John McCain

Recent posts from Roman Sheremeta:

Justice can only come when Ukraine is a powerful country.

One of the lessons from the conflict resolution literature is that justice can come only when opponents are approximately equally powerful, where there is no clearly recognizable predominance. So, to ensure justice and peace the opponents need to be equally powerful.

What does this have to do with Ukraine?

If we truly want a just peace for Ukraine, we need to give Ukraine all the tools necessary to defeat russia. Only then, russians will be willing to negotiate. Just as John McCain once said: “The only thing that Vladimir Putin understands is strength.”

Image source: https://www.coalitionfortheicc.org/news/20221014/justice-costly-also-priceless

……………

According to the Info Sapiens poll, the level of sympathy of Ukrainians for Poland and Poles has decreased from 83% in 2022 to 41% in 2024.

Any ideas why?

………….

I was recently cleaning up my Twitter account and noticed that some U.S. professors who are originally from russia had stopped following me. I couldn’t care less. But it is very telling.

People in the West still believe in the russian opposition and the “good russians” hypothesis. They think that, somehow, it is all Putin’s fault. In reality, Putin is just a symptom of a much bigger problem, called “russian imperialism” or “great russian culture.”

“Good russians” jubilantly cheer in the streets, welcoming the genocide of their neighbors.

“Good russians” openly dance and celebrate with russian flags in European countries while systematically attacking Ukrainian immigrants.

“Good russian” athletes, participating in the 2024 Paris Olympics under a neutral flag, show support for Putin and the russian genocide against Ukraine.

“Good russians” work in embassies, such as in Canada, where they bully Ukrainian children.

So, when I see U.S. professors originally from russia taking a so-called “neutral stance,” it does not surprise me at all. On the contrary, it confirms the pattern.

P.S. The sign in the photo says: “Enemy, know this: We are all Putin.” The photo is from Vladyslav Ushakov.

…………….

“I put a lot of the blame for what is happening in Ukraine and to Ukrainian people on the U.S., Russia, and some on Ukraine.”

This is a direct quote from a Slavic “Christian pastor” in the U.S. It is truly shocking that this morally bankrupt individual would place blame on the U.S. — and even Ukraine — for the russian genocide against Ukrainian people.

What shocks me even more is that I have known this person for many years and even considered a friend. But only now do I see them for who they truly are.

If there is one good thing that russia’s aggression has revealed, it is this: it has created a simple and morally clear way to distinguish real Christians from morally bankrupt counterfeits who blame the victims for the crimes committed against them.

For such people I have only one thing to say:
“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness.” (Isaiah 5:20, NIV)

P.S. Image from Neivanmade.

………….

“Occupation is not peace; Occupation is just another form of war.”

Oleksandra Matvichuk

Head of Centre for Civil Liberties, Nobel Peace Prize 2022

……………..

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has emphasized that no country or world leader has the right to negotiate with russia on behalf of Ukraine.

He stated that any dialogue with the Kremlin is only possible with an participation of Ukraine and exclusively from a position of strength.

For me as a Ukrainian, it is indeed frustrating to see Scholz, Macron, Orban talking to Putin on behalf of Ukraine as if they represent Ukrainian people.

Source: EU Today

…………….

“We cannot give up our territories. Ukraine’s Constitution forbids us from doing so.” – President Zelenskyy

In an interview with the French newspaper Le Parisien, the President of Ukraine stated that “Ukraine does not have the strength to reclaim Crimea or Donbas. We can only rely on diplomatic pressure.”

Key Points:

“We would like to see stronger support for Ukraine from the United States. Our teams are already working with President Trump’s teams.”

“We need a strong America and Europe to pressure Putin and stop this war.”

“We all want this war to end as quickly as possible, and we will do everything we can to achieve that. We will resort to diplomacy. But that does not mean forgiving Putin. We cannot legitimize the occupation.”

“No leader in the world has the right to negotiate with Putin without Ukraine. We have never delegated that mandate to anyone.”

“If Ukraine loses, Russia will attack other European countries, including NATO members. This is inevitable.”

…………..

“The world must not succumb to the Kremlin’s bluff. Peace can and will be secured through strength, for strength remains the only language that the aggressor comprehends.” Brilliant speech by Serhiy Kyslytsia – Permanent Representative of Ukraine at the UN.

Video here:

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/19qdizpZxc/?mibextid=wwXIfr

……..,,……….

And finally :

My recent conversation with a “good russian.”

A good russian: it was your position since the start of the war that all the Russians are to blame.

Me: Just look at your social media page. Zero condemnation of russian genocide as if it is not happening. You are simply enjoying life as if nothing is happening. I wouldn’t be surprised if most of your relatives who are still in russia support genocide of my family and friends, while you simply maintain your “neutrality.”

A good russian: I sincerely wish you never find yourself in the situation when your blood kin radically disagree with your political agenda. That’s a very serious problem for a lot of people nowadays and mocking it seems hardly appropriate. Also, some of our relatives sent to Ukraine humanitarian aid. Also, they participated in evacuation of Ukrainians.

Me: It is precisely for this kind of thinking and inaction from people like you that Putin is running russia today. As for your “struggles with your relatives”, please spare me your petty talk. But I do wish that you would never experience three of your friends being killed by rusisans, your parents living in a basement because russians are bombing them every day, your relatives bleeding every day on the frontlines protecting the lives of their loved one from russuan genocide. As for sending money to Ukraine, how about instead return the lives of my friends? Or return the hand of my cousin? Also, instead of helping to evacuate Ukrainian people, how about they help russia to dissolve so that Ukrainians don’t have to evacuate.

My final words: I understand that you are trying to whitewash your conscience and somehow distance yourself from what your people are doing to Ukrainians. But unless, you take collective responsibility for your moral bankruptcy, history and Ukrainians will judge you harshly for the rest of your lives. I will leave you with a quote from Gary Kasparov: “The big debate is whether it’s Russia’s war or Putin’s war. Unfortunately, it’s Russia’s war. Every Russian, myself included, has a responsibility for the crimes committed in Ukraine.”