A victory by Ukraine, and Ukraine alone, over Russia may be fertile soil for democratic development in the largest country in the world by area, with a population exceeding 146 m. A historic comparison can be made to how western democracy thrived in the setbacks of autocratic colonialism and Germany’s democratic development post WWII. The point is conveyed in a Swedish news paper DN article interview with renowned Yale history professor Timothy Snyder, emphasizing the importance that defeat is recognized domestically for a new way of rule to be inaugurated. Ukraine should therefore be supported with foreign weapons but not troops, which instead could fuel a narrative of a defensive victory over an aggressive NATO.

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