When discussing the issues of war, there is never a one size fits all approach. It would be tone deaf to say that there aren’t any reasons for the invasion, but that isn’t to say there is any justification for the atrocities committed against the people of Ukraine. Separatists in eastern Ukraine are the main motivation, at least on the face of things, for the Russian invasion. In a much more realistic sense this is a power grab from Putin masquerading as a push for reuniting culturally similar lands.

As was found initially by Russian forces entering Ukraine, the resolve of a people under occupation is greater and yields more fruitful results than any invading army could. The people of Ukraine, despite the lack of any effort to minimize civilian casualties on Putin’s part, have all sacrificed some aspect of their lives to come together and present a united front for their country. The consensus coming from the Ukrainian populous is that everyone must stand and fight, young, old, man or woman. World renowned boxers who have trained their entire lives to claim world titles have put their training and competition aside to pick up arms and fight for their countrymen.

Russia appears to be doubling down despite an altogether unsuccessful launch to their invasion. Within the first crucial days, no victories of serious merit were achieved by the Russian Army. In the recent past, the Russian military has moved to appoint Alexander Dvornikov as the leader of the invasion. He is best known for his ruthlessness and particular cruelty to civilians displayed within his campaigns in Syria. These former atrocities earned him the nickname of ‘the butcher,’ and with someone of such notoriety assuming command of Russian forces, it is my humble opinion that this war will quickly devolve into nothing but senseless violence and killing. However, this solution is not a possible long term one to the issue of a conflict; this invasion will drag on until it becomes untenable for Putin to continue a conflict in the face of an economy in free fall.

This approach, in all truthfulness, is eerily reminiscent of a sort of Hitlerization of modern Russia with a previous push into Ukraine resulting in the succession of the Crimea to Russia in 2014. This tactic is similar to those that Hitler took during the prelude to WW2 which in a modern context would prove disastrous. With the destructive capabilities of modern armies a full on war would result in such a massive loss of life the likes of which any other modern conflict couldn’t equate to.