It was another full week of Ukraine coverage on The Daily. We contextualize the call to arms in Ukraine below — and share some stories about the war you might have missed. |
We'd love to know: How are you feeling during this time? And are there any questions we can answer that you still have? Tell us here. |
The big idea: The call to arms |
 | | Ukrainian volunteers on Saturday prepared for deployment around Kyiv, the capital, to fight Russian troops invading the city. |
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To be clear — this isn't normal, even though Americans appear to be giving the thumbs up to Ukrainian mass armament. |
Since after the Second World War, institutions like the United Nations and the European Union have tried to promote peace. Now, the E.U. is sending lethal military weapons to people on its own continent, mobilizing civilians to fight against a global superpower. Is there any precedent for this? And how could this test organizations like the United Nations in the long term? |
What weapons are being sent? |
About 20 countries are funneling arms into Ukraine. And most are members of NATO or the European Union. |
"The Dutch are sending rocket launchers for air defense," Steven Erlanger, the chief diplomatic correspondent for The New York Times, reports. "The Estonians are sending Javelin antitank missiles. The Poles and the Latvians are sending Stinger surface-to-air missiles. The Czechs are sending machine guns, sniper rifles, pistols and ammunition." |
NATO is also fortifying defenses and sending as many as 22,000 more troops to its member countries on the border with Russia, a warning meant to deter Russia from further aggression. But this could also be seen as a provocation — and risks possible retaliation from President Vladimir V. Putin. |
With sanctions crippling the Russian economy and the West adopting an aggressive stance on their border, President Biden's top aides suspect that Mr. Putin's reaction will be to double down and lash out — and perhaps expand the war. "World wars have started over smaller conflicts," Mr. Erlanger said. |
What is the precedent for this call to arms? |
In a matter of days, Kyiv went from a busy, cosmopolitan European capital to a war zone — with many citizens abandoning their day jobs and taking up the arms being shipped in en masse. Now, the newly armed civilians and members of various paramilitary groups are fighting under the loose command of the military in an organization called the Territorial Defense Forces. |
"The national call to arms and the mobilization of ordinary citizens to repel the Russian invader does not have any obvious parallels in recent global conflicts," Mats Berdal, a professor of conflict and security studies at King's College London, said. |
Richard Kaplan, an international relations professor at Oxford University, pointed to the government of the former Yugoslavia producing weapons to arm the Yugoslav People's Army in the 1990s as one precedent. |
What could this mean for institutions like the United Nations? |
The United Nations has weathered and managed the diplomatic relations of many wars. Israel-Palestine, Vietnam, Bosnia, Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria, to name a few. There have been tense moments on the Security Council before. |
What is different about this moment is how publicly brazen, and false, Russia's justifications for invasion are, which has invited widespread condemnation. For example, about 100 diplomats, many from Western countries, walked out of a speech by Russia's foreign minister at the United Nations in protest on Tuesday. |
One of the cornerstones of our current world order, "if not the cornerstone of it, is the prohibition of the use of force and the idea that you can only use force in certain limited circumstances," Dapo Akande, a law professor at Oxford University, said. "That's exactly what is being challenged at this point in time. I think it's fair to say that this is a big challenge to that order." |
It's too soon to say how the global balance of power could be reshaped by this moment. But Mr. Akande said this moment offered one glimmer of hope that international systems aren't under threat — but instead are proving their strength in this moment. |
"What is interesting is actually everybody is expressing fidelity to international laws," Mr. Akande said. "Putin talked extensively about international law trying to provide justification for what he is doing. And then you listen to his critics and they say this is a flagrant violation of international law." |
Instead of that rendering these laws and norms meaningless, Mr. Akande said, it reveals that both sides are turning to them as a source of legitimacy. Speaking of the international legal system, he said, "it's fragile, it's under huge challenge, but actually it still has some purchase." |
"Everyone wants to cling to the high ground in regards to these norms," he continued. "Norms can coordinate behavior." |
| LEARN MORE ABOUT THE UKRAINIAN DEFENSE: | In Ukraine, the Men Who Must Stay and FightAs hundreds of thousands of citizens flee the Russian advance, the country's government has ordered men ages 18 to 60 to remain. By Clare Toeniskoetter, Lynsea Garrison, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Alexandra Leigh Young, Jessica Cheung, Lisa Tobin, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Marion Lozano and Chris Wood |  |
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From the team: Russia's war on Ukraine |
 | | Mr. Putin meeting with his Security Council in Moscow on Monday.Alexey Nikolsky/Sputnik, via Reuters |
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The last week has been marked by anxiety, anger and fear as Russia continued the largest mobilization of forces in Europe since the Second World War. The Daily team has tried to cover the war in Ukraine the best it can — reporting from the ground in Kyiv, speaking to Ukrainians about how they are thinking and feeling about this moment, analyzing Russia's military strategy and exploring the efficacy of sanctions. |
But there is a lot we didn't get to cover, and the narrated articles team has been tackling some of the angles we missed. Here are four articles to get you caught up: |
Putin Seems to Sideline Advisers on Ukraine: Mr. Putin's decision to invade Ukraine suggests that he is confident in his resources — and his public image is that of a strong man, with the power to direct the Russian state as he pleases. However, no leader can govern alone, and the global reaction to his war has raised questions about just how much political support he will be able to draw during this conflict. |
The Middle East Sympathizes with Ukrainian Refugees: The spectacle of a mass flight out of Ukraine was resonating deeply in the Middle East. But in a region that has been plagued by seemingly endless wars, the empathy was tinged with bitterness from some who saw European nations taking a more compassionate stance toward the Ukrainians than they had in recent years toward Arab and Muslim migrants |
How to Talk to Kids About Ukraine: Kids may be feeling nervous about the Russian invasion. Thanks to social media and online outlets, young people have access to more news sources than ever. So, how should you answer your kids' questions about what's going on? If they don't ask, should you bring up the issue yourself? Here is what the experts suggest. |
For Ukraine's Refugees, Europe Opens Doors That Were Shut to Others: Russia's invasion of Ukraine has pushed tens of thousands of people out of their homes and fleeing across borders to escape violence. But unlike the refugees who have flooded Europe in crisis over the past decade, countries that have for years resisted taking in refugees from wars in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan are now opening their doors to Ukrainians. |
Join Sabrina Tavernise March 9 in a free virtual event as she speaks with David Leonhardt of The Morning newsletter for a behind-the-scenes look at what she is seeing on the ground in Ukraine. R.S.V.P. now. |
That's it for the Daily newsletter. See you next week. |
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