“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
As the war in Ukraine rages, both the people and governments of western countries are now in a seminal moment, where the contributions we make can determine whether in the next instance Ukraine can take its part as a member of a vibrant democratic community, or whether it becomes subjugated to Russian hegemony.
While I am in other posts analyzing with peers the real-time state of play on the ground, in this post I will only say this:
– For Ukraine to be free, Kyiv needs to be free.
– For Kyiv to be free, supply lines must be maintained from the western borders to the capital.
– For the Ukrainian army to be able to maintain supply lines, it needs to maintain its technological advantage, incorporating NATO weaponry.
– Equally the Ukrainian army also needs help with less sophisticated items, from munitions to helmets, or night vision goggles (mostly Russian troops lack them)
With that in mind, I have been in touch with a contact involved in the Ukrainian territorial army, based in Lviv, he has asked me to put out a funding call and has given me the bank account details for the Ukrainian army directly. This is not a fake account. This is the real deal. While Western Governments can provide aid, at the same time local procurement officials need to purchase the equipment now, to enable territorial army enlistees to be able to be effective.
This is therefore both a call to arms and a call to funding. For the people tagged in this post, please forward this message to your network too.
I am reaching out and asking anyone who wants to see the Russian military effort fail to put your money where your mouth is. If Ukraine is on its own it will fall. Only if there is help can they win.
$10 can secure munitions for 1 soldier for 1 day
$20 can secure a helmet to protect against enemy fire
$50 can secure proper winter boots for people having to fight in the snow
$100 can secure basic night vision goggles
None of this is high-tech. All of this can make a difference. And right now 30k+ TAs are being enlisted who want to fight. They just need help.
FUNDING DETAILS HERE:
If you can’t contribute directly, as a minimum please share this post or like it to maximize visibility. If you do make a contribution please post the amount so we can create momentum. Encourage other people to as well.
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Speaking for myself, I grew up when the cold war was still in place. In the first geography lessons, I was shown a map of Europe with a line down the middle. I was told about the Warsaw Pact.
Then in 1989 people across Europe rose up so the next generation could experience the right to assembly, the right to free speech, the right to choose their own leaders, basic freedoms we take for granted.
Now people say history doesn’t repeat itself, but maybe it does rhyme. Now Putin seeks to subjugate the Russian-speaking people of central and eastern Europe and bind them to his rule and create a new iron wall, where the freedoms we take for granted will only be taken away.
For the people in Ukraine, they see the path taken since 1989 by Poland on the one hand and Belarus on the other. For context at the point the Berlin wall fell, the GDP per capita of the three countries was identical (Poland, Belarus, Ukraine.) Poland looked west, Belarus remained in a Russian orbit. Poland, whilst it has its flaws, remains a democratic country and is prosperous, to the point where the GDP per capita in Warsaw is now comparable with any EU capital.
In contrast, Belarus remains in the slow lane economically. where along the way, democracy has been extinguished. This is what the people of Ukraine see. They look to Russia and see kleptocrats stealing from the country and the people oppressed just for demonstrating. They look to the EU and see a path for a better future. They seek NATO membership solely for their own defense.
Therefore while Governments have a part to play in making sure that sanctions are applied to Russia to create a groundswell of pressure from within and NATO members are helping by maintaining high tech armaments, the way you can help is by giving local purchasing managers the ability to procure items needed for people on the ground to be more effective now.
Whatever you can afford. While $100 may not sound like it’s going to make a difference, I promise you, what Russia counts on is that the rest of the world will only give platitudes to Ukraine. nothing else. Equally if out of this funding call, we can get 100 people contributing $100 each, suddenly that’s $10,000. That makes a difference. The whole basis of the Ukrainian resistance is every little bit helps.
A final comment. I have a closer connection to Ukraine than most, hence the reason for my post. I have a team in Ukraine, where people have quit to fight. I have people I know who are involved in the army in leadership positions. They tell me they can win, but only with help. Please help.
FUNDING DETAILS HERE:
If you can’t contribute directly, then please share this post or like it to maximize visibility. If you do make a contribution please post the amount so we can create momentum. Encourage other people to as well.
Be a part of the fight for freedom.
