Editor’s Note: This new opinion feature separates Ukraine’s friends from its enemies The Order of Yaroslav the Wise has been given by Ukrainian presidents since 1995 for distinguished service to the nation. It is named after the Kyivan Rus leader from 1019-1054, when the medieval empire reached its zenith. The Order of Lenin was the highest decoration bestowed by the Soviet Union, whose demise Russian President Vladimir Putin mourns. It is named after Vladimir Lenin, whose corpse is still rotting on the Kremlin’s Red Square, 100 years after the October Revolution he led.
Ben Sasse
Sometimes it’s best just to let the politicians say it themselves, so here is Ukraine’s friend of the week, U. S. Sen. Ben Sasse (Republican-Nebraska), with his reaction to U. S. President Donald J. Trump’s “respect” for war criminal Vladimir Putin.
“The U. S. affirms freedom of speech. Putin is no friend of freedom of speech.
“Putin is an enemy of freedom of religion. The U. S. celebrates freedom of religion.
“Putin is an enemy of the free press. The U. S. celebrates free press.
“Putin is an enemy of political dissent. The U. S. celebrates political dissent and the right for people to argue free from violence about places or ideas that are in conflict.
“There is no moral equivalency between the United States of America, the greatest freedom living nation in the history of the world and the murderous thugs that are in Putin’s defense of his cronyism.
“I don’t understand what the president’s position is on Russia, but I can tell you what my position is on Russia.
“Russia is a great danger to a lot of its neighbors and Putin has, as one of his core objectives, fracturing NATO, which is one of the greatest military alliances in the history of the world. And so Putin is a mess. He’s committed all sorts of murderous thuggery. And I am opposed to the way Putin conducts himself in world affairs and I hope that the president also wants to show moral leadership about this issue.”
Bravo! For this strong moral stand, the senator from “The Cornhusker State” deserves the Order of Yaroslav the Wise.
Order of Yaroslav The Wise
Viktor Orban
Ukraine has more than one neighboring country ruled by a hostile leader. While no one can compete with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s attempt to dismember Ukraine, Hungary’s autocratic Prime Minister Viktor Orban is no friend of Ukraine.
The former anti-communist crusader turned communist retrograde endorsed Donald J. Trump as president and bashes the European Union, to which his nation of 10 million people is fortunate enough to belong, along with NATO. He is also no friend of a free press and human rights.
He welcomed Putin with open arms recently to Budapest on Feb. 2. Since Hungary gets 75 percent of its oil and 60 percent of its natural gas from Russia, some bootlicking was expected. But Orban showed his subservience when he answered a Russian journalist’s questions about who is to blame for the recent spike in violence in Russia’s war.
He mouthed platitudes about stability and implementing the Minsk peace agreements. Then he went on to complain that the Hungarian-speaking minority in Ukraine is being discriminated against.
He is a gutless wonder. He didn’t even have the moral courage to at least repeat the EU position that Russia is the aggressor and Ukraine is the victim and that Russia needs to get out of Ukraine, return Crimea, and respect the nation’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.
For reprehensible behavior, the Kyiv Post awards Orban the Order of Lenin award for being pals with the KGB war criminal. You’re a rotten neighbor, Orban, and I’m sure Ukraine will remember this if your tiny country is unfortunate enough to get invaded.
Order of Lenin
