We must resist Nato’s drive to war in Ukraine

AS a member of the choir Russkaya Cappella I had the privilege and pleasure of attending the celebration of Russia Day in Edinburgh with the Consul General, Andrey Pritsepov, who contributed Saturday’s Agenda article (“We will not give up on our duty to honour all Arctic convoy veterans”, The Herald, June 13). I wish to add my voice to support his plea for greater understanding. He is surely speaking the truth when he writes “due to this intense experience of hardship and sacrifice, our people fully understand and empathise with the sufferings of others”. The Russians don’t want a war. But we are building up to one. Why?

When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 and the Warsaw Pact was dissolved, Nato should also have been disbanded, and a pan-European mutual security agreement formed, including Russia. Instead, the United States simply moved the goalposts further to the east, and continued with the new Cold War.

Now we are living a replay of the First World War farce Oh What a Lovely War, with the Donbas playing the role of plucky little Belgium and President Putin cast as the new Kaiser Bill. The difference is that now we have H-bombs and are a member of an alliance which believes in first use.

When he heard of the successful detonation of the A bomb, Albert Einstein sighed and said: “Now everything is changed - except the way we think.” He was profoundly right. It is utter lunacy to apply the logic of the pre-nuclear age, in a nuclear-armed world.

We have eliminated war as a permissible means of solving disputes between nations within the European Union, which is a splendid achievement. We can and must aspire to do this worldwide. Mr Pritsepov is absolutely right. Resisting Nato’s current drive to war in Ukraine is imperative. Brian M Quail, 2 Hyndland Avenue, Glasgow.