Trump's "Peace" – History repeats itself in cruel ways

 By Mika Horelli, BRUSSELS


Today, as NATO ministers gather here in Brussels, Europe watches in horror as the United States, under the guise of "peace," is prepared to concede to nearly all of Russia's demands—demands that have remained unchanged since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine almost three years ago. Millions of people have been driven from their homes, invaluable cultural heritage has been destroyed, and hundreds of thousands have lost their lives or health. And now, instead of holding Russia accountable for its actions, Donald Trump is rewarding its aggression.


By giving Moscow what it failed to achieve through force, Trump is doing precisely what Vladimir Putin hoped for when he launched his attack. This is not peace—this is surrender. The greatest tragedy of this capitulation is that it will not end the suffering. Even if a truncated Ukraine were formally allowed to continue existing, its days would be numbered. Putin and his regime have made it clear that they do not recognize Ukraine's right to exist. Everything that remains after Trump's so-called "peace" will be systematically dismantled until nothing is left. The idea that Putin would tolerate an independent, democratic Slavic state on his borders—living proof that an alternative to fear and subjugation is possible—is inconceivable.


Trump, either unable or unwilling to see the consequences of his actions, does not understand or does not care that Russia's appetite will only grow. If Moscow gets what it wants in Ukraine, the question is not whether it will move forward but which of its neighbours will be the next victim. Georgia? Moldova? The Baltic states? The collapse of Western deterrence would leave Russia's former satellites vulnerable to its imperialist ambitions.


History has seen this kind of short-sighted appeasement before. When British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain returned from Munich in 1938 and proclaimed "peace for our time" after negotiating the Munich Agreement with Adolf Hitler, the world sighed in relief, believing war had been averted. But it was an illusion. Hitler, like Putin, saw concessions as weakness. Less than a year later, he invaded Poland, plunging the world into the deadliest war in history.


Josef Stalin demonstrated similar expansionist ambitions. After World War II, the Soviet Union continually sought to expand its sphere of influence. The Baltic states, Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia, all fell under Moscow's control, living for decades under the iron grip of Soviet rule. Each time the West showed weakness, the Soviet Union pushed forward.


A similar pattern unfolded in 1979 when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in an attempt to extend its influence in Central Asia. The ten-year war devastated the country's infrastructure. It caused immeasurable human suffering, but it also proved how far totalitarian regimes are willing to go to secure their spheres of influence.


The same pattern is now repeating in Putin's Russia. There is no reason to believe that Putin will act differently. Like all dictators, he does not keep promises but uses them as temporary tactics to be discarded when convenient. By handing Russia what it could not win through force, we are not only betraying Ukraine but also everything the post-World War II international order was meant to protect.


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