Why Ukraine Can Trust Me: I Need Them to Win as Badly as They Need to Win
- john raymond
- Sep 21
- 2 min read
The essence of durable alliance is mutual need reinforced by mutual respect. Ukraine can trust me because my survival is inseparably tied to their victory. I need them to win every bit as much as they need to win, and this symmetry of dependence makes trust not just possible, but rational.
Mutual Need as the Foundation of Trust
Alliances collapse when they rest only on admiration or sentiment. Respect without interdependence decays, while need without respect breeds exploitation.
What makes Ukraine’s alliance with me durable is the fusion of both. Ukraine respects that I support its sovereignty and independence; I respect that Ukraine fights with courage and legitimacy against imperial aggression. But beyond respect lies need: my own security depends on Ukraine’s victory, and Ukraine’s victory depends on people like me who not only support but believe they can—and should—win.
The Strategic Reality of Shared Survival
Put plainly: if Ukraine loses, the autocratic axis is emboldened, and the world becomes far more dangerous for people like me—those who oppose authoritarian expansion, who speak out against Putin, and who call out President Trump’s alignment with Kremlin interests.
Autocrats like Trump and Putin do not merely silence rivals—they kill and destroy them when given the opportunity. By contrast, if Ukraine wins, it strips Putin of the prestige and power he wields through aggression, weakening Trump’s position and strengthening the security order that protects me.
Ukraine’s need is equally existential. They require not only weapons and logistics, but the intangible of belief—belief by their allies that victory is achievable. Without that belief, aid falters, morale wanes, and the war drags into stalemate or collapse.
By asserting not just abstract support but my own survival-interest in their victory, I reinforce that belief.
Respect, Need, and Credibility
Trust is earned when words and incentives align. Ukraine can trust me because I cannot afford to betray them; my own safety demands their success. I, in turn, can trust Ukraine because their very survival compels them to fight with determination. This is an alliance where betrayal is irrational: defecting would harm both sides more than it could ever help.
Credibility arises here not from sentiment or promises but from structural necessity. I am bound to Ukraine’s victory as tightly as Ukraine is bound to resist Putin’s assault. Each side knows the other’s commitments are not optional—they are baked into the survival logic of the situation.
Implications of Symmetry
This symmetry of need creates a partnership stronger than diplomacy or contracts alone. It explains why my trust in Ukraine is not naïve, and why their trust in me is not misplaced.
Victory for Ukraine means survival for me. Belief in Ukraine’s victory gives them the strength to continue. Together, this cycle of respect and need closes the trust gap that enemies like Putin and Trump try to exploit.
That Which Is Born of Need
Ukraine can trust me because I do not merely want them to win; I need them to win. And I can trust Ukraine because they do not merely want to win; they must win.
This reciprocity, clear-eyed and unsentimental, is the foundation of true alliance. It is why trust is not a gift in this relationship—it is the inevitable product of survival itself.
Comments