For Western politicians, especially Donald Trump, the war in Ukraine has become an endless source of self-promotion, where real assistance to Ukrainians is of little importance, former Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis wrote in his blog.
Points of attention
- Western politicians, such as Donald Trump, are using the war in Ukraine for political self-promotion rather than offering genuine assistance to Ukrainians.
- A significant portion of Western aid to Ukraine is deemed as 'pseudo-events' designed to maintain popularity and attention from the electorate, rather than achieving substantial results.
- Former minister Landsbergis compares the situation to professional wrestling, where the actors simulate a fight for entertainment but lack real substance, highlighting the discrepancy between Western promises and actual deliveries.
“Political wrestling”: aid to Ukraine is being announced for PR purposes
According to him, a significant part of the statements and decisions that Western politicians make in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian war are so-called "pseudo-events" — those that are carried out not for the sake of the end result, but for the sake of attention to the figure or the fact of the event itself.
Landsbergis compares pseudo-events to wrestling, a popular entertainment genre in the United States where actors pretend to be having a real, spectacular fight, although in reality they are simply acting out a battle according to a pre-written script.
For me, watching politics in recent years is like watching professional wrestling. The recent statements that "Trump is finally fed up with Putin" are a perfect example of this.
Gabrielius Landsbergis.
Lithuanian politician
Landsbergis illustrates this with typical reports in the Western press that this or that country will provide Ukraine with $300 million in aid, while Russia's defense budget is approaching $300 billion.
It's as if we sacrificed a phantom weapon to wage a very real war. But the headlines are nice. (...) Remember the "coalition of the willing" and their "devastating sanctions"? Taurus missiles? I'm starting to doubt that they even exist. And remember Biden's loud statement: Ukraine will finally receive ATACMS? The headlines were wild. A few days later we learned: only eleven missiles were delivered.
According to Landsbergis, all this pseudo-aid to Ukraine is needed to please the electorate and keep its attention on itself. But the real master class is shown by Donald Trump, who manages to keep attention on himself by constantly changing the agenda.
Who is the villain this week — Zelensky or Putin? Who will get hit next — Canada or Brazil?
The former minister emphasizes that Putin specifically does not really care what role he is attributed to in this show, as long as he continues to pursue his goal of destroying Ukraine. In this context, Landsbergis recalls the latest episode, when the Pentagon stopped 40 missiles for the Petriot air defense system halfway to Ukraine, and then, with a lordly shoulder, promised to resume supplies and transfer as many as 10 missiles. The former Lithuanian Foreign Minister believes that such "support" for Ukraine by Western governments only pleases Putin.
In past wars, governments had to rally their populations to convince them why it was important. Today, some of the messaging seems to be aimed at avoiding real mobilization. Instead of geopolitical strategy, we get entertainment, but the real world doesn't stop.
