Why I Care About Ukraine

There is no special place in my heart for Ukraine. Its cities and villages have a history of rich Jewishness, no doubt, but this runs parallel to their just-as-rich history of antisemitism. It’s possible that a few of my ancestors hailed from Kyiv or Odessa, yet this only makes my contempt for Ukraine more personal—as it does for surrounding nations who were just as complicit in the murder of their Jews, and that continue to harbor growing far-right movements. 

But several years ago, my understanding of foreign policy and my views on how the United States should react when our allies are threatened began to shift, from a more hands-off preference to a desire for more engagement. As Russia once again makes a bid for territory outside its borders, I see the importance of holding international bullies accountable, for not only does it concern me as an American, but also as a Jew. 

In considering Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia, it seems beyond coincidence that the two top adversaries to western stability in the 20th century both treated their Jewish populations in despicable and barbaric ways. Also apparent is that isolationism in the United States has almost always been deployed in conjunction with concerns regarding Jews, whether it was conservatives in the 1930s preaching against involvement in Europe (using anti-Jewish conspiracies to fan justifications of Nazism,) or radical anti-war movements later in the century that absorbed anti-Zionist propaganda. From reading books like “The Plot Against America” by Philip Roth, which depicts a fictional, counter-historical nightmare scenario for American Jews in which our country elects as president a non-interventionist (Charles Lindbergh, also a suspected Nazi sympathizer) at the dawn of World War II, I now realize that my responsibility as one of those American Jews is to defend the societies that have defended me. My own best interest appears to be on the line.  

In considering Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia, it seems beyond coincidence that the two top adversaries to western stability in the twentieth century both treated their Jewish populations in despicable and barbaric ways. 

Russia threatened the planet with nuclear annihilation not forty years ago, and now they are amassing a legion to trespass into Ukraine. I observe the reactions of the people around me. On the far left are those who claim to be anti-imperialists, certainly when it involves the demonization of Israel. Yet they are mainly quiet when it comes to Russia, exposing their hypocrisy. They even sneer at the west, buying into the false narrative that we are the true antagonists in this conflict. On the far right, on the other hand, are “America First’’ isolationists, who trivialize allyship with international partners and bemoan what they believe is a too-heavy American burden in the foreign arena. 

What these polarized responses have in common is the way they undermine institutions like NATO, which exist to defend the interests of liberal democratic nations, and anti-establishment messaging in favor of more radical politics. They also both share a history of antisemitism: The anti-Zionist left uses accusations of imperialism and colonialism to delegitimize Jewish nationhood, while the right pokes the embers of hatred with their “the globalists are responsible” fearmongering. None of this should be a surprise. Contempt for liberalism and contempt for Jews usually intersect, and an ideology that advocates disengagement from the larger world outside of one’s own borders is sure to unnerve a people with such cosmopolitan proclivities. 

Internal conflict is not new in Jewish American life. The editors of Commentary Magazine wrestled with their ideology in the late 1960s, failing to stifle their strong anti-Soviet impulses despite their favor toward a more liberal domestic political scene. Irving Kristol once defined a neoconservative as “a liberal who’s been mugged by reality.” I’ll confess that I am uncomfortable with this label, as my domestic views break slightly leftward. But with isolationism seeming to guide both parties toward the poles, do traditional right-wing/left-wing categories of foreign policy even exist anymore? What I know to be true is that a foreign autocrat is threatening the stability of democracies. That is a reality we should, to use Kristol’s term, mug back—whether we call it liberal or conservative.  

In a post-World War II era, I deeply care about an apparatus of nations capable of holding despots and tyrants accountable, not only as a patriotic American, but as a Jew who understands the fragility of global order, and the imminent danger should it unravel.

Vladimir Putin desires chaos. He’s made this known since his days as a KGB agent up to the 2016 American presidential election, and again in 2020 when he favored both Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders, knowing that two polarized and anti-establishment candidates on the ballot would cripple American unity. The Kremlin has planted the seeds of destruction in several European countries as well, supporting anti-democratic leaders like Alexander Lukashenko in Belarus and exploiting anti-government protests like The Yellow Vests in France. Putin resents NATO, he despises the EU, and backs the morally repugnant regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria. In instability, he sees opportunity. 

We Jews are the opposite. When nations are at peace with one another, when there is an abundant supply of resources to be traded and distributed, and when political temperatures are cool enough to avoid sectarian violence, we thrive. This explains why our interests and the interests of the democratic world have aligned—democracies at home and abroad exist to maintain tolerance between different groups and nations. One of these groups is the Jewish people, and one of these nations is Israel. In a post-World War II era, I deeply care about an apparatus of nations capable of holding despots and tyrants accountable, not only as a patriotic American, but as a Jew who understands the fragility of global order, and the imminent danger should it unravel. Rule-breaking must be checked. And when it comes to Russia and Ukraine, the rules are hanging on by a thread.

Blake Flayton is New Media Director and columnist at the Jewish Journal.