Stock markets around the world saw huge swings Monday, building on accumulating losses since the new year. Much of those losses can be attributed to the growing tensions from Ukraine. When the United States and Britain both began withdrawing their embassy staff from Kyiv over the weekend, tensions mounted. Canada followed on Tuesday asking all families of Canadian embassy staff to leave the country.
In addition, NATO nations began moving ships and aircraft as well as additional military supplies into former Soviet Block nations. Canada has already deployed one ship to the Black Sea and has increased the number of military trainers working with Ukrainian forces. NATO countries are putting forth a united front that they will oppose any invasion of Ukraine.
The good news is that foreign affairs ministers from both Russia and the United States continue to talk about their differences. NATO member countries are continuing to meet and discuss responses to the crisis. Russia is seeking a treaty that would make it impossible for Ukraine to join NATO. With that treaty, Russia – which has massed over 100,000 troops on borders surrounding Ukraine – would agree to not invade the country. They are worried that Ukraine would join other former Iron Curtain nations in becoming part of NATO.
Following the breakup of the USSR, citizens of the Ukraine chose in a free election to create a separate country from Russia. The creation of separate independent countries has bothered Russian leaders and Putin has worked to restore those independent countries to Russia. The display of military might on three borders of Ukraine may mark his vision to bring a strong economy back into the fold.
In 1938 Neville Chamberlain reached an agreement with Adolph Hitler allowing Germany to take Sudetenland, a part of Czechoslovakia hoping that would put an end to Hitler’s ambitions. The world knows how that agreement turned out. It appears like the demands that Russia is placing on NATO today. Other similar agreements have had equivalent results. Russia had previously annexed Crimea and parts of Eastern Ukraine from Ukraine.
Should diplomacy fail, before any soldiers or tanks or ships and fighter planes fire a shot, the world may experience a cyber war, where nations will seek to destroy all forms of electronic communications available, at the same time shutting down power grids and banking systems. It would be an invisible war and it is doubtful that any nation will not be affected.
Many baby boomers remember the 1962 October Missile Crisis that brought the two super-powers almost to nuclear war. It took 35 days to resolve and much of the resolution came through back-channel negotiations. For the first time in history, television gave us a front row seat as we watched with worry as Russian ships advanced on a blockade of American war ships surrounding Cuba.
Let’s hope that negotiations and discussions will be successful, as they were in 1962.
Former Publisher
Fort Frances Times
