Ukraine told critics of the pace of its three-month-old counteroffensive to "shut up" on Thursday, the sharpest signal yet of Kyiv's frustration at leaks from Western officials that say its forces are advancing too slowly.
I don't deny that Russia has reasons to step in, but what I am saying is that ideologically, I don't want to advocate for or normalize the idea that some countries deserve to have "spheres of influence" over others. It's about consistency - the US isn't entitled to its sphere of influence in Latin America, so why would I oppose one sphere of influence and not another?
It was justifiable for Russian speakers in the Donbas to protest the removal of legal recognition and support for the Russian language, which is undeniably an injustice inflicted upon them. But that also means its an injustice for Putin to insinuate that Ukraine wasn't a real country before the Bolsheviks, or that Ukrainian identity and heritage in the rest of the country are intrinsically tied to Russia.
I don't deny that Russia has reasons to step in, but what I am saying is that ideologically, I don't want to advocate for or normalize the idea that some countries deserve to have "spheres of influence" over others. It's about consistency - the US isn't entitled to its sphere of influence in Latin America, so why would I oppose one sphere of influence and not another?
It was justifiable for Russian speakers in the Donbas to protest the removal of legal recognition and support for the Russian language, which is undeniably an injustice inflicted upon them. But that also means its an injustice for Putin to insinuate that Ukraine wasn't a real country before the Bolsheviks, or that Ukrainian identity and heritage in the rest of the country are intrinsically tied to Russia.