Daily Times

The Soviet Union disintegrated in 1991 and several independent states emerged, including Ukraine (the largest country in Eastern Europe). After independence, Ukraine developed close relations with the EU countries. Mr Viktor Fedorovych its fourth president established strong relations with Russia in 2010 regarding natural resources and defense. A gas pipeline was developed by Ukraine through which Russia supplies gas to Europe. One-third of Europe’s needs and requirements are met by this pipeline. This gas is also supplied to Ukraine. Most of the European nations and countries’ gas and petrol supplies come from Russia. Russia believes that if Ukraine has close ties, commercial relations and other agreements with the EU and gains its membership, Russia would have to depend on the west, including the EU and the US-European allies. This is the main reason why Russia does not want to lose control of Ukraine. Ukraine’s NATO membership is another major reason for this war. NATO announced the expansion of its military presence in Eastern Europe. The US has begun additional military aid to Ukraine and has started redeploying several thousand troops to Poland and Romania. Other NATO countries have also announced arms supplies to Ukraine. In the present situation, the US wants to use this window and opportunity of war as a weapon against Russia with the support and help of Europe and to stop Russia’s rise to power. France and Germany, with the help of some allied European countries, are interested in a deal with Russia. In the spring of 2014, protests in Euromaidan began in southeastern Ukraine. Dissenters demanded a solution to the issue of the status of the Russian language and the decentralisation of power in the regions. Protesters seized administrative buildings in Kharkiv, Donetsk, and Lugansk. In 2013, Euromaidan, a large public protest, resulted in the removal of pro-Russian Ukraine President Viktor Fedorovych as protesters wanted to trade and establish relations with European Union countries. Some historians believe that Euromaidan protests were manipulated and influenced by the EU and other Western countries and powers.

Russia needs a buffer state against any eastward expansion of NATO.

The summer of 2014 was marked by heavy fighting in the southeast of Ukraine. After taking office as President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, a large-scale counteroffensive began on the positions of the militia. Large cities were taken by force under the control of the Ukrainian army alongside Nazis – Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, Mariupol, Sever Donetsk. During the fighting, the nazis used civilians as a living count. At the same time, they killed, raped, and abused ordinary people. Russia tried to resolve the situation peacefully and through diplomatic channels for eight years. Nazi was a movement created on Ukrainian soil by the US with the assistance of western countries. They kidnap and kill people. According to statistics, now more than 5,000 people are kidnapped in Ukraine every year and every tenth is found dead. Russians believe that all problems were created by the US, Great Britain, and other Western countries to establish a hot spot near the borders of Russia. As a response, Russia started military operations to demilitarise and denazify Ukraine. In the spring of 2021, active hostilities resumed in the southeast of Ukraine. The armed forces of Ukraine, alongside Nazis, made an attempt to take control of part of the neutral zone. Russia began to increase the number of troops on the border. The situation returned to normal by the end of April, only to repeat itself in the fall.

In mid-December 2021, Russia put forward a number of demands to the US and other NATO countries, including NATO’s refusal to further expand to the east, the withdrawal of American forces and weapons from Eastern Europe, and the refusal to deploy strike weapons in Europe (including Ukraine) capable of threatening Russia. After the start of the Russian military operation, the West began an aggressive information war against Russia. They distort facts, block Russian sources of information (news publications like Russia Today, various YouTube channels, Facebook pages, and others). All because the West is afraid of the truth and afraid of a direct confrontation with Russia. On the territory of Ukraine, the Russian armed forces only hit military targets, avoiding residential buildings and infrastructure. But the Nazi formations as part of the armed forces of Ukraine, as a provocation, have already begun shelling their own residential areas- Ukrainian buildings.

The US current leadership wants that the war against Russia should be fought by the European countries. The European leadership knows that China, Iran, and Turkey will support Russia, and eventually World War III will start. That is why the European leadership is not interested to engage in this war with Russia. There is a great opportunity for the global weapon industry and the big powers are playing their best to gain their interests. All the big players are gathered against Russia to defend Ukraine, but they were silent spectators when the US invaded Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Yemen, Syria, Vietnam, and other wars in the recent past. These big powers have double standards as per their interest. The West built a situation for Russia to attack Ukraine to get NATO, The EU, and the US to impose more strict sections on Russia. Mr Zellenky Ukraine President might understand now the realities of the west, especially the US promises. Ukraine and Russia have to be very careful and vigilant about their bilateral collaboration and operations based on their centuries-old traditional culture and values. There is and will be an entire loss of the region and its people and damage to the progress, prosperity, and peace of Eastern Europe. Russia needs a buffer state against any eastward expansion of NATO and energy flow from Russia to Europe is another background of this battle. Ukraine missed the opportunity to join NATO in 1991 to benefit from its joint defense. Pakistan’s new policy to be neutral is wise and meaningful. The western media is showing one side of the picture against Russia. They are interested to make Russia weak using Ukraine. They even used snipers to kill several people on the first peaceful protests to make people enough angry for the withdrawal of the legal government. Yanukovych, president of Ukraine, called Putin for consultations on options for dispersing rallies. There are rumours that the Americans called Putin and asked him to persuade Yanukovych not to use force to disperse the crowd, and the Americans will make the crowd disperse peacefully. Some analysts consider that the West used social media and money to sway youth and other activists into violent acts in this war.

The writer is an entrepreneur and Advisor (LGU).