THUNDER BAY – An Associate Professor of history at Lakehead University, Dr. Steve Jobbitt, is sharing his thoughts on Russia's attack on Ukraine.
Jobbitt says he was shocked to see Russia take action against Ukraine over its ties to Europe and the West.
“To see them do something like this was shocking. Especially to see the extent of it, because it wasn’t just in Eastern Ukraine, right? In the two so-called separatist regions in the Donbas… If the maps are all accurate as to where the attacks have taken place and the scale of attacks, I mean, it’s shocking and surprising,” said Jobbitt.
“So they’ve launched airstrikes and missile attacks on cities and targets close to the Polish border, close to the Romanian border. They had naval forces invade in the Crimea, in Odessa, and they’ve pulled out all the stops.”
Jobbitt also says Canadian sanctions on Russia might not have the positive result that the Canadian government is hoping for.
“We’ve got almost two decades' worth of oligarchs who are basically in Putin’s back pocket and are a very powerful force. Many of them are ardent Russian nationalists and patriots and this could actually, because it’s a source of pride amongst these guys, like ‘Look how much they’ve sanctioned me!’ and that makes them look like martyrs – like they’ve taken a hit for the Russian cause,” said Jobbitt.
“So it could backfire in that way and could fuel Russian nationalism, especially amongst this class of oligarchs that hold so much power. So sanctions, it could be very difficult or maybe not the best way to go.”
Jobbitt says that a diplomatic solution is in many ways likely the only solution available to end this conflict.
“This is not just a recent problem, this goes back to the 1990s at least, certainly with the pressure that the West has been putting directly and indirectly on Russia, in this case with NATO and EU expansion into the region. So the diplomatic solution, that’s the one I would hope for,” said Jobbitt.
“It will be the Ukrainian people who have to give up the most because they’re almost a pawn caught in between these two major power blocks.”
