I’m not sure if “fear” is quite the right word, as the fear is actionable. As you recall, in the 1990s, during a window when Russian influence was in abeyance, nearly every country in the former Soviet bloc rushed to join Western institutions -- namely, the EU and NATO -- as they saw this as the best guarantee against possible future Russian aggression. And so far, it’s paid off. Russia has divided Moldova and attacked Georgia and Ukraine, none of which are in NATO. There’s no way, in current circumstances, that Russia would attack Estonia or Poland. Because they are in NATO. If Russia were to attack Estonia or Poland tomorrow, NATO would respond in force. (Including, I’m afraid, your Britain, which is a full member of NATO. I’m puzzled by your bringing up Burma, that Brits should be no more concerned about Estonia than they are about Burma. Britain has a treaty obligation toward Estonia that it does not have toward Burma. To use your phrasing, the security concerns of the Baltic states are automatically very much a British responsibility, by virtue of the NATO treaty. Whether you like it or not.) However, if for some reason Western support for Ukraine were to crumble and Russia were then able to subdue that unfortunate country, Putin would likely conclude that NATO is a paper tiger and might test the waters, say, by storming the Suwałki Gap, which separates Belarus from Kaliningrad (and forms the border between Poland and Lithuania); this scenario is widely discussed. Then, to put it lightly, we would all be in a pickle. So the easiest solution is to provide vigorous support to Ukraine, not only to reinforce that country’s independence but to send a firm signal to Putin. The strategy is called “containment,” which often works. Your proposed strategy, “appeasement,” again, has never worked. And your position that “no war is better than any war” is also maybe a little short-sighted. Sure, most wars are useless, and uselessly destructive (you mention World War I). But was fighting, say, World War II useless? As a Brit, would you have favored making a deal with Hitler, giving the Nazis free reign in continental Europe while maintaining the British Empire elsewhere? Just so you can sit at home and enjoy your crumpets, or whatever? Unfortunate as it may sound, some wars need fighting. It’s my fondest wish that Russia evolve into a “normal” country and fully integrate with the rest of Europe and with other global institutions. In the 1990s, there was a chance of that happening, so there will be other chances. I’ve traveled in Russia; it’s a wonderful country with truly great people. The best way to make this happen is to stand up to the gangsters who currently run Russia.
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