To look at it, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was not a total shocker because of its historical ties and shared Soviet history. For Russia, Ukraine was a way to regain its lost glory at the peak of the Soviet expansion. However, a more strategic and immediate reason for Russia’s invasion lies in the eastward expansion of NATO and the pro-western stance of the current Ukrainian government, which Russia considers a threat lurking on its borders.
On the other hand, a poll conducted by the International Republican Institute revealed that Ukrainians perceive Russia as an imperial power seeking to trample on their sovereignty and territorial integrity, with nearly 80 per cent of the population wanting to join the European Union. The world is still coming to terms with Russia’s Ukrainian invasion and the scale of the consequent humanitarian catastrophe. On February 24, 2022, in a televised address, Putin ordered military tanks to run over Ukraine in a “special military operation” to “de-Nazify” the Ukrainian army and subsequently shift the country’s pro-western stance towards Russia. At first, it seemed to be an easy and smooth win. However, the swift response from a unified west and commendable resistance from the Ukrainian army and its people prolonged the war. At this juncture, the war entered its 120th day on June 23, with Russia gaining some ground in Eastern Ukraine, accompanied by domestic economic pressure.
Amidst this ongoing crisis for over 120 days now, one thing that has seen the light of day is the idea of “western unification,” which has been otherwise absent since World War II. Until now, Europe has been relatively dispersed due to economic, refugee, and sovereignty crises – also due to the Trump era’s policies and abrupt withdrawal from international agreements. With the coming of the Biden administration in the 2020 presidential elections, the US has rekindled its relations with the European Union, which has also strengthened the western response to the current Russia-Ukraine war. The ongoing war is being perceived as a collective threat by Europe, much as witnessed the last time in the 1940s. In this context, this article examines the western response during World War II and compares it to the recent Russia-Ukraine war. The West appears to be accentuating itself in a new avatar under the leadership of its hegemon, the United States. By implication, the US’s role in the currently emerging western unification in the contemporary context deserves a deeper analysis. Also, in light of the NATO chief’s prediction that the war might last for years, it becomes critical to analyze the western response as a hegemon.
US/WESTERN RESPONSE: NOW vs. THEN
To understand the phenomenon of western unification in the present context of the Russia-Ukraine war, revisiting events in World War II becomes germane. In its Milestones series, the Office of the Historian wrote that after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, the US came out of its “deep isolationist” policy and directly intervened in the war. The Allies, namely the US, the UK, and the Soviet Union, provided collective leadership in the war against Hitler’s Germany. The role of the United States, however, is central to the argument because it united the West against a common enemy perceived as a threat to the liberal international order. The centrality emerges from the fact that no European country acted against Hitler and his expansionary policies until 1939, when he forced Europe into the war. Even though it entered the main stage, the US later provided leadership and military assistance to the war-torn UK and France and marshalled a great show of unity against the Axis forces. The US supported the war effort indirectly through the Cash and Carry system, Lend-Lease, and by extending military aid to allies in Europe. When Japan attacked the US, it only started a massive mobilisation effort by sending its armies to overseas nations.
As one reads the current crisis, the situation is more or less similar. The White House, in its briefing room statements and releases on April 6, emphasized that the US is orchestrating a common western front by remaining in constant contact with European leaders and officials while working on joint sanctions against the visible threat of Russia. Although the US was directly involved in the war effort during World War II, it has relied on sanctions rather than direct intervention in today’s scenario. However, trends such as European leaders’ inability to act against Hitler during WWII because of their vested interests were visible in the ongoing crisis. For instance, though Germany took swift action against Russia’s uncalled aggression, it took time to consider its energy dependence and the Nord Stream Project. Similarly, France’s hypocrisy of not using the term “genocide” to describe the war crimes in Ukraine came up.
In this context, the US has pushed itself as a hegemonic power upon which most European countries have depended since WWII for their security. The US has succeeded in rallying like-minded democracies on its side in a battle to save freedom, sovereignty, democracy, and human rights. In its response, the Council of the European Union, in its policy brief, stated that the European Union has worked with the US administration and officials to introduce hard-hitting sanctions against Russian leaders, oligarchs, banks, and brands. Germany has increased its defense budget to 2% of GDP, Switzerland has abandoned its neutral stance, and Finland and Sweden applied to join NATO on May 18 to protect themselves from potential Russian aggression.The western front imposed sweeping sanctions and banned Russia’s central bank, Sberbank, from SWIFT payments, adversely impacting Russia’s economy. Despite the sanctions, Russia is in a position to dictate its terms because of heavy European dependence on Russia’s oil and gas imports. To curb the dependence and become more assertive in handling the crisis, the European Union has planned to ebb off EU imports of Russian crude oil for six months. All this has come to be true because of the US’s efforts to revitalize its swaying influence among European nations to counterbalance the threat of Russia. Unsurprisingly, the US will respond actively to the reports of missing US veterans who joined the Ukrainian forces to fight alongside them.
THE IMPORTANCE OF WESTERN UNIFICATION
The West has unified at a time when it is facing an existential threat in the face of a changing world order across the globe. Its unification and realisation of collective defense are particularly significant in the revitalisation of NATO across Europe and, with NATO, the resurgence of American hegemonic control over the western hemisphere. In the past few years, there have been endless questions about the abating US influence over continental Europe and its over-dependence on China and Russia in trade matters. However, with the Russia-Ukraine conflict getting prolonged, the US might just have gained its previous position as a net security provider to Europe and might as well reassert its commitments towards protecting Europe through NATO. Western unification is also very relevant in the Russia-Ukraine conflict because of the threat to the whole of continental Europe from common aggressors, like China. Under the leadership of the US, the European countries have come together to secure themselves from China’s territorial expansionist ambitions, while France and Germany face the threat of a “resurgent Russia.”
In a nutshell, Putin’s war on Ukraine has shaken western civilisation, which was traumatized after witnessing a substantial number of European, white-skinned refugees flow towards their borders. Western civilisation is also under threat from China’s aggressive expansionism and needs an urgent resurgence. At this point, the conflict in Eastern Europe has given a ray of hope for countries to unite against a common aggressor in a World War II style and project it as a triumph of “western civilization.” Although the countries have not been able to capitalize on the initiative they took in the form of sanctions, it has nevertheless brought together a relatively dispersed Europe, as compared to the pre-globalization era, under a common umbrella of unification led by the United States of America. The US is cementing the “idea of the west” in a contemporary setting by emphasising, through its supposed unity, that the West is still there.
Yuvraj Pokharna is an independent journalist and columnist. Shivam Tiwary is a graduate of Journalism and is pursuing his Masters in International Studies. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not represent the stand of this publication.
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