By Jack Linden.
Too many Americans seem to see life through rose-colored glasses, and, in general, they have an unrealistic picture of the world around them.
This ailment especially seems to hold a lot of Americans when it comes to foreign affairs. Many Americans believe there are always good alternatives to every situation. But in foreign affairs, there isn’t always a good alternative, as the problem in Ukraine today shows.
But first, we have to ask – is this really our problem? Diplomatic relations between Russia and Ukraine and the Crimea go back a long way. When Russia ceded the Crimea to Ukraine in 1954, there was a stipulation that Russia would have a home port at Sevastopol. Thus Russia has had a vested interest in the area.
But do we, as Americans, have a vested interest in what is happening between Russia and Ukraine? To some, namely Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, we should send troops or at least rattle sabers.
Do we really want a war with Russia?
And if we went to war, how would we get there to engage in an attempt them to move out of the Crimea? The Russians control the Black Sea and could easily block the entrance to it with relative ease. Using missiles or drones would create an enormous amount of “collateral damage,” means civilians.
Another alternative is to gain the support of the European nations to impose economic sanctions on Russia. But this is a simplistic view, as Europe depends on Russia for much of its energy, namely natural gas. Could the nations of Europe function without that energy source? What would it do to the price of natural gas, not only in Europe but around the world?
We could freeze Russia’s assets in the U.S.! Nope, that won’t work, as there is a great deal of American investments and assets in Russia. They would just take those over.
Regardless of the alternatives, we should take a long look at the situation with a historical perspective. We must first remember that the Ukraine itself is split in allegiances. Historically, the people in the area around Kiev have always considered themselves independent from Moscow. Kiev was the cultural and intellectual center of what was to become Russia before the Moscovites took it over. Through its own expansion, it included people in the Eastern area who owe their loyalty to Moscow and Russia. The possibility of a civil war during the current situation is not out of the question.
President Obama is faced with an almost impossible foreign affairs problem. We are fortunate that he has not gone headlong into a volatile situation. Let all of us, especially the Congress and pundits, sit back and evaluate the situation. Let us offer suggestions, not condemnations.
Let’s take off the rose colored glasses of easy solutions and accept the fact that there are no good answers. We may be looking at a situation where we don’t have an answer.
