Sir, – Aeschylus, the father of Greek tragedy, said that “God is not averse to deceit in a just cause”.
The modern variant, "The first casualty of war is truth", underlies Fintan O'Toole's timely call for calm heads and sober discussion ("West needs to think carefully about endgame in Ukraine", Opinion & Analysis, March 8th).
Emotional spasms of moral righteousness across politics and the media may be unavoidable in time of war but, as Fintan O’Toole writes, the rest of us should take a deep breath. – Yours, etc,
Dr JOHN DOHERTY,
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Gaoth Dobhair,
Co Dhún na nGall.
Sir, – It is surprising that some correspondents are still holding Nato partially responsible for the Russian invasion (Letters, March 9th).
Nato borders are a fraction of Russia’s huge land borders, and Russia also has access to the Pacific Ocean and a number of seas, making encirclement quite challenging.
Putin’s recent statements show that it is very likely his intent is to re-establish a “Greater Russia” by absorbing or controlling Ukraine, Belarus and probably Moldova, with potential Nato membership offering a useful casus belli.
Past aggression by Nato in Libya and Afghanistan is also raised when assigning blame, without mentioning that these peace enforcement actions were sanctioned by the UN, the third part of Ireland’s “triple lock”.
Nato intervention in Bosnia, however, is rarely mentioned, although this was the key factor in stopping the genocide. If we are to debate joining an EU or Nato military alliance, it is important that inconvenient facts are not brushed aside. – Yours, etc,
JOHN McGILP,
Glenageary,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – Creeping slowly into the dialogue of this war is the goal of a “peaceful solution”.
Let us assume that Putin agrees to withdraw and retain only 20 per cent of the territory he now forcibly occupies; fanciful, I know, but not impossible. This would mean that he has profited from his aggression and questions like reparations and answerability for war crimes are conveniently forgotten. This would leave him free to come back later for another bite of the cherry.
So long as there is a chance of the Ukrainian people pushing him back, and being willing to do so, they should be supported with everything short of total war. – Yours, etc,
PJ MALONEY,
Cloneyheigue,
Co Westmeath.
Sir, – Like many other Irish and European citizens, I regularly protest outside the Russian embassy against its barbarism in Ukraine.
I would not be there if Russia was not committing this barbarism and I greatly value my right to peaceful protest.
I hope it bears fruit in reminding the ambassador and his staff of the utter unacceptability of Russia’s murderous acts against humanity.
I’m bothered by the dozen or so security cameras, some over the outer wall of the embassy compound, pointing to the street.
Do these cameras breach data protection legislation and how can the Irish authorities monitor their content and ensure conformity with that legislation?
I understand Ireland may have to pay for the repair of the gates. Will Russia pay for its acts of war against Ukraine and its knock-on effects far beyond the utter misery it is currently visiting on the Ukrainian people? – Yours, etc,
MICHAEL HAMELL,
Dublin 9.
Sir, – Hostage-taking is now labelled “safe corridors”, as the Russian authorities generously offer refuge to the wives, children, mothers and fathers of those who are fighting them. I suppose we can expect further Newspeak from the people who site an embassy on Orwell Road. – Yours, etc,
KAREN WALSH,
Terenure,
Dublin 6.
Sir, – On reflection, perhaps it might be better to let the Russian ambassador remain here, “lingering like an unloved guest”, as Shelley aptly phrased it. – Yours, etc,
JOE GEOGHEGAN,
Dublin 4.
Sir, – I strongly disagree with Seamus Malloy's assertion that Ireland's neutrality is morally degenerate (Opinion and Analysis, March 7th).
As a lifelong pacifist, I take great pride in Ireland’s military non-alignment and our refusal to fund weapons of war and destruction. Instead, we focus our efforts on peacekeeping and humanitarian efforts.
Therefore I see no shame in Ireland’s “Not one bullet” approach to this conflict. Rather than sending bullets, we have sent combat helmets, bulletproof vests, money, medicines, imposed strict sanctions on Russia and offered to house over 100,000 refugees.
Far from telling our friends “If you are attacked, we will not help you”, we tell them “We will help you to live, but we will not help you to kill”.
By offering food and shelter instead of bullets and bombs we fulfil Christ’s teaching to love our neighbours and also to love our enemies. It is love that will bring us peace, and you can’t send love with a bullet. – Is mise,
BRÍAN Ó SÚILLEABHÁIN,
Dublin 8.
Sir, – Further severe sanctions must be brought to bear on Putin’s Russia. This will result in hardship for many hard-working and decent Russian citizens. It will also cause some hardship, considerable costs, inconvenience and disruption to the lives of those of us lucky enough to be living in civilised western democracies. However, we must be prepared to suffer these inconveniences to ensure any other megalomaniac thugs will think long and hard before waging unnecessary and unwarranted wars in any part of our world. – Yours, etc,
ALAN COLE,
Dublin 16.