Imperial innocence and nuclear sovereignty

It’s no secret that empires can get away with much more than small and medium nations. We see it so clearly with Russia. Even today, millions, maybe billions, of people across the world are in awe of Russia. The nuclear empire can do no wrong. Funding terrorist groups across the Middle East and helping Iran with its nuclear weapons program? Can’t be true. Abducting Ukrainian children to be abused by some shady Russian characters? Surely, these children are being rescued by Russia from the Ukrainian Nazis. Bucha massacre. No, that’s a Western-Ukrainian fake to demonize Russia. Targeting civilians? Can’t be, Russia doesn’t do that, surely, these are Ukrainian false flags to pin the blame on Russia. All the while ignoring the voices of Ukrainians, Poles, and others who know Russia best. These biases are deeply-ingrained, so deeply, in fact, we sometimes fail to spot them. As a former ambassador of an African nation to South Korea once told me, ”nations are ganging up on Russia.”

Empires are always nuclear powers and that makes them sovereign states in every sense of the word. Even North Korea, hardly an empire, can’t really be touched because it has at least sixty nukes. If North Korea had no nuclear weapons, there would have been a US-led regime change there a long time ago. Same with Russia. If Ukraine hadn’t given up its vast nuclear weapons arsenal, the Vengeful Vladimir wouldn’t have dared to invade. Not making it clear if a state has nuclear weapons is a good tactic, too. Keep your enemies on their toes.

Assurances and alliances almost always fail the test of time and the test of war. I don’t trust NATO assurances, I don’t trust any assurances. But remember to make a dobra mina do złej gry, as we Poles say (loosely translated: when in your strategic interest, put on a good face, even though it sucks) You must rely on your own ability to both attack and defend yourself. As Israelis, you know it well.

It’s great when your allies actually help you but you never truly know how they are going to react and if help is indeed going to be more than words. In September 1939, Poland’s supposed allies (UK and France) dropped leaflets on Nazi Germany instead of military action. Even on September 3, with the Nazi invasion in full swing, jubilant Poles were cheering in front of the British and French embassies. They were expecting the two nations to attack Nazi Germany. That was the agreement. Oh well. We know how the war played out. So no, as Poles, we’re generally skeptical of assurances and smiles and we recommend you don’t trust diplomats and politicians as well. Don’t trust their handshakes, silver tongues, and smiles. Look at the facts. Look at what they do, not at what they say. Unless it’s the UN, no one even cares what the UN says, let alone what it does.

When Albert Speer built a new Chancellery for Adolf Hitler, Speer was concerned that the Fuhrer wasn’t going to like the slippery floors. But Hitler was ecstatic. He said that diplomats ought to feel like they are skating around before walking into his office. By the way, did you know that Adolf Hitler personally intervened to protect a Jewish man who had been his commanding officer during World War One? Or so the story goes.

Sometimes, honorable and brave men step in to help their allies in need. Take the Kościuszko Squadron in 1920, for example – American pilots joined the Polish military and fought against the Bolshevik red wave.

Funny how times change.

During the First World War, a postcard was sent to E A Brooks, a Great Western Railway porter at Bath, allegedly by the ‘Scoutmistress, Bath Girl Scouts’, offering him a position as ‘washer-up’ in view of the fact that ‘you cannot be a man not to join the army’.

I sometimes watch YouTube videos of Russians who claim to be fiercely anti-regime. Oh, but how they complain about the bureaucracy, the red-tape, in the European Union, and so on. I notice how they rarely talk about Ukrainians and the war. It’s almost (yes, there are exceptions, but that’s all they are) always about them and their precious donate money. Me, me, me. And they are supposed to be the ”good Russians” who are different. Civilized. Who understand that Russia needs to undergo dramatic changes.

Sadly, I have yet to see even one of them ”oppositionists” openly condemn Russia for stealing Ukrainian children. No, not stealing. Trafficking. That’s what it is. That’s why Putin is wanted by the International Criminal Court (not that the ICC has an army to invade Russia). These Russians surround themselves with lapdogs. ”Oh, ignore all the Russophobes, they are just ignorant. Russia is oh-so-great. You’re a different, better, Russian.” Really? Apparently, child abuse doesn’t matter to some people. Russians would never abduct and abuse children, you see. They are cultured, and civilized people. It’s all propaganda.

Lebensborn in Nazi Germany had a similar mission. Abduct all the Aryan-looking children across Europe and Germanize them. Non-Aryan children? Kill them. Russians, at least openly, don’t adhere to racial criteria, but, other than that, they are just like the Nazis in that regard. The Nazis had a swastika, and Russians have their ”Z.” A half-swastika.

I used to think that treating (almost) every Russian as a potential spy is paranoid propaganda. Now, I see there’s logic to this.

My German acquaintance said, ”Shame on Germany for a thousand years.” A bit extreme, if you ask me. I understand the guilt but there’s no need to be dramatic. Anyway, can you imagine a Russian saying that? Exactly. One in a million, maybe. Russian propagandists made this absurd video of a Russian family. A kid wants to play outside, but his – visibly downbeat – mother says that he can’t play outside because there’s a NATO base there. She then asks her husband if Pikachu really established Russia.

Absurd. Sure. Funny? Depends who you ask. Still, in principle, this is the kind of shock therapy Russians would need to go through to finally abandon their imperial obsessions. Otherwise, the world’s in danger. Maybe God is going to be feeling cheeky one day.