There is no deficit of attempts by the US and NATO allies to escalate the situation between Russia and Ukraine to such an extent, where the possibility of a Nuclear War is imminent. Recently, it was reported that the “humanitarian aid” meant for Ukrainian citizens was being replaced with weapons and ammunition. As if this was not enough, the US administration and the political class is making sure to finds any way to escalate the matters with Russia.
Lindsey Graham has attracted widespread condemnation after the South Carolina senator suggested Putin should be assassinated in order to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Graham first made the suggestion in an appearance on Fox News host Sean Hannity’s show on Thursday evening, and he then repeated the idea in a tweet that quickly went viral. In addition to this, it should be evident by now that a determined, bipartisan push is underway in Washington to escalate the United States’ participation in the Ukraine conflict.
USA’s increased support for weapons supply to Ukraine
A half-dozen top Republican congressmen wrote a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on Tuesday, urging the Biden administration to equip Ukraine with “Soviet- or Russian-made strategic and tactical air defense systems and related radars.”
Long-range surface-to-air missiles, such as the S-300 system developed by the Soviet Union, are meant to shoot down enemy aircraft and intercept ballistic missiles. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has encouraged the US to assist Ukraine in acquiring S-300 air defense systems from nations that already have them, such as NATO members Bulgaria, Greece, and Slovakia.
As the war in Ukraine enters its third week, with heavy Russian bombardment of Ukrainian cities continuing and civilian casualties rising, we’ll hear more claims from Washington that the US and NATO must do more, that they stood by and let Putin do whatever he wants in Ukraine. The proponents of these arguments will deny that their help to Ukraine, however unprecedented, poses a risk of escalation or reprisal from Moscow. They won’t even try to answer the question honestly.
The President’s office too has made shallow calculations and went ahead with shot calling. Joe Biden, shedding all the diplomatic language called Vladimir Putin a ‘war criminal’. These sentimental statements without even a shred of understanding of the situation in the region will set a very dangerous precedent.
Lindsey Graham’s statement
As per reports, the tweets stated, “Is there a Brutus in Russia? Is there a more successful Colonel Stauffenberg in the Russian military? The only way to end this is for somebody in Russia to take this guy out,” Graham said on Twitter. “You would be doing your country – and the world – a great service.”
Graham added in a separate tweet: “The only people who can fix this are the Russian people. Easy to say, hard to do. Unless you want to live in darkness for the rest of your life, be isolated from the rest of the world in abject poverty, and live in the darkness you need to step up to the plate.”
Brutus was blamed for Roman emperor Julius Caesar’s murder, while Stauffenberg was a German army lieutenant who was murdered in 1944 for attempting to kill Adolf Hitler. These kinds of statements create a difficult environment for the diplomats who have to deal with their Russian counterparts so that the situation does not escalate to an uncontrollable level. All in all, the vitriolic and violent comments coming from the US lawmakers make it difficult for the Europeans to reach a workable solution in the Ukraine situation.
While it may not matter much for the leaders who are encashing on the current situation, any leader with a substantial geopolitical understanding would suggest a more mellowed-down narrative that is feasible for negotiations and that does not feed the flames of an all-out war.