War in Ukraine
Making Sense of a Senseless Conflict
Published on 15. November 2022
Book
Paperback/Softback
108 pages
978-1-68219-371-6 (ISBN)
Description
Russia's brutal February 2022 invasion of Ukraine has attracted widespread condemnation across the West. Government and media circles present the conflict as a simple dichotomy between an evil empire and an innocent victim. In this concise, accessible and highly informative primer, Medea Benjamin and Nicolas Davies insist the picture is more complicated.
Yes, Russia's aggression was reckless and, ultimately, indefensible. But the West's reneging on promises to halt eastward expansion of NATO in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union played a major part in prompting Putin to act. So did the U.S. involvement in the 2014 Ukraine coup and Ukraine's failure to implement the Minsk peace agreements. The result is a conflict that is increasingly difficult to resolve, one that could conceivably escalate into all-out war between the United States and Russia-the world's two leading nuclear powers.
Skillfully bringing together the historical record and current analysis, War In Ukraine looks at the events leading up to the conflict, surveys the different parties involved, and weighs the risks of escalation and opportunities for peace. For anyone who wants to get beneath the heavily propagandized media coverage to an understanding of a war with consequences that could prove cataclysmic, reading this timely book will be an urgent necessity.
Yes, Russia's aggression was reckless and, ultimately, indefensible. But the West's reneging on promises to halt eastward expansion of NATO in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union played a major part in prompting Putin to act. So did the U.S. involvement in the 2014 Ukraine coup and Ukraine's failure to implement the Minsk peace agreements. The result is a conflict that is increasingly difficult to resolve, one that could conceivably escalate into all-out war between the United States and Russia-the world's two leading nuclear powers.
Skillfully bringing together the historical record and current analysis, War In Ukraine looks at the events leading up to the conflict, surveys the different parties involved, and weighs the risks of escalation and opportunities for peace. For anyone who wants to get beneath the heavily propagandized media coverage to an understanding of a war with consequences that could prove cataclysmic, reading this timely book will be an urgent necessity.
Reviews / Votes
This careful, informed, judicious study is an invaluable guide to understanding the background, character, and likely consequences of Russia's criminal invasion of Ukraine, and most crucially, how we can act to help bring this terrible tragedy to an end.-Noam Chomsky
"This book is an important antidote to the war propaganda about Ukraine that so many in the West are caught up in."
-Mairead McGuire, Northern Irish peace activist and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize
"Medea Benjamin and Nicolas Davies lay out the historical background and series of provocations by the US that led Russia to launch its war on Ukraine. These provocations do not excuse the Russian invasion, but they tragically make clear that this was a conflict that could have been avoided if our foreign policy had not become captive to militarists whose sole loyalty is to the arms industry."
-Chris Hedges, journalist and author
"Here, finally, is the book we've been awaiting. War in Ukraine is illuminating and essential for anyone seeking to penetrate the fog of myth and propaganda that distorts our understanding of this crisis."
-Stephen Kinzer, author and journalist
"Given corporate media's pro-war bias, a book like this, which provides important political and historical context for the current war and argues for negotiations instead of escalation, is of utmost importance."
-Katie Halper, host of The Katie Halper Show and co-host of Useful Idiots
"Give this book to anyone seeking the knowledge and wisdom needed to help end the violence in Ukraine."
-David Swanson, executive director of World Beyond War and campaign coordinator for Roots Action
"This concise primer gives what U.S. media consumers so rarely get-historical context with balance and compassion."
-Norman Solomon, executive director of Institute for Public Accuracy
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
Illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 188 mm
Width: 125 mm
Thickness: 12 mm
Weight
212 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-68219-371-6 (9781682193716)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Medea Benjamin is a co-founder of CODEPINK and the fair trade advocacy group Global Exchange. She is the author of Drone Warfare, Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the U.S.-Saudi Connection and Inside Iran. In 2012, she was awarded the U.S. Peace Memorial Foundation's Peace Prize; she is also recipient of the 2014 Gandhi Peace Award and the 2010 Martin Luther King, Jr. Peace Prize from the Fellowship of Reconciliation.
Nicolas J.S. Davies is the author of Blood On Our Hands: the American Invasion and Destruction of Iraq. He has written extensively for Huffington Post, Alternet, Consortium News, Common Dreams, Salon, The Progressive, and Foreign Policy In Focus.
Nicolas J.S. Davies is the author of Blood On Our Hands: the American Invasion and Destruction of Iraq. He has written extensively for Huffington Post, Alternet, Consortium News, Common Dreams, Salon, The Progressive, and Foreign Policy In Focus.
Content
Preface
Introduction: Collision Course
Chapter 1: How 2014 Set the Stage for War
Chapter 2: The Success and Failure of the Minsk II Peace Plan
Chapter 3: The Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Chapter 4: NATO: Myth vs. Reality
Chapter 5: Information Warfare
Chapter 6: The Consequences of Sanctions on Russia
Chapter 7: How Does the War Increase the Risk of Nuclear Confrontation?
Conclusion: How on Earth Will This End?
Introduction: Collision Course
Chapter 1: How 2014 Set the Stage for War
Chapter 2: The Success and Failure of the Minsk II Peace Plan
Chapter 3: The Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Chapter 4: NATO: Myth vs. Reality
Chapter 5: Information Warfare
Chapter 6: The Consequences of Sanctions on Russia
Chapter 7: How Does the War Increase the Risk of Nuclear Confrontation?
Conclusion: How on Earth Will This End?