Vladimir Lenin once said, “Terror is an instrument of social hygiene.” That appears to be Vladimir Putin’s strategy in Ukraine now.
In 2003, at the onset of the war in Iraq, then-Maj. Gen. David Petraeus made a comment to a reporter that has followed him since, “Tell me how this ends.”
The atrocities documented in Ukraine over recent days are brutal, harsh reminders of the Russian military’s complete disregard for human life. Hundreds of innocent civilians appear to have been tortured, raped, and murdered. The images on our screens and social media feeds are reminiscent of horrific Nazi war crimes committed during the Second World War. Bodies in trash bags partially buried in shallow mass graves. Ukrainian citizens with their hands bound behind their backs, shot in the head, lying dead in the streets. A woman shot and killed while riding her bike, her dog sitting despairingly next to her corpse.
The Russian exit strategy is on full display. Punish and decimate Ukraine to its very core. The population centers Kyiv, Lviv, Kharkiv, Mariupol, and Leopolis have been leveled by Russian artillery, and now, Odessa is in Putin’s sights. His soldiers are massacring Ukrainian civilians and ceding anti-personnel mines to cover their withdrawal. They also destroyed a fuel tank containing nitric acid near the city of Rubizhne.
How does this end?
Sadly, the killing of innocent civilians will continue unabated. The allegations and investigations of war crimes will continue, but neither the United States, NATO, nor the United Nations will offer much more than harsh words. As long as Putin has access to his nuclear weapons, what happens in Ukraine stays in Ukraine. Volodymyr Zelensky will remember, though. Ukraine needs help now, not a seat at the war crime trials after the conflict. It’s been said by many, but is worth saying again: Zelensky needs deeds, not words.
Ukrainians’ resistance, and success against the Russian military, only fuels Putin’s hatred for the country, its people, and Zelensky. He will continue his relentless assault on Ukraine until he has achieved his objective — whatever the cost.
Retired Col. Jon Sweet served 30 years as a military intelligence officer. His background includes tours of duty with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), DIA, NSA, and NGA.
