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Roger Waters has written an open letter to Vladimir Putin about the war in Ukraine.

If you’ve been following the saga of Roger Waters is an Asshole, you’ll know that a couple of shows on his This is Not a Drill tour have been canceled in Poland after he came out on the side of Russia (or perhaps more specifically, against the West) when it came to the war in Ukraine. Somehow the invasion of a sovereign nation is the fault of Ukraine, abetted by an overly aggressive and treacherous NATO. He wants Ukraine to negotiate to put an end to things.

Okay. Sure. Whatever.

The blowback has been huge and entirely justified. Now he’s written an open letter to Vladimir Putin. For whatever it’s worth, here it is.

Dear President Putin, since the Russian Federation invaded Ukraine on February 24th this year I have tried to use my small influence to encourage a ceasefire and a diplomatic settlement that addresses the security needs of both Ukraine and The Russian Federation. In that endeavour I have written two open letters to Mrs. Olena Zelenska the wife of the Ukrainian President. These letters are readily available on the internet. I am increasingly asked to write to you too, so here goes. Firstly, would you like to see an end to this war? If you were to reply and say, “Yes please.” That would immediately make things a lot easier. If you were to come out and say, “Also the Russian Federation has no further territorial interest beyond the security of the Russian speaking populations of the Crimea, Donetsk and Lubansk.” That would help too. I say this because, I know some people who think you want to overrun the whole of Europe, starting with Poland and the rest of the Baltic states. If you do, fuck you, and we might as well all stop playing the desperately dangerous game of nuclear chicken that the hawks on both sides of the Atlantic seem so comfortable with, and have at it. Yup, just blow each other and the world to smithereens. The problem is, I have kids and grandkids, and so do most of my brothers and sisters all over the world and none of us would relish that outcome. So, please Mr Putin indulge me, and make us that assurance.
 
Alright back to the table, if I’ve read your previous speeches correctly, you would like to negotiate a state of neutrality for a sovereign neighbouring Ukraine? Is that correct? Assuming such a peace could be negotiated it would have to include an absolutely binding agreement not to invade anyone ever again. I know, I know, the US and NATO invade other sovereign countries at the drop of a hat, or for a few barrels of oil, but that doesn’t mean you should, your invasion of Ukraine took me completely by surprise, it was a heinous war of aggression, provoked or not.

When Mrs. Zelenska replied to me via Twitter, I was very surprised and mightily moved, if you were to reply to me, I would mightily respect you for it, and take it as an honourable move in the right direction towards a sustainable peace.  

Yours sincerely
Roger Waters

Again, okay. Whatever. Here’s his latest Facebook post, too.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 38035 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

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