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> An agreement can be made that provides guarantees for the safety of the people. We already have several of those. In Helsinki in 1975, all European countries
by mopsi 3y ago
> An agreement can be made that provides guarantees for the safety of the people.
We already have several of those. In Helsinki in 1975, all European countries (including the USSR) agreed to refrain from violently changing borders in Europe.[1] In Budapest in 1994, Russia reiterated the commitment, promising to respect sovereignty and the existing borders of Ukraine in exchange for Ukraine giving up nuclear weapons.[2] How do you suggest these, or any future agreements, should be enforced when Russia chooses to violate them?
Not to mention that Russia has become one the most oppressive countries in the world. What guarantees do you expect from a country that severly abuses the human rights of its population? That they won't abuse Ukrainians more than they do ethnic Russians when Russian officials imprison people for anti-war poems, raid gay bars, beat and rape protesters and murder dissidents?
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helsinki_Accords https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helsinki_Accords
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budapest_Memorandum https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budapest_Memorandum
- throw310822 3y agoThe opinion of one of the most prominent political scientists in the US, John Mearsheimer, is that this conflict has in the making for many years, because of the continuous expansion of NATO towards east and provocative actions of the US. This premise is important because understanding the causes, or motives, of the war is central in thinking about possible resolutions. If the cause of the war is Putin's crazy wickedness and its goal is the extermination of Ukrainians, there is no peace possible. If the cause of the war is an actual problem of politics, resources, national cohesion, alliances, you name it- then something can be agreed upon that stops the conflict now, saves the lives of hundreds of thousands on both sides, and buys a few more years. It will not be a just solution but it can be an acceptable one. And works the other way around too: if you don't want the conflict to stop, for whatever reason, you will tell people that no agreement is possible because the end goal of the other side is total extermination.
- boo-ga-ga 3y agoThe reason for the war is clearly stated by russian officials and propaganda: they want their empire to extend, and they (Medvedev as example) directly say that Ukrainians are "artificial" nation and should not exist. Any deal with russians doesn't mean anything to them, they proved it many times. As for Mearsheimer, let him comment how the appeasement worked out with Hitler.