Zelenskyy finally had a reality check when he met Trump and Vance at the Oval Office.
Trump told Zelenskyy that he has lost the war, that he has no more cards to play and that it is best to negotiate a ceasefire under the terms of the Russians and the Americans.
Understandably, Zelenskyy feels betrayed as he had listened to NATO, which is led by America, to wage war with Russia during the presidency of Joe Biden, which resulted in more than a million young Ukrainians killed and his country destroyed. But now, the same country, albeit under Trump, is telling him to surrender.
Images of his countrymen baying for his blood must have been swirling through his head for many nights now, given that he played a critical part in the catastrophe, but it will be worse after the Trump dose of reality.
He should have listened to his countrymen, who never wanted to wage a proxy war, instead of listening to America and Europe.
But this is a lesson not only for him, but for us in Singapore too, because shortly after the war erupted, Singapore sanctioned Russia, probably at the behest, or under pressure, from the Americans and Europeans.
Does anyone seriously believe it would make a difference to Putin that we sanctioned his country when the vast majority of the world ignored it, that we were standing up for international law? We were probably the laughing stock of ASEAN because none followed our example.
Naively sanctioning Russia did nothing for us except put us into its list of unfriendly countries and thereby be excluded from many beneficial Russian initiatives, including BRICS – an economic, political and humanitarian interstate association comprising 45% of the world’s population and a third of global GDP, which, our neighbors, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, have joined. If a fair poll were taken amongst Singaporeans, I am pretty sure many would not sanction Russia, after all, it does not benefit them except make an enemy of Russia.
Governments must always listen to the voice of the people. The people know what is best for themselves, and when they are doing well, the country will be strong. On the other hand, weak governments that are easily swayed by external forces, be they powerful countries, corporations or investors, will, like Zelenskyy, sell out their countrymen, and eventually, ruin the country.
Foong Swee Fong
