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"According to a former US diplomat who participated in the talks, Steven Pifer, it was understood that if there was a violation, there would be a response incumbent on the US and the UK. And while that response was not explicitly defined, Pifer notes that: “there is an obligation on the United States that flows from the Budapest Memorandum to provide assistance to Ukraine, and […] that would include lethal military assistance”.

;0)

The Agreement became meaningless in 2014, when Russia invaded Crimea with “little green men” and then sent in arms and mercenaries to create breakaway regions in Eastern Ukraine.

When the US and the UK did absolutely nothing (except for the Obama/Biden Administration to send MRE’s and blankets to Ukraine—only non lethal aid) to live up the the Budapest Memorandum the US and UK showed their true colors as an force of honor. Remember Biden was part of that. Biden was also tarred with the way the US treated Afghan allies when we quickly pulled out of that country.

Biden was in theory suppose to be more respected and restore the honor and importance of the US among world leaders, at least according to those who hatted Trump. I sense that a lot of the aid and support the US is giving to Ukraine now is because of past foreign policy blunders by the Obama/Biden Administration and by the Biden/Harris Administration.

No one no matter how dedicated a Democrat is going to believe that that 3AM call on the red phone in the White House should be handled by Biden in his current deteriorated mental health state. Even the allies who hated Trump with all their bile, don't want Biden on the receiving end of any world crisis 3 AM phone calls.

Yes, the Budapest Agreement exists. But there are other assurances (also without the force of formal treaty) that also exist. Like our repeated assurances that NATO would not expand eastward... Such as this one:

Source: record of conversation between Mikhail Gorbachev and James Baker, Feb 9, 1990 https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/document/16117-document-06-record-conversation-between

Again, not a treaty.

But assurances given were critical in allowing for the reunification of Germany, the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact, and freedom returning to central and eastern Europe.

I don’t understand why this nonsense is continually posted here. A “Budapest Memorandum” carries no weight in the U.S. It was nothing more than a piece of paper signed by a dope in the White House. Bill Clinton had no authority to unilaterally obligate the U.S. to defend another country — or even send the country a single Big Mac as “non-lethal aid.”

Under our constitution we have this thing called a Senate ratification for international treaties that must take place before any such obligations mean a damn thing.

As one considers the article about the memorandum from 1994 and various perspectives on it, one might also be slightly curious about the website, the Conversation, headquartered in Massachusetts.

Its Funding Partners, Founding Partners, Members and, last but not least, Strategic Partner (Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) suggest its interests and direction.

https://theconversation.com/us

Additionally one might be slightly curious about the actual document.

For the actual text of the memorandum about non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, here is the link to the very short document.

https://policymemos.hks.harvard.edu/files/policymemos/files/2-23-22_ukraine-the_budapest_memo.pdf?m=1645824948

By smiling, you undermine the entire American defense strategy.

The author is correct. All of the many treaties and such are in jeopardy because Putin has taught the world that war is war and is ok. There is no power or assimilation of powers that will stop a determined warrior. The world at large is anti war and in the vernacular, chicken shit

The entire lawyerly American DOD strategy is currently restricted to not killing. People here smile and in isolationist mode condemn but proudly applaud doing nothing.

War is now war. America has grown a cadre of lawyers and has lost the ability to war