LOS ANGELES.–Lucerne, Switzerland’s peace summit only confirmed to the Russian Federation that it must respect the U.N. Charter and guarantee the territorial integrity of Ukraine. Some African, Asian and Middle Eastern countries joined the U.S. and European Union [EU] in demanding that Russian President Vladimir Putin pull all his troops out of Ukraine to stop the reckless, destructive and costly war, now in its third year. Lucerne’s formula for peace to Russia was abide by the U.N. Charter, respect Ukraine’s 1991 territorial integrity and pull all troops out of Ukraine, including leave the Crimean Peninsula, home to Russia’s Black Sea fleet. Western countries essentially concluded in Lucerne that the war must go on indefinitely until Russia met all its demands of the U.N. Charter and respect of territorial integrity, a formula to keep the war going indefinitely.
No one needed a peace summit to hear Ukraine’s position for ending the conflict, as long as the U.S. and EU pay for Kiev’s government and war with Moscow. If the bankrupt Kiev government of 46-year-old President Vladimir Zelensky only wanted to fight, how long would the war go without U.S. and EU funding? Former President Donald Trump has said that if he’s elected president, the war would stop in 24 hours, a clear sign that he would no longer support funding Ukraine’s war with the Kremlin. Unlike 81-year-old President Joe Biden, Trump would push the two sides to the peace table for negotiation and compromise. Before the Lucerne summit, Putin set out conditions for ending the war, including Kiev ceding sovereign Ukrainian territory, something unacceptable to Kiev. Trump would force both parties, Moscow and Kiev, to sit down and negotiate for peace.
Putin’s truce overture was intended only as a starting point, letting Lucerne participants know that only through negotiation can compromise can the war end. Lucerne concluded that Russia must be the only party that compromises by removing all troops from Ukrainian territory. While it sound reasonable, it’s not logical at all. Ukraine decided Feb. 22, 2014 to topple the duly elected, Kremlin-backed government of Viktor Yanukovych. While that was Kiev’s choice led by former Ukrainian President Petro Pososhenko, there were consequences to the coup. One major consequence was that Putin annexed the Crimean Peninsula to protect his Black Sea naval to protect Russian national security. Russian had its Black Sea naval base in Crimea before former Soviet Premier Nika Khrushchev gifted Crimea to Ukaine as a Soviet Satellite in 1954. So, the territorial integrity is complicated in Ukraine.
Lucerne was a simplistic demand to Russia to abide by the U.N. Charter but only if it suits Zelensky’s Kiev government. Did Poroshenko respect the U.N. Charter of territorial integrity when he partnered with the CIA to topple the duly elected Kiev government of Viktor Yanukovych. So, when it comes to negotiation and compromise, isn’t it reasonable for Kiev to consider ceding the Crimean Peninsula back to Moscow? When it comes to Russian-speaking enclaves in Donbas, what was Moscow supposed to do in Dontesk and Luhansk, abandon all Russian-speaking communities that want to be part of the Russian Federation? Putin’s truce overture to Ukraine was sincere as a starting point for negotiation and compromise. Lucerne essentially concluded that war is preferable over negotiation and compromise. What’s in the U.N. Charter about overthrowing a duly elected government?
Putin has been so demonized by the U.S. and Kiev it’s impossible to get a fair hearing on the Ukraine War. How long can the U.S. government and EU afford to fund proxy war against the Kremlin in Ukraine? With all the destruction from the Ukraine War, the Kiev government cannot function independently without Western financial support. As long as the war continues, how’s Kiev supposed to develop its industries now decimated by over two years of war with no end in sight? So, the U.S. and EU now support a bankrupt Kiev government sitting on the Russian border with close past ties to the old Soviet Union. Instead of the Lucerne summit blasting Putin for occupying Ukraine, they must look at the big picture of what it takes to work to end the conflict. War in Ukraine only promotes instability on the European Continent and threatens world peace and prosperity.
Lucerne’s summit wasted precious time rehashing old clichés about the U.N. Charter and territorial integrity. Russia and Ukraine were fully integrated parts of the old Soviet Union. When the Soviet Union dismantled in 1991, Ukraine received its borders that included the Crimean Peninsula and Russian enclaves that have lived in Ukraine for centuries. What’s Putin supposed to do, just cede the Crimean Peninsula and Donbas back to Kiev? Putin has a responsibility to Russian speaking enclaves still seeking ties to Moscow in Ukraine. When it comes to Crimea, Kiev knows that its home to the Russian Black Sea fleet. So, talking about the U.N. Charter and territorial integrity doesn’t begin to deal with the realities in Ukraine requiring more negotiation and compromise to resolve the conflict. Putin’s current demands are all a subject to negotiation and compromise.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
