by Hugh Murray
On 1 August
1944 in the midst of WWII a revolt in Warsaw began against the German
occupiers. The Soviet Army had advanced
to the edges of Warsaw, and the Polish Home Guard hoped to liberate the city
and establish and independent Polish authority before the pro-Communist group
supported by Stalin arrived. The
rebellion began, and they expected help from the advancing Soviet troops. But Stalin sent no planes to help. His troops sat and watched. Eventually, they occupied the eastern side of
the Vistula, but provided almost no aid to the Polish rebels. British and American planes flew over and
dropped supplies, but Stalin would not allow these planes to land on Soviet
fields. In two months, the Polish forces
were defeated by the Germans. Only then
did the Soviets then renew their offensive into the rest of Poland. Although Soviet radio had called for the
uprising in August 1944, Stalin did nothing to help it, and his forces watched
while Axis forces destroyed the Polish Home Guard and much of the city of
Warsaw.
Will Putin
stand idly by while another rebellion occurs in eastern Ukraine? When the Western inspired rebels took control
in Kiev and proclaimed themselves as the government of the entire Ukraine, the
rebel group quickly passed legislation restricting the Russian language and
sought to discriminate against the large Russian population in eastern
Ukraine. This led to a pro-Russian
revolt in Crimea, and the annexation of that province back into Russia by Putin.
Clearly
many in the east and south prefer Russia to the Kiev coup crowd that pretends
to be the government. In Donetsk,
Kharkov, Slavyansk, Odessa, and other areas of eastern and southern Ukraine,
pro-Russian rebels have seized Ukrainian government buildings and these rebels
demand annexation into Russia, or an independent state against Kiev. Meanwhile, the Kiev coup clan has sent
Ukrainian forces to suppress the rebellion.
Over 30 pro-Russian rebels were burnt to death in a building in one
city, and shootings between rebels and the Kiev coup soldiers have mounting
casualties.
Will Putin
now do nothing, and watch the murder and oppression of the pro-Russian elements
in parts of Ukraine? Will he simply wait
and wait, while more rebels are murdered, and worse, their families
demoralized? Will Putin, with all his
powerful forces simply watch while those who favor Russia are destroyed? If he waits too long, and the pro-Russians
are decimated, those same, pro-Russian groups will feel betrayed by Putin. Even if Russian troops eventually invade, if they invade
too late, the pro-Russian population, the people who have suffered the brunt of
the Kiev invaders, will no longer be enthusiastic for Russia. They will feel betrayed; help that came too
late; too late to save so many patriotic Russians.
Stalin sat
idly by as Warsaw burned. But one can
argue, he had political reasons to see the destruction of the pro-Western
Polish Home Guard. Putin has no
excuse. If Putin is to save his people, he must act and soon. If one
has power, sees a murder, and does nothing to stop it, he is in some ways
guilty too. Putin must act to prevent
many more murders in the Ukraine. And he
must act SOON. Stalin had an
excuse to do nothing. Putin has no excuse. His troops must move soon to help their compatriots in Ukraine.
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