Andrew Bolt: West must fight Putin like we mean it

So much war could be avoided if we beat Vladimir Putin now. At least cut off the one thing still earning him billions of dollars for bombs and missiles — stop buying his oil and gas.

No, sending Western jets to help Ukraine won’t “start World War Three”, as our weak leaders keep saying. See, World War Three has started already.

So why aren’t we fighting like we really mean it?

Of course this is the next world war.

On the one side is Russia, backed by Belarussian tanks, while ally China covers its rear.

On the other is Ukraine, with Western democracies rushing in weapons so Ukrainians can fight to the last man and woman for our freedom, too.

What a great bargain – for us. We’ll defend our freedom to the last Ukrainian.

But this is also a world war because we’ll all feel the pain, and not just as oil and gas prices soar.

Imagine the fallout if Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant had blown when attacked by Russia. Picture: AFP

Ukraine, the world’s fifth biggest wheat exporter, will struggle now to plant a spring crop. The world may this year run short of grain, and it could get much worse.

The Russian army is so brutal that it last week even fired at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s biggest. Imagine the fallout had it blown.

And who knows who Russian president Vladimir Putin will attack next in his plan to take back territories Russia lost when it was last led by dictators? Moldova? Belarus? Kazakhstan? Latvia? Lithuania? Estonia? Georgia?

Don’t forget that China, which openly threatens war on Taiwan, could also soon invade if the West can’t stop even Russia.

Ukraine’s president is begging NATO to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine to stop Russian jets. Picture: AFP

So much war could be avoided if we beat Putin now, but Western leaders say they’re scared of starting World War Three, when Putin is not.

That’s why US president Joe Biden and his European allies in NATO refuse to do what Ukraine’s president is begging – impose a no fly zone over Ukraine to stop Russian jets.

Biden has told Ukraine no, it’s too dangerous. Nor will NATO send a single soldier.

Can you blame them for being too scared? Putin on Saturday warned Europeans he’d treat any no-fly zone over Ukraine “as participation in armed conflict”.

Protestors listen to Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky. Picture: AFP

NATO would then be at war with Russia, too. And Putin has warned three times Europe would risk a Russian nuclear strike.

But Putin on Saturday also slipped, and showed he’s probably bluffing.

He said our economic sanctions on Russia were also the “equivalent of a declaration of war”, adding: “Thank God it has not come to that.”

But the only reason “it has not come to that” is that Putin doesn’t dare treat those sanctions – or our arming of Ukraine – as the declarations of war that they are.

He can’t afford to also fight Europe and the Americans. Not when this invasion is going disastrously.

Putin clearly expected this war to be over in days. Instead, Ukraine says he’s lost dozens of jets, nearly 300 tanks, about 1000 armoured vehicles and 9000 soldiers.

Russia still has not captured one major city, and a 60km-long Russian column north of Kyiv has not moved in days, apparently stuck in the mud, fearing ambush or out of fuel. Or all of the above.

Russian President Vladimir Putin clearly expected this war to be over in days. Picture: AFP

There are now signs of panic from Putin’s regime, as the bodies pile and Russia’s economy starts to implode from sanctions.

Putin stopped Russian media from reporting the truth about this war, and made it a crime to criticise his army. His press secretary even appealed to Russians last week to “unite”, to “unite, of course, around our president”.

So maybe the insanely brave Ukrainians – with our weapons and sanctions – can now defeat the Russian army or get Putin deposed.

Or maybe not. Maybe we’re just helping Ukrainians to fight long enough until their cities are smoking ruins.

Maybe we’re just helping Ukrainians to fight long enough until their cities are smoking ruins. Picture: AFP

Maybe we’re instead missing our big chance to stop World War Three before it really takes off.

I get it: sending Western jets to blast Russian ones is playing with a catastrophic nuclear fire.

But let’s at least cut off the one thing still earning Putin billions of dollars for his bombs and missiles. Stop buying his oil. Stop buying his gas.

It’s a no-brainer, but Europe and the US are too weak and greedy even for that.

Europe needs Russian gas for nearly 40 cent of its supplies, and Biden’s spokesman made clear that cutting Russia’s oil exports was also too much to ask from American motorists: “That would raise prices at the gas pump for the American people.”

Ukrainians can die in our shared cause, but the West puts cheap petrol and gas above stopping World War Three.

No wonder Putin thought we’d let him win his war. Please: Prove him wrong.