By Gudrun Steinacker
On March 8, 2022, the Russian president congratulated the women in Russia for the International Women’s day, in particular the mothers of the soldiers right now dying in Ukraine on the battlefields created by him.
More cynicism is not imaginable. According to serious estimates, thousands of Russian soldiers already died in a war that Putin calls, in best Orwellian tradition, only a special military operation. We do not know how many of them are the only child of their mothers. The reproduction rate in Russia is one of the lowest in the world. Thus, Putin is robbing the future of these mothers and of his country.
It is well known in history that dictators kill their own people to destroy other people, their cities, their culture, their economy. According to reports from Ukraine, many of the Russian soldiers didn’t even know where they were. They are suffering, their mothers are suffering, and millions of Ukrainians are suffering because of a criminal clique ruling in Russia and their megalomaniac leader wants this to happen.
This is not only a war, but it is also a crime against humanity. If we want to save our civilization based on human rights and the rule of law, even if we are aware of all its weaknesses and failures, we must stop Putin’s war.
The Author, Gudrun Steinacker is a retired German diplomat, currently involved in green and environmental initiatives and projects.
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