Article 51 of the United Nations Charter stipulates that: “Nothing in the present Charter shall impair the inherent right of individual or collective self-defense if an armed attack occurs against a Member of the United Nations …”.
As a member of the United Nations under an armed attack, Ukraine is entitled to that inherent right of self-defense and all other UN member states, respecting both the letter and the spirit of the United Nations Charter, should not only refrain from impairing that right, but actually help Ukraine uphold it.
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This approach is more than warranted when one considers the fact that Ukraine has been defending its territorial integrity and that of Europe for the last decade.
It is also in the best interests of NATO member countries for Ukraine to stop Putin in his tracks since the Kremlin’s imperialist plans have an outreach far beyond Ukraine. Indeed, on March 7, 2024, U.S. President Joe Biden made that abundantly clear in his State of the Union Address: “Overseas, Putin of Russia is on the march, invading Ukraine and sowing chaos throughout Europe and beyond. If anybody in this room thinks Putin will stop at Ukraine, I assure you, he will not. But Ukraine can stop Putin if we stand with Ukraine and provide the weapons it needs to defend itself. That is all Ukraine is asking”.
If the West really wants Ukraine to stop Russia’s genocidal war and persistent threat to European peace and security, then it must do more than just help Ukraine not lose this war. The West must genuinely help Ukraine to win it soon.
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Ukraine’s successful incursion into Russia’s Kursk region exposed Russia’s vulnerability and demonstrated that with effective, as opposed to belated and incremental, Western support, Ukraine can succeed and quash Russia’s imperialist plans.
With that goal in mind, the West must provide Ukraine with the necessary weapons, including those with long range capabilities, to protect its airspace, liberate its territories and protect its and, by the same token, Europe’s territorial integrity.
Moreover, the West must lift its self-defeating restrictions and allow Ukraine to use Western supplied weapons to neutralize military and other strategic installations inside Russia that are being used by its military to kill and injure Ukrainian civilians, including children, and destroy Ukraine’s civil infrastructure, hospitals and schools.
On June 13, 2024, ahead of a meeting of NATO Ministers of Defense in Brussels, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg publicly stated that: “According to international law, Ukraine has the right to self-defense and the right of self-defense includes also striking legitimate military targets on the territory of the aggressor, Russia. If they were not able to do so, then we would actually ask them to try to defend themselves, uphold the right of self-defense with one hand tied on their back. Self Defense is not escalation. Self-Defense is a right enshrined in the UN Charter. And we have the right to help Ukraine uphold the right.”
The sooner the West fully exercises its right to help Ukraine uphold the right of self-defense, the sooner Ukraine will put an end to Russia’s daily campaign of terror and carnage, which will ultimately ensure peace and security in Europe.
The views expressed are the author’s and not necessarily of Kyiv Post.
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