What a shock to the world when Russia attacked Ukraine on February 24! Even then, most predictions turned out to be wrong: that Vladimir Putin (70) would threaten, but never attack.
When the first bombs fell, everyone agreed that Ukraine didn’t stand a chance: “The Russian offensive is hard to stop,” headlined the “NZZ” and analyzed: “Ukrainian tanks are obsolete for effective, active defense as well as the Air Force.” And a former British general said: “The Russians will overpower and occupy Ukraine.”
Many assumed that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (44) would flee his country to save his life. But he stayed – and became the head of a heroic struggle of 44 million Ukrainians.
Meanwhile, Putin has made a fool of himself – with amateurish tactics, poorly trained soldiers and dilapidated equipment. Today everyone knows: the Russian army is a mess!
Hardly anyone foresaw the reaction of the West either: to this day, the free world behaves almost as one whole. The much-maligned NATO once again became an important factor.
Then Moscow called for the mobilization of 300,000 reservists. But those who thought this would bring about change were also wrong: a few weeks later, Russia withdrew from Kherson, the only occupied regional capital. After the successful Ukrainian counter-offensive, Putin’s army still controls some areas in the south and east.
And now, at the G20 summit in Bali, the world’s major nations have agreed on a stunningly clear closing statement: “Most members strongly condemn the war in Ukraine, emphasizing that it causes immeasurable human suffering and the vulnerabilities in the global economy. worsens.” That means: Russia is isolated from the most important countries in the world.
The presidents of the US and China, Joe Biden (79) and Xi Jinping (69), disagree on many things. But in Bali, they now collectively declared themselves “against the use or threat of nuclear weapons in Ukraine” – a clear nod from the two world powers to Putin. This also puts an end to the assumption of many experts that China will blindly support Russia.
The 268 days since the start of the war show to any dictator who may also be driven by any belligerence: the price is high, very high!
What would the values of freedom be like if Ukraine had capitulated quickly, Russia had won without resistance, and the world had just moved on?
Even today no one knows how the war will end. Nevertheless, two lessons can be learned: the world should never tolerate the annexation of a peaceful country. And things often turn out differently than you think.