These facts can be viewed as they are — a glimpse into a war that some see as integral to America’s natural security interests, but others do not.
In Russia’s two-stage invasion of Ukraine — the first in 2014 in the Donbas regions of Luhansk and Donetsk and the Crimean Peninsula, and then in 2022 to today throughout the eastern portion of the nation — the Russian military and occupation authorities have visited death, dislocation, and deportation on Ukrainian civilians.
The nature of these depravations varies widely and cannot be fully understood without also viewing Russia’s objectives through the lens of the invasion’s architect, Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin views Ukraine as an illegitimate state and Ukrainians as an integral part of Russia. For this reason, he sees the Ukrainian nationality, language, and faith traditions as needing to be stamped out, with Ukrainians being reeducated into Russians.
This effort takes on additional urgency in light of Russia’s demographic decline. As Russians flee conscription, young Russian men in the military can’t start families, and worsened economic conditions depress births. Thousands won’t return to start families at all.
Turning to Russia’s conduct of its war on Ukraine and the harm visited on civilians, there are four things to consider: reports of Russian soldiers executing civilians, the operation of so-called “filtration camps,” the deportation of Ukrainian civilians, and the deportation of Ukrainian children.
Russia attempted to blitz Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. The Russians sent their best troops in a mad dash for
