Rivers: Russia Invades Ukraine - Five Lessons

 By Ray Rivers

February 24th, 2026

BURLINGTON, ON

The fifth year of the War begins tomorrow.

The Russian Federation following the breakup of the Soviet Union had celebrated the new found freedom of the former Ukrainian Soviet republic.  Yet it was only a quarter century later when it undertook to invade and ethnically cleanse its sovereign neighbour.  That was lesson one:  Constant love among nations is a myth.  Alliances and partnership can disappear as quickly as they form.

Russia, along with the USA and UK guaranteed the territorial sovereignty of Ukraine in exchange for the new country giving up its nuclear weapons, the third largest arsenal in the world.   The weapons were delivered to Russia leaving the new nation defenceless, naively believing in eternal peace.  That was lesson two:  Good fences make better neighbours.

Putin may have invaded but the leaders of the so-called free world – Obama, Biden and Trump – were his enablers.  And the Europeans still can’t come to grips with the seriousness of this moment, squabbling over a unified military or not.  Canada too had let its military capabilities erode.  After all, the only nation which had invaded Canada was America and they were our friends – until they weren’t.  That was lesson three:  History has a way of repeating itself.

The good news is that Ukraine will survive, despite threats from both Putin and Trump to just surrender.  The bad news is that Putin’s invasion was the prelude to the end of the international rules based order.  And now his protege, Mr. Trump, has come along to bury the bones.  That was lesson four:  The international order for peaceful co-existence is over.

Ukraine has learned a valuable lesson.  In a recent BBC interview President Zelenskyy, an awesome hero in this sad saga, claimed that Russia had started WWIII – and he is right.  And it’s worth noting the other heroes in this conflict; those brave ordinary Ukrainians who have put their lives on the line to defend what is just and rightfully theirs.  That was lesson five:  In the end we have to believe that good will triumph over evil.

Ray Rivers, a Gazette Contributing Editor, writes regularly applying his more than 25 years as a federal bureaucrat to his thinking.  Rivers was once a candidate for provincial office in Burlington.  He was the founder of the Burlington citizen committee on sustainability at a time when climate warming was a hotly debated subject.   Ray has a post graduate degree in economics that he earned at the University of Ottawa.  Tweet @rayzrivers