On the eve of the meeting of NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Riga, Latvia, on November 30 – December 1, 2021, the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) urges the international community and global leaders to take a clear and decisive stand in demanding that the Russian Federation immediately cease hostilities against Ukraine and the entire European continent.
Russia’s hybrid warfare is fought on many fronts, its tactics involve simultaneous and coordinated actions using weapons that are military and non-military: from sabre-rattling on Ukraine’s borders and in the Black Sea, to manufacturing the migrant crisis in Belarus, to weaponizing gas deliveries to Europe. These are all parts of Moscow’s concerted campaign to sow chaos, confusion and disorder across Europe.
Russia’s plans are no secret. In 2021, Vladimir Putin and Dmitri Medvedev signed their names to ideological justifications for Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Moscow is preparing that invasion using the political and economic weapons to destabilize Ukraine and the region.
In his recent article, Vladislav Surkov, the chief ideologist of the Putin regime, has put it straightforwardly, saying, “there’s nothing new in exporting chaos. “Divide and rule” is an old recipe… Russia will get its share of the new global collection of lands”.
The international community must not fall prey to Russia’s blackmail. There is no more room for appeasement. The world must stand firm and join in efforts to deter Russian aggression and preserve peace.
This can be achieved through:
- Sending Russia a clear message, condemning its aggression and escalation
- Increasing sanctions against Moscow
- Increasing deterrence by providing military equipment, defensive weapons and expertise to Ukraine
UWC calls on all Ukrainian communities around the world to support Ukraine by addressing their governments and meeting with political, public and expert community leaders, to deliver a simple message: No appeasement of Putin at the cost of Ukraine. Russian aggression must be stopped.
Ukrainian communities worldwide have invested time and resources in supporting positive change in the seven years since the Revolution of Dignity. Frontline humanitarian work, new schools, a cultural revival – we’ve helped make progress possible, despite ongoing Russian aggression. Escalating and widening the war would erase these gains. It’s another reason why Moscow’s drumbeat of war must be stilled.
