Only stop short of starting World War III

Watching the invasion of Ukraine one year ago, I, like so many others, was taken aback by the sheer brutality and unnecessary nature of the totally unprovoked war. Being a child of the 1950s and 1960s, I cannot help draw a parallel with Vietnam. During that period of time, North and South Vietnam were engaged in a civil war. The communist north was trying to impose its will on the democratic south. Initially the French, who were colonial guardians of the area, tried to support the south financially and then militarily. They withdrew in 1954. The United States became the supporting entity. It expanded to a military commitment in excess of $140 billion and 58,000 U.S. lives. The reason? The domino principal. If South Vietnam fell to the communists then the rest of Southeast Asia would fall, like dominoes.

Now the rationale for NATO and U.S. support seems similar. If Ukraine falls, Russian President Vladimir Putin will feel emboldened and potentially try to revive the USSR, illegally annexing countries that used to make up the Soviet Empire — countries like Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belorussia (now Belarus), Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kirgiziya (now Kyrgyzstan), Latvia, Lithuania, Moldavia (now Moldova), Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. And maybe adding a few others like Poland.

Unlike Vietnam, which fell alone (no domino effect), Ukraine does feel like the western firewall of Putin’s folly of resurrecting the Soviet empire. Unlike North Vietnam, Russia possesses one of the largest nuclear arsenals on the planet. So it seems very logical that Putin needs to be stopped in Ukraine.

President Joe Biden has carefully orchestrated his involvement both domestically and abroad, unifying NATO and the U.S. people to understand the gravity of the war and the need to stop Putin’s aggression. Billions of dollars in aid have flowed freely from NATO and the U.S. This should not stop. If Ukraine asked for fighter jets, the coalition should give them. Anything short of tactical nuclear weapons should be on its way to the brave souls fighting for their very existence in Ukraine. The only line which should not be crossed? Sending our military or any of NATO’s forces directly into the conflict. We do not need to light the candle that could explode into World War III.