The Hard Truth About Ukraine

townhall.com

Donald Trump's initiation of negotiations with Russia to end the war in Ukraine has set fire to the West’s long-standing platitudes.

'We are with Ukraine for however long it takes,' was always a vague and ill-defined mantra, and the embrace of an objective reality has finally triumphed over idealist dreams.

In his incendiary comments about “unrealistic objectives” and “illusory goals”, Pete Hegseth said out loud what many politicians and policy experts have privately known for months, if not years: Ukraine cannot reclaim its pre-2014 territory; NATO membership remains a chimera.

At the same time, the new US administration has charged Europe with failing to uphold the basic tenets of a free society. Vice President Vance's speech at the Munich Security Conference served as a compelling reminder that Europe must rekindle its commitment to democracy and free speech, noting that the abandonment of these “fundamental values” is the greatest threat facing the region.

According to Vance, Europe must “do more than talk about democratic values,” and “must live them now.”

Essentially, Europe should cut the hypocritical cant and restore its historic commitments to democracy and free speech.

To those of us who support Ukraine, albeit with a critical eye, the Vice President’s intervention is a welcome relief.

We have faced an onslaught of defamatory accusations - My own efforts to highlight Ukraine’s abuse of human rights has led to false claims that I am spreading Russian disinformation.

Following the recent shifts in US policy, I can only hope that Europe will become more clear-eyed about Ukraine and rethink how best to address a nation that is one step away from becoming a failed state.

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Indeed, Ukraine's international supporters will have to confront stark realities. The courageous citizens of Ukraine have stood resolute against Russia's brutal aggression.

A generation of young men and women have made the ultimate sacrifice in their quest for peace, prosperity, and sovereignty.

Yet, their noble efforts have been hampered by a political class that has sown division within the country. This division has emerged when Ukraine finds itself in desperate need of national unity.

Corruption and deceit have long plagued Ukraine's political landscape, and the ongoing war has only exacerbated these issues. Conscription squads violently seize young men, forcing them to fight at the front. Conscription officials have enriched themselves by accepting bribes from those desperate to avoid the horrors of battle. Press freedom has been suppressed, just as the government has launched an assault on religious freedom, the prime victim of which is the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), a Christian denomination with a centuries-long history.

It is my work defending the UOC that has resulted in the unfounded attacks on my character.

The Western media has collectively failed to cover these issues objectively and in any depth. Countless journalists appear to have lost their professional judgment in the heady first days of the full-scale invasion.

Prior to February 2022, Western papers and news agencies frequently reported on the less salubrious side of Ukraine - the BBC and The Guardian each reported on the threat posed by far right militias. This reporting virtually disappeared after February 2022, with those trying to shine a light on the troubling rise of ethno-nationalism in Ukraine being denounced as propagandists.

Yet the threat posed by the far-right in Ukraine is also no fantasy. Oleksandr Merezhko, a member of parliament belonging to President Zelenskyy’s political party, observed that “the far right in Ukraine is growing. The right wing is a danger to democracy.” Yet this right-wing tendency is something that the government in Ukraine has encouraged.

With the power blocs that voted overwhelmingly for Zelenskyy being lost to Russian occupation, the president has had to kow-tow to the far right to maintain legitimacy. The decision to try and ban the UOC is just one example of this behavior. Meanwhile, the failure to hold elections only makes the situation worse, creating a pressure cooker environment that threatens to harm any future peace in Ukraine.

While journalists and Western politicians – with the exception of Vice President Vance – have remained largely silent on the truth about Ukraine, others in the international community have raised concerns. On the Church issue, Pope Francis, the United Nations, Human Rights Watch, the World Council of Churches, the US Mission to the OSCE, and Forum 18 are just some who have criticised efforts to ban the church.

It is beyond time for the West’s political and media classes to catch up with what churches, religious groups and human rights NGO have long been saying. The democratic future of Ukraine depends on legitimate debate and criticism of its failure to protect human rights.

As we focus on securing peace in Ukraine, it's essential that we view the situation with clarity and honesty. The West must renew its commitment to human rights and play its part in rebuilding Ukraine, including its fragile democracy. If Ukraine is to reunite, the attack on religious freedom must end. Free speech must be restored. Corruption must be rooted out. As the vice president concluded in his Munich speech: “consider the side in that fight that censored dissidents, that closed churches, that cancelled elections. Were they the good guys? Certainly not.”

Europe and Ukraine desperately need to change course.