A painful topic here. Lack of mutual understanding in war times.
Who is an aggressor? Who is a defender?
In times of war communication usually completely breaks down. Human consciousness of interdepence has vanished to the point, that arms replace words and the “others” are not considered human any more.
For example, democrat lawmaker Ms. Jasmine Crockett is indignified as she speaks in the US house. She hears Mr. Trump’s words ‘Ukraine started it.’ as “Ukraine started the war.” She really would like for people to acknowledge the fact, that Russian tanks rolled from different sides into Ukraine, with about 200.000 soldiers marching into Ukrainian lands. After a brief fiery speech, Mrs. Crockett invites her Republican colleagues to go on record in public and say: “Russia invaded and Russia started the war.”
No Republican takes this opportunity.
Transcript
It is time for us to say, ‘Mr. President, guess what? Russia invaded Ukraine!' Can we at least agree on that one? Facts matter! This is literally, potentially putting us into an international crisis! We may be heading toward the next World War because we have a president that wants to pal around with [Russian President Vladimir Putin] and wants to do everything to make him feel good — including lying about who invaded who. Mr. Chair, I got a minute left; but I really want to yield to any of my colleagues and ask them if they will say today that, very basically, that when it came down to the war in Ukraine, that it was not Ukraine that invaded Russia. It was the other way around. Is there anybody in here that has enough courage to say that Russia invaded Ukraine? You can have my time. And this is yet the problem.
When she says “Facts matter!” she actually confuses facts and interpretations. She seems to understand the meaning of Trump’s words, as a denial of the fact that Russian tanks crossed the border in February 2022 and headed into Ukraine from all directions. That is not what Trump means.
As far as I understand Trump and Kremlin spin doctors like to place the responsibility of the war on the supposed “2014 US coup” in Kyiv.
This is their interpretion of the revolution of dignity, as Ukrainians refer to the Euromaidan protests of late 2013 and early 2014, which led to then-president Janukovitch fleeing the country. In this narrative the protest were orchestrated by the USA and that secret coup in the end started the war of 2014.
And from 2019 Zelensky was a corrupt puppet of the USA government, that thought to put weapons at the border of Russia, which was considered to be an existential threat by Russia. And all of that led to the actual full-scale invasion. So this is what Trump may have in mind, when he says: “Ukraine started it.” or when Lavrov says: “Ukraine started the war. We want to end it.”
The facts though are clear. Protestors came every day to the Maidan square in Kyiv in 2014. Crimea was visited by “green men”, who later were acknowledge to be Russian soldiers by Mr. Putin. Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine on February 22, 2024.
We can name these facts. And then we in a millisecond put a perspective on them. “This is an invasion!” or: “This is regrettable but unavoidable act. We had no choice, but start a special military operation.”
Understanding and agreeing are two separate things. I differentiate between them. I can understand a position, but I can hold a totally different position myself.
In the war situation I see how each side becomes petrified into their own interpretation, unwilling and perhaps unable to make a space to hear the needs behind the interpretation of the other side. My version of events is right. And: You lie!
Liberation vs. Occupation
In Russian minds the history of post-WWII Europe includes a liberation narrative. “We liberated many countries from the Nazis.”
But when you ask people in these so-called “liberated” countries, the view of Russian presence often is “They occupied us.”
It would be better for peace in Europe, if all people could find understanding on these different positions.
And indeed – empathy – in this constellation is a truly difficult thing.
Why are Russians in pain? What is it, that they would like get across, when they tell the story of being “liberators”? They are holding on to it – well not all of them, of course – but many – and it seems to be part of their sense of who they are: liberators and saviours.
As I have contact with Russians I can see, how much they love to contribute to others, how big hearted they want to be and often also are. Maybe, being under such a threat of losing an existential war against a hateful and deadly enemy – Germany under Hitler – they were overjoyed to survived and to be victorious in 1945, having lost so many of their men in the process, having endured incredible hardship, but also having shown huge internal solidarity in the face of such a threat. And then they did not only stop at their border, but they went further and liberated some people from those Nazis and also from the capitalist devils that would enslave populations in the communist view of the times.
They named the occupied countries brothers, family – national differences were minimized – but the common humanity and common human needs were put forward. So there is a lot behind this word “liberation” – a lot also, that went down the garbage can when the Soviet Union collapsed.
But now, as Putin works hard to re-create an empire, this older perspective returns to the forefront of Russian consciousness, it is how they like to see themselves and how they would like to be seen.
But how much empathy can they bring to the dialogue, to listen to another experience of history?
Not much.
And in a sense, that is also true for the other side. The Baltics, Poland, Ukrainians – their is deep and hardended divide – disconnection.
I would say, understandably. It is asking a slave to bring empathy for their master. An abused person for the abuser. Empathy from below, we can say.
And this is possible.
But we can also remain in our bubbles, no space for another person expressing their needs in judgments. They are us. In truth.