Diplomacy

The city does not stand still. Nor do its citizens. Normality becomes the most desired thing, even if it is known that what is happening is not normal. Maybe they don't see it... or don't want to see it. They get up early, they get up, they have breakfast, they take their children to school, they work... Nothing has changed in their daily lives, but they know that the tension is there, even if they don't breathe it, even if they don't want to breathe it. If they turn on the television, the radio or read the newspapers, they see it, they hear it. The media have their focus on Ukraine, they do not stop talking about the situation created in the last few days. Every step that is taken is reported at the very moment it is being taken. And things are looking very uneven, like a rope that is taut and taut, waiting for you to stop... or until it breaks. The match is in the hand about to be lit, a small flame that could create an unwanted disaster. Who wants war? For ordinary people, what is brewing in high places almost always escapes us.

The conflict is not new, it goes back a long way. But let's not look too far back, we are still in 2021. The arrival of thousands of Russian troops on the Ukrainian border was not an unintentional action, nor was NATO's mobilisation of military assets. Listening to the statements of the leaders of both countries sometimes makes the hair on the back of one's neck stand on end. The US ambassador to NATO, Julianne Smith, has been very clear that they are prepared to act if Russia were to attack Ukraine. Just in case, Americans living in the area have already been encouraged to leave the country. Tension is a fact of life. Provocations. Measuring forces. Where the two countries stand. If Ukraine is eventually attacked by Russia, NATO cannot stand idly by. It is frightening to think of everyone's preparedness.

Speeches and speeches. It is clear that things are not going well, but the commitment to dialogue, to exhausting all diplomatic strategies, is also on the table.  The announcement that a delegation from the European Parliament will travel to Ukraine on Sunday is a clear commitment to defuse the tensions that have arisen. The aim, says Parliament, is to "de-escalate the situation and avoid the disastrous consequences of a possible war in Ukraine". Reading the word creates sadness and the memory of another one that is already a decade old.

In Syria, too, things were business as usual. Days before the war broke out, tourists strolled through its most beautiful cities taking pictures. It was March 2011. The war is still going on. Let us hope that in Ukraine the rope does not break and that good sense and diplomacy will win the day.