Marie Yovanovitch has no doubt about what happens next if the United States stops supplying Ukraine with military aid to fight Russia.
The former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine thinks Russia will win the war there and carry on toward other Eastern European countries. She points out President Vladimir Putin and his allies have already said that.
“I think the stakes are pretty deadly for Ukraine,” Yovanovitch said in an interview with WVIA News.
Yovanovitch spokes Sunday atat Wilkes University’s Dorothy Dickson Darte Center in Wilkes-Barre.
“Russia has made clear that it wants to absorb all of Ukraine, you know, not only the territory, but the people. Extinguish the Ukrainians as a nationality, their culture, their language, the people. Russia wants to Russify them.”
She thinks Congress would vote for aid to Ukraine if House Speaker Mike Johnson would allow a vote. So far, Johnson has balked. He argues the United States should worry first about stopping the flow of immigrants across the border with Mexico.
As Yovanovitch sees it, failing to help Ukraine carries an even larger risk. If Russia wins in Ukraine, some of the next targets are NATO countries.
“There's also the demonstration effect. If we don't stand up for our partners or allies, if we don't stand up for our values, if we don't stand up for our interests, Russia will feel there's no reason not to keep on going like there's no penalty,” she said.
She dismisses Putin’s recent call on the United States to negotiate an end to the war. The call is misplaced, she says. Putin should negotiate with Ukraine because the United States isn’t at war with Russia.
She also rejects the idea that NATO’s acceptance of other former Soviet bloc countries forced Putin to invade Ukraine.
“Well, I mean, that's a Russian talking point, which has gained some currency here in the United States. I'm not sure why,” she said. “But I would say that if you're concerned about your security … the way to secure your borders, the way to ensure that you have good relations with your neighbor, is to work with them not to invade them. And not, to perpetrate all sorts of atrocities.”
