"I don't like #Boris, but I do agree with what he says here!"
🇬🇧 Former #UK Prime Minister #Boris_Johnson gave an interview to #Delfi, sharing some strong statements:
🔴 The most important thing now is to make #Putin understand that #Russia is no longer an empire. “There is no empire anymore, #Vladimir. You’re a ”f*cking idiot,” said #Johnson, immediately apologizing for the profanity but adding, “That’s just the truth.”
🔴 #Putin should not control other countries because “if you love someone, let them go.” “What #Putin is doing is archaic and barbaric. He needs to understand that #Estonia, #Latvia, #Lithuania—none of these countries, are part of the #Russian_Empire anymore, and the same goes for #Ukraine”
🔴 Lasting peace is impossible without #Ukraine’s membership in #NATO. “I don’t hear anyone saying that when this disaster [the war] ends, #Ukraine must gain #NATO membership.
That’s a huge loss because the West is retreating again,” said the politician.
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#ukraine #putinisamasskiller #putinisawarcriminal @kardinal691
@kardinal691
The one issue is that Ukraine isn't ready for full NATO membership, but perhaps a formal partnership, like we had with Russia when they were slated to join, would be a good step to take.
@Raccoon I really don't want to be... ...inflammatory (pun absolutely intended), but who if not Ukraine *is* ready to be at the forefront of NATO? Which country's army among our armies has waged a defensive war against an equal, let alone, more resourceful enemy? If you mean economic considerations, it's also a non-sequitur. In my eyes, the implication goes in the other direction – the longer Ukraine lacks security, the harder it will be for it to have a reasonable GDP. And conversely, a ton of investors, large and small are ready to invest a big buck into free Ukraine! Some already do. So Ukraine in NATO would mean Ukraine with... A positive GDP in no time.
Please, if you don't mind, can you explain the "readiness" argument when you have a moment? @kardinal691
@jonn @kardinal691
This isn't about GDP any more than it's about Defensive Armies. This is about the stability of the democracy. NATO is not a group of armies, nor is it a collection of GDPs, NATO is an alliance of democracies against aggressive dictators like Putin.
Ukraine could likely join very quickly, but it hasn't met the benchmarks needed for full membership. Once it does, it will be welcome to join. It was the same with Russia before Putin: they were invited, and all they had to do was hit some benchmarks, but Putin derailed it.
@Raccoon oh yes, we are absolutely on the same page, but "stability of democracies" is a dynamic thing.
We saw a takeover of #Hungary some decade ago, saw a takeover of #Turkey (which somehow didn't bite us in the ass big time quite yet, but it may and it likely will). Now — #Slovakia and #USA.
Don't get me right, I'm all for having an alliance which stands for all that's good against all that's bad, but then we need an accreditation process which would renew memberships in it.
Finally, as you know, it's tricky for a #NATO country to enter a conflict on the foreign soil willy-nilly. Some countries managed to (like aforementioned #Turkey), but they had to work with partners on the diplomatic level for the allies to turn a blind eye. There also was that one war based on shit intel into which everyone was dragged, including my home country, #Latvia. So it's not like there are no problems with #NATO decision-making and strategy. My entire point is that getting the strongest #European army in should be a no-brainer because there are existing checks and balances!
So it's very difficult for me to see takes like this as anything but high-horse thinking. I hope I'm not too offensive 🙏 I don't mean to offend, just to share a perspective.
