A bomb squad member works next to remains of an unidentified missile at the site where residential buildings were heavily damaged during a Russian missile attack, in central Kharkiv, Ukraine on January 2, 2024.
A bomb squad member works next to remains of an unidentified missile at the site where residential buildings were heavily damaged during a Russian missile attack, in central Kharkiv, Ukraine on Tuesday. Credit: REUTERS/Sofiia Gatilova

While many Americans spent the most recent holiday weekend in reverie or repose, millions of Ukrainians in cities across that country spent New Year’s Eve and adjoining nights being terrorized by massive waves of Russian missile attacks.

Earlier this week, Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, briefed the U.K.’s prime minister, Rishi Sunak, that Russia had fired over 500 missiles and suicide drones at cities across Ukraine in five days. On the night of Dec. 29 alone, Russia fired over 150 cruise missiles and Iranian Shahed drones at Ukrainian schools, hospital maternity wards, apartment buildings, shopping malls and metro stations in which Ukrainian civilians were sheltering.

Ukraine’s finite air defenses, tasked with protecting the air space of a country nearly the size of Texas — while simultaneously protecting Ukrainian troops along a 600-mile front — have been stretched to the breaking point by Russia’s nightly salvos. The resulting civilian casualties — at least 39 dead and 160 seriously injured from the Dec. 29 attack alone — are by design the product of a ruthless Russian calculus.

That calculus provides a stark illustration of Russia’s priorities and the resources that Russians are willing to expend in order to achieve their strategic goals. Russians have not been coy about their aim to destroy Ukraine as a country in order yet again to subjugate the Ukrainian people. But Russia also seeks to destroy, or at least cripple, the international rules-based order that is essential for democracy and liberty to prevail, yet which is totally incompatible with Russian-style dictatorial imperialism.

Russia was happy to spend $1.3 billion in a single night on Dec. 29 in order to rain terror and to rob 39 innocent Ukrainian civilians of their opportunity to celebrate the new year. Russia also did this to degrade global confidence in a system of accountability and in any rules-based order in the world. On Jan. 2, Russia spent another $620 million on a fourth consecutive night-time missile assault against civilian Ukrainian targets, again in service of the same goals.

The United States has a clear and present opportunity to illustrate and demonstrate our priorities, including the defense of liberty in countries such as Ukraine where its people are fighting and dying to have a chance to emulate the core principles of American democracy. When the U.S. Congress returns to Washington on Jan. 8, our senators and representatives must commit to quickly bring to resolution the negotiations that impede bringing the Supplemental Aid for Ukraine bill to the floor and to expedite the vote in support of such a bill.

Stephen R. Vitvitsky
[image_caption]Stephen R. Vitvitsky[/image_caption]
For nearly two years, the Ukrainians have fought bravely but alone in trenches and along treelines not once asking for any allies to put their own troops in harm’s way. Instead, Ukraine has held fast to its request that we share a small percentage of our abundant military means to enable their mission of liberating Ukrainian land and Ukrainian people from Russian occupation.

As has been said, the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men and good nations do nothing. Let it not later be said that we were among those who did nothing.

Stephen R. Vitvitsky lives in the Twin Cities and is a founding member of Stand with Ukraine MN. He holds a B.A. in International Studies from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.