Most of us know something is happening over in Europe with Russia. The basic details of it you may not know, though. I chatted with social studies department chair, Zack Powers, to gather the basics.

WHAT IS GOING ON, EXACTLY?

Russia invaded Ukraine, a Eastern European country, on February 24. They are said to be in a full-scale war now that the Russians crossed Ukraine’s east, north and south borders with tanks and troops. The airspace above Ukraine was also declared an active conflict zone.

WHO IS BEHIND THIS?

The president of Russia, Vladimir Putin’s, reasoning for invading Ukraine is because he wants to bring back the old Soviet Union.  

“He is also pulling a classic Hitler move of wanting to ‘protect’ pro Russian supporters (and ethnic Russians) in potentially hostile nations,” said Powers.

The ‘hostile nations’ Powers refers to are any NATO nation. Putin is saying that NATO is being aggressive, which he is using as his justification for invading Ukraine.

WAIT, WHAT’S NATO, AGAIN?

The whole reason NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) was formed was as a way to check on what the Soviet Union was doing in Europe during the Cold War. After the Cold War ended NATO expanded their organization to include other former Soviet satellite nations. This is why Putin is saying NATO is being aggressive. 

SO, WHY IS THIS A BIG DEAL TO ME?

The reason that this is such a big deal is because this is the most aggressive that Russia has ever been, and Putin’s actions were uncalled for. 

WHAT’S THE UNITED STATES DOING ABOUT IT?

As for how the US is involved, we have troops stationed in NATO countries and we are supplying weapons and equipment to Ukraine. We are not actually going into Ukraine to fight because this would start a bigger conflict between Russia and the US. But by having our troops in NATO nations we are sending a message to Putin that any aggression towards NATO nations will not be tolerated. 

HOW IS THIS AFFECTING OUR DAILY LIVES?

The direct impact of the war between Russia and Ukraine is the increase in gas prices and inflation. 

“The reason being is because Russia provides most of the fuel to Europe,” said Powers. “So when NATO starts sanctioning Russia, Russia is going to cut the gas line off.”

Ukraine also provides a lot of food for places around the world, and so now that they are fighting off Russian invaders, they aren’t growing those crops anymore.

We are NOT in any danger right now, and we should focus on sending our support to the people in Ukraine who are defending themselves against Russia.

One last thing we should keep in mind is that even though it was wrong of Putin to invade Ukraine, the Russian people didn’t ask for this. Putin has conscripted people to fight whether they want to go or not. So all of the Russians aren’t necessarily the bad guys here.