Ukraine reminds us that the ideas upon which the West was founded — freedom, democracy, rule of law, self-determination — are still values to which others aspire and for which they are willing to give their lives – write Marc Grossman and Dan Fata
Today, there is much talk about how the West should respond to Russia’s invasion of Crimea and rightly so. Ukraine is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation’s partnership for peace and sent troops to fight in Afghanistan. The current focus is on deterring further Russian incursions, getting economic support to the new Ukrainian government, avoiding a shooting war with Moscow and encouraging Ukrainians to create a society that respects its history, ethnicities and languages.
But beyond the discussion of military alerts, sanctions, and visa controls, events in Kiev and Crimea also offer a chance for a strategic reassessment both within the NATO alliance and the broader transatlantic community. A spectre of doubt has recently haunted the West. Can our values compete in a world of globalising ‘authoritarian democracies’? Is democracy fated to partisan inaction? Does a commitment to the sanctity of the individual stand a chance against extremists who promote a suicide-bombing perversion of this belief?
Ukraine reminds us that the ideas upon which the West was founded — freedom, democracy, rule of law, self-determination — are still values to which others aspire and for which they are willing to give their lives. When former President Viktor Yanukovych decided that Moscow’s domestic and international design was Ukraine’s destiny, Ukrainians poured into Kiev’s Independence Square to show that their future was theirs to decide as free people. Many died seeking to live by values that too many in the West today doubt. Their sacrifice is a message for us: values matter. The best way we can honour them is by recommitting ourselves to promoting, defending, and expanding those values.
How can we do that with a longer term, strategic perspective? A first step is to create a relevant and robust vision for NATO. At the next NATO Summit in Wales, United States President Barack Obama has the chance to lay out a vision for the alliance and America’s role in Europe. Former NATO Secretary General Lord Carrington liked to say “you don’t stop paying your fire insurance just because you’ve never had a fire”. There will be serious issues to debate and decide including questions about enlargement, the lessons learned from Afghanistan and the Balkans, and the alliance’s credibility in a world of austerity.
Second, there is a need for a transatlantic energy strategy that reduces the possibility of energy blackmail. This is not a new idea: former US Senator Richard Lugar has long urged NATO to consider energy as a security issue, memorably in a speech at a German Marshall Fund of the United States conference in Riga in December 2006. Diversity of supply was a motivating factor in American support for the Baku-Tiblisi-Ceyhan pipeline. Europeans have reduced their dependence of Russian gas. But more that can be done, such as resurrecting Western support for an East-West energy corridor connecting the Caucasus and Central Asia to world markets and approving the Keystone pipeline as part of a renewed commitment to the North American Energy Initiative with Canada and Mexico.
The United States should move as quickly as possible to export US natural gas in order to increase world supply and reduce the chances of Gazprom blackmail. The US Department of State is already helping Ukraine and other European countries build up natural gas storage and find gas supplies in Africa. While they will not solve today’s challenge, such American energy action sends a strong signal about the changing global gas market.
Third, we can honour our values and the EuroMaidan protesters by recognising the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership for what it is: a strategic investment in the economic and political future of the West. Europe and the United States should complete TTIP negotiations as soon as possible and not let tactical disagreements stop governments from launching what may be the most strategically profound response to Russia’s actions. President Obama can lead this effort by speaking up for TTIP in his talks with world leaders, at the NATO Summit, and at home, including with leaders in Congress who should be persuaded to pass fast track trade promotion authority.
In recent weeks, many Ukrainians risked their lives — and too many lost their lives — because they were attracted to a future based on values the West strives to achieve. It is possible to demonstrate the US and Western world’s commitment to those values without a military confrontation or by neglecting Russian-speaking Ukrainians. We can do so by standing up for the Ukrainian people’s right to live in freedom and choose their alliances and associations. We can also make the strategic choices necessary — at NATO, in our energy policies and by promoting our prosperity — to strengthen our ability to defend these common ideals.
Ambassador Marc Grossman is vice chairman of The Cohen Group and was United States under secretary of state for political affairs from 2001 to 2005. He is also a trustee of the German Marshall Fund of the United States think-tank. Dan Fata is a fellow at GMFUS, which first published this article as part of its Transatlantic Take series: Recommit to transatlantic ideals: thinking beyond deployments, sanctions and visa bans in Ukraine
