The text below is by Leonid Gozman, a commentator and Russian opposition politician convicted in 2022 ofhe compared the USSR to Nazi Germany, a former political partner of Boris Nemtsov, the liberal leader assassinated in 2015; Now Gozman is in exile. EFOR has the exclusive right from the Atlantic Council for this Romanian translation.

<< Vladimir Putin constantly tells us that one of the goals of his invasion of Ukraine is to prevent the country from joining NATO. At first glance, the goal seems reasonable, but if we take a closer look, we will understand that it completely contradicts the national interests of Russia.

The idea that Ukraine’s accession to NATO poses a threat to Russia’s security is one of the most entrenched myths that Putin has planted in public opinion. In fact, no NATO country has ever threatened to attack Russia. On the contrary, Russia’s borders with NATO have always been extremely quiet and safe. Moreover, this applies to the entire Soviet period, in contrast to what happened on other borders of the Union. So if Ukraine joins NATO, this step will significantly increase the security of Russia’s own borders.

The interests of the Russian people are best served by a strong and lasting peace, not wars of aggression. Ukraine’s accession to NATO will strengthen the alliance and increase its ability to resist Russian aggression, which will reduce the risk of a new war in Ukraine, since even Putin is not ready to enter into an open fight with NATO. Thus, the population of Russia will also have a chance to live in peace.

What is very important, Ukraine in NATO means the end of dreams of restoring the tsarist empire. Here’s another piece of good news for the Russians, because the last thing they need right now is an empire. In today’s global world, imperial ambitions create an overwhelming economic and moral burden that affects a country’s development and leads to stagnation.

It is wrong to assume, as many people do, that most Russians share Putin’s imperial ambitions. During the years of the collapse, and then the collapse of the USSR, there were exactly zero public demonstrations of protest against the independence of the union republics, although public demonstrations were freer then than today. Indeed, after the tragic events in Vilnius in January 1991, when Soviet troops killed 13 Lithuanians who were going to a peaceful demonstration, a million people gathered in the center of Moscow to demand recognition of Lithuania’s independence. Russians took to the streets not to defend the empire, but to defend freedom.

At the time, no one considered the collapse of the USSR to be the “biggest catastrophe of the century,” as Putin later qualified it. According to sociological surveys, signs of “imperial nostalgia” in the Russian public began to appear only after about 15 years, approximately in the middle of 2000-2010. And the change in attitude occurred primarily because of intense state-supported propaganda, not because of any deep-seated imperial identity.

The collapse of the USSR was by no means a regrettable rejection of the empire, but a profoundly positive historical turn for Russia. On the contrary, today’s revival of imperialism in Moscow poses an existential threat to the country’s future. The accession of Ukraine to NATO would be a big step forward towards the complete abandonment of the idea of ​​empire, so it is good news for all Russians.

It is clear that it is in Russia’s interest to have stable, predictable and non-aggressive neighbors. A NATO member country is just such a neighbor. If Ukraine joins the alliance, it is the best guarantee against future retaliation by Kyiv after the end of the current war.

Similarly, joining NATO would oblige the Ukrainian authorities to carry out important reforms to raise the standard of living of the population. Here’s another piece of good news for Russia: like any other country, Russia has an interest in its neighbors being prosperous because it will benefit from trade and economic relations with them if they achieve a high standard of living. In addition, strengthening Ukraine’s democratic institutions will demonstrate to the Russian public that democracy can flourish in the post-Soviet space. Russians are as interested in personal freedoms and democratic values ​​as any other people, but for years they have been bombarded by Kremlin propaganda that wants to convince them that freedom and democracy are only possible in the West and will never take root in Russia. – Read more on Contributors.ro