Errors made by Great Power between 1918 and 1945 that resemble errors being made by NATO and by Russia nowadays

Essay

Errors made by Great Power between 1918 and 1945 that resemble errors being made by NATO and by Russia nowadays

History changes each century but during all of them we can notice some similar events so we can think that history gives us the possibility not to make the same mistakes. Nobody can predict how similar the situation is going to be with any situation from past times. Usually people analyze and compare situations only after they have happened. That is why I don’t think that people have to predict error and prevent the commission of this error. Now we have to interesting situations to compare – errors between 1918 and 1945 that resemble errors being made by NATO and by Russia nowadays. These errors are quite different but they can be compared. In my opinion, the most important difference is that both errors of all coalitions in 1914 and in 1939 turned to World Wars and I hope that modern events in Ukraine won’t have such errors which will cause a new World War. That is one of the most serious reasons to analyze old errors and try to avoid them in our time. It can help us to prevent a big political disaster.

Firstly, I would like to analyze Russia’s errors because Russia is the main acting figure in this conflict. One of Russia’s mistakes is that Russia invaded to Ukraine. The Ukrainian side promised to join NATO and return Crimea by military means, the President of Ukraine Zelensky declared many provocative intentions, which were only in verbal form. Russia succumbed to the provocation and decided to respond to the words with actions. Another important mistake is the inability to prevent a military conflict through peaceful negotiations. This is reminiscent of the mistake of all countries at once in the First and Second World Wars. It is very important to find a way to solve the problem peacefully, perhaps sometimes the best option is to solve it by armed means, but in the case of the situation in Ukraine, it was possible to find a peaceful way to solve the problem. An important role was played here by the President of Ukraine, who not only provoked Russia, but also showed the absence of any intentions to contact Russia and decided to hold peace talks only after hostilities began. But it is wrong to say that this is only Russia's mistake, because, in my opinion, Ukraine was more interested in good relations with the Russian Federation.

Also among the mistakes of Russia, I attribute the fact that Russia is conducting offensive activities throughout the territory of Ukraine. Russia's initial goal in this conflict was to conduct a special operation to protect the population in the Donbas and Lugansk, but Russia has not stopped in these areas and continues its offensive activities throughout the country. Perhaps it is debatable to consider this a mistake, because Russia's additional goal is the eradication of nationalism. However, nationalism in Ukraine originated and did not spread throughout the country either. This is similar to the mistake of countries in the First World War, when, having achieved their goals they could not stop and get out of the war.

Thus, the mistakes made by the Russian Federation in the present conflict can be compared with the mistakes of the countries participating in the events of 1918-1945. However, all errors may not be accidental, but intentional then they will not be errors. Therefore, we cannot be sure that by making mistakes, Russia is simply fulfilling its strategy, since Russia could not continue military operations on the whole of Ukraine for no reason.

NATO is not a direct participant in the conflict. That is why NATO has great opportunities to make mistakes that can lead to terrible consequences. The best way to participate in this conflict is not to provoke its further development. NATO countries, in particular the United States, make one similar mistake to their mistakes in 1918-1945. Namely, the United States is trying to stay away and not interfere in the war. Historical experience shows that sooner or later this state intervenes in military conflicts. At the moment, NATO countries support Ukraine. Some of the NATO countries are beginning a direct confrontation with the Russian-speaking population within the state. This is a big mistake that was made during the events of 1918-1945. These countries show hostility to Russia and to Russians as an ethnic group. This attitude is manifested in the cessation of cooperation, support of the Russian language by companies and in numerous sanctions against Russia, as well as in the statements of politicians and other representatives of the state. European countries treated Germany and Germans with contempt after the First World War, and in Russia after the Second World War, part of the population still treats Germans with contempt. This is wrong, because it can make nations hostile and miss the opportunity to fix it in the future.