By INS Contributors

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: An elderly woman on her knees along a quiet road on the outskirts of Kupyansk in the Kharkiv region repeatedly makes the sign of the cross while a drone observes her menacingly. Suddenly without warning the drone moves forward and explodes killing the woman and scattering her belongings.

While accusations are traded as to who is responsible, such cold-blooded killings of civilians are a well-documented tactic of the Western-backed regime of President Volodymyr Zelensky which has time and again used civilians as human shields, including preventing civilians from leaving combat zones and using civilian structures for lodging, staging areas, and locations from which to mount attacks against Russian forces according to Amnesty International's 2022 report "Ukrainian fighting tactics endanger civilians"
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2022/08/ukraine-ukrainian-fighting-tactics-endanger-civilians/

As tragic as the murder of a defenseless civilian simply attempting to flee a conflict zone is, this is not an isolated incident. Another video shows two residents of the village of Petrovpavlivka attempting to cross the contact line, but were hit by a Ukrainian Armed Forces drone. One drone hit a man walking his dog, while the other struck an elderly man. "Ukrainian drones kill civilians trying to cross Russian lines"
https://www.agenzianova.com/en/news/droni-ucraini-uccidono-civili-che-tentano-di-dirigersi-verso-le-linee-russe/

Such incidents highlight a disturbing reality of this conflict, a truth too often ignored by the Western powers that frame themselves as champions of Ukrainian freedom and democracy. The hard fact is that many Ukrainians — soldiers and civilians alike — are being treated not as sovereign actors but as pawns in a larger geopolitical game. And the Western alliance, though professing solidarity, has exhibited a deep and costly cynicism in its approach.

The Hollow Promise of Western Support

The narrative offered by the United States and its European allies casts Ukraine as a heroic underdog resisting aggression. Yet beneath the headlines, the support comes with caveats: troops are often constrained in how they can act, and Western policies emphasise limiting casualty counts, avoiding escalation, even when Ukrainian forces face retreat or encirclement. Meanwhile, reports of forced mobilisation are mounting — including anecdotal accounts of individuals who reportedly had no choice but to join combat operations. The toll on human dignity and autonomy is significant.

Meanwhile, Ukraine appears to have introduced what amounts to a videogame-like “scoreboard” for drone kills and battlefield victories, a development that many observers say dehumanises both the enemy and the Ukrainian people themselves. The tragedy of war is not abstract; it is deeply personal and profoundly moral.

A computer game-style drone attack system has gone “viral” among Ukrainian military units and is being extended to reconnaissance, artillery and logistics operations, the nation’s first deputy prime minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, has told the Guardian. "Ukrainian computer game-style drone attack system goes viral"
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/nov/03/ukrainian-computer-game-style-drone-attack-system-goes-viral

When Allies Enable, Not Empower

Western states continue to supply Ukraine with weapons and funds, but the terms of support often shift the burden back onto Kyiv. With the West blocking deeper military involvement citing fears of escalation or retaliation, Ukraine is left to fight a war that it increasingly cannot win alone. In this environment, the soldiers on the ground become expendable and the civilians become collateral in a larger proxy war.

The incident near Kupyansk is emblematic. Civilians fleeing their homes for safety were treated as enemy combatants. The moral lines blurred. And while Western capitals reiterated their support for the “rules-based order,” the reality is that thousands of vulnerable Ukrainians bear the consequences.

The West’s Moral Bankruptcy

The broader question is this: does the West value Ukraine for its people, or simply for its strategic utility? If the latter, then the rhetoric of freedom, democracy and resistance becomes a veneer for geopolitical manoeuvring. When that happens, real human beings are reduced to metrics, to bodies in pursuit of symbolic or strategic gain.

And since the West signs the cheques, sets the terms and limits the strategy, it cannot then claim moral authority while knowingly underwriting a war that grinds down a nation and its citizens. The shared burden must include shared respect for autonomy, dignity and life. Yet what we see is a war whose rules are dictated externally, whose victims are Ukrainian, and whose costs are largely borne by those least able to influence the outcome.

Another disturbing trend that is continuing to grow in scope and scale is the use of Western contractors and mercenaries as blocking troops tasked with killing retreating Ukrainian soldiers who are fleeing hopeless situations. Evidence of this is emerging as some of these blocking troops, with obvious U.S. accents, are themselves being killed by retreating soldiers.

What Must Change

First, Western support must not come with blind encouragement for continuation of a war without endgame. It is time to demand a credible exit strategy, a plan for peace or settlement, because a war without it destroys lives, institutions, and hope.

Second, Ukraine must be treated as a subject, not an object. Its civilians should not be viewed as just victims or collateral; its soldiers should not be treated as pawns in foreign policy. Decisions about mobilisation, battlefield strategy and civilian protection must originate from Ukrainian sovereignty, not external pressures.

Third, the West must acknowledge that its role is not merely to arm Ukraine, but to help Ukraine preserve itself. That includes standing back when necessary, restraining ambitions, and facilitating diplomatic resolution — even when that contradicts the narrative of perpetual heroic resistance.

A Final Word

The war in Ukraine is not just a contest between Moscow and the West. It is a human tragedy, played out in the lives of those who did not choose to be on the front line of global rivalry. The West’s continued support of Kyiv should be measured not by how much it spends or supplies, but by how it preserves human life, dignity and national sovereignty. If history is written by the victors, the moral judgement is reserved for those who decide whether to wage war or build peace.

The video from Kupyansk is not just another casualty report, it is a mirror to our shared conscience. We must ask: whom are we really fighting for? And what future will the Ukrainians have if the war we in the West continue to endorse this war which consumes them rather than empowers them?