To think the adoration of Zelensky in the UK feels very wrong?

[WarWhatIsItGoodFor]

Exactly that. Why are UK politicians lapping it all up and hanging on to his every word? The laughter from MPs when he said he enjoyed English tea but now wants English planes… in what sense is that funny? He is wanting war planes to cause more bloodshed, death and destruction. I hope this doesn’t lead to Russian retaliation.

I see no evidence that Zelensky is a megalomaniac. As an actor he understand personas and he is very good at branding. I think the khaki fatigues in London are part of the branding. I don't work in an industry for which image or branding is important, but I recognise how powerful this is and that getting it right can determine whether you reach your goal. His mission is clear and I have no doubt that it is just. We would all do whatever it took if in his shoes.

My issue is an entirely different one. I am not Ukrainian and, while I care, I feel very strongly that our government's primary responsibility is to run this country. A country in which people are experiencing desperate poverty right now. I am shocked by the increase in homelessness during this extremely cold winter. I fear for everyone with carefully balanced finances, working themselves to the bone to keep paying their utility bills.

While I have some sympathy with the slippery slope argument here regarding Putin invading Poland, I can also see huge flaws in this and regard it as tangential to the main issues. Ukraine is worthy of international support in its own right, regardless of whether it is a frontline to Europe. However, for me the affordability of our support is a major issue, both in terms of taxpayers' money being spent on a foreign war and in terms of specialist military equipment that represent major investments in our national infrastructure, procured because it was deemed necessary for the protection on our own country.

Proportionally, we have punched above our weight in our support of Ukraine and it is time other European countries upped their game.

Say what you think of him by all means, but having a go at him because of his height makes you look pretty awful.

so you’re saying you think the Russian invasion is an ethical upgrade? Really?

and you’re happy for it to creep into the rest of Europe are you?

What do you think he should do?

⚡️ ⚡️ ⚡️ 🤖🤖🤖⚡️⚡️⚡️ <fail> -// report to master//

So he should just step back and tell Russia to take over should he?

What a stupid comment.

Must admit I was really concerned after a news piece on Ukraine a few weeks ago. I can’t remember in what circumstances it was uncovered but investigators had found widespread instances of severely physically and mentally disabled people of varying ages, institutionalised, tied to beds and cots, and showing signs of long term neglect. It was reminiscent of something from the beginning of the last century and I found it really disturbing that a modern country could treat vulnerable people like this in the 21st century. Made me wonder what else was being kept under wraps. After Putin’s warning that they’re planning something big for the first anniversary of the invasion, I suspect the plan is to bomb Ukraine to the negotiating table. No fan of Putin, but there will have to be some kind of negotiation to end the conflict because like it or not Putin won’t back down, so why wait until untold numbers of people have died before trying to find a way forward. I’ve had the feeling for some time that Zelenskyy is prepared to take this all the way to nuclear confrontation, and if that happens nobody wins.

Hmm it's corrupt partly because of russian rule in the sense that the ruble crash of the late 90s gave rise to the oligarchs. In both Russia and to a greater or lesser degree in ex soviet countries like Ukraine.

When the crash happened, the west pulled out of Bear Country (having previously inflated it) and left it to fend for itself. The people who are now known as oligarchs had previously acquired valuable assets like banks and utilities stepped into the gap and cashed in. I mean they liquidated assets and took the cash, by the million. Zelensky (or at least his chum komoloisky acting in his business interest) was just one of them.

So yeah he's part of a wider regional picture but the corruption in Ukraine is directly down to him. It's not some abstract feature that got visited on him just because he's near Russia. He actively crashed assets and pocketed the cash

You realise Russia is our biggest threat and by collectively curtailing them in Ukraine we are making much better use of our resources.

No, I think it’s closer to the truth that the rest of the world isn’t helping Ukraine for entirely altruistic reasons. We’re being generous because it’s a proxy war.

"So yeah he's part of a wider regional picture but the corruption in Ukraine is directly down to him."

Every Ukrainian I know would strongly disagree with this. Corruption in Ukraine was much worse under the recent Russia-backed governments, which the Ukrainians ousted. Unlike the Russian people, they were not happy with the widespread corruption taking place in Parliament and actually revolted, insisting on having a government that was more inclined toward Europe.

My older Ukrainian relatives speak of commonplace corruption (e.g. giving cognac to a doctor to get treatment) as something that has been persisting since Soviet times, and is now finally improving as the country uprooted Russia-backed politicians.

FFS 🙄

Well if you have a feeling .... 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

Slightly off topic but if we really do have a bunch of Putin's People here then I may as well get a FREE ALEXEI NAVALNY in while I can...

Seriously? Are you not embarrassed to type this?

“Until war broke out Ukraine was recognised as one of the most corrupt countries in the world for both money laundering and the trafficking of women.”

Is Zelensky’s whole platform not based on standing up to corruption though?

I don’t find the ukrainian president charming at all. She actually gives me the creeps

@HikingforScenery

Oh no, Zelensky’s trans too?

I agree with you OP

@ReleaseTheDucksOfWar Before the war broke out we were told that we were completely and utterly broke and so there was no money for any of those domestic concerns. But then suddenly there was money for Ukraine. In all honesty a lot of our domestic problems are not just caused by a shortage of money and cannot be easily fixed by an injection of money. Also, I am all for digging deep to provide some help in a crisis, particularly on the humanitarian side. I don't support is the donation of our fighter jets. And I don't support the view that Ukraine and Russia should not talk until Russia leaves.

Robust diplomacy alongside the ongoing war could be extremely powerful. It is worth remembering that Russia's argument for annexing Crimea was that the population is Russian. In the modern world this argument doesn't wash. Ethnostates are increasingly a thing of the past and half the Ukrainian population (including many who want Ukrainian independence) speak Russian as their first language. But through diplomacy it might be possible to find a way of persuading Russia they can leave with their integrity sufficiently intact for it not to be a total humiliation in the eyes of their people. E.g. they secure the place of the Russian language in education (Russian language schools were banned). It might not work but failure to try is a lost opportunity.

I have been on the fence about him from the beginning, after my SIL returned to the UK after visiting her folks in Hungary at the start of the invasion and she couldn't believe all of the love for Zelenski .
She had a lot to say about him and the Ukraine.
All I know is that I would rather have him, inside my tent pissing out, than what would have in this situation 🫣. Can you imagine?

That poster probably thinks Putin's assassination attempts on Zelenskyy should have succeeded ;)

I'm not sure why people are saying Poland will be next. So far as I know Poland does not have a significant Russian minority, nor does it have a strategically important port that has been in Russian possession for centuries, nor does it share a border with Russia. Also by attacking Poland, a NATO member, Russia would be starting WW3. I'd be more concerned about Finland and the Baltic states. In the former case they are not yet NATO members.

I don’t think that is the reason for the ‘generosity’…

I would be more embarrassed about being so joyless and offended by harmless jokey comment tbh. Laughter makes the world go round, you might want to try it some time 😉

Sounds like you've been smoking something interesting. How could you miss the fact that Putin prefers his media appearances either in a civilan suit, or on rare occasions half-naked?