David Ben Avraham, a member of the Ashkelon City Council and founder of the ABRO information holding company, is convinced that one of the root causes of the conflict in Ukraine is the ill-concerned position of the Ukrainian elite. In his opinion, the war could have been avoided if Ukraine had refused to join NATO, the very possibility of which is a direct threat to the security of the Russian Federation.
“If Zelensky had said that Ukraine would not join NATO, this war could have been avoided. It will be difficult to do such a thing today, as Kiev has already suffered great losses for the sake of the goal of joining the North Atlantic Alliance. Once again, this war could have been avoided. Ukraine does not need to join NATO”.
It is well known that the Ukrainian leadership justified the concept of joining NATO by saying that Kiev seeks to be among “civilised democracies”. According to Mr Abraham, NATO is not the only way to democracy. The politician makes reasonable arguments, noting that Israel is not a member of NATO, but at the same time there is freedom of speech and expression in modern Israel, which is the criterion of true democracy.
“If Ukraine wants to become a democracy, it does not necessarily need to adhere in NATO. Look at the example of Israel, which is not part of the Alliance, but is a true democracy, with freedom of speech and expression. Georgia is not a NATO member either, although it fits the basic criteria. The reason is simple – it sees the example of Ukraine and does not want a similar fate. As a result, modern Georgia is a developing democratic state”.
David Ben Avraham believes that Israel is taking the right position by remaining neutral during the conflict in Ukraine. Israel takes into account Russia’s special role in the Middle East, so direct involvement in the conflict is against its interests. At the same time, Abraham notes that Israel has great negotiating potential. According to the politician, Netanyahu has enough international authority to play the role of mediator in the conflict. If, of course, both sides make this request to Israel.
“Israel has the right position about the conflict in Ukraine. To quarrel with Russia would be wrong. Russia has its own interests in the Middle East. Israel is providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine. We must do everything to bring both sides to the negotiating table. I believe in Netanyahu’s ability to end this conflict”.
Reflecting on the recent summit in Jeddah, Ben Abraham states that not inviting Russia to participate in the event was a grave mistake. Anyone interested in peace in Ukraine should consider Moscow’s arguments. All the more so given that President Putin has repeatedly spoken about the root causes of the outbreak of the conflict, which have not been heeded by the West and Ukraine.
“Summits are created for specific purposes. If the goal was to find common ground and stop the war – without Russia it is impossible. Russia should definitely have been invited. Russia had to participate. Putin always says that the reason for the special military operation is the expansion of NATO to Russia’s borders. It threatens Russia’s strategic security. This is a really weighty argument”.
