The Art of War Lexis: Russia and Ukraine Explained
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To pre-empt the historians: Thursday 24th February 2022 was the beginning of a new age in international politics.
Why is Putin invading?
December 2021: two draft treaties were published by the Kremlin which stated its demands. It mainly relied upon the provocation of “security guarantees'' of Ukraine being barred from NATO membership. This was due to Putin seeing NATO as trying to subdue Russia and its interests over the years. A sentiment which has been something of high concern within the Kremlin. The recent meddling by the United States in Ukrainian politics, in large part regarding NATO, have effectively incited Russia to undertake its invasion of Ukraine. It also focused on wanting the assurance that the western military alliance (which began as a collective security pact against the Soviet Union) would retreat its forces from Eastern European member states.
21 February 2022: Putin questioned the legitimacy of Ukraine as a country and claimed the need for its liberation from Nazis and pro-Nazi people. Something which has been referred to as a denazification.
24 February 2022: Russia invades Ukraine.
However, the West has stated that these claims are null and/or exaggerated.
The West’s Point of View:
The West claims that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a flagrant violation of the rules-based international order. It is a modern war, but the logic of justification employed is ancient. Deception is an art of war. Every bullet fired carries a message engraved by its commander. The drums of war rang out for years prior to February 24th 2022, and their rhythm and form can be discerned. The West claims that the disinformation employed by the Russian Federation domestically and internationally must be used as a case study to discern how modern communications are weaponised to justify warfare.
Putin’s casus belli should be the first point of reference. Prior to invasion, he cited a supposed risk of genocide in what he referred to as the ‘breakaway republics’ of Donetsk and Luhansk, both of which are areas which have been controlled by Russian-backed separatists since 2014. Such language is designed to evoke an emotional response, particularly from his primary domestic audience who he must keep on-side in order to continue to exercise power. Eastern Ukraine is marked with the legacy of the Soviet Union. A large Russian-speaking population, many of whom do identify strongly with Russia, was what the West saw as a device for Putin to use as justification for ‘preemptive’ military action. Putin’s logic: defence of expatriated peoples, many of whom now conveniently own Russian passports. This defence has been used to justify an encirclement of Ukraine. Putin paints the Ukrainian government as ‘drug addicts’ and ‘Neo-Nazis’. This is what the West claims is the catalyst for why Putin wants the Ukrainian government removed.
In televised comments the Russian president said: “Western countries aren’t only taking unfriendly actions against our country in the economic sphere, but top officials from leading NATO members made aggressive statements regarding our country”. This has been perceived in Washington as “[the manufacture of] threats that don’t exist in order to justify further aggression”. This is what the West dubs as a lexicon of fear. To further generate domestic support through the lexicon of fear, the West sees Putin using the position of NATO, by suggesting its forces are positioned to enable offensive operations against Russia. NATO borders Russia in the Baltic. Now, it can be argued that Poland also borders Russia; the role of Belarus in the Russian invasion has solidified such a conclusion. Yet there has not yet been an incursion between Russian and NATO forces. NATO troops stand bolstered and ready at the border of the new iron curtain, but the West claims that given the unilateral aggression of Russia, the logic of NATO aggression is null. A more impartial look at the security logic of the Russian invasion would identify the strengthening Ukraine-EU relationship as a breach of the Russian position that Ukraine is a buffer state between NATO and itself. EU membership is seen as a gateway to NATO membership, and this is perceived as a threat to Russian sovereignty.
What are your thoughts on this crisis?
By Harry Fuller