While the necessity of supporting Ukraine, at all costs, should be obvious to all (it’s the best long-term investment the West can make against an expansionist Russia), it is a hard sell to electorates. But there is another way of doing this — we can make Putin pay. Even the populists in Europe and the U.S. would struggle to argue with that.
The West holds $400bn of Russian assets, either frozen or immobilized For comparison, all Western aid so far, including financial, humanitarian, and military, totals about $350bn.
Good. As long as we don’t create a Treaty of Versaille 2 situation and bankrupt New Russia into despair. Let’s not forget what happened after WW1. If Putin’s regime falls and Russia truly wants to become democratic nation we should also support that.
I agree with that but I’m not optimistic. Kremlin propaganda is already as stupid as it can be and most economic ties have been cut already. Should Russia be forgiven the destructions in Ukraine? It is a tough decision.
It’s the Russian government and the circles around it that are committing the crimes, not Russia. There are Russian people supporting the Kremlin, but by far not all of them. It is a tough decision whatever is done after this war ends, but there is no alternative than to build a democracy not only in Ukraine but also in Russia imo.
None other than the Russians can build their own democracy. No one can do it for themselves. And it will not happen while Puttin lives.
Most of the money in Russia is already in the hands of their oligarchs. They’re already blaming everything on the west. A heavy debt would obviously fall on the shoulders of the people, which is not desirable, but they will hate the west regardless of this debt, and the difference will only be whether Ukraine is rebuilt by russian money or western money.