The United States Abandons Ukraine
Voting with dictatorial states like Iran, Russia, and North Korea, The United States has refused to condemn Russia for invading Ukraine.
In yet another display of the compromised state of the current administration, the United States officially refused to condemn Russia for its illegal invasion of Ukraine. The 180-degree switch to defend Russia’s abuse of a sovereign nation is a stain on America.
The Betrayal
Earlier this Monday, February 24th, The Washington Post reported that the United States delegation to the United Nations voted against a resolution which would have condemned Russia for its invasion of Ukraine and called for the return of Ukrainian territory.1 In addition, the U.S. delegation abstained from voting on its own resolution, calling for an end to the war after pressuring Kyiv to tune down its own resolution.2 Thankfully, the resolution still passed without us, but the move is not only a stunning reversal of American policy —a policy that has worked to protect Ukrainian democracy from Russian interference—but is also a clear sign of capitulation to Russia’s desire for a sphere of influence over its neighbors even as it violates international law and human rights. It is hardly a surprise, therefore, to see that the Trump administration is also moving to remove sanctions against Russia, even with an ICC warrant out for Vladimir Putin’s arrest. 3
As the Post explains:
Trump has blamed Ukraine for starting the war, called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a “dictator,” spoken directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin about normalizing Washington-Moscow relations and implied that strong U.S. sanctions against Russia over Ukraine may be lifted. 4
To suggest that Zelenskyy is a dictator while avoiding applying the same title to Vladimir Putin — who has been President of Russia for nearly 25 years—is an absurdity. Zelenskyy was elected in 2019 with 73 percent of the vote compared to incumbent president Petro Poroshenko, who received 24 percent.5 While elections haven’t been held since Russia’s invasion, this is not because of Ukraine falling into dictatorship. Rather, the Ukrainian Constitution and law prohibit elections when the country is under martial law, and it has been that way since at least 2015 when the Ukrainian Parliament clarified the nature of martial law in Ukraine. 6 7 8 Ukraine has been under martial law since Russia invaded in 2022, and as a result, it can’t legally hold elections until the war is over.
This law predates Zelenskyy’s presidency and can’t be used as a pretext to portray the Ukrainian government as a dictatorship, especially since Putin hasn’t had a single free and fair election in decades.9 The Trump administration’s characterization of a major ally is not only at odds with reality, it is a complete and total betrayal of an administration that has done nothing but fight to protect its citizens in spite of an entire wing of our political system being too weak to stand up for what is clearly right and true: Putin is a war criminal and the aggressor. Through its failure to call out Trump and his Putin-loving administration, the Republicans have demonstrated, once again, how hollow their principles are. 10
Conclusion
While the United States—under the leadership of the chief Putin-lover himself—has decided to abdicate its responsibility in the largest war in Europe since the Second World War, the rest of Europe is left to support Ukraine against Russian aggression. This decision by the Trump administration sends a clear message to the world: the United States government can’t be counted on to defend its allies, and the world will be worse off because of it.
Karen DeYoung, et al., “U.S. Votes against U.N. Resolution Condemning Russia for Ukraine War,” Washington Post, February 24, 2025, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/02/24/united-nations-ukraine-russia-trump/.
Siobhán O’Grady et al., “U.S. Pressures Kyiv to Replace U.N. Resolution Condemning Russia,” Washington Post, February 22, 2025, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/02/22/ukraine-war-un-resolution-trump/.
Raf Casert and Mike Corder, “ICC Issues Arrest Warrant for Putin over Ukraine War Crimes | AP News,” The Associated Press, March 17, 2023, https://apnews.com/article/icc-putin-war-crimes-ukraine-9857eb68d827340394960eccf0589253.
Karen DeYoung, et al., “U.S. Votes against U.N. Resolution Condemning Russia for Ukraine War,” Washington Post, February 24, 2025..
“Ukraine Election: Comedian Zelensky Wins Presidency by Landslide,” BBC News, April 21, 2019, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48007487.
“CONSTITUTION OF UKRAINE,” Council of Europe, 1996, https://rm.coe.int/constitution-of-ukraine/168071f58b.
Anna Rascouët-Paz, “Ukraine Isn’t Holding Elections. Here’s Why,” Fact-Checker, Snopes, February 21, 2025, https://www.snopes.com//news/2025/02/21/ukraine-elections-war/.
“Про Правовий Режим Воєнного... | Від 12.05.2015 № 389-VIII,” Verkhovna Rada, 2015, https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/389-19#Text.
Jennifer Borresen et al., “How Long Has Putin Been President? How Russian Elections Work,” USA Today, March 18, 2024, https://www.usatoday.com/story/graphics/2024/03/14/russian-presidential-elections-explained/72947914007/.
John M. Donnelly, “Republicans Mostly Mum on Trump’s Upending of Russia Policy,” Roll Call, February 24, 2025, https://rollcall.com/2025/02/24/republicans-mostly-mum-on-trumps-upending-of-russia-policy/.