Luke Allen
Military Political Analyst
Makati, Manila
lukeallenmanila@journalist.com
Russia has been waging an illegal war of aggression against Ukraine for more than 800 days now. And for more than 800 days, the Ukrainians have defended themselves with courage and determination. Even if no day passes without people somewhere in the country being torn from their sleep by Russian rocket attacks, constant air raid sirens, permanent power cuts, and hardly any water, the situation in Ukraine has escalated dramatically once again since Russia’s massive airstrikes on the civilian infrastructure and the brutal Russian offensive in the Kharkiv region.
Day-to-day life is hard for the people, yet they refuse to be disheartened. Workers repair bombed-out power plants; children learn mathematics and biology in bunkers six meters below ground; a young chef is opening a restaurant in Kharkiv, and people help one another to survive. They all represent the impressive resilience and courage of the Ukrainian people.
German Foreign Minister Baerbock stated, “Putin, in his imperial delusion, sought to grab Ukraine. Instead, he has allied it firmly with Europe. Never before has our fate as Europeans been so closely linked to that of Ukraine. Ukraine is defending its freedom with great determination and, in so doing, is fighting for the freedom of us all. Ukraine’s EU accession is the necessary geopolitical consequence of Russia’s illegal war of aggression. Ukraine has made impressive progress and is moving along a path of reform despite Russia’s destructive fury. Now, it is important for Ukraine not to relax its efforts – in the areas of judicial reform, the fight against corruption, and media freedom. Our support is rooted in the firm conviction that Ukraine will win this war. Putin is speculating that, at some point, we will run out of steam, but we have considerable staying power. Germany, together with many other countries from all parts of the world, stands unwavering alongside Ukraine. The people of Ukraine can build on this support in the long term.”
Ukraine urgently needs more air defense resources to protect itself from Russian missile and drone attacks. That is why I have launched a global initiative for enhanced air defense together with Defense Minister Pistorius. To date, almost one billion euros have been made available in additional support for Ukraine’s air defense forces, and we are working intensively to increase that amount. We are leaving no stone unturned and have led the way by providing an additional Patriot unit. We now need to pool all our resources to ensure that Ukraine can hold out so that Ukrainians will, in the future, still be able to live self-determined lives. And so that Putin’s forces will not soon be standing at our borders.
Foreign Minister Baerbock went further, saying that our fate as Europeans has never been so closely linked to that of Ukraine. Ukraine is defending its freedom with great determination and, in so doing, is fighting for the freedom of us all. Ukraine’s EU accession is the necessary geopolitical consequence of Russia’s illegal war of aggression. Ukraine has made impressive progress and is moving along a path of reform despite Russia’s destructive fury. Now, it is