The Ukraine crisis - the nightmare of a concentrated attack on the Senkaku Islands|Tetsuhide Yamaoka

The Ukraine crisis - the nightmare of a concentrated attack on the Senkaku Islands|Tetsuhide Yamaoka

Japan must defend itself without relying on anyone else. Ukraine is showing us the consequences of a country that fails to show this determination and leaves its own security to foreign countries. Japan's very survival is at stake.


Ukraine used and abandoned by Biden

Getty logo

Although the Ukrainian army has shown surprisingly strong resistance against Russia's three-way invasion of Ukraine, it will be extremely difficult for Ukrainian forces to break through and drive out Russian forces unless reinforcements arrive.

On 6 March, President Zelensky himself distributed a video in which he stated that the Vinnytsia military airfield had been destroyed by eight missiles. "We will not be saved unless the Western countries set up a no-fly zone over our country, eliminate Russian missiles and aircraft, and provide us with military aircraft. Do you want us to be slowly killed?" he cried out sadly. However, NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) refused to establish a no-fly zone or to provide military aircraft.

In short, neither NATO's European countries nor Biden's US wanted to fight directly against the military powerhouse Russia, even though they would provide weapons to Ukraine. The only thing abandoned Ukraine could do was to recruit mercenaries.

If neither NATO nor the US came to its aid, it would have to face the overwhelming military power of its enemies alone. This could well be the fate of Taiwan and Japan in the near future. We should recognize that we have indeed reached a historical turning point.

Ukraine's pro-US government, which came into power after the political changes of 2014, was used and disciplined no end by the Obama-Biden administration. Ukrainian oligarchs also gave plenty of money to Hunter and Joe Biden. After all that, when Russia finally attacked Ukraine, Biden abandoned it. But in fact, the agreement known as the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances was signed 20 years before that.

Ukraine was the third largest nuclear power in the world

The Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances was signed by Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) conference in the Hungarian capital Budapest on 5 December 1994, following their accession to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and it was also signed by the three signatories to the agreement, Russia, the USA and the UK. It was a matter of providing those three former Soviet states with security over territory and sovereignty by Russia, the USA and the UK. China and France made similar agreements in separate written documents.

In other words, the nuclear-armed states told these former Soviet states that still possessed Soviet-era nuclear weapons, " if you give up your nuclear weapons, we will be responsible for protecting you. We will assure your territory and independence". At the time, Ukraine in particular had a large number of Soviet-era nuclear weapons remaining and was the third largest nuclear power in the world.

Ukraine handed over its nuclear weapons to Russia on request and carried out significant disarmament. Glenko Andriy, a Ukrainian political scientist who was with me on one of our programs, said that everyone at that time believed that there would be no more major wars and that they would not be invaded.

If these nuclear-armed states - permanent members of the UN Security Council - were serious about peace, they should have retained Ukraine as a complete buffer zone under the 'Budapest Memorandum'. However, when the pro-US government that emerged from the US-backed political changes in 2014 decided to expel Russia's Black Sea Fleet, an angry Putin annexed Crimea. Seeing this, the pro-Russian population in the east demanded secession, leading to conflict and the formation of the Minsk Agreement in 2015, with the UK and France as guardians. At this point, the Budapest Memorandum had practically collapsed. The full-scale invasion by Russia has now completely blown up the entire Minsk Agreement.

Ukraine, which had disarmed itself, was eventually literally destroyed by the imperialism of the major powers. The deceit of the Great Powers in failing to maintain a buffer zone where it should have been a buffer zone deserves strong criticism.

関連する投稿


立民の惨状ここに極まれり! 度量の狭い「攻撃型リベラル」議員たち|坂井広志

立民の惨状ここに極まれり! 度量の狭い「攻撃型リベラル」議員たち|坂井広志

今に始まったことではないが、特に昨今の立憲民主党の状況は「惨状」と呼ぶにふさわしく、目を覆うばかりである。学級崩壊ならぬ政党崩壊の道を着々と歩んでいるようにしか見えず、その動きは加速すらしている。党内抗争にうつつを抜かし、国益そっちのけで先進7ヵ国首脳会議(G7広島サミット)をこき下ろす――。その姿はあまりにも醜い。


米韓合意で際立つ非核三原則の非常識|田久保忠衛

米韓合意で際立つ非核三原則の非常識|田久保忠衛

日韓両国にとって最大の同盟国の米国がどれだけ「衰退」しているかは、わが国ではあまり議論されない。今やNATOに高まっているのは国防費をGDP比3.5%に引き上げようといった議論であり、日本は自由主義諸国の中でも後れを取っていることにどうして気付かないのか。


日本よ、「一国平和主義」を完全に捨てよ!|和田政宗

日本よ、「一国平和主義」を完全に捨てよ!|和田政宗

日本も独自にウクライナを支援しているが、果たして十分な支援と言えるのだろうか。国民の間において、「人を殺傷するような武器の輸出までするのはどうか」という疑問があるが、「日本だけが守られ、平和であればそれで良い」という考え方はもはや通用しない。


海洋監視強化で安保協力に近づいたクアッド|湯浅博

海洋監視強化で安保協力に近づいたクアッド|湯浅博

今回のクアッド首脳会議で、人道・自然災害や主に中国漁船の違法操業への対処を目的とする「海洋状況把握のためのインド太平洋パートナーシップ」(IPMDA)の立ち上げで合意したことは、安全保障分野での協力に近づいたと言ってよい。


憲法改正の好機が到来した|田久保忠衛

憲法改正の好機が到来した|田久保忠衛

ウクライナ戦争で戦略的打撃を受けたロシアが経済面で中国に依存する関係になり、ユーラシア大陸に一大覇権国家が誕生する事態を目前にして、「日本が軍国主義を復活させる」などと視野狭窄的な議論を弄んでいる時期ではないのだろう。


最新の投稿


【読書亡羊】『土偶を読む』騒動を知っていますか 縄文ZINE編『土偶を読むを読む』(文学通信)

【読書亡羊】『土偶を読む』騒動を知っていますか 縄文ZINE編『土偶を読むを読む』(文学通信)

その昔、読書にかまけて羊を逃がしたものがいるという。転じて「読書亡羊」は「重要なことを忘れて、他のことに夢中になること」を指す四字熟語になった。だが時に仕事を放り出してでも、読むべき本がある。元月刊『Hanada』編集部員のライター・梶原がお送りする週末書評!


【埼玉県川口市 クルドの現場を行く②】地元住民の苦悩|西牟田靖

【埼玉県川口市 クルドの現場を行く②】地元住民の苦悩|西牟田靖

入管法改正案についての報道が相次いでいる。そのトーンは反対一色。難民を認定しない日本政府や入管は悪、翻弄される外国人は善――という非常に単純化された報道ばかり。その一方、不良外国人の迷惑・犯罪行為に困る地元住民の声はほぼ封殺されたままだ。


原子力規制委の抜本的改革が必須|奈良林直

原子力規制委の抜本的改革が必須|奈良林直

柏崎刈羽原発で東電の社長を厳しく追及し、社員のやる気をなくさせているのが現在の原子力規制委の山中伸介委員長。電力事業者の取り組みがうまくいかないのは、規制委の采配が下手だからだ。我が国でも米国のように、規制委の抜本的改革が必要である。


広島サミット成功と浮かれていいのか|田久保忠衛

広島サミット成功と浮かれていいのか|田久保忠衛

お祭り騒ぎや日本式のおもてなしではどうにも片付かない冷厳な現実が待ち受けている。己を知らない国に救いはない。


動くか拉致問題、北が協議提案に即反応|西岡力

動くか拉致問題、北が協議提案に即反応|西岡力

水面下での秘密協議がすでに始まっているか、近く始まる可能性が高い。ただし、そこで、合同調査委員会設置案など「全拉致被害者の即時一括帰国」ではないごまかしの提案が出てくる危険性がある。推移を注意深く見守るべき時だ。