Sondre Lerche (41) is a popular and productive Norwegian songwriter and singer, who lives in USA and Norway and writes in the languages of both countries. In 2023, he released a thought-provoking song called ‘So Close We Were’ (in Norwegian, ‘Så nære vi var’) about a young couple’s relationship, drawing attention to their closeness, yet, also being careless about it, letting things drift till it ended, and it all became sweet and sad memories without fulfilled potential.
In my article today, I shall let the song text be a background for our thoughts about broader social, political and other issues, indeed such at the international level in this time with several violent conflicts and wars, between countries and peoples that earlier were, or could have been, close and like brothers and sisters. Rather than focusing on cooperation and supporting each other for common prosperity, many countries let disagreements and aggressions grow, over a shorter or longer time, and become icy and frozen. Opportunities and possibilities get lost, not necessarily on purpose, but because of carelessness and lack of positive approaches, and in addition, there may be negative outside forces, wanting conflicts to escalate.
Anti-corruption court rejects bail petitions of Elahi, Bhatti In the article, I shall especially draw attention to the over two-year-long war between Russia and Ukraine. Well, in East Ukraine it started at a close-to-war level over a decade ago, and Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Black Sea peninsula of Crimea took place in 2014. Ukraine’s confrontational policies towards Russia, drawing it closer to the West, were encouraged and shaped by the West. We do not know if Russia would have agreed to negotiations rather than the invitation of Ukraine, but it is not entirely impossible. Historians will provide analysis in the future.
In line with the lyrics of the song I mentioned above, I would like to underline that the relationship between Russia and Ukraine should have grown towards prosperity, as it mostly was before the current outright conflict, in spite also of some serious disagreements in the past. In the Soviet time, Ukraine was an important country in agriculture and advanced technological development, and the two lands were important to each other during the Soviet time. In the future, that will eventually happen again, but it will take a long time to heal the serious wounds and normalise relations. Ukraine is the smaller of the two big countries with less than a third of Russia’s population. Yet, Ukraine is one of Europe’s largest countries. Again, rebuilding Ukraine, and its relations with Russia will take time and resources, and it requires generous new, mindsets and actions in Ukraine, Russia, and the West.
IHC directs authorities to permit PTI rally in Islamabad The war situation between Russia and Ukraine developed between two countries and peoples who are like close relatives, not hostile strangers, with common or similar languages, religions, cultural traditions, ethnic backgrounds, and more – and future aspirations. There were opportunities in the last decades to improve the peaceful coexistence. Sadly, the opportunities were not taken advantage of, and both countries must carry their share of the responsibility for that. None of the countries has a democratic history and aspirations, but Ukraine seems to have more of it.
There were opportunities for peaceful talks, and such should also have been closer and broader between the West, Russia, and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The West should indeed have supported the development of democratic thinking and the establishment of institutions in lands with little democratic experience. That also includes Ukraine. In the future, the relations between the West and the Russian sphere must be brought back to dialogue and cooperation – before it becomes too late.
Planning ministry to undergo digital transformation in next six months: Ahsan It is easy to see that there were opportunities for entirely different developments in the West-Russia relations in the three decades after the fall of the Soviet Union. Indeed, the Russia-Ukraine war should not have happened, also becoming a war between the West and Russia/the East. It is more difficult to explain why the situation was allowed to go off-track as it did, becoming a regional and global crisis. The West’s massive military build-up is worrying, and it takes away resources and attention from real, positive development in other fields. The West, both USA and Europe, and their NATO military alliance will in the future be judged hard by historians – and so will Russia. I am less certain about how China will be judged, the emerging superpower next to USA and Europe, which also develops closer cooperation with Russia.
Still, we must hope and pray for peace for all. My words may have little power, and certainly less than those of Bob Dylan (83), the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2016. Let us reflect on a few lines from his song ‘Blowin’ in the Wind’, which he wrote in 1963.
Steering committee on 5Es framework holds maiden meeting ‘How many years can some people exist before they are allowed to be free? Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head and pretend that he just doesn’t see? And how many ears must a man have before he can her people cry? Yes, and how many deaths will it take ‘til he knows that too many people have died?’
Atle Hetland
The writer is a senior Norwegian social scientist with experience from university, diplomacy and develop-ment aid. He can be reached at atlehetland@yahoo.com
So Close We Were
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28.03.2024
Sondre Lerche (41) is a popular and productive Norwegian songwriter and singer, who lives in USA and Norway and writes in the languages of both countries. In 2023, he released a thought-provoking song called ‘So Close We Were’ (in Norwegian, ‘Så nære vi var’) about a young couple’s relationship, drawing attention to their closeness, yet, also being careless about it, letting things drift till it ended, and it all became sweet and sad memories without fulfilled potential.
In my article today, I shall let the song text be a background for our thoughts about broader social, political and other issues, indeed such at the international level in this time with several violent conflicts and wars, between countries and peoples that earlier were, or could have been, close and like brothers and sisters. Rather than focusing on cooperation and supporting each other for common prosperity, many countries let disagreements and aggressions grow, over a shorter or longer time, and become icy and frozen. Opportunities and possibilities get lost, not necessarily on purpose, but because of carelessness and lack of positive approaches, and in addition, there may be negative outside forces, wanting conflicts to escalate.
Anti-corruption court rejects bail petitions of Elahi, Bhatti In the article, I shall especially draw attention to the over two-year-long war between Russia and Ukraine. Well, in East Ukraine........
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