Rewarding Imperialism doesn't make Donald Trump an ally of peace

Donald Trump has succeeded in imposing an unfair, and unsustainable “peace” deal in Gaza, now he wants to do the same in Ukraine. But history shows us that ignoring expansionist imperialism to achieve peace never works. We must not make that mistake again

On September 30th 1938, Neville Chamberlain stepped off an aeroplane at Heston Aerodrome, and gleefully announced, “The settlement of the Czechoslovak problem which has now been achieved is, in my view, only the prelude to a larger settlement in which all Europe may find peace.”. Hearing supporters of Trump’s efforts to bully Ukraine into an unsustainable ceasefire, it’s difficult not to think of the cheering crowds at Heston.

But who can blame them? Like Ukraine, Czechoslovakia was a distant country of which we knew little, sacrificing their territory for peace made sense, and failing that, Hitler’s next target would undoubtedly be another distant country of which we knew little. Two years later, German bombs were falling on London.

Since 2022, I have visited Ukraine six times. I have spoken with ordinary Ukrainians and soldiers, I have spent nights in air-raid shelters, days without electricity, and seen the cruelty of Russia’s war first-hand.

Western pundits feign caring about Ukrainians, but write about ideology and domestic politics, not Ukrainian lives. They call surrender a “small price,” but Ukrainians tell different stories: stories of ethnic cleansing, “filtration camps,” disappearances, and mass graves.

If asked, Ukrainians would tell us that Putin will not stop, that if he wins, he’ll take Ukraine’s natural resources and military-industrial complex, and turn them on the rest of Europe. It’s an eerily familiar story, and after seeing what Russia has done first-hand, I believe they are right.

Returning from Munich, Chamberlain continued rearming Britain. I think that even as he got off that plane, he knew deep down that war was inevitable. Today, we need to recognise that reality. Rather than appease to an imperialist aggressor, we must have the courage to do what the allies failed to do in 1938: stop a tyrant before it is too late.

This article reflects my personal views alone. It is a reply to this article featured in the Guardian on October 20th 2025.