West must stand strong against Putin’s nuclear threats

As the Russian “liberation” of Ukraine continues, those who are old enough, or the decreasing number who still read history, will remember those events of the 1980s that led to the end of Russia’s domination of eastern Europe. The dysfunction of the communist economy – “we pretend to work and they pretend to pay us” – meant it could no longer afford to maintain a large military to control its neighbours. The desire for freedom meant the shackles were finally loosened and those countries could regain their traditional lifestyle.

It was fortunate that Mikhail Gorbachev, rather than his autocratic predecessors, was in charge and accepted that reality by removing the repressive soldiers and tanks.

In his speech to the UN in 1988, he announced “freedom of choice is a universal principle to which there should be no exception”; even in Mother Russia soc­ial, economic and political reform proceeded with perestroika.

For the past 20 years Vladimir Putin has progressively regained wealth and power from fossil fuels and undermined that philosophy, crushing democracy in his own country and increasingly in those of his neighbours. It may be that the West’s economic measures will abort his plans to resurrect an empire, but we have to face the reality that bullying dictators respond only to a force greater than their own. It is no wonder those same eastern European countries wanted the protection that NATO was supposed to provide, a protection that, at the moment, seems about as dependable as appealing to the UN did when Russia invaded Crimea.

Graham Pinn, Maroochydore, Qld

Rory Medcalf’s outstanding piece (“Ukraine offers us a lesson in courage and resistance”, 28/2) astutely and correctly informs that the world does indeed owe Ukraine a staggering debt and the reality for Australia to lift its game and heed the lessons on how to mobilise and arm its people to resist tyranny in the worst-case scenario.

Will the token gesture by our government to provide cash to NATO to buy “lethal aid” for Kyiv actually ensure the prompt delivery of modern man-portable antitank weapons, rocket-propelled grenades and Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, vitally needed by Ukrainian forces?

While still early days, Greg Sheridan’s predictions that Russia’s vaunted missile assets, cyber attack capabilities and huge modernised army will carry all before them are being somewhat stalled and mauled here and there in Ukraine by old-fashioned “boots on the ground” small arms, RPGs and conventional weapons. Will Ukraine be a forerunner of things to come in the South China Sea?

Ken Pearce, Altona North, Vic

The Western world needs strong leaders and quickly. The new threats from Putin are to put his nuclear arsenal on standby. Where are the leaders with the strength of president John F. Kennedy, ready to stand up to the bully?

There is speculation Putin is bringing in thermobaric weapons, a dreadful weapon of terror, into his murderous invasion of Ukraine. With the implied threat of using nuclear weapons to achieve his aims as well, will our leaders in the West capitulate and become the Neville Chamberlains of the 21st century?

If Ukraine is lost, imagine if Putin followed with this modus operandi to carve out Poland and other NATO members of the old Russian empire.

Julie Tadman, Wamuran, Qld

Having thumbed his nose at the UN, US and NATO, there is little doubt Vladimir Putin is delusional, verging on the insane. Emulating the nonsensical propaganda broadcast by the Nazi regime during the 1930s as the pretext to annex the Sudetenland and other areas of eastern Europe before invading Poland and thus starting World War II, Putin has labelled Ukraine as being “governed by drug addicts and neo-Nazis”.

Of even greater concern is that Putin has placed all his nuclear forces on high alert again using a false premise associated with reactions by Western nations to his latest adventurism.

Adding to this global problem is President Xi Jinping is watching carefully and gauging Western responses, which may determine his actions towards Taiwan. In Florida, Donald Trump’s most recent speech has only exacerbated an already dangerous and volatile situation.

Nick Bailey, Ngunnawal, ACT