Ukraine must take back Crimea to stop Russia’s sick imperialistic dreams
Jan Lipavský
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There are an extraordinary number of myths associated with the extraordinarily beautiful Crimean Peninsula. Many of these myths are believed not only by the general public, but also by journalists and international relations experts. One of my personal favorites involves the heroic rescue of Iphigenia, daughter of King Agamemnon, who was meant to be sacrificed to the goddess Artemis to ensure success in his war expedition to Troy. Thankfully, the goddess intervened and brought Iphigenia to the enchanting land of Tauris, now known as Crimea.
Another myth involving Crimea centers on the Yalta Conference held in February 1945. That conference by the Allied powers in the Second World War divided Europe into two parts — one dominated by the Soviet Union and the other by democratic governments. The truth is that Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin pledged to hold free elections in the territories that the Red Army liberated. But Western leaders did not have the means to enforce his commitment. Despite this, the myth of FDR and Winston Churchill simply handing over Central and Eastern Europe to Stalin without regard for its peoples remains alive today.
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There is no doubt that this is exactly how Vladimir Putin envisages post-war peace talks in Ukraine. He will extract territorial and political concessions from the West on the basis of false assurances and unenforceable promises. It is thus alarming to see that this “way out” still appeals to some politicians in NATO and EU countries. To avoid falling into the thrall of another Yalta myth, we must help Ukraine restore its sovereign authority over Crimea. We must clearly demonstrate that any attempt to change borders by force does not pay off in the 21st century. We must show that international law is not just empty talk.
Not only does Ukraine have every right to restore its authority over Crimea. That’s the only way to stop Russia’s sick imperialistic dreams. Once Crimea is back in Ukrainian hands, the Kremlin and the Russians will finally understand that changing borders by force does not pay off. They will have to rethink their approach to Ukraine and its democratically elected leadership.
If we don’t act and instead believe in false stories from Russia or make the same mistake as FDR and Churchill by blindly trusting any promises made by Russia without the ability to enforce them, we will only encourage more military attacks from Moscow. Those attacks will bring even more suffering and death to Ukraine. Let me be clear. The Russian leadership is not interested in any kind of peace in Ukraine. Putin and his cronies are only interested in war and death. The only way to stop them is to push them out of the whole of Ukrainian territory.
There’s another reason why the liberation of Crimea and other parts of Ukraine occupied by Russia is crucial: It sends a message to Beijing. China’s aggressive behavior in its neighborhood is a growing concern, particularly when it comes to Taiwan. The consequences of any attack on Taiwanese democracy would be huge, both economically and politically. Globally, including for Europe, the U.S., and China itself.
That is why we cannot negotiate on Crimea. We simply must make it clear to Moscow that any normalization of relations in the future, including the lifting of sanctions and the cap on the price of Russian oil, is contingent on reversing all annexation decisions and renouncing any claims to all of Ukraine. Western security guarantees for Ukraine must most certainly apply to Crimea as well.
This is what I will be discussing with Secretary of State Antony Blinken during our meeting in Washington this week. It will not be easy to get there, but the Czech Republic, the EU, and the U.S. have all got the means to make it happen. We need just more courage — courage to defend freedom, rule of law, and democracy against odd but dangerous dictators. If the U.S. persists, then so will the EU.
Putin, much like King Agamemnon with Iphigenia, was willing to sacrifice the international order in pursuit of his goals. If we want to save it, we must do so, together with the Ukrainians, in Crimea. Once Putin’s reputation suffers the same fate as Agamemnon’s, we can convene a conference in Crimea to discuss the actual division of Europe, a Russian part that will not go beyond the internationally recognized borders of the Russian Federation, and the free part, in which the free world defends its own interests.
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Jan Lipavsky is the foreign minister of the Czech Republic.