Roman Sheremeta 🇺🇸🇺🇦 Profile picture
Aug 24 10 tweets 2 min read Read on X
Independence is not an event, but a process.

Usually, the declaration of independence is only the beginning. What follows is the war for independence - because empires never let anyone go voluntarily.

1/n Image
2/ Our own war for independence was long delayed. Many say we wasted the years when we should have been preparing. That is true, and not true. If we had prepared, the war would have started earlier.
3/ It began later precisely because we did not prepare—because we practiced “multi-vector policies” and tried to fool ourselves and history. As long as we remained in the empire’s orbit, war wasn’t needed. The moment we resolved to break away, war began at once.
4/ In other words, we both gained time and lost time. But I doubt we would have stood a chance back then.

Over these 34 years, we have been pressing the “Sovok” (Soviet mentality) out of ourselves and out of our state institutions, economy, army, culture, and schools.
5/ But we shouldn’t look at the average. We now have a new generation that has nothing in common with the Sovok. We have new military units that have nothing in common with the Soviet army.
6/ We have Ukrainian businesses that have nothing in common with the Soviet economy. We have a new culture that did not grow out of the Sovok. And yet, there are still people, institutions, and communities that have only traveled a small part of the necessary road.
7/ The break with the Sovok - both imperial and communist - has been uneven.
8/ Here, responsibility lies with each of us. Each person must press the Sovok out of themselves. Out of their organization, business, military unit, religious community, institution. Out of their relationships with others.
9/ This is work that cannot be delegated; it must be done personally. Some do it quickly and decisively. Others, slowly. Some are still wondering if it is necessary at all.
10/ Independence is a process, and each of us carries responsibility for our part in it.

Independence Day is simply a reminder to take stock of where we are, and how far we have come.

Happy Independence Day!

Source: Translate and adopted from Valeriy Pekar.

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More from @rshereme

Aug 22
It is very dangerous to “hope” that Trump will stop russia’s war against Ukraine.

Yesterday I spoke with someone who genuinely believes the upcoming “negotiations” between Putin and Zelenskyy are a real chance to end the war.

1/n Image
2/ We talked for an hour and a half. I kept returning to one thought: Zelenskyy could end the war at a meeting with Putin — but only by signing a pact of capitulation.
3/ Yet my interlocutor insisted on Putin’s “weaknesses,” on ways to manipulate him, on tricks Zelenskyy might use to get concessions.
Read 11 tweets
Aug 19
What is the “root cause” of russia’s aggression against Ukraine?

No, it’s not NATO expansion, “demilitarization,” “denazification,” “defense of russian-speaking minorities,” or Putin’s personal insecurities. It’s older and deeper…

1/n Image
2/ Russian imperialism — sustained by a culture that has long justified domination of its neighbors.
3/ History, not NATO, explains the aggression.

For centuries, russian states have waged repeated wars and campaigns against Ukrainian lands; this is a long pattern, not a 21st‑century reaction to NATO.
Read 10 tweets
Aug 19
Short highlights from Zelenskyy’s conversation with Trump, along with explanations of what happened and what expectations were voiced during the morning meetings at the Ukrainian embassy.

Below are the main takeaways and details:

1/n Image
2/ ✅ Security guarantees.

This is the starting point for ending the war. According to Zelenskyy, the U.S. has sent a “clear signal” that it will coordinate and take part in these guarantees; there is political will, and details are expected to be formalized within a week.
3/ Ukraine sees three components:

Long-term external financing for a strong army (primarily funding military salaries).

A large U.S. weapons package, with emphasis on aviation and air defense (the proposals amount to around $90 billion).
Read 12 tweets
Aug 19
Zelenskyy’s Briefing After Meeting with Trump

Battlefield clarity

• “I was able to show our American colleagues on the map who really controls what on the battlefield.”

1/n Image
2/ Security guarantees

• Discussed not just a temporary pause, but a framework for “real peace.”
• The U.S. has signaled it will help coordinate and also directly participate in providing security guarantees for Ukraine.
3/ • These guarantees are expected to be formalized on paper within 7–10 days.
• Ukraine has prepared a $90 billion weapons purchase package from the U.S. as part of the guarantees.
Read 5 tweets
Aug 19
Why Ukraine Can’t Simply Give Up Territory to Russia

I keep hearing people say, “Why doesn’t Ukraine just give Russia some land so the war can end?”

It sounds simple, but it’s actually dangerous thinking — for Ukraine, for Europe, and for the whole world.

1/n Image
2/ 1. Borders matter — and the world agreed on them.

After WWII, the global community decided: no country can take land by force. When the USSR collapsed in 1991, Ukraine became independent within its existing borders. So, did the Russian Federation.
3/ 2. Russia already promised to respect Ukraine’s borders.

1994 Budapest Memorandum — Russia guaranteed Ukraine’s sovereignty when Ukraine gave up nuclear weapons.

1997 Treaty of Friendship — Russia again recognized Ukraine’s borders, including Crimea.
Read 7 tweets
Aug 18
Lessons from history everyone should know: How the U.S. kept saving russia.

In the 1920s, russia begged the United States to save it from famine. The U.S. sent food, and soon after, russia seized new territories once held by the empire.

1/n Image
2/ In the 1930s, the USSR asked the U.S. to rescue its economy, help launch industrialization, and build factories. Washington obliged — enabling the Soviets to rearm and prepare for war.
3/ In 1939, russia and Nazi Germany jointly invaded Poland, starting World War II.

By 1941, after Germany turned on the USSR, moscow once again pleaded for U.S. help. America delivered weapons and resources.
Read 7 tweets

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