Lublin Triangle – Cornerstone of Regional Peace & Security

The value of collective security against an identifiable threat or enemy cannot be underestimated. However, not much has been written in the American mainstream media about the Lublin Triangle, which is reason enough to write about this vital alliance of former captive nations of Russian aggression. An updated Anti-Bolshevik Bloc of Nations.

It’s a topic that I have broached on numerous occasions, grasping words, sentences and speeches articulated by Ukrainian and East European leaders and molding them into a realistic contemporary concept.

I wrote about this from a variety of angles including building such a bloc among non-governmental organizations of their respective countries affiliated at the United Nations. At the time I suggested that their civil society representatives and the appropriate member-states’ permanent missions form such a coalition along the lines of the much-discussed UN Sustainable Development Goals. The 17 principles and 140-plus subtexts discuss more than just environmental issues. Human rights, which are violated by Moscow within its borders and in the so-called “near abroad,” are included in the goals.

I had also cited an interview with Pavlo Klimkin, when he was minister of foreign affairs of Ukraine, who advocated the creation of such a far-reaching bloc. Outraged by the Russian invasion of his homeland, Klimkin suggested soon after President Petro Poroshenko’s visit to Canada and the United States the creation of a Coalition of Freedom to defend democracy and Western values in a troubled world.

“It is about security for everyone,” Klimkin had said during an exclusive Fox News interview on the eve of the 71^st UN General Assembly in 2016. “If someone in this interchangeable and intertwined world cannot feel secure, how can US citizens here feel secure?”

Klimkin explained that Ukraine is confronting – and still is – a threat any nation can face, adding “we need a network of security.” His Coalition of Freedom would consist of “countries which are committed to freedom, to democratic values, where we are not talking about spheres of influence, but the values and real interests of democratic countries.” Indeed, his theme fits today’s dangerous global agenda, especially that faced by the former captive nations.

Most of the free world is obviously caught between the rock and the hard place as it ponders how to support the Eastern European countries that have liberated themselves from Moscow’s prison of nations while not aggravating Moscow. Many of the x-captive nations have been accepted into the European Union and NATO except for one very noticeable exception – Ukraine. That’s where Moscow has drawn its immovable red line in the sand, proclaiming to all that regardless of what Kyiv and the free world think about Ukraine’s independence and sovereignty, that national real estate belongs to Russia.

The x-captive nations that have endured and survived Russian subjugation and recognize Moscow as the real threat to global and regional peace and security are cognizant of the fact that their newfound independence can be overrun by Russian tanks at any moment. Therefore they are grateful to participate in any security bloc, especially one that consists of its own kind.

Thus the Lublin Triangle which consists of Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland: triangle – the strongest shape in nature.

With an eye to defense and security, the three countries created a special brigade that would the defend their independence and interests from any belligerent action by Russia meant to reestablish its domination of Ukraine, the Baltic States, the remainder of Eastern Europe and beyond. Three x-captive nations, Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland, have transformed this worthy idea into practice with the mobilization of the “Hetman Konstantyn Ostrohskiy” Lithuanian-Polish-Ukrainian Brigade (LITPOLUKR) – https://litpolukrbrig.wp.mil.pl/en/. Recent history, not only ancient, has shown that Russia invading the captive nations is not as farfetched a notion as some may claim because in the past more than seven years Moscow proved its overt mission is to rebuild the Russian empire and establish tight control of the nations in its region.

On July 28, 2020, this dream came true. In the Polish city of Lublin, where the tripartite brigade is stationed, the foreign ministers of Poland, Lithuania and Ukraine met and signed a document acknowledging the importance of such a nascent formation. The three countries officials’ acknowledged the ongoing Russian war against Ukraine and the military occupation of Crimea.

This document is by far the most important political document concluded in the post-World War II era since the creation of NATO. It recognizes the ongoing threat that Russia poses to global and regional peace, security and development. It also declares that three captive nations – Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland – acknowledge their common histories and fate and the need to stand shoulder to shoulder in their defense against Moscow’s belligerence.

The Lublin Triangle, if properly developed, expanded with additional x-captive nations, and supported by the free world, has the potential of becoming an historic alliance that will bring peace to the region and world by curbing Russia’s aggression and imperialism.

On July 7 of this year, the foreign ministers of Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland expanded their mission by signing a Declaration of Joint European Heritage and Common Values on the occasion of 230th anniversary of the Constitution of May 3, 1791 and Mutual Pledge of October 20, 1791, in which they underscored their common European democratic heritage and declared “that our common European historical legacy still binds our nations together in the united Europe and causes us to feel a sense of mutual bond and solidarity.”

The spirit and language of the declaration signals not only their belief in their historical democratic foundation but also their understanding that threats to their existence and accordingly European democratic principles still exist.

“At the same time, we believe that strengthening our cooperation requires even more intensive contacts between our societies, including youth, entrepreneurs, journalists, scientists and other opinion-making elites of our countries. We will strive for our countries to adopt appropriate solutions to facilitate such cooperation,” the three national officials stated.

“We strongly believe that Ukraine, as a European state, has the right to full membership in the structures of the European Union and in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and as Lithuania and Poland, we declare our intention to provide all possible support for the implementation of this goal, including supporting Ukraine's reform agenda and cooperation with the Three Seas Initiative, which functions within the EU.”

Acknowledging the national tribulation in Belarus, the signatories said they await a change of venue in Minsk that would allow the nation to integrate into European structures, which they pledged they’d help support.

Noting the perilous state of affairs in Europe, which is in the throes of a latest war launched by Russia against Ukraine, the signers emphasized that in order to preserve peace in Europe it is necessary for the international community to enforce and strengthen international law and denounce those countries and regimes that commit illegal annexations and occupation of sovereign territories of others.

“Therefore we condemn the Russian aggression against Ukraine, ongoing since 2014, which led to temporary occupation by Russia of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, and certain Ukrainian territories in the Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts, as well as restrictions on the freedom of navigation in the Black Sea area adjacent to temporarily occupied Crimea,” they wrote.

Proclaiming their support for the latest Crimean Platform, the cosigners said “We declare that we do not recognize and will not recognize the annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol by the Russian Federation, which constitutes a flagrant violation of the United Nations Charter and the usages established among civilized peoples. We also condemn the Russian Federation's tactic of diplomatic blackmail and threats of using force as an instrument of foreign policy and for shaping relations with its neighbors.”

The document was signed by Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania Gabrielius Landsbergis and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland Zbigniew Rau.

This powerful and comprehensive declaration of the Lublin Triangle addresses the members’ common vision of the past, their shared democratic values, today’s problem of autocracy in potential member Belarus, and the lasting threat exhibited by Moscow.

The constructive spirit of this effort, alliance and document should be actively endorsed by countries on both sides of the Atlantic.

Interestingly, Ukraine, the United States, Poland and Lithuania will hold a large military exercise in the western part of Ukraine later in July, the Ukrainian military said, which will constitute the second round of war games involving Kyiv and foreign partners in a month. The drill, dubbed Three Swords-2021, which appear in the logo of the Lublin Brigade will involve more 1,200 servicemen and more than 200 combat vehicles and will last July 17-30 at Yavoriv training ground in Lviv region. “Three Swords-2021 create favorable conditions for the development and effective coordination of units of partner states, in order to improve the quality and increase the level of combat capabilities,” the military said in a statement.

If the West doesn’t support the x-captive nations, they have the right to do so themselves.

Putin’s Lies for the Naïve

Vladimir Putin has again dove into the pages of history in order to rewrite what happened, offer new spins, and present Russia in the best light possible as a peacemaker and team builder rather than the imperial, cruel aggressor that it has always been.

In an article in the German weekly Die Zeit that appeared on June 22, 2021, titled “Being Open, Despite the Past,” Putin bemoans the Nazi invasion of USSR eight decades ago, which led to what Stalin and others in The Kremlin referred to as The Great Patriotic War and the death of tens of millions of Soviet people (sic). He fosters Soviet fake historiography of lumping all casualties under the rubric of Soviet rather than by nationality. Nevertheless, the Russian führer indicated his willingness to forgive and forget as he today seeks Russia’s acceptance as an equal partner of European development.

Putin writes: “Despite attempts to rewrite the pages of the past that are being made today, the truth is that Soviet soldiers came to Germany not to take revenge on the Germans, but with a noble and great mission of liberation. We hold sacred the memory of the heroes who fought against Nazism. We remember with gratitude our allies in the anti-Hitler coalition, participants in the Resistance movement, and German anti-fascists who brought our common victory closer.”

The so-called Russian liberators were known for their butchery and rape of German women. Their noble and great mission of liberation was, in fact, to seize and subjugate foreign countries, imprison and execute the national freedom fighters and temporary national governments, install their gauleiters and rule with impunity until the USSR – Soviet Russia or the Evil Empire – finally collapsed in 1991.

Sadly, none of this would have come to pass if the allied leaders hadn’t agreed to surrender Eastern Europe to the invading Red Army. In May 1945, in the final days of World War II, western Czecho-Slovakia was liberated by U.S. forces under General Patton. While many American commanders and troops were eager to head east and liberate the capital city of Prague, they were ordered to stay put in Konstantinovy Lazne. President Harry Truman, General Dwight Eisenhower and Prime Minister Winston Churchill were keen to avoid conflict with Stalin, who saw Eastern Europe as the spoils of war after defeating the Nazis and a way to easily expand its empire. Patton was ordered to halt his advance west of Prague. In the end, most of Czecho-Slovakia was occupied by the Red Army, sealing its fate as a Russian captive nation.

A couple of years later Churchill voiced his mea culpa and mourned that fateful decision by declaring that an iron curtain had descended across Europe, with Russian subjugated nations to the east and the democratic free world to the west.

Putin consciously overlooked mentioning that the invading Nazi Army was until June 22, 1941, an allied military force due to the historic political alignment of Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia in the Molotov-Ribbentrop agreement. Putin couldn’t merely remind the magazine’s readers – and his own people – that Russia and Stalin had found it prudent and expedient to become allies with the Nazis in order to conquer and divide. Ironically, both were equal perpetrators of crimes against humanity though of different colors. The pact also opened the door to bloody Russian recriminations against members of the Ukrainian nationalist underground – the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists – and others who fought and advocated for Ukrainian independence.

Putin wrote that the peoples of Europe were able to overcome alienation that was brought upon them by the war and restore mutual trust and respect. He said Russia had hoped that the end of the Cold War, which came with the collapse of the USSR – would be a common victory for Europe in creating a “single continent.” Again Putin neglects to admit that Moscow’s intent throughout its ignoble history has been to create by aggression or assimilation a single continent or single empire that spanned the globe.

“It is exactly with this logic in mind – the logic of building a Greater Europe united by common values and interests – that Russia has sought to develop its relations with the Europeans. Both Russia and the EU have done a lot on this path,” he wrote.

The Russian dictator failed to inform the readers that the European nations that had been liberated from Nazi oppression only to fall under Russian bondage rejected the concept of a single continent. They were happy to live in their own independent countries. Soon after Berlin’s capitulation, Moscow’s captive nations undertook another war of liberation. Poland, East Germany, Hungary and Czecho-Slovakia famously stood up to Russian dominance. With Nazi Germany defeated, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) continued its war of liberation against Moscow until the early 1960s. Even the intellectual, human rights Helsinki movement was a liberation campaign against Russia and russification.

No, there’s wasn’t a European quest for a single continent except in the minds of The Kremlin’s leadership.

It is not surprising then that once liberation came in 1990-91 the former captive nations of Russian subjugation clamored to join the European Union and NATO. For them these structures are the only bastion against another Russian invasion and they can ensure regional and global peace and security. Fortunately, most of them have been accepted while Ukraine is still on the waiting list due to the free world’s unsubstantiated fear of Russian retribution.

Putin continued fabricating facts by accusing the United States of instigating the Revolution of Dignity in 2014 that signaled to the world that some seven decades after the end of World War II the Ukrainian nation still refuses to accept Moscow’s dictatorship. The people – by some estimates more than 2 million from around the country and even the CIA doesn’t have that much power to mobilize that large of a civilian army – decided to strike a final blow against Russian repression, rid itself of Moscow’s gauleiter and truly embark on an independent and sovereign future.

And again, true to its behavior, Moscow couldn’t allow valuable Ukraine to escape its claws so a couple of weeks after the conclusion of the Winter Olympics in 2014 it invaded, seized and occupied Crimea. Then that spring it invaded the eastern Ukrainian oblasts of Luhansk and Donetsk, where it has been waging a bloody war ever since.

No, Mr. Putin, you and Moscow aren’t seeking a single, peaceful, harmonious continent in Europe. You are seeking to spread your empire, the so-called Holy Russian Empire with its two-headed eagle, under the guise of coherence, equitable cooperation, partnership, inclusive development.

Also, the Nazi invasion that Putin cites first tore through Western Ukraine and triggered the Red Army to invade from the east, bringing with it its comparable version of blood and death. June 22 also marks the 80^th anniversary of the Red Army’s murder of 24,000 Ukrainians that it had incarcerated in prisons of Western Ukraine.

Eight days later, on June 30, 1941, the leadership of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists proclaimed the restoration of independent Ukrainian statehood.

Ukraine and the other former captive nations just can’t let bygones be bygones until reparations are made.

‘Hymn of Hate’ from Yesteryear’s Trenches

The other day I watched a very interesting movie that’s based on a true story that dates back to World War One. It not only describes the day-to-day drudgery of a soldier’s life in battle a century ago, but it brings to light what the troops did to pass the time between battles. As they say, war is a long stretch of boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror.

The 2013 movie is “The Wipers Times,” a story about the British 12th Battalion, known as The Sherwood Foresters, fighting against the Kaiser’s army in Belgium, in the heavily shelled town of Ypres. During a patrol, Captain Fred Roberts and Lieutenant Jack Pearson and their troops found in a warehouse a piece of damaged machinery that changed their lives. Amid the clamorous chatter among the troops, only one soldier, a sergeant, admitted he knew what it was. Since he was a printer in civilian life before the war, he quickly identified the machine to be a printing press. A small one. He said he was confident that he could make it workable but why? What will we do with it?

With a mind to filling in downtime for the soldiers, Roberts and Pearson came up with the idea of printing a periodical to express their battlefront points of view. Thus The Wipers Times. Wipers was how the Tommies pronounced Ypres.

The Wipers Times became a popular though controversial trench periodical that was published by British soldiers fighting in Ypres during the First World War. From their trenches, they produced a poignant satirical newsletter that captured what was happening and reflected their spirit, hopes, joy, grief and frustration through prose, poetry and limericks.

Comparable satirical magazines throughout history have been Charlie Hebdo, Punch, Perets, Mad, Spy, The Onion, National Lampoon, The Harvard Lampoon and others.

Parodying their lives, battles, enemies and officers in words, stories and stanzas, the editors of The Wipers Times quickly became beloved by the troops and the bane of the officers, much like the storyline of “Good Morning, Vietnam” some five decades later. One senior officer who understood its battlefield value observed in response to a colleague that morale would be better served if the publication were not banned.

But the purpose of this article isn’t to relive the War to End all Wars with its glorious battles but rather to highlight one particular episode in the lives of The Sherwood Foresters and a melody sung by the enemy, the Germans.

One rainy night, Roberts and Pearson with their soldiers were reinforcing the muddy walls of their trenches. Artillery shells were bursting all around them, when suddenly through the explosions they heard the strains of the enemy singing a German-language battle song. That simply tells you how close both sides were to each other.

None of the British soldiers as well as Captain Roberts understood the words of the song but Lieutenant Pearson did. As the German’s sang, Pearson translated word for word what became known as the “Hymn of Hate.”

Its salient refrain states:

“An oath for our sons and their sons to take.
Come, hear the word, repeat the word,
Throughout the Fatherland make it heard.
We will never forego our hate,
We have all but a single hate,
We love as one, we hate as one,
We have one foe and one alone —

ENGLAND!”

Indeed, two opposing sides, two nations harbor feelings of hatred to each other older than the war. Something from time immemorial must have instigated this detestation. And it continues until today. For example, the Scots boast that they have two favorite teams in the UEFA championships: obviously the Scots and any team playing against England.

Ukrainians have a similar rejoinder based on their national experiences at the hands of Russians.

Consequently, there are ancient ditties that transcend trenches and time and survive until today.

Yes, this animosity could be left in antiquity. This could end if the Russians would seek forgiveness for their crimes against Ukrainians. To paraphrase Willian Wallace’s point of seven centuries ago: “Lower your flags and march straight back to England, stopping at every home you pass by to beg forgiveness for a hundred years of theft, rape, and murder. Do that and your men shall live.”

What if Germans Said Hitler was most ‘Outstanding’ Person of all Times?

The mere thought of that happening pierces the body with electrical shocks. The global response to such a declaration would bring all other discussions to a sudden halt.

Hitler and outstanding are mutually exclusive. They could not be considered or happen simultaneously. Murdering 7 million Jews and millions of others, including Ukrainians, would unequivocally send his soul directly to hell without any chance of exoneration.

Well, the Germans didn’t express that outlandish opinion but the Russians did about their bloody leader Stalin.

According to the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, citing the Levada Center, Russians would not be discomfited to name as one of the “ten most outstanding figures of all times and nations” the murderous dictator Stalin.

Both institutions point out that while nobody received an absolute majority, Stalin was very clearly ahead, being named by 39% of the respondents. This is not surprising given The Kremlin’s increasing rehabilitation of Stalin since Vladimir Putin first came to power and increasingly repressive measures to muffle Stalin’s crimes and those of the Soviet regime.

It was pointed out that the Levada Center has been taking these polls since 1989 as part of its study of the so-called Soviet person.  In general, the results make for very disturbing reading, the two groups noted. In 1989, Vladimir Lenin was named by 71%; Peter I by 38% and Stalin by a mere 12% - less than the 17% who named Mikhail Gorbachev. The latter had disappeared altogether by 1994. By 2021, Lenin was behind Stalin (on 30%) and Peter I was named by a mere 19%.  Essentially no liberal personalities since the collapse of the USSR even get a mention, while Andrei Sakharov (who died in December 1989) went from no mention in 1989 to 17% in 1994 and only 7% in 2021, the centenary of his birth.  Although respondents are asked to name people “of all times and nations,” there were relatively few non-Russian / non-Soviet figures even in 1989, and only three in 2021 (Albert Einstein, Napoleon Bonaparte and Adolf Hitler). The fact that Hitler is mentioned probably suggests that many respondents were searching for prominent figures, without this necessarily having the positive connotations that the word ‘outstanding’ normally has in both Russian and English, the Levada Center explained.

Levada Centre Director Lev Gudkov points out that the people named are essentially from the pantheon of typical Soviet name-symbols, beginning with Lenin and Stalin. Although the collective memory of others is fading, new names are not emerging.  Each such survey in the past has had around 300 names mentioned, however there was no noticeable consensus on other figures. Gudkov also notes that since 2008, the general number of names mentioned has fallen by 1.6 times.

“This is possibly a result of escalating censorship and the foisting of ‘traditional values,’ which are in fact of little importance for the public. It is, however, possible that this is also a reaction of the primitivization of mass consciousness, which is typical of all authoritarian regimes, and the stifling of immanent mechanisms of innovation,” he said.

In May 2020, following controversy over frescos for the new Russian Defense Ministry Cathedral depicting, among others, Stalin, Deputy Defense Minister Andrei Kartapolov asked rhetorically what they had to be ashamed of.  Stalin, he boasted, was a man who “took upon himself all the burden of the war, made the most important decisions.  Yes, and in general reinstated religion. Why should we be ashamed of him?  Because some people from abroad tell us to?  We will decide ourselves who to honor, who to portray on frescos.”

Surprisingly, a Levada Centre poll of young people published in June 2020 found that 41% knew little or nothing about Stalin’s repression (and murder of millions). But they knew of his alleged greatness. More than 70% of Russians have a positive attitude about Stalin’s role in their country’s history, with just over half the population saying that they view a dictator responsible for the death of millions “with respect.”

In March 2019, the Levada Centre reported a record level of approval for Stalin.  While the number of those who spoke of ‘admiration’ for Stalin had remained stable at 4%, there had been a huge increase (from 27% in 2001 to 41% in 2019) in the numbers who ‘respected’ Stalin. 

For the record, Stalin was personally responsible for the murder by starvation of 7 million Ukrainian men, women and children, the murders in the Bykivnia forest, the murder of 22,000 Polish officers in Katyn, the execution of thousands at Sandarmokh, the mass execution of 9,000-11,000 people in the Ukrainian town of Vinnytsia in 1937-38, and so on and so forth.

Stalin is outstanding in terms of the amount of blood of innocent people that he shed.

Yes, Russians Hate Ukrainians and Vice Versa

If you’ve seen “West Side Story” you know the scene. It’s the crucial pre-rumble meeting between the Jets and Sharks in Doc’s drug store that will decide the fate of the two gangs.

Riff’s Jets attempt some opening pleasantries but Bernardo of the Sharks won’t have it. He bluntly tells his opponents: “Look, every one of you hates every one of us, and we hate you right back. Let’s get at it!”

Indeed, the history of Ukraine and Moscow, later to be renamed Russia, basically follows the same scenario. We hate each other right back. They have invaded, conquered, enslaved and killed Ukrainians and Ukrainians have then waged war after war trying to free themselves of Moscow’s bondage.

Earlier this week that war spilled over into the UEFA championships.

Denmark is one of the global sites of a monument to Ukraine’s national poet laureate Taras Shevchenko. On Monday, Denmark played Russia and Russian fans took out their rage or drunkenness on Denmark by desecrating the Ukrainian monument with the colors of Russia’s flag. Danish police are now investigating this defacing of a monument to the Ukrainian national poet.

“We strongly condemn this act of vandalism and provocation against Ukraine,” the Embassy of Ukraine said. “This shameful case once again demonstrates to the civilized world that Russian aggression against Ukraine is real.”

Danish police confirmed it had received a report of vandalism against the Shevchenko monument and that it was investigating the incident. Copenhagen city authorities were made aware of the vandalism on Monday afternoon and cleaned the monument within an hour, a spokesperson for the Copenhagen municipality said.

Unsure whether Danish police will find the perpetrators but Shevchenko’s ghost prevailed and his words about Ukraine ultimately triumphing over Moscow rang true. Denmark won 4-1.

As for me, I have more than 7 million reasons to hate Russians.

America Must Assert its Leadership in the World

President Joe Biden has a formidable task. In the span of a week, America’s commander in chief must demonstrate to European allies and global enemies that the USA not only is a team player but more importantly he is the team captain with a clear vision of the goal, that he is the leader of the free world – as the job description states.

The President’s itinerary has defined the demands. At the G7 meeting he must lead in developing a workable solution for the free world in a post-pandemic world. There are economic, commercial, political and health considerations to take into account equitably for all.

At the NATO session, the United States must show its commitment to the concept of collective security developed in 1949. Since then the alliance has served as a barricade against Moscow’s expansionism, which wasn’t a fairy tale then nor is it now. But its purpose isn’t merely to designate the line in the sand but also to assure countries, such as Ukraine and Georgia, that they will be protected from continued Russian aggression and threats. Kyiv and Tbilisi must be allowed immediate accession to the alliance without the meaningless Membership Action Plan, which only satisfies Moscow’s demands and not the needs of the remaining captive nations of Russian subjugation.

NATO, the United States and the free world must cease formulating their policies from Russia’s vantage point, whose interests and mission are diametrically opposed to the bloc.

If NATO is to be relevant and succeed in the future it must do what it did at its outset – stand up to Russia and protect the endangered countries. The United States must insist on it and exhibit its commitment to the mission and goal – and budget.

As for President Biden’s meeting with the Russian leader, it’s dangerous and not needed. Moscow is not America’s adversary – it’s the enemy. Meetings, summits, negotiations and diplomatic pleasantries are not necessary. Russia has not done anything – ever – to endear itself to the United States. Truthfully, it has always sought to undermine, subvert and destroy America. Without a clear agenda and objective – such as stop destabilizing the United States and evacuate Russian troops from Ukraine including Crimea – commiserating in Geneva in the Spring with a dictator is a waste of time and effort.

Kurt Volker, President Obama’s point man on Ukraine, observed recently that the face-to-face encounter is riskier for Biden than it is for Putin. Volker continued, saying that “any outcome that seems reassuring and benign on the surface actually works in Putin’s favor.” If the two leaders smile, shake hands and say good bye without an understanding of severe sanctions and consequences for Moscow’s continued aggression against Ukraine and subversion of the United States, Volker said, that would “send a signal globally that the authoritarians can get away with aggressive acts at home and abroad.” Russia and others would then be given a carte blanche to do whatever they wish.

Putin must see Biden “is negotiating from a position of strength,” Volker opined.

If not, then Putin and Moscow – as well as North Korea and Islamic terrorists – will continue to ride roughshod over the world. Not a good lasting impression for the world about President Biden.

Рональд Рейген – Останній антикомуніст

Сьогодні день відходу у Вічність Президента Рональда Рейгена. У його пам’ять, дозвольте мені запросити Вас прочитати мою статтю про останнього дійсного антикомуністичного американського президента Республіканської Партії Рональда Рейгена, який віддійшов у вічність у 2004 р. Ця стаття появилася в тому році у діяспорній газеті «Національній Трибуні».

5-го червня 2004 р., на 93-му році життя після десятилітньої хвороби, відійшов у вічність останній правдивий, щирий антикомуніст. Покійний Рональд Рейген, 40-ий Президент Сполучених Штатів Америки, який ніколи не пережив на власному досвіді лихоліття комуністичного тоталітаризму, цілим серцем і цілою душею вірив, що не було і не може бути нічого гіршого в історії людства, ніж комунізм і все, що він спотворив, а саме - Комуністична партія, Союз Радянських Соціалістичних Республік (читай - московська імперія) – та всі його провідники, прихильники та вислужники.

Це переконання, яке мало свою міцну підставу в його родинному, морально-релігійному вихованні, перепліталося з його цілим життєвим шляхом. Проте, здобувши посаду Президента США, Рональд Рейген точно зрозумів, що він може видвигати свою антикомуністичну політику кожного дня, добре знаючи, що аудиторія, ні прихильна, ні ворожа, не зможе вирвати від нього його визвольну платформу.

Будучи завжди людиною лагідного та жартівливого настрою, Рональд Рейген часто пояснював своїм політичним співпрацівникам, прихильникам та друзям, що не існує легкої відповіді на будь-яке запитання, є лише проста відповідь, яку необхідно знайти для успішнього вирішення будь-якого питання. Ось приклад. Члени його президентської адміністрації та політичні дорадники знали про його ненависть до комунізму і до всього, що зв”язане з ним. Вони навіть підтримували його в цьому. Але вони намагалися йому пояснити, що його Адміністрація потребує суттєву стратегію, за допомогою якої він зможе здобути прихильників і здійснити свій намір знищити комунізм.

Не схвильовано, а точніше - в притаманному йому лагідному способі, Рональд Рейген заспокоював своїх друзів, запевняючи їх, що в нього є стратегія, і вона проста: „Ми виграємо, вони програють, і то все”!

Рональд Рейген, американський патріот ірландського походження,  в молодості займався легкою атлетикою та плаванням, потім був радіо-журналістом, а згодом - кіноактором, що принесло йому найбільшу славу, перш, ніж він вирушив на політичний шлях. Покинувши Демократичну партію і ставши членом Республіканської партії, Рональд Рейген успішно кандидував на посаду губернатора штату Каліфорнії. Він двічі зазнав поразки в спробі стати Президентом США, але в 1980 р. світ побачив Рональда Рейгена господарем Білого Дому у Вашінгтоні.

Залізний ідеаліст, Рональд Рейген вміло поєднував свій ідеалізм зі своїм простим, не науково-філософським підходом до життя. Під кінець свого терміну в Білому Домі, в 1987 р., на запитання, як можна розпізнати комуніста, він слушно пояснив: „Комуніст, це той, хто читає Маркса і Леніна. Але, антикомуніст, це той, хто розуміє Маркса і Леніна”.

Після його повернення до приватного життя, а особливо - після його смерті, політологи та навіть звичайні люди, аналізуючи його політику, застановлятимуться, чи Рональд Рейген дійсно сам, як легендарний каменяр, розвалив Радянську імперію і визволив поневолені Москвою народи СРСР та Східної Європи, включно з українським. Неважливо, чи історія присудить Рональду Рейгену цю золоту сану чи ні. Важливіше, що знайшлася відповідна постать, на відповідній посаді, в відповідному часі, яка своїми настирливими, проникливо гострими антикомуністичними заявами, висловленими з амбони Білого Дому, почала розхитувати цю неморальну імперію та ідеологію, на якій вона була побудована.

Одночасно, треба зрозуміти, що його антикомуністичні почуття не були базовані лише на негативних пристрастях проти однієї ідеології. Рональд Рейген вірив у верховенство людини, в свободу людини, суспільства і народу, в якому вона живе. Виступаючи перед студентами американського університету Нотр-Дам в 1981 р., Рональд Рейген сказав, що наступні роки будуть славними і важливми для Америки, з огляду питання свободи та поширення цивілізації.  „Захід не обмежить комунізм, він його перевершить. Ми не старатимемося засудити його, а точніше - ми відкинено його, як сумний, звивехнений розділ людської історії, останні сторінки якої пишуться саме зараз”.

А студентам Московського Державного Університету в 1981 р. він так пояснив своє бачення свободи: „Свобода – це право пояснювати і змінювати прийнятий спосіб поведінки. Це – тривала революція ринку. Це – розуміння як впізнавати недоліки і шукати розв”язку”.

Виступаючи в Бритійському Парляменті, Рональд Рейген не знімив свою просту думку про свободу людини та народу: „Саме Радянський Союз – це течія, яка пливе проти історії. Марш свободи і демократії залишить марксизм і ленінізм на смітнику історії так, як вона залишила інших тиранів, які приголмшували свободу і накладали намордники на самовиявлення народу.”

І так 40-ий Президент США виповів війну комунізмові та Радянському Союзу. Але це не була кривава війна на жорстокому полі бою, вкритому трупами молодих вояків, а морально-духовна війна ідей, ідеологій, добра проти зла. Рональд Рейген навіки охрестив колишній СРСР імперією зла. Промовляючи на зібранні Національної Асоціації Євангелистів в Америці в березні 1983 р., Президент Рейген сказав: „Будьмо обережні, коли ми чуємо, що радянські керівники проповідують верховенство держави, заявляють про її перевагу над людиною і передбачують її панування над всіма народами світу. Насправді вони – приціл зла в модерному світі. Я звертаюся до вас з проханням: будьте обережні, не спокусіться! Ігнорувати історичні факти та агресивні наміри імперії зла, просто називаючи збройні перегони великим непорозумінням, виключає вас із боротьби добра проти зла”.

Навіть коли він намагався домовитися з Президентом СРСР Міхаїлом Горбачовим про скорочення ядерної зброї, Рональд Рейген бачив, що сама відсутність такої зброї масового винищування не принесе довгоочікувану свободу, незалежність та демократію поневоленим народам та мир людству. Під час нарад в Женеві Рональд Рейген мужньо заявив М. Горбачову: „Дозвольте мені сказати вам, чому ми вам не довіряємо”. Стоячи біля Берлінської Стіни, в 1987 р. він проголосив виклик намісникові Леніна і Сталіна: „Якщо ви шукаєте мир і добробут для Радянського Союзу і Східної Європи, підійдіть до цієї брами. Пане Горбачов, відкрийте цю браму. Пане Горбачов, розваліть цю стіну!”

В очах української діаспори в Америці, Рональд Рейген, як найважливіша політична фігура не тільки в США, а в цілому світі, начебто рівнявся з св. Юрієм - Переможцем, який боровся проти хижого змія. До нього були декілька президентів, які, залежно від часу та політичних пристрастей, по-різному відносилися до СРСР і поневолення України та інших народів Східної Європи. Тоді, коли відносини між Вашінгтоном і Москвою були кращі, вони відкрито не таврували московську імперію, хоча вони були зобов”язані підтримувати прагнення до незалежності тих народів у щорічній президентській проклямації відзначення Тижня Поневолених Народів, яке припадало в липні. Рональд Рейген постійно однаково відносився до комунізму та СРСР.

Відзначення Тижня Поневолених Народів було постійною гострою голкою в середині імперіалістичного ока Москви, і її генсеки часто домагалися від американських державних провідників усунення цього, на їхню думку, непотрібного закону. На щастя, ніхто з Президентів не відважився цього зробити.

Правдоподібно, проклямації підписані Президентом Рейгеном та його вступні заяви, були найзмістовніші з всіх подібних заяв від 1960 р., коли цей обряд був закарбований в законі. І чому ж би ні? Він краще всіх чітко розумів комунізм, московську імперію та історичне прагнення до незалежности українського та інших поневолених народу.

На відзначені Тижня Поневолених Народів, яке відбулося в Білому Домі, 19-го липня 1983 р., у присутності Достойного Ярослава Стецька, голови Українського Державного Правління і голови Проводу Організації Українських Націоналістів, Президент Рейген висловив свою найяскравішу особисту і державну підтримку поневоленим народам, сказвши: „Сьогодні ми розмовляємо з усіма народами Східної Європи, які є відокремлені від своїх рідних і близьких огидною залізною завісою. І кожній людині, яка є скута тиранією, чи то в Україні, Угорщині, Чехословачинні, Кубі чи В”єтнамі, ми надсилаємо вам нашу любов, нашу підтримку і запевняємо вас, що ви – не самі. Наше сповіщання вам є, що ваша боротьба є нашою боротьбою, ваші мрії є нашими мріями, колись ви також будете вільними! Так, як Папа Павло Іван сказав своїм улюбленим полякам, ми – благословенні божественною спадщиною. Ми – Божі діти, і ми не можемо бути рабами”!

Вісім років минуло, поки слова Рональда Рейгена стали дійсністю. Радянський Союз розвалився, і український народ став вільним, незалежним.

Президент Рейген також виявляв свою дотепність, навіть відносно таких серйозних питань, як його віра в перемогу над комунізмом і розвал Радянського Союзу. Одного дня в 1984 р. Президент Рейген мав необережність перевірити мікрофони перед його радіовиступом такою заявою: „Мої співвітчизники, американці. Я радий повідомити вас, що я підписав закон, який унезаконив Росію навіки. Бомбардування розпочнеться протягом п”яти хвилин”.

Дав би Бог, щоб в пам”ять останнього антикомуніста, імперія зла навіки була унезаконнена, і людству не буде потрібен черговий антикомуніст.