Ukrainians Continue Their Call on Biden for Further Intervention
By Phil Pasquini
Washington: On February 26, several hundred demonstrators at the White House again called on President Biden for greater intervention in Putin’s war on Ukraine. Many expressed their desire to see a no-fly zone established over the country and for the US to begin providing additional arms and ammunition. Several signs asked for weapons – and not for US troops – so they could fight the Russians on the ground themselves.
Wrapped in Ukrainian flags and chanting loudly, the crowd continued their requests interspersed with patriotic songs and reiterating their willingness to die for a free Ukraine.
Many signs and speakers called again for Biden to sanction Putin and his kleptocracy by removing Russia from SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication). Removal from the international financial system that offers secure, real-time payments and settlements would have a crippling and immediate effect on the Russian economy. Removal also would make it impossible to conduct transactions of any type thus freezing the Russian economy. It has been reported that Biden has now announced the US, Canada and several European countries will remove select Russian banks from the system.
What Putin initially believed was going to be an easy takeover of a sovereign nation has now turned into the beginnings of a stalemate as Russian troops have begun to meet fierce resistance. His frustration may develop into an even more brutal military campaign against Ukrainian people in an all-out effort to overtake resistance.
It has also been reported that many troops are unsure of what their mission is and what they have been asked to do and why they are in Ukraine. The purpose of their operation and exit strategy remains nebulous to many.
Ukrainian resistance and commitment to fight to the death will make Putin’s war a costly one.
(Phil Pasquini is a freelance journalist and photographer. His reports and photographs appear in the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs and Nuze.ink. He is the author of Domes, Arches and Minarets: A History of Islamic-Inspired Buildings in America.)
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