What happened to the media’s coverage of the Ukraine war?

OPINION:

Last weekend, The Wall Street Journal published a rare story on the Ukraine war, though it was buried on page A10 after a front-page teaser. That was the pattern until Russia launched a massive drone attack against Ukraine on Sunday, which attracted some media attention. Otherwise, the media have seemed generally bored with the war.

In recent weeks, the media again have been preoccupied by celebrities, including those attending the Bezos-Sanchez wedding in Venice, and the “news” that it took 900 hours to make the bride’s dress. Yet the killing grinds on between Russia and Ukraine, with minimal advances on either side and no immediate possibility of a ceasefire or peace deal.

Ivan Bespalov, a Ukrainian Presbyterian pastor in Kyiv, is temporarily in the U.S. to rally church and public support for his country. In a telephone interview from his New York City hotel, I asked him whether he had any hope that a peace agreement with Russia could be achieved and the killing on both sides stopped.

“Our concern is whether the Russians can be trusted,” Mr. Bespalov said. “When Russians feel they are powerful, it is very unlikely they will seek a compromise.”

He said he thinks the killing will continue “until they establish their supremacy, their control. Only when Russia comes to believe Ukraine is strong and they feel they are paying too high a price to continue this war, then they may come to an agreement.”

Mr. Bespalov denied reports of persecution of certain segments of Christian churches in Ukraine. He said even the Russian Orthodox Union, which is largely supportive of Vladimir Putin, faces government restrictions only on its political positions, not its faith practices. However, he said that although the Orthodox “don’t do it openly, they do encourage people to surrender [to Russian soldiers] and not to resist. They support the narrative ‘We are one people’ and there is no harm with them trying to establish Russian influence and Russian power. So naturally, when our government hears these kinds of messages, they warn the priests and others who promote this narrative. And if they continue doing this, some of them wind up in jail or are removed from their positions.”

This apparently accounts for the origins of the reports that Ukraine is persecuting certain churches.

How is Mr. Bespalov trying to break through the multiple news and celebrity stories in the U.S. that have replaced what is taking place in Ukraine?

“We are speaking to various churches and had the opportunity to speak to the General Assembly of the [conservative] Presbyterian Church in America of about four to five thousand people,” he said. “We are asking people for their prayers and thanking them for the physical help they are sending us through a charity, Crates for Ukraine.”

Mr. Bespalov said people who contribute are helping Ukrainians who have been displaced from their homes. This reminds me of the CARE packages that were delivered to Eastern European nations occupied by Russia beginning in the aftermath of World War II.

How much longer does Mr. Bespalov think Ukraine can hold out if Mr. Putin doesn’t come to an agreement to stop the war? He said, “I think that Ukraine will be resisting until the very end.”

By that, he clearly means the end of Ukraine’s independent status, not the end of Russia. The key, though, as he told me, is to make Mr. Putin pay so high a price that he will seek peace. That is not likely to happen without further military and financial support for Ukraine, especially from European nations.

Now would also be a good time to get today’s equivalent of CARE packages shipped to Kyiv.

• Readers may email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@tribpub.com. Look for Cal Thomas’ latest book, “A Watchman in the Night: What I’ve Seen Over 50 Years Reporting on America” (HumanixBooks).