Developing

Due to rapidly-breaking developments and in order to facilitate readers’ access to the latest dispatches, we are publishing this article as it is being written. please check back for updates and additions.

To see a list of previous articles, enter “Ukraine” in the Search Box on the upper right, on The Trenchant Observer web site, and you will see a list in chronological order.

Dispatches

Dispatches

See,

1) Michael R. Gordon, “Biden Sticks With Longstanding U.S. Policy on Use of Nuclear Weapons Amid Pressure From Allies; The president stepped back from a campaign promise that the sole purpose of nuclear weapons should be to deter nuclear attacks,” Wall Street Journal,Updated March 25, 2022 (12:38 am ET);

2) Nick Allen, “Joe Biden ready to use nuclear weapons first in ‘extreme circumstances’; US president abandons plans to water down policy amid fears Vladimir Putin may resort to deploying weapons of mass destruction, The atelegraph, March 25, 2022 (3:40pm);

3) Matthew Lynn, “Germany can afford to ban Russian gas completely, so why hasn’t it?; Europe’s biggest economy should admit it was wrong to become so dependent on Moscow to keep the lights on and change course, The Telegraph, March 25, 2022 (3:26pm);

4) Jonathan Freedland, “Churchill with an iPhone: Zelenskiy’s videos are a marvel, but can he keep us gripped?” The Guardian, March 25, 2022 (18:02 GMT);

5) Diane Taylor, “Ukrainian refugees could face months of separation from pets under UK rules; Difficulties in obtaining blood tests and paperwork when fleeing war mean some animals could spend four months in quarantine,” The Guardian, March 25, 2022 (12.35 GMT);

6) “Biden vergleicht Widerstand der Ukrainer mit Tiananmen-Protesten; Nur 90 Kilometer vom Kriegsgebiet entfernt hat der US-Präsident Biden seine in Polen stationierte Truppen besucht. Den Einsatzwillen der Ukrainer lobte er – und attackiert damit gleichzeitig den Rivalen China,” Der Spiegel, den 25 März 2022 (22.32 Uhr);

6) Karen DeYoung, “Ukraine ‘very disappointed’ in NATO summit outcome, Zelensky aide says, Washington Post, March 25, 2022 (1:54 p.m.);

7) James Freeman, “The President Should Avoid Public Speaking; …at least when the topic is important,” Wall Street Journal, March 25, 2022 (6:28 pm ET);

8) Freddy Gray, “Commentator-in-Chief Joe Biden is a threat to the West; The US president seems more interested in telling stories about his past than leading the response to Ukraine, The Telegraph, March 25, 2022 (8:00pm).

Commentary

Biden compares Ukrainians to Tiananmen Square Protesters, undercutting entreaties to China

Joe Biden continues to raise doubts about his competence and that of his foreign policy team by blunders, un forced errors, which he makes whenever he goes off-script. Today, talking to U.S. soldiers in Poland, in an unscripted moment, he compared Ukrainians fighting Russian aggression and barbarism with the Tianamen Square protesters in 1989.

Aside from defeatist comparison with Chinese protesters, who were ultimately crushed by the Chinese state, Biden’s statement is likely to be taken as an expression of anti-Chinese sentiment by Chinese leaders. Again, Biden at times seems to forget who he is talking to, and where.

Only days ago Biden was earnestly trying to convince Chinese President Xi Jinping not to provide any military assistance to Russia or support to Russia in attempting to evade the West’s economic sanctions.

The gaffe serves as a reminder that Democratic Senators and Congressmen need to recognize and break from the foreign policy incompetence of Biden and his current foreign policy team, and force him to put together a much better team of independent, senior advisors who can guide him safely in the future.

Biden abandons “sole purpose” nuclear doctrine change

Gordon describes Biden’s position in favor of a “sole purpose” doctrine for the use of nuclear weapons, abandoned in the last week in response to allies’ concerns and pressures, as follows:

During the 2020 campaign Mr. Biden promised to work toward a policy in which the sole purpose of the U.S. nuclear arsenal would be to deter or respond to an enemy nuclear attack.

Gordon’s article has explosive implications, and the facts it describes are sure to be the subject of intense political debate.

The terrible question which it raises is this:

Could Vladimir Putin have based his calculations which led to the decision to invade Ukraine, at least in part, on the change in doctrine Biden wa proposing, and on Putin’s own assessment that Biden would not deviate from his own proposed doctrine?

NATO punts on active measures, even limited use of force, to oppose Putin in Ukraine

The Trenchant Observer