https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/apr/10/observer-view-wests-response-to-fighting-ukraine-vladimir-putin
10 April 2022
Russia’s missile attack on Kramatorsk railway station is an act of unforgivable barbarism. How many more
such atrocities must occur before western leaders admit their Ukraine strategy
is failing? How many more children must die before Nato stops making excuses
for inaction? How much longer before Joe Biden, Boris Johnson, Olaf Scholz and
the rest face up to what seems an inescapable choice: either intervene directly
– or lose?
These are uncomfortable, frightening questions. But
with every missile that explodes, with every illegal cluster bomb and artillery
shell, with every war crime committed, they become harder to duck. Sanctions on
Russia and arms for Ukraine are celebrated by western governments as an
unprecedented, unifying success. They tell each other what a good job they’re
doing. But it’s not working. Vladimir Putin has been branded a war criminal and pariah. His funds have been
frozen, his cronies penalised. Moscow’s strategic objectives have not been met,
his discredited army is a vicious rabble, his war aims are in ruins, just like
Mariupol and Kharkiv. His country faces incalculable long-term economic and
reputational damage.
But Putin does not care. He does not stop. Nor is there
any sign he will. Good-faith attempts to talk sense to him have failed, used by
the Kremlin to obfuscate and delay. Hopes that internal opposition may unseat
him remain mere hopes. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s brave, terrified citizens await the
next dreadful blow while their president pleads for more arms, more help, more
anything.
Russian “monsters” were
responsible for the carnage at Kramatorsk,
Volodymyr Zelenskiy said. It was part of a deliberate strategy to kill
civilians and create a lifeless wasteland. “They have not abandoned their
methods. Lacking the strength and courage to fight us on the battlefield, they
are cynically destroying the civilian population... This is an evil that has no
limits. And if it is not punished, it will never stop,” Zelenskiy said.
He’s right. Of course he’s right. Anyone watching
television or reading uncensored newspapers and social media knows he’s right.
And so, too, do all 30 Nato powers. Yet even as they condemn Kramatorsk, Bucha and other obscenities, millions more unprotected Ukrainians are
told to expect an even greater enormity – an all-out offensive in eastern
Ukraine by reinforced Russia troops.
This, as the west watches, is what Ukraine’s democracy
has been reduced to by Putin. The people’s choice: run for your life or face
being raped, tortured and killed.
Such barbarity cannot stand. Continued, shaming,
ineffectual western shouting from the sidelines is unacceptable. The sooner
Biden and the rest stop wringing their hands and start calling the shots the
better. Though welcome, Boris Johnson’s show of solidarity in Kyiv yesterday
will not change calculations in Moscow. Putin rules by fear. So frighten him
back. He does not want a fight with the west, let alone a third world war –
Nato’s excuse of last resort for refusing to confront him. He knows he’d lose.
It scares him.
So here are some of the hard choices western leaders
must urgently consider. First, direct intervention to create a safe haven in
western Ukraine, where displaced people may congregate instead of fleeing
abroad. Inform Moscow in advance of its location and boundaries. Be clear it
will be protected by Nato air power and ground forces invited in by Kyiv.
Second, declare the unoccupied city of Odesa
off-limits. Send naval forces into international waters in the Black Sea and
warn Russia to cease coastal bombardments or face serious, unspecified
consequences. Third, tell Putin that if his artillery and missile units fire on
civilians again, as in Kramatorsk, they will be deemed legitimate Nato military
targets. Fourth: supply fighter planes and tanks to Kyiv. Fifth: block all
Russian fossil fuel exports.
These are radical choices. The risks are obvious. But
the only alternative is endless slaughter. If the west is serious about
stopping the war, these and similarly robust actions may be the only way left.
