On the 24th of February 2022, Russia began its assault and invasion of Ukraine. After months of denying any intention of invading, Vladimir Putin, “declared [that] Russia could not feel ‘safe, develop and exist’ because of what he claimed was a constant threat from modern Ukraine” (Kirby). The justification he has used for the invasion is humanitarian grounds, claiming that the goal of invasion is “to protect people subjected to bullying and genocide and aim for the, “demilitarization and de-Nazification” of Ukraine, ”an ironic and surprising justification considering Ukraine is a democratic state headed by a Jewish president, Volodymyr Zelensky (Kirby). Though Putin’s public claims for invasion are humanitarian in nature, it is more likely that Putin is making a statement on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) encroachment on Russia’s borders. Since 1997, NATO has continuously expanded. What was once 12 members in 1949 is now 30 member states as of 2022. As NATO has approached the borders of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine are the last countries between European NATO countries and Russia (Carrick). Putin’s concerns about NATO’s encroachment are partially fueled by past considerations to include Ukraine in NATO, which he considered to be, “a major threat to his country” (Bilefsky). Putin ultimately seems to be concerned about the power balance between Russia and NATO as NATO continuously encroaches closer to Russian territory and arms its members with what Russia calls “‘strike weapons near Russia’s borders’” (Kirby).
As the conflict has unfolded Russia has used legally ambiguous tactics including the use of cluster munitions, thermobaric weapons (also known as vacuum bombs), and has targeted civillians. With support from the west, Ukraine was able to push Russian forces back early on, but as the conflict has continued to unfold there is not a clear end in sight. Russia has nearly taken over the city of Mariupol with the exception of one remaining Ukrainian stronghold (The Guardian). The Russian forces have claimed victory over the south of Ukraine and now aim to take over the Donbas region (eastern Ukraine) “where Russian-backed separatists held significant territory before the invasion” (BBC). Though Russia has claimed victory in the south and now aims to take the east, they have retreated from northern Ukraine after successful Ukrainian counter attacks (BBC).
Since the conflict began it has been on the minds of students on campus to varying degrees. Some students openly discuss the news over dinner at Cowan, while others only acknowledge what has been unfolding in passing or perhaps in a class where it may come up. Regardless of how much students have kept up, there is one thing that they all seem to have in common: they are all condemning Russia’s actions. This includes one of the Russian students we have on campus who openly spoke at the beginning of the Ukraine convocation. She was quick to condemn Russia’s actions and made it clear that the general Russian population is not the body that decides whether to wage war, and furthermore they do not support this war. For these reasons she asked the audience to keep in mind that when they condemn Russia they condemn Putin’s actions not Russians in general. Her call to be cognisant is fair especially considering that the news in Russia is controlled by the state. According to the Washington Post, “Ukrainians have recounted stories of relatives in Russia expressing profound disbelief of the truth on the ground, saying instead that there is no shelling in Kyiv or that Russian forces ‘are there helping people’” (Faiola). The disconnect between these families is due to Russia’s state controlled media, and it is because of this kind of misinformation being fed to the Russian public that makes it difficult to condemn the Russian people themselves when they are being led astray by the specially curtailed and curated news they are being shown.
I would argue that Russia, more specifically Putin perhaps, is committing acts that are morally reprehensible regardless of whether or not they may be legally justified under international humanitarian law. As this war continues to unfold I hope that everyone keeps in mind their humanity, it is easy to jump to conclusions and vilify the Russians as a whole, but I challenge you to look closer, do your own research, and have open dialogues about the conflict. Afterall, states do not always represent the will of their populations, thus it is not always fair to hold the populations accountable for the actions of those in power.