Do you know what irritates me most about all these discussions about the “search for peace”?
The constant substitution of concepts, the silence of the obvious, and the constant distraction with bright, loud, but infinitely far-from-reality phantoms.
Reality is harsh and relentless. Putin and his henchmen did not start the war in 2014, nor escalate it to full-scale in 2022 from a position of strength, just to “meet halfway” because it suits someone’s benevolent imagination.
History tells us otherwise: Russia stops where it is stopped.
The only way to stop the war is to force Russia to cease fire. And only then—negotiations “about everything and everyone”. When Ukrainians are not dying, and the economy and infrastructure are not being destroyed.
And how to force? Increase the cost for Russia to continue, so that the risks of stopping are lesser.
This is the alternative that those who take the incompetence of the authorities to implement very specific actions for granted do not want to see. Support the Armed Forces, ensure the development of technologies and their rapid implementation, conduct negotiations professionally with partners.
This should be at the core of the strategy that the government has neither developed, presented, nor more so implemented.
This is reality. Anything else leads nowhere, as it does not affect the main motive of the aggressor: whether they can achieve their imperial, revanchist goals or not.
This is what needs to be worked on, combining all forces and possibilities.
And to those who shout “why aren’t MPs on the front line?!” I say: Urge your “servants” to vote on Bill No. 7187 allowing MPs to combine their mandate with military service. It was passed in the first reading back in the spring of 2022.
Meanwhile, let’s tackle issues that depend on the Verkhovna Rada:
– Budget for the army, not for theft;
– Urgent consideration and adoption of the Kachka-Kos anti-corruption package (everything that “the dynasty” cringes at: reboot of the State Bureau of Investigations, competitions in the Prosecutor General’s Office, Anti-Corruption Strategy, etc.);
– Normal editing of “budget” laws and protection of business to reduce “schemes” of the “dynasty’s” friends, not Ukrainians’ incomes;
– Community protection, not stripping local budgets;
– Professional negotiation group, “diplomatic hub” involving and authorizing specialists regardless of party flags.
This is what needs to be discussed, demanded, and what they distract us from with false phantoms.
* * *
Speed is one of the factors of success in war.
In particular, the speed of development, speed of implementation, speed of reaction to enemy actions, speed of scaling…
Speed is aided by competition of ideas, clear criteria for selecting decisions based on results, optimal budget use.
Speed is hindered by feeding one’s own to the detriment of others, arbitrary decisions whose consequences must be rectified over time, corruption, and embezzlement.
We are lagging. The government is lagging because it monopolized the levers of control over how we act as a country. And it is lagging.
With finding solutions, implementing developments, reacting to enemy developments, cooperating with partners, changing ineffective practices.
Unfortunately, this scheme can be applied to any issue: air defense, ballistics/anti-ballistics, shelters, community protection, preparation for winter, cooperation with Europe, European integration, relations with other countries and regions.
And it’s not surprising. Because miracles do not happen. If you want to improve the result—change the way you act. Choose what aids rather than hinders.
Because the resource of “we’ll wiggle through, always have” is drying up. And there are different kinds of loops.
Collage: RBC-Ukraine
