This morning, the AP reported that Ukrainian authorities said hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians around Kiev no longer have fresh water due to Russian strikes. Their power is already shut off. Of course, the Ukrainian official went on to say that 44 of 50 Russian cruise missiles were shot down, yet somehow those six remaining missiles hit 18 targets.
The Russians just say they hit everything they aimed at.
Whatever the actual figures are, the fact is that most Kievans have no power and no water, while other Ukrainian cities have no power. If this sounds familiar, it should.
Back in the 90s, when NATO intervened in the former Yugoslavia, air strikes shut off power, and sometimes potable water, to Serbian cities. Within a few weeks, the Serbian government was forced to step down and Belgrade had to capitulate to NATO’s demands.
At the time, I remember thinking that the strategy would work. I had traveled through Yugoslavia, spending time in Belgrade, Sarajevo, and Dubrovnik, in 1979. I knew the people there were used to having things like electricity and hot-and-cold running water. I knew that depriving them of those essentials would be a severe shock to them, so severe that they probably would not insist on fighting NATO to the last Serb.
And they didn’t.
Putin’s Special Military Operation was indeed special. It was designed to reduce both civilian and military Ukrainian casualties, and it did. The Ukrainian attack on the Kerch Bridge ended all of that. Now at least one Russian glove has come off to reveal the iron fist beneath.
Russia is now using tried, true and effective American tactics against a people who are used to having modern amenities. They are taking those essential amenities away. How long will the Ukrainian people think this suffering is worth it?
That’s an honest question. I really don’t know the answer to it. If the Serbs are any indication, it’s a matter of weeks. Regardless, it is important to note that the Russians did not start the war destroying Ukrainian power and water infrastructure, like the Americans would have done. That does not mean they don’t know how to do it once they’ve decided to do so, and to prevent that power and water from coming back on for as long as it takes.
This war must end. Even Barack Obama said the other day that the Biden Administration should negotiate directly with Moscow. It is WAY past time to do that. If it isn’t, Russia is perfectly capable of conquering the entirety of Ukraine, and there’s nothing the Ukrainians can do to stop them if they wage determined war.
There's a big difference - this is Biden's war against Russia. The US has shown it doesn't care about Ukrainians.
I don't know how many Ukrainians supported the war from the beginning and that never mattered to the Ukrainian government.
I do not know how the Ukrainian government will respond, or how they are told to respond.
That answer may depend on the US elections next week.
Or it may not - it appears that neither the US nor the Ukrainian governments care what their citizens think.