The Ukraine

Events in the Ukraine tragically dominate the news. Clearly the Russian people are not at fault but the fault lies with Russian leader President Putin.

There is a long two page article in today's Times newspaper written by Max Hastings. Mr Hastings argues that the Russian leaders were treated poorly after the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 right up until the falling of the Berlin Wall in 1989. The gist of his argument appears to be that the West should have been faster to offer Russian leaders, the hands of friendship.

My own view differs from that of Mr Hastings though the latter is far more qualified than I to judge. 

The savage  killings in Hungary and Czechoslovakia during Cold War years, were dreadful and the hand of friendship  with the perpetrators would not have been the correct response in my view. However, whereas originally Putin seemed to agree that the millions of deaths, six to nine million according to some historians, caused by the Stalin when he was the dictator of the Soviet Union were wrong, Putin later appears to be more supportive of Stalin,  at least according to my interpretation of an article in The Guardian newspaper of some two years ago, presumably because Putin also regretted the break up of the Soviet Union, which was essentially formed under Stalin.

That the Ukrainian people appear to be fighting harder against the Russian invasion  than the President of Russia seems to have envisaged may lead to even more innocent lives being lost as President Putin steps up his efforts to conquer.

The Pope attended at the Russian Embassy in Rome yesterday presumably to express concerns. The media in the UK asked the rhetorical question, of why in accordance with normal diplomatic procedures he did not summon the Russian Ambassador rather than attend upon him? 

Thankfully the Vatican does not always follow diplomatic norms but more importantly, I hope that the words of His Holiness The Pope, at the Russian embassy will have some impact.