In recent days, Ukraine’s fate has been nearly sealed. Russian troops have been gradually moving into Ukrainian territory, leaving the rest of the world watching and waiting for what Vladimir Putin will do next. With diplomacy efforts on the American end, officials say that it is almost certain that Putin will not back down. While America is not directly obligated to defend Ukraine because they are not a part of NATO, President Biden has sanctioned the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. These sanctions, along with Germany’s pipeline disapproval, will create significant issues for European gas prices. Even though America does not rely solely on Russia for gas, they could see their prices skyrocket as well.
Although the odds are in Russia’s favor, the citizens of Ukraine are not going down without a fight. The Ukrainian President came out with a statement on Thursday morning explaining that if Russia were to invade the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, its citizens would not be afraid to fight. Western powers like the UK, France, Germany, and The United States are giving military aid and weapons to Ukraine. Still, all parties have reservations about the likelihood of war ahead. Along with avoiding conflict, European countries rely heavily upon Russia’s natural resources. Going against Russia right now is not optimal for many of these countries because of its effect on their economy, but time is running out to make a decision.
Explosions have been heard in Ukraine from the areas around the nation’s capital. With every second the other countries fail to make a decision, the closer Russia will get to the heart of Ukraine. World leaders like President Biden have condemned Putin’s unjust attacks that are beginning to escalate this Wednesday night. The UK Ambassador came out with a statement explaining the possible devastation if this crisis were to escalate further. With the whole world pleading for Putin to choose peace, why does he refuse to listen? It is believed that Putin has decided to invade Ukraine because of the new American administration. Former President Trump was seen as a much more forceful president than his replacement President Biden. The new administration has given Putin the go-ahead to invade Ukraine with more confidence than ever before. With the inability to stop Putin with diplomacy and disagreements between European powers, no real solution was proposed to prevent Russia from taking Ukraine. So what will happen to Ukraine? That question will only be determined by whoever takes significant action first, the allies or Russia.