Before Russia’s genocidal invasion, Ukraine was a safe and peaceful place to live.
However, millions of Ukrainians have been forced to flee Russia’s targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure with long-distance missiles and drones and the systematic theft, rape, torture, and murder prevalent under Russian occupation.
Congress approved Uniting For Ukraine and the Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act. Many Ukrainians applied for these programs, paid the fee, and found sponsorship. They then spent their savings to travel here, found schools for their kids, and found tax-paying jobs. Some started businesses or bought homes.
Sending Ukrainians back into a warzone while we deny their country the arsenal of democracy or even warning them of impending missile and drone attacks is unbelievably immoral and cruel.
The U.S. is supposed to be a guarantor of human rights and democratic values, not an enabler of the mass murder of innocent people.
President Trump should clearly and unequivocally direct his party to support the extension of Ukrainians’ Temporary Protected Status, provide guarantees that Ukrainians will not be deported, and reaffirm that the US remains the leader of the free world and supports the victims of aggression.
Appeasement does not work. Putin, like other dictators who drove their tanks into Europe and began annexing territories, will always see America as a threat. President Trump should commit the U.S. to securing a just and enduring peace for Ukraine and reaffirm the post-WWII trans-Atlantic partnership to deter Russia and China from future aggression.
Jonathan Freedman, Utah Ukrainian Association, a nonprofit aiding Ukraine and Ukrainians since 2014, Salt Lake City
