Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February of 2022, the United States has been debating how much support to provide Volodymyr Zelesnkyy (Ukrainian President) and his military in the repelling of Russians.

The Russo-Ukraine war has been costly and fatal, leading to concerns about more financial help to Ukraine. Although Ukraine and the US have agreed to a conditional peace deal, the current administration’s rhetoric and actions, such as dismantling some aid, has damaged the United States and its place in the world. 

I disagree with this stance vehemently and believe the US should be providing Ukraine more assets for them to protect their homeland against an imperialist power and the US’s ideological enemy.

Usually, criticisms of American involvement in international conflict contain speech about how the American economy will be ravaged through the amount of money the US is using. However, this sympathy ignores how much of this budget flows back into the US economy as about 70% of US Aid goes to American workers or companies. 

“The portion used to support Ukraine isn’t just money that goes to Ukraine, it’s Ukraine buying our defense products,” Millikan’s AP Macroeconomics teacher Sean McWhorter said.  

American investment in Ukraine also continues the post-WWII relationships we’ve had with Eastern European countries and protects our global security interests. 

For the US to be a bearer of democracy, we must also promote our ideals far from our country, proving the strength of our ideology through defending our allies and fighting against dictatorship. Intentionally trading support from a European, democratically-aligned country (Ukraine) for a totalitarian state (Russia) hurts our reputation in other Western countries.  

Overall, the United States must change its policies concerning this war and how this war ends to prioritize a better future for the US and countries similar to the US globally.