Ukraine president’s plea for a no-fly zone is becoming harder to ignore
In an emotional appeal to Parliament on Tuesday, Volodymyr Zelensky asked Canadians to imagine what it would be like to see our cities bombed
Imagine air raid sirens going off and bombs being dropped on your neighbourhood at four in the morning or missiles hitting the CN Tower.
Imagine hospitals and schools being attacked and destroyed indiscriminately. Imagine children being killed or having to survive in a basement without water, heat or enough food. Imagine all of this and then having to explain to your children why the world seems willing to let it happen.
In an address by video link to the House of Common on Tuesday, Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky asked Canadians to put themselves in the shoes of Ukrainians facing an ever-increasing Russian assault on its cities. And then pleaded for Canada to support a no-fly zone over Ukraine.
“I would like you to understand my feelings and feelings of all Ukrainians,” Zelensky said. “This is our reality. They’re taking down our flags.”
“Our NATO partners tell us to please hold on a little longer, trying to avoid escalation, but this has not brought an end to the war. Their main objective is to annihilate us.”
It was an emotional appeal. But of course, we can’t truly understand what Ukrainians are going through—even though we have been inundated with horrifying images of the destruction every day—because it’s unimaginable to think that the sight of armoured columns laying siege to our cities could ever happen here.
In the face of a rapidly deepening humanitarian disaster—some 4 million refugees have already fled Ukraine since the beginning of Russia’s invasion 20 days ago—it’s unfathomable (some would say inhuman) to ignore Zelensky’s plea. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered in remarks before the Ukraine president’s speech that Zelensky has become a symbol of “democracy, human rights and truth” for the world.
But clearly, there’s a limit to how far the West is prepared to go to defend those ideas – at least, for the time being and maybe not ever where Ukraine is concerned.
Zelensky alluded in his speech to accepting that Ukraine may never be part of NATO. It was mostly missed in the coverage. Was it a message to Putin? Negotiations have been ongoing behind the scenes. At the same time, all indications point to an escalation in the brinksmanship between Putin and the West.
NATO and its allies, which includes Canada, have resisted declaring a no-fly zone over Ukraine for fear of escalating the war with Putin. Interim Conservative Party of Canada leader Candice Bergen broke with that view in her speech. Noting that Canada was the first country to recognize Ukraine’s independence in 2014, Bergen “We must do more to protect Ukraine airspace, at a minimum over humanitarian corridors.” She also said Putin should be charged with war crimes.
NATO countries are continuing to supply Ukraine with military and humanitarian aid. Ottawa, for one, has already committed to some $100-million in military aid, including anti-tank weapons.
While the West does not want to give Putin the excuse he seems to be looking for to (possibly) avail himself of the nuclear option by declaring a no-fly zone, other military observers say NATO’s decision to arm Ukraine also risks prolonging the conflict and a diplomatic solution with Russia.
It’s a vicious cycle for which there seems no immediate end in sight and no clear path forward, aside from more crippling sanctions on Russia by the West being met with more Russian missiles and aggression.
Bloc Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet touched on the sense of “powerlessness” Canadians—and many around the world watching the horror unfoldar—e feeling. “It is difficult to admit with all the sadness that we can only do too little,” he said. “I apologize for that.”
Green Leader Elizabeth May read correspondence she received from a Green Party leader in Ukraine that was written from a bomb shelter while missile and bomb attacks continued outside. May quoted from the letter: “We are helpless. Please urge your government to protect our skies.” To which a tearful May replied, “We fear we may inevitably let you down.”
How do we get to peace—or some modicum of it—then? May says the world will have to “invent” more tools beyond sanctions. Whatever that path may be, it goes through Putin, who has shown little inclination to accept anything but regime change in Ukraine. In which case god help us, and god help Ukraine.
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