23A005 A Plan for Peace by Jim Davies, 1/31/2023

As regular ZGBloggers know, this site is not interested in improving government but in abolishing it. We envisage peaceful, prosperous societies with none at all.

However, the demented desire of the FedGov to bring Russia under its control or hegemony has produced a war which could very easily and rapidly escalate into a global nuclear exchange; and it's not possible to build a zero government society on piles of radioactive ash. So this Edition will make an exception; out of self interest (of course!) we'll offer some advice to governments. Just this once.

The first suggestion is that Russia and Ukraine both ignore America. If they make a good peace, there's nothing the Biden Gang can do about it, and its NATO allies in Europe have (except for the UK and Poland) already grown tired of working as its agents. Here then are the terms proposed.

1. End hostilities at once and resume free trade, investment and travel across the common border.

2. Crimea will remain part of Russia, as it was for two centuries before Kruschev had too much to drink in 1954. Its residents have voted overwhelmingly in favor of Russia, and Ukraine will drop all claims to the peninsula.

3. The disputed Eastern land which Russia annexed at the request of its residents will be vacated and handed back to Ukraine; I'll call it the "Orange Strip" in the nearby map.

4. Ukraine's government will renounce all ties to NATO, repudiate all advances from NATO, return all surviving weapons to NATO countries that supplied them, and undertake never to allow nuclear weapons in its domain. It will allow permanent Russian inspectors to "trust but verify."

5. Ukraine will place no obstacle in the way of Orange Strip residents who choose to emigrate.

That's it; and the key Clause is #5, for the RusGov will announce that any resident of the Strip (presently part of Russia) who wants to do so will be free to relocate to any other part of Russia at government expense. That might cost $20- or $30 billion, which will come from reductions in the military budget. Ukraine will get the land, but the people who so wish will stay in Russia.

Thus, neither side will get everything it wants (that's impossible) but each side will get a great deal of what it wants, includng the most important items. It's a win-win idea:

Those are the big gains. The embargoes on trade that NATO countries imposed can be removed, at their option; if they do the world can resume the normal progress that was being made prior to 2014 or if they don't, trade between Russia and China will accelerate. Either brings peace and progress.

Now, Mr Lavrov and Mr Zelensky, get to work. You're welcome.