Republicans do Putin’s bidding as dictator plots demise of democracy

Sunday, April 21, 2024 | 2 a.m.

The United States’ responsibility to defend Ukraine and counter Russian aggression is no longer open for debate. It’s a matter of U.S. national security, European security and our only hope to avoid returning to the precipice of global warfare not seen since the end of the WWII.

According to a classified Russian Foreign Ministry document obtained by The Washington Post, Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to form a new axis of anti-democratic countries who will work together to weaken the United States and our allies while laying siege to the world as we know it.

The document, dated April 11, 2023, calls for a campaign that simultaneously attacks “the military-political, economic and trade, and informational psychological spheres” of “unfriendly countries led by the United States.” It confirms a strategy that intelligence officials have long suspected, but which is only now coming into clear focus — in part because of waning support for Ukraine among Russia-friendly Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives.

In multiple votes on Friday and Saturday, House Democrats rescued House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., from his own party by providing the votes needed to pass military aid packages for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan.

The bipartisan votes were lambasted by Republican Freedom Caucus extremists who would rather light a match and watch the world burn than do the hard work of governing. In the aftermath, Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., joined the growing chorus of GOP extremists threatening to oust Johnson from the speakership because he dared to work with Democrats for the good of the country rather than for the good of Donald Trump.

Unfortunately, the new aid packages may be too little too late, as much of the damage from the months-long standoff has already occurred.

For weeks, Russia has used Iranian-made missiles, glide bombs and drones to bombard Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure in a campaign designed to target civilians while increasing the financial burden of the war as much as possible. The Russians clearly are betting on those members of Congress who operate as their puppets to delay and deny as much support as possible.

Ukraine is fighting valiantly but with dwindling supplies of weapons and ammunition, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is struggling just to keep the lights on — the Kyiv region’s largest thermal power plant was destroyed because the Ukrainian military ran out of interceptor missiles to defend critical infrastructure. Bluntly, innocent civilians are dying and power is cut to cities because of the pro-Putin faction in Congress slowing aid.

While they wait for House Republicans to grow up and govern, some allies in NATO are contributing quite literally everything they have to Ukraine’s defense. Denmark, for example, has agreed to provide its entire current stockpile of artillery shells.

The Czech Republic, which was once a major supplier of weapons and equipment to the Soviet Union, has been working tirelessly to find old stockpiles and modernize its production facilities. The country has already committed to providing 500,000 artillery shells to the Ukrainian war effort. Given time, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said Prague could supply up to 1.5 million shells per year.

Meantime, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met with the leaders of multiple NATO member nations this week as he desperately tries to find artillery shells and Patriot air-defense systems for Kyiv – even if it means weakening the defenses of the alliance’s own member nations.

“My message is clear,” Stoltenberg told the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Trudy Rubin, “Send more to Ukraine.”

With only three Patriot systems, Ukraine has less than half of the seven it needs just to defend major cities. Civilian lives are at risk because Putin is eager for civilian deaths. Germany is sending one more Patriot system but with the U.S. in control of more Patriot batteries than any other country in the world, it’s pathetic that we’ve been unable to provide additional defense systems.

While the European countries’ support is noble, they can’t fill the gaps left by the lack of reliable ongoing U.S. support, especially with Putin working steadfastly to achieve the goals outlined in the classified foreign ministry document.

There is a new axis in the world that consists of Russia, China, Iran and North Korea, and the enemies of this axis are any democracies and any rules-based order in the world. Especially the United States. This was demonstrated last week when Russia vetoed an extension of U.N. monitoring of sanctions against North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.

Think about that for a moment. Putin is willing to let North Korea have nuclear missiles if it means the destruction of the West.

The Kremlin is also ramping up cyberattacks on the West, spreading disinformation that seeks to subvert Western support for Ukraine and disrupt domestic politics within NATO member nations.

By flexing its muscle and exerting influence on a global stage, Russia is signaling to dictators around the world that they have a friend in the Kremlin, opening the door to greater Russian influence in the Middle East, Africa, and Central and South America — another part of the strategy laid out in the classified document.

Among the strategies suggested in the document are for Russia to “continue to facilitate the coming to power of isolationist right-wing forces in America,” “escalate the situation in the Middle East around Israel, Iran and Syria to distract the U.S. with the problems of this region,” and “stoke conflict between the United States and China over Taiwan to bring Russia and China closer together.” Each of those strategies appears to be in motion, with House Republicans serving as perfect puppets for Putin’s campaign against the West.

The classified Russian Foreign Ministry document has laid bare Putin’s plans for world domination. Americans should listen and remember that the destruction of Ukraine will only embolden other dictators to join Vladimir Putin’s axis of autocracy, putting the lives of U.S. soldiers and civilians — as well as our allies — at risk.

U.S. aid for Ukraine is needed now, as is the ouster of Republican extremists who have infiltrated Congress to do Russia’s bidding.