Reading the Chicago Tribune’s November 21st editorial ‘Memo to the new Congress: Ukraine needs your help, not your grandstanding’, one might surmise Ukraine is winning the Russo-Ukraine war. As proof the Trib offers “Ukraine just carried out one of the most significant battlefield victories in the nearly nine-month war, with its triumph in the southern city of Kherson. Russia’s defeat in Kherson added strong evidence to the notion that Ukraine has the upper hand against Putin’s illegal, ruinous invasion.”
The reverse is true. Ukraine is being systematically annihilated by the Russian military. Russia’s withdrawal from Kherson is primarily tactical. Kherson will be reversed as Ukraine collapses. It is being grasped by the Trib, and all promoters of current US weapons support, as proof of eventual Ukraine victory.
The Trib does allude to the destruction of Ukraine’s infrastructure which has plunged much of the country into cold and darkness on the cusp of winter. But then the Trib reverts to its feelgood delusion that “What will assist Ukraine through this perilous period is an unwavering commitment from the U.S. and Europe to provide military and economic aid.” Let’s see, upwards of $100 billion in weapons aid with the upcoming $37 billion from the Lame Duck Congress, has done nothing but extend Ukraine’s death and destruction for 9 months now. Much of the destruction of Ukraine’s infrastructure did not occur till US weapons needlessly prolonged the war. Had the US signed on to fellow NATO member Turkey’s brokered 15-point peace agreement in March, the war would have ended by April. US torpedoing that peace agreement was a dastardly betrayal of Ukraine’s people. With the exception of the Iraq-Iran war of 1980-88, the US has always worked to end foreign conflict thru diplomacy, not prolonging it with endless weapons.
Instead of castigating conservative Republicans, some of whom plan to end the US weapons transfers in the 118th Congress in January, the Trib should be supporting their efforts to curtail more weapons which will set the stage for sensible negotiations.
The Trib should also cease telling its readership Ukraine is winning this war. Doing so congers up the ghost of Baghdad Bob, the infamous Iraqi Minister of Information, who popped up daily on TV to tell the world that Iraq was vanquishing Great Satan America in its criminal 2003 US war there.
“With the exception of the Iraq-Iran war of 1980-88, the US has always worked to end foreign conflict thru diplomacy, not prolonging it with endless weapons.”
Huh???
You know, like Vietnam and Afghanistan, just to name a couple off the top of my head.
Or bombing of Yugoslavia after giving it an ultimatum. And what for? To use force and cause secession of a breakaway province whose population had in every resoect equal rights to majority population. But with our helping a terrorist KLA group, a mayhem started, police was villified, and an excuse for bombing and terrotory snatching was accomplished. Some diplomacy. Kosovo the only country in the world where NATO actually has a role in governnance.
Ir endless weapons to recruit, equip and train “vetted” militants in Syria? Who upon training, funding and equiping promptly joined ranks of islamic extemist. When in a hearing one congressman asked how many of those vetted, equiped and trained still remain under US control, the answer was FOUR. Congressman inwuired if this was a joke, not expecting an answer.
This is how we negotiate. Or nearly a decade of Clinton’s funding and arminv of Kurdish rebells in Iran back in the nineties.
“moderates” don’t usually want to overthrow a government by force of arms. Anybody who wants weapons in order to overthrow a government can’t really be described as a “moderate”.. We had no business being there and have not helped at all
The U.S. military is mainly for the purpose of maintaining and expanding
U.S. empire, and often for international desires of corporate America. The U.S. “business” for being in Syria was, as usual, primarily oil. The U.S. now occupies 1/3 of Syria and is stealing its oil, as Trump bragged when he was president.
I assume you realize that I was being sarcastic. The U.S. partnered with al Qaeda and al Nusra in Syria, two undeniably terrorists groups. The U.S. doesn’t care about that, it only cares that the Assads won’t toe the U.S. line, and it found an opening during the large demonstrations when drought was ravaging farms.
Or, Africa.
Right steadily losing territory is the epitome of victory.