The Ukraine War and America’s War of 1812
‘Where would the U.S. be today had we not risen to defend our legitimacy as a free nation?’ By Readers Aug. 27, 2023 11:30 am ET An Independence Day ceremony in Kyiv, Aug. 24. Photo: Kyodonews/Zuma Press Kira Rudik’s perspective on the war in Ukraine is reminiscent of the War of 1812 (“Ukraine Renews Its Independence,” op-ed, Aug. 24). Thirty-six years after our Declaration of Independence, England signaled its refusal to accept the new reality by impressing American seamen into service for the Royal Navy. The young U.S. needed to defend its legitimacy as a nation by fighting back. Now, 32 years after the Ukraine’s declaration of independence, the young country is defending itself against its former imperial overlord, one that is adjacent, not an ocean away, and equipped with overwhelming military adv
An Independence Day ceremony in Kyiv, Aug. 24.
Photo: Kyodonews/Zuma Press
Kira Rudik’s perspective on the war in Ukraine is reminiscent of the War of 1812 (“Ukraine Renews Its Independence,” op-ed, Aug. 24).
Thirty-six years after our Declaration of Independence, England signaled its refusal to accept the new reality by impressing American seamen into service for the Royal Navy. The young U.S. needed to defend its legitimacy as a nation by fighting back.
Now, 32 years after the Ukraine’s declaration of independence, the young country is defending itself against its former imperial overlord, one that is adjacent, not an ocean away, and equipped with overwhelming military advantages.
Where would the U.S. be today had we not risen to defend our legitimacy as a free nation? Ukraine is merely attempting to do the same, and against extreme odds. It can only hope for a treaty with terms like those between England and the U.S. in 1814: that all lands would return to their status before the war.
Peter Coffey
Madison, Conn.
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