Our nation could help Ukraine resist Russia’s invasion by requiring that Ukraine agree to extradite anyone who misused US aid to the point that they violated US law. Unfortunately, this is needed with the head of Interpol warning that US weapons will end up in the hands of criminals and former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko alleging that the Ukrainian natural gas company Naftogaz was trying to embezzle $8 billion.*
Such a law would not slow our aid to Ukraine. In fact, it would help ensure that our aid reached the front lines, something that CBS highlighted as a problem, although it has since backtracked somewhat.
It also would reduce the incentive that any corrupt politicians in Ukraine have for continuing the war. Unfortunately, with tens of billions of our dollars flowing there, some dishonest politicians will take advantage.
* Tymoshenko’s allegation appeared on an English language website whose accuracy is unknown to me, so I asked a Ukrainian-American friend to listen to the Ukrainian-language video on Tymoshenko’s Facebook page. My friend reported that the website presents an accurate account of what Tymoshenko said. This does not mean that her allegation is correct, but it is consistent with the high level of corruption in Ukraine.
Defusing the Nuclear Threat 