“Today the Ukrainian people are defending not only Ukraine; we are fighting for the values of Europe and the world, sacrificing our lives in the name of the future.”
These were the words of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his passionate virtual address to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday. Ukraine, he said, is fighting for the values America cherishes: “democracy, independence, freedom.”
More than that, Ukraine is fighting for the post-World War II principle that powerful countries can’t be permitted to invade, destroy, and annex peaceful neighbors as Adolf Hitler did — and as Vladimir Putin is trying to do now.
So it isn’t enough for President Joe Biden to praise Zelenskyy, or for all of Congress to erupt in bipartisan applause — or even for Congress to appropriate $800 million in new military aid for Ukraine.
The U.S. goal must be to ensure that Ukraine does not lose this war on the battlefield or in future talks with the duplicitous Putin. That means we must heed Zelenskyy’s plea to “protect our sky.”
Despite the astonishing skill of Ukraine’s army and civilian volunteers in holding off the Russian ground attack, Putin’s forces are deliberately slaughtering Ukrainian civilians from the air. Their goal: to terrorize the country and force Zelenskyy to surrender.
“Russia has turned the Ukrainian sky into a source of death for thousands of people ... fired nearly 1,000 missiles, countless bombs. ... They use drones to kill us with precision,” the Ukrainian leader told Congress. “Kyiv is under missile and airstrikes from Russian troops every day, but it doesn’t give up.
“Remember Pearl Harbor,” he urged. “Remember Sept. 11, when evil tried to turn your cities into battlefields. Our country experiences the same every day, right now, at this moment, every night for three weeks now.”
Then he showed a before-and-after video of once-peaceful Ukrainian cities — like Kharkiv, Mariupol and increasingly Kyiv — where hospitals, schools, cultural and business centers, and high-rise apartment buildings are being wiped out by Russian missiles and bombs.
“I have a dream,” Zelenskyy told Congress. “I have a need. I need to protect our sky. I need your decision, your help.”
Out of desperation, the Ukrainian leader appears to have given up his goal of a NATO no-fly zone over Ukraine. Biden once again rejected that request Wednesday; both parties in Congress, as well as other NATO countries, have nixed it because it would require destroying Russian missile batteries and planes.
Even Zelenskyy’s request for a “humanitarian no-fly zone” over western Ukraine — which remains relatively peaceful and a refuge for millions of fleeing Ukrainians — has been rejected. Many security experts (and this columnist) believe this option is worth exploring — by which NATO planes would make clear their purpose was peaceful and would protect refugee flows and a “free city” of Lviv.
Yet the White House and NATO have let Putin’s nuclear blackmail rule this out.
Ditto for Zelenskyy’s continued effort to obtain Poland’s MiG-29 planes.
Yet, swallowing his frustration, Zelenskyy showed incredible resilience before Congress. “If this is too much to ask,” he said, “we offer an alternative. You know what kind of [air] defense systems we need. S-300 (a Russian-made long-range air defense system])and other similar systems.”
The good news is that the Biden administration is working hard to locate and transfer S-300 systems from other NATO members that possess them and might be willing to offer them to Ukraine. Those include Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Greece, which has the largest number. Yet progress in obtaining these systems is too slow, as Russian missiles wreak more destruction daily.
While the Biden team should be commended for its large new package of military aid, and Congress for pushing the package forward in a bipartisan fashion, more must be done immediately to save Ukraine.
Most urgently, the mindset in Washington must change.
When the war started, the bipartisan expectation (and that of U.S. intelligence officials) was that Russian forces would swiftly conquer Ukraine. Ukrainian bravery and the skill of its armed forces changed that. Now Russian military failures, and Zelenskyy’s brilliant leadership, have led to speculation that Ukraine might “win.”
But a desperate, angry Putin is throwing all of his manpower and conventional weapons into destroying Ukraine. If he cannot make the country cower, he appears ready to wipe it out and then drag on negotiations forever, while declaring victory. A destroyed Ukraine may even suit Putin better than an occupation, which Russian forces aren’t capable of carrying out.
The White House can’t afford to permit Putin to “succeed” in this fashion. Nor can it afford to wait the months it will take for sanctions to fully kick in. Indeed, Putin may become more dangerous as his desperation grows.
Instead, the administration must undertake a full-court press to get Zelenskyy S-300s, armed drones and anti-ship missiles to save the Port of Odesa. And, without publicity, get those MIG-29s to Ukraine. If Zelenskyy says he needs them, I believe him over Pentagon claims that he does not.
Yes, Ukraine could “win” — by compelling Putin to pull back and declare victory — but only if Washington shows a bipartisan determination to help Zelenskyy in the immediate future. That’s the only appropriate response to Zelenskyy’s brave and brilliant speech.
Trudy Rubin is a columnist and editorial-board member for the The Philadelphia Inquirer. Readers may email trubin@phillynews.com.
