We can’t turn our backs on this nation

You cannot negotiate with a criminal. Vladimir Putin is a criminal. No one should sanction the level of destruction and killing he has done. He must be met with the only “negotiation” he will ever understand: military

power. Putin must fully withdraw from Ukrainian territory. If anyone doubts what his real intentions are, let us be reminded of the Russian invasion of Crimea only nine short years ago. Putin is on a mission to replicate the entire ex-Soviet Union, and he will not stop.

We are hearing voices here in America who believe we can somehow ignore an existential threat and not eventually pay the price. “It’s not our war,” we hear. In 1938, Neville Chamberlain thought negotiation with Adolf Hitler was possible and it was only the stalwart backbone of Winston Churchill who finally fought back and changed the course of history. And as England, our oldest and most reliable ally, was pummeled, America shamefully initially held back aid and weapons because “it was not our war.”

I am so saddened by some Americans who are criticizing Biden’s visit to Ukraine when it is an example of exceptional leadership and a needed visual to bolster the resolve of our citizens, our allies and the beleaguered citizens of Ukraine. The oneyear anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine was a symbolic moment that Biden could not pass up. That it coincided with an American tragedy (the Ohio train derailment) is an unfortunate coincidence. That it is being used to attack the administration to gain political points is utterly tasteless. America is strong enough to do two necessary things at the same time.

My father fought in World War II. Although it was hardly The War to End All Wars, the successful defense of liberty and democracy in Europe and the Pacific was an important achievement for him, one that for his whole life he held up with pride. His message was never let autocracy crush the natural human spirit and desire for freedom. That principle held for 70 years of relative peace and prosperity in Europe. But now it is crumbling.

We must reassert that principle to the autocracies and totalitarian governments of the world. This war is our war. Ukrainian fighters are proxy to the fight for freedom in the entire free world. Not all wars are equal. Americans used flawed reasoning to justify their participation in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq. Neocons argued that we needed to nation-build when the reality was those citizens were not ready and would not fight for their own freedom. But the Ukrainians totally understand what is at stake and are totally ready to sacrifice their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor to be a free and independent democracy. Volodymyr Zelenskyy is the Winston Churchill of our times. Let us not turn our backs on him and his suffering nation.

All democracies and freedom-loving people must send a unified message of resolve to Vladimir Putin: You shall not pass!