Zelensky is basically proposing a worldwide association more powerful than NATO or the UN

[highplainsdem]

to respond both to aggression by rogue nations and to natural disasters.

Good for him.

Editing to add that he emphasizes the need for a QUICK response.


Editing again to add four paragraphs of Zelensky's speech from the transcript at Quartz.com:

https://qz.com/2142992/transcript-of-volodymyr-zelenskyys-speech-to-the-us-congress/

We have to defend the world. We already became part of the antiwar coalition, the big antiwar coalition that unites many countries, dozens of countries, those who reacted to president Putin’s decision to invade our country. We need to move on and do more. We need to create more tools to respond quickly and stop the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began on February 24. It would be fair if it ended in 24 hours, that people would be punished, that evil would be punished.

Today the people do not have such tools. Institutions should protect us from war but they unfortunately do not work. We need new alliances and we offer them. We propose to create an association, united for peace, a union of responsible countries to stop conflict immediately, provide all the necessary assistance in 24 hours, weapons if necessary, sanctions if necessary, humanitarian support, finances, everything you need to keep the peace and quickly to save the world, to save life.

Such associations would provide assistance to those who are experiencing natural disasters, who fell victim to humanitarian crisis or epidemics. Remember how difficult it was for the world to do the simplest things just to get a vaccine against covid to save lives, to prevent new strains. The world spent months, years doing things like that much faster to make sure there are no victims.

Ladies and gentlemen, if such an alliance would exist today we would be able to save thousands of lives in our country, in many countries around the world, those who need peace, those who suffer inhumane destruction. I ask you to watch one video. a video of what the Russian troops did in our country, in our land. We have to destroy every single aggressor who seeks to subjugate other nations. Please watch the video.

[OneGrassRoot]

1. But ruh-roh...

The QAnon conspiracy theorists around the world are going to see that as a sign of the New World Order ruled by blood-drinking pedophiles and Putin is trying to stop it.

[Probatim]

17. You forgot the baby-eating part but otherwise, you're on the right track.

[Caliman73]

46. That is exactly what I thought.

Live on Tucker Carlson -- "SEE, I TOLD YOU THEY WANTED A NEW WORLD ORDER!!!"

It would be a good thing to have countries cooperate more and share the resources of this planet more equitably, respond to natural disasters, and prevent aggression by anti-social nations.

[Jerry2144]

2. I see the logic in it

Especially since fascism is spreading again, even (especially?) here. There may very will need to be a concerted effort to stop it. Do we really need National armies instead of a global force? National nukes instead of ones under global control ( asteroid defense, global needs like that)?

[doc03]

3. It could be done if Russia and China had their ass kicked out of the UN nt

[AngryOldDem]

8. +1

[thesquanderer]

11. Not kicked out, but it's crazy to give veto power to the countries most likely to do bad things. n/t

[CaptainTruth]

13. Agreed. To me it seems like letting defendants overturn jury verdicts.

Imagine if defendants could be convicted & then just say "Sorry, I don't agree," & walk free.

I've always thought it was sort of like that.

[doc03]

47. It is like having MTG and Beobert on the Jan 6th

committee.

[former9thward]

31. Like invade Iraq?

[thesquanderer]

41. No single country should have veto power, not even us.

Especially since who knows what the next Trump-like president could do?

[Alexander Of Assyria]

12. China is not the same level of concern as Russia in any way imaginable.

[AlexSFCA]

14. totally, tired of baseless comparisons

putin’s war machine is unmatched. China actually cares about its economy.

[AZLD4Candidate]

19. China is a paper tiger. All bluster and no real anything

[lastlib]

27. That tiger is not paper and NOT toothless.

They're better now than they were in Korea. But they still have the numbers.

[AZLD4Candidate]

30. I lived there for 12 years and am going back to be with my wife in two months

Trust me. . .they are a paper tiger.

[former9thward]

32. Not going to trust you.

They have the 2nd biggest economy in the world and are investing hundreds of billions of dollars in infrastructure projects in Asia, Africa, S. America and even Europe (Italy).

[AZLD4Candidate]

35. They have a disorganized army that can't even line up in a straight line

And officers get promoted by bribing superiors.

Don't trust me then.

[former9thward]

36. Yes, I am sure you are an expert in the Chinese army.

When I was in Tibet they seemed very efficient to me.

[AZLD4Candidate]

37. Okay. . .you believe your "tourist trip" to Tibet

I'll believe Chinese veterans like my wife's deceased grandfather was who in the Chinese Army, as well as the general attitude about the Chinese army from people I knew there when I lied there.

With that, I think I'm done with this as I will not go down this rabbit hole.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

50. Indian Army believes China to be very capable and efficient and modern...they should know.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

49. The tens of billions China is pouring into developing countries...somehow some folks

have a problem with that….mainly the Rich in the West…ah for thé good old days of outright colonialism and national subjugation.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

48. China cares about its people, especially the elderly and listens to Science, not Truckers.

Witness the lockdowns in China and the opening up for the sake of Profit in the West.

What more evidence does one need for why the Western corporate media is ratcheting up the propaganda?

[questionseverything]

51. Doesn't china have huge re education camps?

For some religion?

I could do w/o that kind of “ caring”

[Alexander Of Assyria]

56. Deflective....but not too long ago America was detaining children, separating them from mothers,

and then losing them by the thousands. Still looking for some. Could go on and on and on…

Pimples and blemishes, some vigger, some smaller, some recent, some historical…but look at the bigger picture.

Both nations do no need to be enemies relying on Hate and constant promise of WAR!… cause of any of of that. To me that’s media propaganda playing on Fear, certainly same in both nations to control…US.

Let Twitter do the hating and the warring.

[wnylib]

15. Yet.

[thesquanderer]

42. You might think differently you lived in Taiwan. They're kinda China's Ukraine. n/t

[mopinko]

18. or end the veto.

[GoCubsGo]

21. Or, at least removed from the Security Council.

Why the hell either of them is on it, let alone permanent members, is beyond me.

[former9thward]

33. They were in the winners in WW II when the UN was formed.

[2naSalit]

4. And he's correct.

That's what it will take and the time is now or forget it.

[Lonestarblue]

5. Excellent idea. The UN is basically toothless because of the Security Council.

We need an organization that can deal with aggressive behavior by one country toward another before it spirals into world war. I think Putin may just be delusional enough to think that he can continue blasting Ukraine to rubble long enough that NATO is forced to enter the war. He knows he has lost Ukraine, and perhaps his only way out is to draw NATO into the war, then he can withdraw and claim that of course Russia could not win against NATO, whose leaders hate Russia and want to see it destroyed. With propaganda, Russians will believe him and keep him in power.

[AngryOldDem]

6. Needed in these times.

Both NATO and the UN are postwar institutions. Times have changed. Both still have a purpose, but Zelensky has a point.

[malaise]

7. No - he's proposing Western Institutions to dominate everyone else

That is all

[highplainsdem]

9. He said nothing remotely like that. Please don't try to spin this the way you recently

recommended pro-Putin work by filmmaker Oliver Stone.

[TeamProg]

24. Huh? What?

[former9thward]

34. Yes, he is.

Of course the UN is oriented towards that also.

[malaise]

45. Indeed

[Magoo48]

10. Damn good idea.

What we have isn’t working. UN is an aging, corruptible wimp, and NATO is a aging bully.

[bigtree]

16. doesn't make sense to sidestep those primarily peacekeeping institutions

...with a primarily military one.

That power should flow from those deliberative institutions, not one geared toward warring.

'Production for use . . .that’s what a gun’s for Earl, to shoot, of course! Maybe that’s why you used it — Yes, I think you’re right. That’s what a gun’s for isn’t it? Production for use! There’s nothing crazy about that is it? –Star reporter Hildy Johnson interviews a convict, “His Girl Friday” (1940).'

[bucolic_frolic]

20. The death of imperialism

Oh that won't be popular with corporations that rely on natural resources nor with the financiers behind them.

[PatrickforB]

22. What Zelinsky proposes is the right thing for the world, but alas

not for shareholder profits.

Only by forcing changes in corporate governance to a stakeholder approach rather than sharehold primacy will we be able to end the corruption that brings war for profit. I have called my Representative and suggested he 'lead the charge' in Congress for legislation that forces such change in corporate governance.

LOL, his staffer said that he 'thought he had most of it down' and that he would be sure and relay my thoughts to the Congressman.

Yep, I'm SURE that will work!

Sigh....

[TeamProg]

23. To do this would lead to some countries seeking a better trade deal. As it is, the U.S. kind of

screws some nations in trade, keeping them poor and import prices down.

The U.S. has a history of supporting dictators who suppress their own peoples' interests while exporting goods/oil/minerals to U.S. corporations at a swinging deal.

Or, the U.S. might blackmail a nation by shipping arms to the country's neighbor as a threat.

Or withhold the sale of arms to squeeze a better trade deal.. sound familar?

Things like that happened before TFG. TFG did it to corrupt an election = obvioulsy illegal.

[peppertree]

26. True. Overcoming fears/suspicions of bad faith would probably be the greatest hurdle against this.

In any case, a new UN would have to be structured without anything like a Security Council with five countries having veto power (with the General Assembly being mere window dressing).

That said, I think Zelensky's right - as long as it can be implemented with those caveats in mind (but can it?).

[Autumn]

25. He's right. We need a global military response organization. This attack by Russia has shown NATO as

a "peacekeeping" organization is useless. While they ponder, wait and watch people are dying.

[mia]

28. Zelensky is saying that we are all Ukrainians.

Civilization is at the crossroads.

[lastlib]

29. I just proposed this in a letter to the White House this weekend....

A "United Democracies" organization.

NATO was formed as a deterrent to Soviet aggression against NATO nations. That is essentially what it's good for, little else. A broader alliance is needed, with the wherewithal to intervene in situations like Ukraine.

[Martin Eden]

38. Would such an Association have stopped the 2003 US invasion of Iraq?

Unfortunately what has been done can't be un-done, but the victims would have a modicum of justice if Dim Son and Darth Cheney were imprisoned for war crimes.

[anarch]

40. certainly should have if there had been one

but unless advanced aliens decide to show their hand, or unless all people of the world agree to live under one code of behavior, to be enforced by, I dunno, the Jedi Council or something...unless any of that kind of shit comes about, there's nobody in charge.

[Martin Eden]

43. "nobody in charge"

= Lunatics are running the Asulum.

[anarch]

44. nobody's running anything, and thieves and brigands are terrorizing the population

and enslaving them/harvesting them for personal advantage.

Really, what is the shared purpose of humanity according to our world's "community standards"? I can tell you what it should be (to enjoy and care for this world and each other), but I can't tell you what it is in our society because there isn't any particular purpose aside from "line goes up" for the stock market and GDP or whatever.

[anarch]

39. a world government, to enforce international laws

yes the nationalists will absolutely love it

[Cha]

52. Brilliant man.. Zelensky Wants to

Save Lives and his Country.

💙💛

[Meowmee]

53. Great idea

But we still have the problem of psycho p threatening nukes to get whatever he wants.

[roamer65]

54. From the evangelical morons, Zelenskyy is the Antichrist in 3...2...1...

But if he is, I will gladly follow him. One world government needs to happen.

[AntiFascist]

55. Great suggestion...

I've always felt there should be a coalition of 'true' democracies defending democracy, although I suppose this would involve certain election standards.