to the editor: Columnist Jonah Goldberg writes that the United States encouraged Ukraine to give up its nuclear weapons in exchange for “security guarantees” (“Leaked 'wish list' for peace in Russia-Ukraine war is not America first,” November 25). He goes on to say that such guarantees are not guarantees, but “they are also nothing.” I think the Ukrainians would argue that Russia's assurances are actually nothing.
This quote is from John F. Kennedy Inaugural Address in 1961: “Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we will pay any price, bear any burden, face any difficulty, support any friend, oppose any enemy to ensure the survival and success of freedom.”
I don't think Kennedy, or most Americans, had it in mind to throw Ukraine under the bus and give Russia its wish list.
Richard Shafarman, Santa Clarita
