Two Different Languages

How Americans and Europeans Discuss the Ukraine War Behind Closed Doors

This will be a short but I hope interesting meditation. I recently spent a few days in Washington DC, and that allowed me to interact with a range of people who have access to policy makers and politicians in a way that is normally beyond me. It was my first time in the USA for a while, and naturally I was intrigued to learn what such people are thinking—or more accurately to see if there were any significant changes in how people are thinking—regarding the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

I was particularly interested because of what I’ve been hearing in Europe over the last few months and weeks—which is a perceptible hardening. The European discussion about the need for Ukraine to win the war against Russia has gained a sharper edge. The longer the war goes on, the more ghastly crimes the Russians commit against the Ukrainians the more the idea of Putin getting a victory from this war becomes antithetical to the whole idea of a free and united Europe. This has been compounded by the murder of Navalny. This is not to say that there is a definite consensus on the question, but I would argue strongly that there is a clear direction of travel.

The View from Europe