To think we cannot afford to support Ukraine anymore

[Saysomething1234]

This may be an unpopular opinion but it is annoying me to no end and NC

We have a littany of issues crying out for funding domestically - NHS broken. Economy going down the drain. Pound down 20% in one year. Public services collapsing, Education system requiring re-investment, high taxes driving talent out. We can keep blaming our politicians but someone needs to prioritise where money goes - and no one is willing to talk about this

Yet we are spending hundreds of billions in supporting Ukraine in a war which has nothing to do with us. Yes we are morally supporting them but is there no amount which will be too much? We are paying both directly (through weapons and aid) and indirectly (through huge energy subsidies - last totalling north of £200bn) - we need to stop this spending, reduce energy prices, stop this craziness

How is this war something we can afford on the basis on principles and why aren't we more aggressively pushing for a negotiated settlement?

We cannot afford this. It sucks for Ukrainians but this is not UK's bill to foot.

AIBU?

The UK Defence budget is currently around 2% of GDP. During the 80s at the height of the Cold War, it was between 5-6%.

Ukraine is fighting and dying grinding down a resurgent Russian armed forces. If they don’t, then we, along with others, are going to have to step up to contain them. And that would cost many, many billions more. Arms and armies are a lot more expensive these days. How would you like the NHS budget to be halved to pay for that?

For the record, I believe we should not only stand with Ukraine from a moral and not just a military standpoint. In fact, we should be doing a lot more, which is the only way the situation is going to be resolved, and to minimise the suffering of the Ukraine people. I am disgusted with your attitude, but luckily, it’s not one that’s widely shared in this country. Belarus, perhaps.

Do you actually think countries are spending this money because they want to suck up to Ukraine or something? Unbelievable.

Cheap labour?
you mean minimum wage? Or are they working illegally?

So the UK should go and pay for everything which is terrible in the world? are you for real?

We left Afghanistan to the local inhabitants.
It was and is a mess. But a very different situation to a European democracy being invaded by a neighbor. ( Who has nuclear weapons )

Are you for real? Wow.

@Saysomething1234 so what difference would it make to energy prices in the uk if we didn't support Ukraine? Do you think it is a good/sensible idea to be reliant on Russia for our energy?

This is a country that has carried out what are effectively terrorist attacks on our soil. Think Litvinenko and also the nerve gas in Salisbury. They also constantly boast on the news about how they plan to nuke us.

because of short sightedness of politicians to fight a ruinous war - also because diplomacy doesn't sell in the public's eyes, aggressive right wing bravado macho-ism does (as can be seen clearly in this thread) where everything is black and white

YANBU on the basis that we shouldn't pick and choose which refugees we help. It's either an equal number from those in war torn countries or none at all. I hate the caste system the Ukrainian crisis has created. Why are we ok to help Ukrainian refugees but not Iraqi refugees for example?

Hahaha!! Diplomacy with madman Putin!

There are several posts in the thread explaining why our involvement is not altruistic. Scroll back and read them. We aren’t doing it to be lovely, don’t be daft.

Your last response is neither considered nor balanced nor provides a fully and appropriate argument or reply to any of the counter claims.

The OP is coming across as if this is a war on which we are on the sidelines watching with interest but not directly affected. I disagree... it may not be bullets that we are being attacked with in the UK, but indirectly we are suffering from rising fuel costs, less European stability, cyber attacks, crashing pension funds and a war on our close doorstep. These are not the results of the UK helping Ukraine but are another form of warfare that Putin is using to attack the UK and Europe. In other words, we are already at war of a sorts with a Russia and it has nothing to do with supporting Ukraine. The real question is : at what point to we actively engage in that war above and beyond imposing sanctions. To believe we are not at war or to think it is purely down to the UK supporting Ukraine is naive in the extreme.

You were fucking lucky to be born here. Lucky that you weren't born somewhere currently suffering in the way Ukraine is. Maybe unlucky, in that we are not in the best place now BUT FFS for some people it could be worse.

How would you feel if our tiny island was invaded/made war against. Me in that situation, would certainly hope that our better off neighbours would try and support us as best they could.

You are being so very very entitled.

And if you are totally fucking selfish - just think who Putin et al will go for next if the rest of us let him/them walk roughshod over Ukraine

diplomacy doesn't sell in the public's eyes,

Peace in our time was actually pretty popular, the problem was it didn't actually work.

You really don’t get this do you OP? We can’t ignore this.

Привет Влад.

Take your Russian propaganda elsewhere.

We can’t afford not to provide weapons to help Ukraine. Putin has been increasingly aggressive towards the West in recent years. The recent covert interference in elections in both USA and UK was part of a bigger plan to extend Russia’s global influence.

If Europe turned a blind eye and accepted the story that Russia were simply freeing Ukraine from the Nazis then it would give Putin free reign to expand elsewhere.

A united stance against Putin also sends a strong message to other countries watching this who are interested in gaining power.

as a uk taxpayer, i'm rather concerned about the use of my money and future of my country - and i cannot read russian. thanks very much.

Makes me think about the poem by Martin Niemöller.

First they came...And i did not speak out.

We should 100% support Ukraine.

Hahah, what an example! Afghanistan was a secular country in a conflict with Russia. The US couldn’t fucking stay away so funded the mujahideen, created the Taliban and destroyed a perfectly normal country.

"they are doing it wrong"
"So what do you think they should do"
"I don't know but they are doing it wrong"

Sometimes it is better to not saysomething...

as a uk taxpayer, i'm rather concerned about the use of my money and future of my country

Excellent, maybe look into how Russia has been pushing to destabilize and reduce the economic power of the UK in the last 10 years or so.

‘Your’ money. Give over. And go to Moscow, you’re just the Lord Haw-Haw type they need.

OP, the Russian translates to "Hello Vlad"