China’s ascendancy has come with a rising ambition to put their stamp on world affairs. But since their system of governance remains autocratic and repressive, the West has thought it prudent to begin to pull back investing in their land. The hope had always been that political change in China – toward a more open system – would come through trade. Instead, the Chinese Communist party keeps tightening its hold on their population. Many western companies have now begun to move their Chinese operations to other nations, notably Vietnam and India. Germany, on the other hand, is choosing to go in the other direction, increasing their investments in China. Is this wise? Is it naïve on the part of Germany’s business leaders to expect that China’s communist party will treat their increased investments any differently than those of other nations as they pursue their policy of favoring their own SOEs – state owned enterprises? I think it is. The communist party will not now change for German automakers and chemical plants. Instead the Chinese leadership will learn how to use their ties with Germany to find their way into the rest of Europe and undermine the western alliance. The German business sector knows of this risk and yet they persist. Has the lure of profits clouded their judgment? I think so. The cohesiveness the West has found in support of Ukraine’s defense needs much care to keep it alive. Engaging with Chinese company Huawei for the installation of 5G systems to upgrade communications infrastructure was deemed a poor choice by America, since it would open the way for information gathering on western operations by Chinese authorities. But while most of the West has agreed to bar Huawei from bidding on the 5G upgrade, Germany has chosen to believe there is no risk and will not do so. France, by contrast, is barring Huawei. Judging by the close economic ties Germany had developed with Putin over the years, it seems their successive governments have had trouble with reality. Denying that China is keen on using the West to their own ends is embracing denial. German business leaders think they will be spared but they will not. Of course, in the meantime, money will be made by both sides. By increasing their investments in China, Germany will be contributing to that nation’s ambition of world domination. German business leaders, with the complicity of prime minister Olaf Scholz, are denying reality. They have a history of doing so. Meanwhile, gentlemen, Ukraine could use more help. Winds of freedom are blowing from Ukraine. Not from China.
With the start of winter and Russia’s retreat from Kherson – a city northwest of Crimea – a top American general has talked about negotiating with the Russian despot. There may be others similarly minded. But so long as there is the exceptional vigor that Ukrainians possess, the West should back them up fully and so continue to push Putin to behind his borders. Ukrainians are writing their history in blood for the whole world to see. As they do they clamor for continued support. Putin is counting on the solidarity of the West fracturing but that is not happening. I am sure he is profoundly disappointed that democrats in America have retained control of the Senate in the recent elections, and that even if Republicans gain control of the House, the margin of difference will be very small. Putin was banking on Trump to lend him a hand with his grandiose ambitions. And he still kicks himself for not having invaded Ukraine while Trump was president. Back then, he could have placed a call to Trump a week before and said, ‘I’m thinking of taking over Ukraine, just to feel more comfortable about NATO’s encroachment, and give Russians something to cheer about. What do you think?’ And Trump would have answered, ‘Do it quickly, overnight if possible. We go to bed the night before with Ukraine being independent, we wake up with you announcing it is now part of Russia. So do it fast. How’s the family?’ Meanwhile, solidarity in the West keeps building. At the start of the war Macron in France talked about the ‘Finlandization’ of Ukraine. During the Cold War, the term referred to the Soviet Union ‘respecting’ the territorial integrity of Finland but retaining influence in that nation’s political affairs. That didn’t fly so Macron then switched to speaking about not humiliating Putin. Never mind the atrocities the Russian was committing and still is. But when that didn’t click, either, Macron finally got it and took a strong position against Putin, asking the French to think of their support for Ukraine’s resistance as a sacrifice for the sake of freedom. Macron’s evolution may reflect the change in other political leaders in the West. In Germany, Olaf Scholz is still handcuffed by his timidity but appears to be evolving. A weakened Russia allows for the resurgence of protest movement in Belarus, in Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and the hope that they’ll be installing democratic regimes instead. And the new power alignments may well lead to better fending off China’s ambitions of world domination. None of these possibilities would have arisen if not for the enormous courage of the Ukrainian people. Even Iran is feeling its effect, with their women led protests shaking the foundations of that corrupt theocracy, which is now selling drones to Russia so they can kill more Ukrainians. Ukraine’s heroic effort shows they are determined to not submit to Russia. They deserve our full support. Ukraine and the West can win this war. We should not hesitate to make whatever sacrifices are needed. The winds of freedom are blowing. They are blowing from Ukraine.
We’re nearing nine months since Putin invaded Ukraine, expecting a quick surrender because his majesty Vladimir was so bold and visionary and oh so talented that the West could not hope to match him. There was no way that the West could ever stand against the enraged Russian bear. And, of course, Putin had the large store of nuclear weapons, and if anyone dared to stand against him, he’d get them ready to fire and the West would pee in their pants, kneel and plead for forgiveness. Instead, the big bad bear is retreating. The West stood up, looked at his majesty Vladimir in the eye and said, ‘excuse me, no, you’re not getting away with it. Ukrainians want to fight and we don’t turn our backs on men and women willing to fight. Got it?’ His majesty Vladimir is still processing that reply. To his credit, he’s been able to resist. He hasn’t buckled. Not yet. But it’s been costly for him. He knows he’s crossed the line and will never recover from the atrocities he’s committed. That’s not to say he won’t be embraced by some, say China’s Xi Jinping. Xi’s atrocities are not yet of the scale of Putin’s, but he will catch up. Give him some time. His murderous repression in Hong Kong and his vast mistreatment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang province are just the beginning. Putin knows he screwed up but still has hope. His bet is that the West will get tired of the war. He knows the West has to contend with citizens who are opposed to it and have a right to be heard. Putin doesn’t have that problem. What he says is law, the majority of Russians having been intimidated into submission long ago. Some don’t even know they were, that’s how sad that picture is. Putin’s hope is that people in the West will increase their complaints about inflation and shortages and their discomfort, then put pressure on their leaders to tell Ukrainians, ‘We’ve done enough. Take care of yourselves.’ Sadly, it could happen. Protests in some NATO countries in Eastern Europe have been growing. Macron, in France, facing the same pressures, has told his people of the need to sacrifice for the sake of liberty. Every leader in the West should be doing the same thing. Putting the matter up front. Educating the voters. Reminding them of how unique this opportunity is to push back Russia and start a new alignment of powers in the world. Even if some NATO members choose to back off in their support of Ukraine’s heroic fight, we should not. Too much is at stake. The winds of freedom from the valor displayed by Ukraine are blowing into the Middle East. Because of it there is now the chance of regime change in Iran. And yet, here at home, there is talk in the Republican ranks of cutting back on support for the war, should they win control of congress in next week’s election. It would be a serious mistake. It is urgent that our voters be educated on the enormity of what’s in play. A defeated Russia in Ukraine would have vast repercussions across the area and eventually on China. Ukraine’s heroism has opened a door we didn’t know existed. With an abundance of guts and sacrifice, they had the imagination to wish to reinvent themselves. Stepping up they reached through the darkness and pain of the invasion of their land and grasping the door of freedom threw it open. And the winds of freedom blew in. All their pain made sense. All their sacrifices found meaning. Ukrainians thought they were fighting for their beloved land. They found, instead, they were fighting for the world. America, we cannot close that door.
They are very clear about it. ‘The Communist Party knows what is good for you. So you have to do as we say. If you don’t, then there will be consequences.’ One such consequence is being reeducated. You are taught the right way to think. ‘Party people have tried very hard to do the thinking for you, so you should be grateful to be the recipient of such wisdom.’ Xi Jinping has even put his ‘elevated thoughts’ into a booklet, ‘Xi Jinping Thought’, just like Mao Ze Dong did before him with the little Red Book. Is there a cost to trying to do your own thinking? Just ask the Hong Kong dissenters who are now in prison or exile, after the celestial powers of Xi Jinping came down hard and crushed them in 2019. China is asking the world to respect their way of doing things, because that is best for their people. Never mind asking the Uyghurs in Xinjiang province how they feel about it. They, too, like Hong Kongers, have felt the mighty Chinese fist. China is presently holding their 20th National Congress, where Xi Jinping is expected to be reelected to a third 5 year term as president. Speculation has it that he’ll ask for a fourth term at the next congress in 2027. And on and on. China has studied carefully the downfall of the Soviet Union, to ensure they don’t make the same ‘mistakes.’ Mistakes being anything that erodes the party’s integrity and clout. As far as they’re concerned, Gorbachev was an idiot and weakling and his policies of Perestroika (restructuring) and Glasnost (opening) exactly what to avoid to prevent the erosion of their power. But Gorbachev was no idiot. Instead he opened the way to free many countries that had languished under the tight controls of the Soviets. Sadly, the reforms he made possible didn’t last in Russia itself. He transferred power to Boris Yeltsin in 1991 and then Yeltsin chose Putin as premier in 1999. That was the big mistake. Had Yeltsin been a better judge of character, Russia would not have been saddled with the profound limitations of Putin. With the enormity of the atrocities committed by him, the likelihood is that the post Putin era will be one of greater openness. The very opposite of what China would like. Which may create tensions between them. Let’s hope so. People in power in China have persuaded their citizenry that deferring to a one party system is the answer. They have been told to sacrifice their freedom to accomplish their goals of world domination. The Chinese population is under close surveillance and lacks freedom of speech. They have made enormous material progress in the last 40 years, in large part due to their opening to the West which brought in ideas and technological knowhow. That in turn stimulated China’s own creativity. But the mistake they make is to think that freedom can be sacrificed. Even in open and democratic societies, not all people choose freedom. But those who do are the ones who keep the forward thrust of nations alive. Human beings can sacrifice freedom temporarily to attain certain goals, but it should not be for long. Being distant form it ends up diminishing us. China is going through a prosperous period at present. But it won’t last. As the pace of prosperity begins to diminish, the communist party and its army of non thinkers will rage against its perceived enemies which will lead to disastrous actions. Cruelty of the same dimension as what we’ve seen in Ukraine, lies in the future of China. We’ve seen it with Uyghurs and Hong Kongers. They’ll try to do it also with Taiwan. We, meanwhile, should do all we can to increase our strengths – industrial, military and civic – so we can go to the assistance of those in need like we do today in Ukraine. The reelection of Xi Jinping for a third term is not a good sign. China’s reluctance to be open has already had enormous consequences. After the outbreak of CoVid 19 in Wuhan, they refused to cooperate with the World Health Organization to investigate the source of the spread. When Australia asked for an investigation of such action, China responded with trade restrictions on that nation. That’s who they are. Creative in some ways, backwards in some others. Always controlling. We should not let down our guard and must keep strengthening our country and the West. Otherwise, China will be reeducating us into thinking like them.
Retreat! Go home! You’ve lost this war. Stop murdering people, Ukrainians and your own. The West will not stop supporting Ukrainians and we will not surrender to you or anyone. We are a free people. Russians are not. You have failed. But you don’t have the decency to own up to it, and instead want to sacrifice more of your own brothers and sisters, while firing more missiles to Ukraine to destroy all you can and massacre as many as possible. Pause when you’re looking at yourself in the mirror. Look carefully. Yours is the face of inhumanity and cruelty. There’s no way back for you. If you dreamt of being revered as a great leader, you failed. And you failed because you thought you could own other human beings, strip them of free speech and command them to obey you instead. Those who resisted, you poisoned, incarcerated or killed. That is you who are. You have built nothing. You think your nuclear weapons will save you? They will not. Because if we give in to you now, we will have to give in tomorrow. If you fire your nuclear weapons we will fire back. If New York burns, then Moscow will burn. And the Chinese know that if that happens, then Shanghai and Beijing will burn too, for the West cannot allow China to be left intact, for they are your accomplices and they will take advantage to dominate everyone they can. That is who the Chinese are at this stage of their development. Look at them, just starting a big convention to reelect their dictator, Xi Jinping, to another 4 years. They’re very proud of their accomplishments. So they won’t let you ruin things for them. If they see you eager to fire on the West, then they’ll turn their nuclear weapons and point them at you, to keep you from destroying what they’ve worked hard to build. They will not let you drive them to destruction. You could have done something very different with Russia, a nation with so much talent and so many natural resources. But your ego needed to be fed and you convinced Russians that was a national priority. It has taken them a while to realize that such deal was costly and at their expense. But there’s still time for you to stop committing atrocities. I’m sure Russians will let you enjoy retirement in peace. But they must act now. It could be anyone stepping up and saying, ‘enough!’ It could be a member of your personal guard, stepping up and saying, ‘You have caused so much destruction, this can’t go on.’ Anyone, please, act now. Russians, you started it. Now stop it. We earn our freedom every day.
The time is now. Now that Putin is scared of Ukraine’s mounting offensive and growing desperate that the exodus of Russians cries out loudly, ‘we don’t trust you, you’re destroying our nation, do not sacrifice our lives for your lies.’ If he had been sleeping well at night, that has changed. That cry is haunting him and has opened a precious opportunity for you to act. Russia has been underperforming as a nation for a long time. You know that. And you can make a difference. The world knows of Russia’s economic, intellectual and artistic capacities but yet the nation remains on the margins. There are various reasons for it but lack of sound leadership has been a key factor. It takes a little luck for nations to have good leaders. You have not had such luck. After being dominated by the czars, the communists took over. There was a very brief period in the late 1980s until 1991 when Gorbachev brightened your heavens, but then his star dimmed. Boris Yeltsin, who had the distinction of leading the protests that stopped the coup against Gorbachev, went on to make the horrible mistake of appointing Putin as prime minister in 1999. But opportunities return. There is today a great opening for a courageous Russian military officer to lead the effort to depose Putin. Your nation cannot and must not allow itself to be degraded the way Putin does. Think of why you joined the military. If you joined to get a pension then stop reading this and go back to your crossword puzzle. But if you joined because you wanted to do something for your country then this is for you. To seize the opportunity that is now before you, a great deal of courage is needed. It will not be easy. You will be risking your life and will need fellow officers to work in concert with you. But the rewards will be enormous, for you will change the world. You will have a chance to free millions of people, to change the present geopolitical balance and to remind the oppressed everywhere, that men and women of courage are here today and willing to step up in the hour of need. Putin must be stopped. The West has done an excellent job forming a united front and supporting Ukraine. But it is not enough. We need you now. Dear Russian military, we know you exist. There was the bombing death of a spokesperson for Russia’s Far Right a few weeks ago and just this last Monday, 9/26, the Nordstream pipeline was damaged by explosions that created 4 gas leaks. Maybe it came from you or maybe it didn’t, but both actions required very specific information. I do not advocate violence against anyone, not even against Putin, for there are other ways that can be used to neutralize him. But for you to remain passive in the face of the atrocities committed in the name of Russia, does not make any sense. It makes you a de facto accomplice. I am sure that was not why you joined the military. Mikhail Gorbachev’s actions had a resoundingly positive worldwide impact. Germany is united today because of him. And though he subsequently ran into much resistance at home, I don’t think he should have chosen to voluntarily cede power to Yeltsin in 1991. Such decisions can have enormous consequences. And yet, the spirit of Gorbachev lives on. The light that he shone on the world can still be seen and is there to guide Russia and its courageous soldiers in the effort to remove Putin. Open your hearts and minds and step up. Now is the time to join with Ukraine in the quest for freedom.
This is a critical moment in the war. The tanks can make a difference. Ukrainians are gaining ground in some areas but meeting fierce resistance in the south where Russians have had time to dig in and fortify their positions. President Zelensky said the other day that approximately 50 of his soldiers are dying daily. You stated recently that leadership is not about giving people what they ask for. Understood. But it’s not just anyone asking for assistance with weapons. It is Ukraine. A heroic country fighting for its life. You speak of needing to be prepared for an attack on your nation. Of course, so by no means deplete your stock of armament, but you are part of NATO, and at this unique historical moment, a bond has been created between Western nations that will be honored in case of such an attack. The US Congress just approved a large amount of additional aid for Ukraine. We too, in America, have to contend with depleting stocks, so some of the approved funds are going for just that. I am glad that you approved an increase in your nation’s defense budget. This is the time to use those funds. There is the growing awareness in Russian citizens that this is not a war for them to lose their lives over. The Motherland is not being threatened. It’s all about Putin’s inflated sense of himself. His dreams of grandeur. And many Russians are seeing it for what it is so they are desperately trying to flee. Those who acted quickly managed to get out. Those who vacillated may have a harder time leaving since the military has now sent personnel to border points to hand out draft notices and block their exit. How do you transform a man or woman wanting to leave their country to escape the draft into a willing soldier? You can’t. Somehow, somewhere, people’s lack of motivation will show. And it will translate into pain and suffering. Putin is carrying on believing he can keep bending his people’s will. But resentment is building and it will soon show up in other places. His desperate effort to legislate that conquered territories become a legitimate part of Russia is a sham. Ukraine will not accept it and will fight to recapture all of the land Russia has seized, now and in recent years. It is their land. And with the support of the west and their enormous courage, they are on the verge of accomplishing their dream. Their fight against Putin is a fight against totalitarianism. A fight with which all of us identify. Your tanks will make a difference. I see fear in Putin. I see growing desperation. The war has come to Russians’ homes, to their children. He has given a pay incentive of an additional $800 dollars plus a month to soldiers. Yet not a single explanation of why he assigns such a dismal value to their lives. The hypocrisy, the sadism, the brutality keep mounting. But Putin is no madman. He will count the loss of lives methodically, coldly, to arrange for his next move. ’50 Ukrainians dead today, 90 yesterday, hmm, what happened?’ It is unbelievable the scale of atrocities committed in defense of lies. And so, as Ukraine presses on, the West must too. We trust and hope that Ukraine will become a bastion of democracy and an inspiration to all nations on earth. It will be up to them to make that a reality. And so far, they’re saying, ‘Yes, we will’ and backing it with their lives. Our reward is not what they accomplish, but the sense that in an hour of need we lent a hand. We gave our best. We risked ourselves. Please be generous Mr Scholz. Send in the tanks. Putin must be confronted, no matter what the size of his threats. A nation is bleeding for the sake of liberty.
The mass of protesters surged forward, some of them with their faces covered, some not. Men and women of various ages, arms interlocked, a look of fierce determination. ‘We won’t fight Ukraine! We won’t fight Ukraine!’ They chanted vigorously. ‘Long live Russia!’ A block and a half away a unit of riot police in full gear, four lines deep, waited silently to stop them, their shields and batons at the ready, their faces covered by balaclavas. Behind them three vehicles with water cannons stood vigilantly along with 2 empty buses. The march was taking place near the center of St Petersburg along a wide avenue lined with tall apartment buildings, from which balconies people looked down as they snapped photos and took videos. The protesters kept advancing, undeterred by the riot police staring back at them. More than a thousand men and women made up the advancing mass. ‘We won’t fight Ukraine! Long live Russia!’ Moments later the protesters came to a stop about 15 feet or so from the riot police. They continued their chanting, which grew louder and more defiant. An officer stepped out from behind the riot police and to one side. Bull horn in hand, he said to the protesters, ‘Disband! You’re in violation of the law. This is an illegal demonstration. Disband immediately or face the consequences!’ The protesters paused for an instant before resuming their chanting. ‘We won’t fight Ukraine! Long live Russia!’ Then the officer addressed his troops. ‘Proceed to disband!’ And the troops charged the protesters, batons held up high ready to strike the defenseless men and women. And the batons came down hard on the heads and arms of the protesters. Cries of pain filled the air as the protesters were furiously bludgeoned. A woman and a man fell to the ground from the impact of the clubs. A woman called out, ‘Vasily!’ She broke off from her companions attempting to reach the man who’d fallen but was blocked by the riot police and shoved back. ‘Vasily!’ she cried again, frantically. The first cry had sounded vaguely familiar to a riot policeman in the front line but now the second cry made him cringe with fear. He knew that voice. He immediately ceased swinging his baton and yelled, ‘Irina!’ The woman looked in his direction, ‘Igor!’ ‘Yes!’ answered Igor with alarm. ‘Vasily went down!’ she replied, signaling to her right. ‘What?’ His face went pale. The riot police kept pushing the protesters back. Urgently, Igor began to move toward where Irina had signaled. ‘Vasily!’ shouted Igor loudly, in desperation, ‘Vasily!’ He was trying to wind his way through the advancing officers, but he couldn’t get through the tight formation. Igor pressed on and reached the fallen man, then threw himself immediately over him, his fellow officers stomping on by. Igor felt the warmth of the body that now lay under him. But was it him? He wasn’t sure. Reaching up with one hand he then pulled off his mask. And it was him. Vasily. His son. Irina could no longer see Igor but kept moving in their direction when a club crashed hard over her head and she,too, fell to the ground. ‘Vasily! Talk to me!’ cried Igor to his son, but Vasily couldn’t answer. The rest of the riot police had advanced past them as they pushed back the demonstrators, the vehicles with water cannons now shooting their hard streams at them. The officer with the bull horn strode up to where Igor covered Vasily. ‘What are you doing?’ said the officer. ‘This is my son,’ said Igor as he looked up at the officer, the expression confused, bewildered, ‘My son… I thought he was at the university… I didn’t know he was with the protesters… it’s my fault…’ The officer with the bullhorn looked down at Igor. ‘You’re a police officer. Join your fellow officers. Your son will be taken care of.’ And Igor’s expression seemed to freeze. ‘I can’t… I can’t…’ answered Igor as he looked helplessly up at the officer. And then he looked to the side where just a few yards away lay the body of the woman who had called to him. It had to be Irina. He went to her and it was she. A big clot was forming on her bloodied forehead but otherwise she was conscious. She smiled at him. “How is he?’ ‘I don’t know, he won’t respond,’ said Igor. Irina’s expression changed. ‘Help me up, Igor, I need to see him… he needs me.’ And Igor started to lift her but then the commanding officer appeared again at his side. ‘We have people to do that, now join your fellow officers, we’ll take care of your son and this woman.’ And Igor stared back at the commanding officer. He called him by his first name, Ilya. ‘Ilya… I can’t… I can’t do it anymore… these are my children… I can’t do it.’ ‘Join your fellow officers now!’ insisted the man, ‘or I will charge you with insubordination.’ Igor didn’t move, just stared back, puzzled. Two medics, a man and a woman, came up to where Irina lay and started to lift her but she said, pointing in Vasily’s direction, ‘he needs more help than I do, go to him first.’ The medics ignored her, pulled her up and took her to the side of the avenue where other injured people were being gathered. ‘Stay with Vasily, Igor, please!’ were the last words he heard from her. Igor moved back quickly to where Vasily still lay. He was unresponsive. ‘Vasily, my child, speak to me!’ cried Igor in anguish. ‘Vasily!’ The commanding officer followed Igor and stood over him. Now he was joined by two other men. The commanding officer stared down at Igor. ‘I will have to charge you with insubordination, do you hear me, Igor?’ Igor had been on his knees, holding Vasily’s hand in his but now appeared transfixed. ‘Do you hear me?’ pressed the commanding officer. And Igor began to shake his head slowly, horror coming over him as tears rolled down his face. He had been taking his son’s pulse and now there was no pulse. ‘Are you deaf?’ insisted the commanding officer as he hovered over Igor. And Igor started to slowly look up at the officer, eyes wide open, glaring in disbelief. ‘Ilya… he’s dead… my son… Vasily… he’s dead.’ And the commanding officer stood up straight, aghast. And Igor, reacting, immediately positioned himself astride his son and started to do chest compressions. And one of the other officers joined him, alternating with Igor to give mouth to mouth respirations… and two medics came to their side with a cardio converter and they tried it. And it didn’t work. So Igor and the other officers went back to compressing Vasily’s heart and breathing for him. And they tried again the heart converter. And they repeated the cycles. Again and again. And again. With no response. The protesters had been driven back, prisoners taken while others had dispersed, yet still they chanted, ‘We won’t fight Ukraine! Long live Russia!’ From one of the balconies in an adjacent building, a woman had video recorded the entire affair. After all was over, she would upload it and it would go viral. Igor lay a long time next to Vasily’s body, sometimes covering him with his own, sometimes simply touching his face, remembering when his son was a child, and how he liked playing checkers, and then basketball and video games, and then the guitar, and how he later enjoyed solving math problems. He was going to school to become an engineer. He remembered that Vasily dreamed of one day visiting the West, maybe working there for a while before returning to Russia, which he loved. But none of that would happen now, thought Igor. None of it. Now everything was gone. And what would he say to his mother? Her only child. What would he say to her?
Biden is in the White House, Putin is in his bunker. They talk via a special channel using advanced Zoom technology and they both fill their respective screens. While not visible, in the room with Biden are Kamala Harris, Antony Blinken and Jake Sullivan. Two unnamed assistants sit near Putin.
Biden – It’s time to end this. Putin – Are you speaking for Zelensky? Biden – No… he speaks for himself. Putin – What do you propose? Biden – You pull back to behind your borders… and agree to pay reparations. Putin – You’re mad. Biden – You’ve just mobilized 300 thousand Russians to fight in Ukraine… 300 thousand men not well trained, and vulnerable to getting killed or maimed because they’re no match for Ukrainians… and for what? Putin – I have a dream of a greater Russia… a Russia that will be respected everywhere… consulted in all important decisions… Biden – You’ve had more than 20 years to do that… and you didn’t do it.
Putin lowers his eyes.
Biden – In those 20 years, China rose to become the second most important economy in the world… even though they were still denying their people the freedom of speech… but they let them create, invent, copy from the West which they were clever to invite in. But all the while in Russia, the power stayed concentrated on you and your oligarch friends. Now China is running into other problems which will limit their growth, but we won’t talk about that this moment. Putin – I admit they have done better than us… but they’re not better than us… like you’re not better than us. Biden – I agree… but we work hard to assure the freedom of all our people… citizens and residents… immigrants from all over the world who come in search of liberty and opportunity. Putin – You’re a racist country. Biden – We have been… and maybe still are… but we keep working on it.
The two men look at each other directly.
Biden – You started this war… not because you were being threatened… but because of envy… envy of all the nations which have surpassed you during the time you’ve been in power. So you invented this dream of a greater Russia to make up for all your blunders… and chose to sacrifice your fellow Russians. That is unforgivable. Putin – Unforgivable? Biden – There’s no way back. Putin – I know that.
They pause.
Biden – You can’t bring back the dead, the maimed… the tears for whom will never dry. And yet you go on TV the other day to say that representatives of NATO nations are threatening Russia with nuclear weapons. No one has said that. You invented it to justify calling for another 300 thousand people to join in your madness. Putin – I am not mad. Biden – I know… which gives me hope. Putin – Hope? Biden – Yes, hope that you announce to the world that this is over.
Putin laughs.
Biden – Admit that you made a colossal mistake out of envy… and that you deeply regret you have not made Russia a leading nation in the world… as your nation would have become… if they had been free. Putin (to himself)- My dear Russia… Biden – There is still time… time to act to redeem yourself. Putin (pulling his head back as he closes his eyes) – That time has passed… I’ve killed too many people… destroyed too many things… Biden – You could ask all the oligarchs you’ve made rich… to contribute four fifths of their wealth toward a fund to rebuild Ukraine. Putin (shaking his head slowly) – They’ll kill me. Biden – … and you could start by surrendering four fifths of your own wealth to set the example. Putin (smiling) – You’re mad, Biden. Biden – I’m sure there are better ideas to act on… but what is clear to me is that this is over. You can still insist on causing more damage, but it will get you nothing… and because it will be at the expense of your people, they will become less forgiving. Russia needs to breathe… you need to take your boot off their throats. Putin – I still have my nuclear weapons… Biden – What good will they do?
Putin lowers his head.
Biden – The West will never submit to you, or to China… or anyone. We will die for our freedom, like Ukraine is doing. Putin – Ukraine is now part of the West? Biden – Yes. You wouldn’t let them in, so they fought their way into it. Putin – I won’t surrender.
Biden is silent.
Putin – There’s still a chance we could beat Ukrainians. Why won’t they let me keep Crimea, the Donbas? Biden – Because it’s their land. Putin – You didn’t say anything when I first took it… Biden – It was another president… another time. Putin – I’m not envious of America. You’re a mess… violent… racist… Biden – … and free. The nation chose Trump as president in 2016… but didn’t like what they saw and didn’t reelect him. That’s choice. If Americans had reelected Trump in 2020, then you would’ve had no problem taking over Ukraine. Trump would’ve gone to your inauguration in Kyiv. But we didn’t reelect him and we won’t again.
Putin nods slowly.
Putin – I liked him… I should’ve invaded while he was president. Biden – Missed your chance. Putin – I won’t surrender. Biden – Then the dead and the destruction will keep climbing… for what? As destructive as you’ve been, you are still a human being… better die as a human being who acknowledged his humanity, than as one who never did.
Putin shakes his head.
Putin – I will not surrender. Russians love me. I am not envious. Russia will be great again. Biden – Putin… Russians are scared of you… and that feeling is just sinking in in all those Russians you’ve just called to enlist. They’re now learning that because they didn’t stand up to you before… you own them. Putin – I have more nuclear weapons than you do, more than anyone on this earth. Biden – You can’t win a nuclear war. Putin – That’s what they say but I will… and we’ll pick up the pieces… and we’ll be the greatest nation on earth. Biden – Russians will stop you. Putin – No, they won’t. Russians love me.
Putin pauses, looks tired.
Putin – I’ve had enough for today. Biden – Should we meet again? Putin – Maybe… I’m not sure… I’ll let you know… but maybe this will be our last meeting. Biden – Please do what is right. If not, we will stop you. No matter how much pain we must endure.
Putin looks directly at Biden for a moment, then his screen goes dark.
Read an article earlier today on the heroic resistance that Ukraine put up at the beginning of the war which prevented Russia from taking control of Kyiv. Titled ‘The Ragtag Army that Won the Battle of Kyiv and Saved Ukraine,’ by James Marson, it is a detailed account of the brave actions that some of the participants engaged in so they could stop an impending Russian occupation. Here’s the link https://www.wsj.com/articles/russian-invasion-ukraine-battle-of-kyiv-ragtag-army-11663683336?st=zx1dqhhndyr5z6z&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink The article captures the commitment of a people determined to not be vassals of another nation. People from very different occupations came together to say to the Russians, ‘No, you shall not pass.’ And Kyiv was not captured. As I read it, I felt that those men and women’s actions were speaking to all of us here in America, saying, ‘freedom is in the fight to defend what you value, freedom is in the fight to have your voice heard, in the fight to be respected and in the fight to learn to respect others.’ I couldn’t help but think that, no matter what else they do with their lives, those men and women will always be able to say that they stood up and offered all they had when their nation demanded it. Their struggle for their independence is now in the 7th month. Thousands of lives have been lost with more to come. But today, because of Ukrainians’ will to fight and the enormous support they have got from the West, we can see that the end is near. We should not think in terms of a protracted war. We should think in terms of ending this war as soon as possible. The recent advances by Ukrainian forces offer a great opportunity to accomplish this. There is evidence of low morale in the Russian army, of incompetence and lack of commitment. This is the time to strike hard against the enemy. I do not see this war as a war against Russia but as a war primarily against Putin. And there is evidence that more and more people in Russia are gaining the courage to disagree with him. Putin knows he’s headed for a defeat. He may or may not be able to stay in power after that. But our task is to help Ukraine push Russia out of all their territory as soon as possible and to achieve that we should give them everything they need. Will Putin use nuclear weapons? I don’t think so. You have made it very clear that any such action will not be tolerated. Putin does not want to be extinguished. He still sees some role for himself as an ally of China. But when and if that happens, will be up to the Russian people. A Free Ukraine has become a shining light for all the world to see and, I trust, an inspiration to Russia itself. You, Mr Biden, have played a leading role in making it happen. Do not deprive yourself of the chance of seeing it in its full splendor. This is the time to give to that great nation all the support they need. We must not hesitate.
Oscar Valdes 