America and NATO are Failing Ukraine with Dire Consequences

Commonsense Lessons from Parents and Bullies

The crucial factor motivating Putin to invade Ukraine in 2022 was his history with the U.S. and NATO. His past aggression in Chechnya, Georgia and Ukraine had gone largely unanswered; the West talked a bunch but did nothing and Muslims around the world did not even utter a peep in support of their brethren in Chechnya. Putin, a classic schoolyard bully nurtured in a world of intrigue and spies, saw no boundaries to his ambitions.

Any good parent will tell you that if you don’t set rules for children and enforce them, they will continue to push and push on boundaries and with time their demands will only grow. Somewhat similarly, bullies in schoolyards will bully until they get a bloody nose. And, as in all walks of life, when confronting a problem, the earlier the better and commonsense is the indispensable asset.

The West talked and imposed some inconsequential sanctions but never enforced its tough talk or punished unacceptable behavior. The West had no strategy for dealing with Russia. Germany made Europe more dependent on piped Russian gas and oil when German chancellor, Gerhard Schröder, promoted and embraced dependence on Russia’s energy in order to personally profit financially. Meanwhile all of Europe looked on…