Having taken note of the op-ed by my distinguished British colleague, Sir Dominick Chilcott, published by Daily Sabah recently, I would also like to share with Daily Sabah readers facts and ideas that may be of some interest to them of course, not for label-sticking polemics, but rather in the quest for objectivity and (who knows) even some common denominators.
Some points to make
Yes, on March 2, 141 members states of the United Nations voted for the draft condemning Russia – though it would be a kind of overestimation to claim that all of them supported the "six-point" British plan as it is. I am far from being sure that former French leader Napoleon Bonaparte was right in saying that "big battalions have always reason." On the contrary, sometimes it may be wise, being guided by your honor and dignity, to stay in a proud minority or even in isolation or quasi-isolation. But trying to be objective, we should not forget that the draft was "not" supported by 40 of the U.N. members representing more than 3 billion people. These numbers must also be taken into proper consideration.
Right: What is happening could have most probably been avoided. None of us wanted it to come to this, but it has. Some blame Russian President Vladimir Putin for that. As for many in Russia, we strongly believe that the responsibility for the current tragedy must be shared by those who, carefully pushing forward their Ukrainian "anti-Russia" project for 30 years, have deliberately been preparing the country to become an existential military threat to Russia. Likewise, the fault also lies with those who in fact arrogantly rejected Russia’s offer last December to negotiate measures that address our security concerns and to avoid further escalation.
Of course, everyone has a right to trust the tale of a "free and democratic Ukraine." This given, others also have the right to remember the Nazi nature of the regime established in Kyiv in 2014 and its ideology – purely Nazi, including the xenophobic slogans, racist practices and even Adolf Hitler-style torch marches and SS-like uniform stripes. So, one combats the Nazis shelling London and Coventry but arms and protects their political descendants when they prepare to hit Russia and even acquire weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Indeed, "Something is rotten in the state..."
I would be most delighted to interpret my fellow colleague's welcoming the restriction of the passage of warships through the Turkish Straits as confirming that there’s no desire in the Admiralty House to send her Majesty’s vessels to the Black Sea. If so, the situation "on the ground" (or in this case – "on the water") could really become a little bit less strained, which would be good.
And, last but not least, let us all understand that one day (I hope it comes sooner than later) the military operation will be over. And when the smoke clears, all of us will be obliged to learn to live in a completely different world – different from the one we were living in before. Let us hope that this new world of ours will be free from the megalomaniac ideas and chimeric goals of global domination that ran bankrupt so evidently in February 2022. Let us hope that the future rules "governing international behavior" will be established not by a narrow group of capitals bluntly ignoring the other members of the international community, but by a large consensus of nations – big and small, rich and poor, etc. Russia included, of course. We are determined to ensure that our national interests are no longer neglected by those who pretend to be the "masters of the universe."
P.S. It goes without saying that I totally share Sir Dominick’s high assessment of the sincerity of Turkey’s wish to contribute to the talks between Moscow and Kyiv. By the way, it was one of the main reasons for Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s visit to Antalya.