Scotland must stand with Ukraine against murderous despot Putin until the end

When Vladimir Putin announced in the early hours of February 24, 2022, that Russian forces were engaged in a “special military operation” in Ukraine, he expected his conquest of the country to be complete within ten days.

Captured Russian documents, seemingly approved by Putin himself, revealed a plan to rapidly seize the capital Kyiv by convincing the Ukrainians the main attack would come elsewhere, enabling special forces to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Initially, the deception appeared successful, with Russian forces achieving a 12-to-one force advantage north of Kyiv, according to the Royal United Services Institute.

READ MORE: Trump wants Ukraine to give up the Donbas in return for security guarantees. It could be fatal for Kyiv

Ukrainian soldiers have fought Russian forces to a standstill (Picture: John Moore) | Getty Images

Putin’s unfulfilled ‘kill list’

However, their plans were kept so secret that they confused their own side and Russian forces were “unprepared at the tactical level to execute the plan effectively”, RUSI found. Heroic Ukrainian resistance and Zelensky’s extraordinarily brave refusal to accept offers of sanctuary overseas, when it might have seemed all was lost, saw Putin’s plan fail.

His arrogant hopes that, in RUSI’s words, Ukrainian government officials would “either flee or be captured as a result of the speed of the invasion” were dashed. His “kill list” of prominent Ukrainians was not completed, and the forced ‘re-education’ of Ukrainians was restricted to occupied territory in the east.

On Tuesday, Ukrainians will mark the fourth anniversary of their remarkable and courageous stand against Russia’s full-scale invasion. They have fought a much larger foe to a virtual standstill and demonstrated, for all the world to see, Putin’s folly in supposing Ukraine was somehow a ‘fake’ country that would quickly crumble.

If he thought the population would be delighted at the idea of falling under his tyranny because of his bizarre pseudo-historical theories, he has learned, to Russia’s cost, that Ukrainians are patriots prepared to fight and die for their freedom.

READ MORE: Why Donald Trump's 'wrecking ball' politics are a recipe for global disaster

‘Our support is unwavering’

It a war– not a “special military operation” – that has reshaped the nature of modern warfare, with the use of drones on a scale not seen before. As we report today, Scotland is sending 280 tonnes of used salmon farm nets to be used to protect public roads in eastern Ukraine from Russian drone attacks.

External Affairs Secretary Angus Robertson said the donation “demonstrates that our support is unwavering”. May it always remain so.

Despite Donald Trump’s outrageous criticism of Zelensky – the Winston Churchill of our time – we must remember that Ukraine has right on its side and that we must stand with them until the end. Slava Ukraini!