But Johnson advised Ukraine to take the deal as a step in the right direction — you know, figure out the details later, stop being so stubborn about holding on to your minerals, take the “win.” I found this a rather flippant approach.
I was Lithuania’s foreign minister when Putin launched his so-called “special military operation” in 2022. So, I had three years of up-close experience of Western politicians misjudging Putin, talking down to Ukrainians, underestimating them over and over again.
I understand why this Dunning-Kruger orientalism still goes on, but it needs to stop. It shouldn’t be hard to understand that things in different parts of the world work differently and require local knowledge. And while I expect those dishing out advice mean well, hubris, it seems, is a terrible drug.
Let’s instead sweep the recent distractions off the table and refocus on our goal. We all say we support Ukraine’s sovereignty. We’re all on the same page. So, if we follow through on this logically, none of us may claim the right or authority to tell Ukraine when and what to surrender.
Ukraine belongs to Ukrainians. We are on their side. Our role is to leverage our power to stack the deck in their favor and support their choices until they win. We aren’t here to lecture them on what to wear or how to negotiate with Vladimir “breaks agreements while the ink is still wet” Putin.
If we really are standing with Ukraine, and we believe in democracy as much as we say we do, we must also commit to supporting democratic Ukrainians no matter what happens — even if they lose battles, even if they lose Kyiv, even if the last remaining partisan is executed by the occupying puppet regime, even if it seems like all is lost for decades, and all the outlawed flags must stay hidden under the floorboards, waiting for their day of freedom.
