Should Ukraine be grateful to the West?
Britain's Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has come under fire after suggesting at the Nato summit in Vilnius that the Ukrainians should show more gratitude and not treat their allies as if they were an Amazon warehouse. Voices in Ukrainian media are at odds over the extent to which the allies are morally and politically obliged to provide massive aid to Kyiv.
Help as an expression of shared values
Ukraine has every reason to be grateful to the West for its help - and should act accordingly, writes investment banker Serhiy Fursa on gordonua.com:
“For the West, supporting Ukraine is a gesture of goodwill and a way of showing solidarity. ... For Ukraine, this support is a matter of survival. No one owes us anything. If someone helps you out of good will, the worst thing you can do is crank up the pressure and take their help for granted. We were very lucky that Western values are not just empty words. When we ask for help in the West, we must cite our shared values. They should be the main argument.”
We are fighting for your freedom
Ukrayinska Pravda explains to the West why it should be grateful to Ukraine - and not the other way round:
“Russia is currently prepared to do much more against Ukraine than you are prepared to do for Ukraine. ... Right now we are fighting to prove that what you live for has a meaning and a right to exist. We are dying for what you have been living with since birth. Your generation did not have to fight for freedom, but we are - for our freedom and yours. ... We are a nation that is strengthening the values of the free world with our sacrifices day by day. Your losses in this war are financial. Ours are human lives.”