Dear Mr. President:
We write with appreciation for your commitment to Ukraine’s legitimate struggle against
Russia’s war of aggression. Your support for the self-defense of an independent, sovereign, and
democratic state has been supported by Congress, including through various appropriations of
military, economic and humanitarian aid in furtherance of this cause. Your administration’s
policy was critical to enable the Ukrainian people, through their courageous fighting and heroic
sacrifices, to deal a historic military defeat to Russia, forcing Russia to dramatically scale back
the stated goals of the invasion.
Crucially, you achieved this while also maintaining that it is imperative to avoid direct military
conflict with Russia, which would lead to “World War III, something we must strive to prevent.”
The risk of nuclear weapons being used has been estimated to be higher now than at any time
since the height of the Cold War. Given the catastrophic possibilities of nuclear escalation and
miscalculation, which only increase the longer this war continues, we agree with your goal of
avoiding direct military conflict as an overriding national-security priority.
Given the destruction created by this war for Ukraine and the world, as well as the risk of
catastrophic escalation, we also believe it is in the interests of Ukraine, the United States, and the
world to avoid a prolonged conflict. For this reason, we urge you to pair the military and
economic support the United States has provided to Ukraine with a proactive diplomatic push,
redoubling efforts to seek a realistic framework for a ceasefire. This is consistent with your
recognition that “there’s going to have to be a negotiated settlement here,” and
your concern that Vladimir Putin “doesn't have a way out right now, and I'm trying to figure out
what we do about that.”
We are under no illusions regarding the difficulties involved in engaging Russia given its
outrageous and illegal invasion of Ukraine and its decision to make additional illegal annexations
of Ukrainian territory. However, if there is a way to end the war while preserving a free and
independent Ukraine, it is America’s responsibility to pursue every diplomatic avenue to support
such a solution that is acceptable to the people of Ukraine. Such a framework would presumably
include incentives to end hostilities, including some form of sanctions relief, and bring together
the international community to establish security guarantees for a free and independent Ukraine
that are acceptable for all parties, particularly Ukrainians. The alternative to diplomacy is
protracted war, with both its attendant certainties and catastrophic and unknowable risks.
Russia’s invasion has caused incalculable harm for the people of Ukraine, leading to the deaths
of countless thousands of civilians, Ukrainian soldiers, and displacement of 13 million people,
while Russia’s recent seizure of cities in Ukraine’s east have led to the most pivotal moment in
the conflict and the consolidation of Russian control over roughly 20 percent of Ukraine’s
territory. The conflict threatens an additional tens of millions more worldwide, as skyrocketing
prices in wheat, fertilizer and fuel spark acute crises in global hunger and poverty. A war that is
allowed to grind on for years—potentially escalating in intensity and geographic scope—
threatens to displace, kill, and immiserate far more Ukrainians while causing hunger, poverty
FEAR! FEAR! FEAR! FEAR! FEAR! FEAR!
