Prof. John Mearsheimer explains the causes of the conflict in Ukraine, which led to irresponsible decisions and actions of Western states towards Russia and Ukraine.
Among the vast majority of Polish politicians and media workers there is simply a clear and clear belief that the only liable and guilty war in Ukraine is Russia and its bloody dictator Vladimir Putin. Another view of the causes of this war is not popular in Poland. Meanwhile, not only any Confederate politicians but besides serious Americans present a completely separate position on this issue. 1 of them is John J. Mearsheimer, a prof. of political discipline at the University of Chicago, where he was even awarded the R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service prof. of Political Science. What does prof. Mearsheimer say?
In a late published book in Poland entitled large Imagination. Liberal dreams into reality global prof. Mearsheimer recalls Washington's disastrous accomplishments in Afghanistan, Egypt, Iraq, Libya and Syria, which "did not only neglect to defend human rights and bring about... liberal democracy, but besides greatly contributed to causing bloody conflicts and chaos". This is no different for Ukraine. Academia proves that the work for this conflict "is mainly borne by the United States and its European allies", and the main reason is the implementation of a strategy to lead Ukraine out of orbit and integrate it into the West.
As Prof. Mearsheimer says, this strategy consists of 3 interrelated elements: the expansion of NATO, the expansion of the European Union and the transformation of Ukraine into a pro-Western liberal democracy. I'll discuss them 1 by one. After the collapse of the USSR, 2 tranches of NATO's enlargement to the countries of Central and east Europe came, which powerfully protested Moscow, due to the fact that the North Atlantic Alliance was approaching its borders, but inactive someway swallowed it. The real problem started only erstwhile the NATO summit in Bucharest in 2008 began to reflect on membership in the Alliance of Ukraine and Georgia. Both countries are straight adjacent to Russia. Russian leaders began to talk about a immense strategical error, serious consequences for European safety and a direct threat to Russia. The consequence was the Russian-Georgian War.
After the Cold War, the European Union besides began its expansion to the east. 4 tranches of its enlargement followed. In 2009, Brussels presented the east Partnership initiative aimed at economical integration of east Europe (Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan) with the European Union. Russia considers the expansion of the Union to the east as a horse of the Trojan expansion of NATO. There is something about it, due to the fact that in 2013, Brussels urged the Kiev authorities to sign an association agreement that afraid not only economical matters, but besides a strategical dimension (foreign affairs, security). At the same time, Washington "invested" in Ukraine all the time. Victoria Nuland, assistant to the U.S. Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, estimated that between 1991 and 2013, the US spent $5 billion to aid Ukraine. With this money Ukraine was to be converted into pro-Western liberal democracy. This was to be achieved through the alleged Orange Revolution of 2004, and a decade later Euromaidan.
According to prof. Mearsheimer, an orange revolution led from the West gave president Putin a direct signal to action that “took it clear that he would sooner destruct Ukraine as a viable society than let the Western foothold to be at the threshold of Russia.” Crimea was annexed to Russia, and the separatists occupied Ukrainian Donbas, who had since been consumed by civilian war. This is due to the fact that the West's actions described threatened Russia's key strategical interests. Still, the West was not going back. As a result, we now have a war in Ukraine.
It's like Russian tanks were stationed on the American-Canadian or American-Mexican border. A serious state, and in peculiar a country with imperial ambitions, would never agree to this. 1 may be outraged with another: where is Ukrainian state sovereignty? Where is the anticipation of deciding the Ukrainians about themselves? In an interview with “New Yorker”, prof. Mearsheimer explains directly: “If you live in a country specified as Ukraine and your neighbour is simply a power specified as Russia, you must pay close attention to what the Russians think, due to the fact that if you take a stick and stick it in their eye, they will not let it get distant with. Countries in the Western Hemisphere realize this well with respect to the United States." Besides, not only countries in the Western hemisphere, but besides another countries in the American sphere of influence. In 1939 Poland did not realize this and from the states of the powers (the 3rd Reich and the USSR) made enemies on almost the full border (outside the confederate one). It ended in a full disaster.
"Ukraine has basic strategical interests for Russia, and so the West's drive to break out Ukraine from Moscow's orbit and incorporating it into the Western institutions are absolutely unacceptable. From Putin's perspective, the policies of the United States and their European allies endanger Russia's survival. This point of view tells Russia to make large efforts to prevent Ukraine from joining the West" - emphasises prof. John Mearsheimer. This does not, of course, change the fact that from a Polish point of view it would be best for Russia not to survive. Unfortunately, specified a improvement seems unlikely, and along the way the danger of atomic weapons appears. And on the east border, we'd have a flag power.
Politics, especially abroad politics, is not fun. Politologist Dr. Bartłomiej Radziejewski in his preface to the Polish edition of the large Imagination writes that prof. Mearsheimer considers "international relations to be a brutal game whose eventual stake is survival, and the primary precedence – accumulation of power", and "being a patriot of a great-powerful nation of far-flung North America, you can see the same things completely differently than Polish patriots."
Tomasz Piepienik
The text of Mr Tomasz Piecznik comes from the Polish Economy Forum website. Reprinted with approval of the Forum of the Polish Economy
