Russia is predictable again. Five lessons from six months of war in Ukraine – Denník N

On March 8, 1983, US President Ronald Reagan gave a speech in which he called the then Soviet Union an evil empire. He did this in front of American evangelicals, arguing that the West and the Soviet Union cannot be placed on the same level. On March 8, 2022, the Russians unabashedly bombed a convoy of civilians fleeing Mariupol; they also unabashedly attacked civilian targets throughout Ukraine many times throughout the war. The Orthodox Slavs, assuming the role of defenders of Orthodoxy and the Slavs, bombarded the Orthodox Slavs, who in childhood ate practically the same borscht and watched exactly the same wolf and hare on TV. Putin’s war against Ukraine is not unique in the 21st century in terms of its scope (hundreds of thousands of deployed soldiers) or its goal (overthrow the regime). The second war in the Persian Gulf, launched under false pretenses, also had those parameters. But the difference is everything else: growing totalitarian repression and the cult of the chosen nation in Russia, reckless and targeted massive attacks on civilians, aggression against a democratic country. In addition, the Russian attack is accompanied by complete dehumanization of the enemy, denial of the very existence of the Ukrainian nation, and open threats of its complete subjugation and return of the territory to Russian power. Lesson 1: Underestimation Can the West and Russia at least shake hands over Ukraine in something? Apparently in how they uniformly underestimated the capabilities and determination of her army. With Putin’s regime, it is obvious at first glance: the planned This article is exclusive content for Denník N subscribers. Are you a subscriber? Log in