3 ms·

Is a Ukraine a sovereign nation capable of forming alliances as they choose or not? The rest is just dissembling.

unmole 5y ago
Ukraine is absolutely free to choose to join NATO. But NATO should also exercise discretion about who should be allowed to join.
s1artibartfast 5y ago
They can choose, but that doesn't mean they get what you want. It takes two to form an alliance. The sad truth is that Ukraine would make a poor ally and NATO doesn't want to have them as full members. The only thing worse than a poor corrupt country, is one in an active war. However, the war is very useful to NATO because it consumes Russian resources.
StanislavPetrov 5y ago
I think the question of what to do when countries unilaterally invade other countries is also important to ask. The question of international law, and international standards. When the US invades other countries every few years, when Israel carries out airstrikes in Syria or the Saudis carry out airstrikes in Yemen, we don't hear the outrage of the international institutions that we see about today about Russia. What's worse is these international institutions have the gall to suggest that Russia's invasion is some sort of unique violation of the "post WW2 international order". The complete disregard that the US and NATO have shown to international law for the last 70 years have laid the groundwork for the lawless international system we have today. If we want to be able to credibly condemn Russia for launching an illegal war then we have to stop waging them ourselves and create a credible international standard that all nations are held to. The alternative is simply a lawless system where might makes right, in which case Russia's nuclear arsenal gives them the freedom to invade whoever they want (much like we do). Not only is this a bad system to live in, its an unsustainable system that eventually leads to WW3 and one that we should all strive to reform instead of pointing fingers and ignoring our own hypocrisy.

Ukraine is absolutely free to choose to join NATO. But NATO should also exercise discretion about who should be allowed to join.

s1artibartfast 5y ago

They can choose, but that doesn't mean they get what you want. It takes two to form an alliance. The sad truth is that Ukraine would make a poor ally and NATO doesn't want to have them as full members. The only thing worse than a poor corrupt country, is one in an active war. However, the war is very useful to NATO because it consumes Russian resources.

StanislavPetrov 5y ago

I think the question of what to do when countries unilaterally invade other countries is also important to ask. The question of international law, and international standards. When the US invades other countries every few years, when Israel carries out airstrikes in Syria or the Saudis carry out airstrikes in Yemen, we don't hear the outrage of the international institutions that we see about today about Russia. What's worse is these international institutions have the gall to suggest that Russia's invasion is some sort of unique violation of the "post WW2 international order". The complete disregard that the US and NATO have shown to international law for the last 70 years have laid the groundwork for the lawless international system we have today. If we want to be able to credibly condemn Russia for launching an illegal war then we have to stop waging them ourselves and create a credible international standard that all nations are held to. The alternative is simply a lawless system where might makes right, in which case Russia's nuclear arsenal gives them the freedom to invade whoever they want (much like we do). Not only is this a bad system to live in, its an unsustainable system that eventually leads to WW3 and one that we should all strive to reform instead of pointing fingers and ignoring our own hypocrisy.