If we PutHumanityFirst, humanity will rise and make the world a better place for human beings.
The tragedy and barbarism of the Russian military unfolding before our eyes in Ukraine is horrifying, and the road to it was partly paved with two decades of misplaced optimism, appeasement, and western leaders too eager to look the there way regarding Putin. While born from a well-intended desire to welcome into the global community, that desire seem to often block the obvious warning signs. One of Putin’s first actions as president in early 2000 was to level Chechnya capital city of Grozny, so much so that The UN is still reportedly called it the most destroyed city on earth years later. Thousands of civilians were killed. How did The US respond? With stern warnings and a friendly presidential Summit.
Bill Clinton, the then President said – “I think The United States can do business with this man. What I have seen from him so far indicates to me that he is capable of being a very strong and effective straightforward leader.” Clinton was the first US president to see a potential partner with Putin, but he was far from the last. George Bush also said – “I looked the man in the eye, and I find him to be very straightforward and trustworthy. I was able to get a sense of his soul.”
Amid warnings from the likes of Senator McCain and Garry Kasparov that Putin could simply not be trusted, Bush nonetheless pushed for a new beginning for Russia despite Grozny, despite the 2004 poisoning of pro-western Ukrainian presidential candidate Yushchencko, who survived the poisoning and suspected the Kremlin was to blame. Despite the 2006 death-by-radiation of Putin critic Alexander Litvenenko. “You may succeed in poisoning one man but the howl of protest from around the world will reverberate, Mr. Putin, in your ears for the rest of your life – Litvenenko”. Tragically, that owl, evaporated. The UK responded to a brazen assassination, on its soil, by expelling 4 Russian diplomats. That’s it.
In 2008, Putin emboldened, invaded neighbouring Georgia on the pretence of protecting the rights of the Russian speaking separatists – which is now his playbook. Then George Bush said –“Russia as invaded a sovereign neighbouring state, and threatens a democratic elected government by its people. Such action is unacceptable in the 21st century.” So how did Bush punish Putin for this unacceptable bloody invasion of a sovereign nation? Nothing. Not even economic sanctions – something former Bush’s economic advisor Stephen Ally said was a mistake.
In 2008, Ukrainian born tax adviser, Sergei Magnitsky, alleged massive corruption by the Russian government. He was thrown in jail while Bush was president, and he died in prison not long after Obama’s famous or infamous “Russian reset” began. So willing to work with Putin often, despite Nato’s fears. Remember the 2012 Obama’s hot mic moment with Putin’s short-term successor – Dimitry Medvedev, about Putin’s objections to US defence systems protecting NATO allies? On the hot mic Obama said – “this is my last election. After my election, I have more flexibility”. In which Medvedev responded – “I understand. I will transmit this information to Vladimir, ad I stand with you”. Obama’s opponent in that election, Mitt Romney, insisted that Russia was US’ number 1 geopolitical foe. Obama mocked him.
Obama’s flexibility was transmitted to Putin, and two years later, Putin ordered the annexation of Crimea and started a civil war in eastern Ukraine, providing arms to separatists, who in July 2014, used the Russian missile system to shoot down Malaysian Airlines flight 17, killing 298 innocent people. The world responded to the annexation of Crimea and that downed passenger plan in 2014 with some relatively weak sanctions by kicking Russia out of the G8.
Some few weeks back, Obama’s Director of Intelligence, James Clapper, was asked – “do you wish Obama had done harsher and stricter sanctions in 2014?” He responded – “yes I do. I wish that we as an administration had been more aggressive in 2014”.
Syria came next with Putin siding with genocidal Maniac Bashar Al-Asad who used Russian jets and cluster bombs to attack hospitals to kill civilians, which is in many ways a dry-run for what we are seeing in Ukraine now. Again, no serious sanction from the West in response.
Putin’s opponents have a way of falling out of windows. In 2015, Putin’s opponent Boris Nemtsov was assassinated brazenly right near the Kremlin. Bolder still, never deterred Putin ordered the 2016 interference campaign in the US elections. This was followed by some more sanctions and expelled diplomats but nothing really with teeth. Nothing punishing. It was an interference campaign that came amid a candidate, who not only admired Putin but openly called for his election help as Trump infamously said on 27th July 2016- “Russia, if you are listening, I hope you are able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing.” A president who his own aides feared would withdraw the US from NATO. A president who saw moral equivalence between the US and Russia. A man who sided with Putin over his own US intelligence community about the 2016 US elections intereference campaign. Trump said – ” my people came to me and said they think it’s Russia. A have president Putin, he just said it’s not Russia. I would say this, I don’t see any reason why it would be Russia.” This was followed by the poisoning of former Russia double-agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Britain, and the 2020 poisoning and imprisonment of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
Honestly, if you were Putin, would you think there were any real limits to what you could get away with? I mean it’s easy to see why he thought this time it’ll be no different.
“Throughout our history, we’ve learned this lesson that when dictators do not pay a price for their aggressions, they cause more chaos.” This was President Biden some few weeks back, and he is right. But has the West actually learnt that lesson? It seems so with the sanctions so far.
Next, we’ll explore the sorry reasons Putin and his defenders have for the invasion.
#PutHumanityFirst: the hope for a greater future
Put Humanity First 