guyana prosper as their economy goes down the tubes.

Any where around the world there is instability, you will find Russia or their foreign military intelligence agents (“the GRU”). This includes the US, with intelligence agents focused on cyberattacks. Fortunately, the Department of Justice cooperates with agencies around the world and was able in 2020 to arrest six GRU agents. (see link at end)

So, every day, democracies around the world are under attack. Our democratic institutions are fine, but we can not live in isolation. If there is any take away from World War II, it is that global problems require global solutions. The death of the Putin’s critic Alexei Navalny who dared to expose him is tragic and demonstrates Putin’s brutality. The complete surrender of Chechnya to Russia is real. The Ukrainians are the real heroes. As a result of their resistance to the Russian invasion, approximately 125,000 Ukrainians have died.

I admire the Majority Leader Senator Chuck Schumer standing up on the Senate floor, with a photo of Alexei Navalny, and pleading with the House Speaker Mike Johnson to pass the Ukraine military and humanitarian aid bill.

Donald Trump has been attacking NATO. His latest remarks on Alexei Navalny are reprehensible and undercut his legacy. On the other hand, Donald Trump has invested millions to buy the best lawyers so he doesn’t have to answer the charges leveled against him. It didn’t work in the business fraud case, and his luck is running out. I share Nikki Haley’s disgust at what he said, comparing himself to Navalny.

This is not a Republican verses Democrat issue. It is an American issue and what we support. It is the right of nations to be secure in their own borders. It is the right of millions to chose their government and enjoy basic human liberties such as freedom of speech, the right to assembly and to run for political office.

Democracies are under attack, and we must be part of the defense, here and abroad. Support Ukraine!

Stay tuned,

Dave

Links:

Wikipedia, Alexei Navalny

Department of Justice: Six Russian GRU Officers Charged in Connection with Worldwide Deployment of Destructive Malware and Other Disruptive Actions in Cyberspace

ABC News: Trump uses brief comment on Navalny’s death to claim his own political persecution

Opinion from “The Hill”, Press: Honor Navalny, pass the Ukraine aid bill

Closure of Russia-Finland Border Heralds End of Pragmatic Cooperation

I mention prior blogs on Moldova: https://newsandviews.net/2023/02/24/moldova-and-transnistria/

and Chechnya: https://newsandviews.net/2022/04/11/ramzan-kadyrov-russias-well-paid-puppet-leader-in-chechnya/

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