“Obama has argued that the Ukrainians should solve this problem themselves and therefore Russia should butt out,” Paul wrote. “I agree with the president on this. Outside countries should leave Ukraine to resolve the conflict itself. However, even as the US demands that the Russians de-escalate, the United States is busy escalating!”
According to Paul, the US government’s actions so far in Ukraine, while subtle, may soon give way to activity of a more aggressive nature.
“In June, Washington sent a team of military advisors to help Ukraine fight the separatists in the eastern part of the country. Such teams of ‘advisors’ often include special forces and are usually a slippery slope to direct US military involvement,” he wrote. “On Friday, President Obama requested Congressional approval to send US troops into Ukraine to train and equip its national guard. This even though in March, the president promised no US boots on the ground in Ukraine. The deployment will be funded with $19 million from a fund designated to fight global terrorism, signaling that the US considers the secessionists in Ukraine to be ‘terrorists.’”
“The US has already provided the Ukrainian military with $23 million for defense security, $5 million in body armor, $8 million to help secure Ukraine’s borders, several hundred thousand ready-to-eat meals as well as an array of communications equipment. Congress is urging the president to send lethal military aid and the administration is reportedly considering sending real-time intelligence to help target rebel positions,” the former congressman continued.
Lethal aid may not be handed over anytime soon, but Paul suggests that sanctions like the latest waged by the US Treasury Department are enough to inflect unnecessary damage.
“Even when the goals are clear, sanctions have a lousy track record. Sanctions are acts of war. These sanctions will most definitely have a negative effect on the US economy as well as the Russian economy. Why is ‘winning’ Ukraine so important to Washington? Why are they risking a major war with Russia to deny people in Ukraine the right to self-determination? Let’s just leave Ukraine alone!
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