Sitting in his command-and-control bunker in Kiev, 44-year-old President Volodymdyr Zelensky can only shake his head wondering why the U.S. and NATO won’t extend the same courtesy to Ukraine as they would to Taiwan? Ukraine has battled the Russian Federation for nearly eight months, losing some 25% of Ukraine’s sovereign territory, receiving unlimited cash to pay for Kiev’s bankrupt government and fund the costly war effort against 70-year-old Russian President Vladimir Putin. Yet, today in Brussels, 64-year-old U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of State Mark Miley and 69-year-old Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, vowed they would defend with U.S. troops every inch of NATO territory. Zelensky has begged 64-year-old NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg for NATO membership for over eight years, always told the same thing: Membership must be unanimous.
Stoltenberg has admitted many times that Ukraine has all the right democrat values to join NATO but the reluctance for membership boils down to no one in the 30-meber alliance wants to fight Ukraine’s war against the Russian Federation. Pentagon and NATO officials have no problem supplying Kiev with unlimited offensive and defensive weapons, just won’t supply any troops or a no-fly-zone. Zelensky has begged, cajoled and practically stood on his head to get expedited NATO membership, all to be told that membership must be unanimous. When 79-year-old President Joe Biden said Sept. 18 he would commit U.S. troops to defending Taiwan against a Mainland Chinese invasion, Zelensky had to wonder why not send troops to Ukraine. Sending U.S. troops to defend Taiwan would no doubt start WW III, much like committing U.S. troops to Ukraine would start WW III on the European Continent.
So, what is it with Biden sending such contradictory messages today about the U.S. commitment to defending every inch of NATO territory, yet opposing Ukraine’s membership in the 30-member alliance? Meeting in Brussels today at NATO, Miley and Austin confirmed U.S. commitment to the Trans-Atlantic Alliance. “We are committed to defending every inch of NATO’s territory—if and when it comes to that,” Austin told NATO leaders. Austin visited Brussels to confer on NATO nuclear preparedness after Putin said all options were in the table, including nukes in Ukraine. Putin’s comments prompted Biden to say Oct. 7 that Armageddon was possible if Putin used nuclear weapons in Ukraine. European Union [EU] and NATO officials took notice of Biden’s comments, roundly criticized for sounding to reckless. White House officials spent days walking back Biden’s gaffe.
When it comes to Ukraine, one thing’s been clear from Day 1, Feb. 24, of the Ukraine War that not one country in the 30-member NATO alliance wants to go to war against the Russian Federation on the European Continent. “Kiev is well aware that such as step would mean a guaranteed escalation to WW III,” said Alexander Venedikttov, deputy secretary of Russia’s Security Council. Biden said early on in the conflict that the U.S. would not commit troops to Ukraine to avoid possible WW III. So Zelensky pushes for fast-track membership means that Kiev is perfectly OK with the Ukraine War morphing into the next world war on the European Continent. EU and NATO officials are well-aware that Zelensky’s many attempts to join NATO or get the U.S. to join the fight with troops in Ukraine was his way of saying that WW III has already started in Ukraine.
Escalating tensions in Ukraine, Stoltenberg said NATO would go ahead with nuclear drills on the Continent with unarmed nuclear bombers. Stoltenberg said canceling the drills would send a “very wrong signal” to Moscow about NATO readiness if necessary to use nuclear weapons. When Biden talked about Armageddon, the doomsday clock continues to tick in Europe. Every effort by Brussels should be to end the nearly eight-month old war, knowing the longer it goes, the more the once unthinkable nuclear scenario could be a reality. “We’re going to stay with our efforts to support Ukraine for as long as it takes,” Austin said with Stoltenberg at his side. When it comes to supporting Ukraine, Austin knows that committing U.S. and NATO troops would help end the conflict more quickly or escalate into an all out nuclear war on the European Continent.
No signs to any peace efforts came from the Brussels NATO meeting, other than more saber-rattling. “This just shows that we need to stand-up for the rules-based international order for our core values,” Stolenberg said, referring to Putin’s illegal Feb. 24 invasion and, more recently, his annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. U.S., EU and NATO officials still think they beast Putin on the battlefield, increasing the risk of WW III. Why they’re not committed to ceasefire and peace talks is anyone’s guess. Biden’s vendetta over his loss in Syria is well-known to just about everyone. Biden thinks that if Zelensky can win back most of his lost territory, he’ll have more leverage at the peace table. But the longer the war goes, the most likely some miscalculation, misstep or mistake sparks a wider conflict. All U.S., EU and NATO much work toward ending the war.
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.
