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| Russian tanks in Ukraine, 2022 |
With that, there are some lessons that we can both learn from this war, and World War 2.
A) You cannot take peace for granted
Just like how World War 2 exploded in Europe, Asia and Africa, the Russian invasion of the Ukraine seemingly happened out of the blue.
As such, Ukraine did not mobilised its armed forces until the invasion as they thought that Russia was just posturing. In addition, Ukraine had given up its nuclear weapons with the assurance that its allies would protect them.
As of this writing, no country has dispatched soldiers to help Ukraine. The only help they received was money and equipment.
B) You cannot have a world where "might is right"
We have seen how World War 2 started. Germany used force to demand land from Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland. Italy invaded Ethiopia. Japan crossed Chinese borders.
This infractions led to the affected countries pulling in their allies to into their region conflicts and then it escalated into a global war.
With the development of nuclear weapons, we cannot afford another similar international conflict. As the international community, we should demand and expect that countries follow international laws and treaties.
Conclusion
Ultimately, each country is responsible for their own defences. The message of Total Defence still rings true today.
Si vis pacem, para bellum (If you want peace, prepare for war)
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