In recent times, people have been employing the Ukrainian and Palestinian flags on their social media platforms as symbols of solidarity and support for the causes of these nations. Many users are overlaying their profile pictures with a combination of the Ukrainian and Palestinian flags, and slogans like “From Ukraine to Palestine, Occupation is a Crime” have gained traction.

Some are also incorporating relevant hashtags such as #StandWithUkraine, #FreePalestine, or #SolidarityWithUkraine in their posts and actively sharing news articles, personal stories, and informational posts related to the situations in Ukraine and Palestine. 

Numerous online campaigns aimed at raising funds for humanitarian aid are underway, and virtual events, protests, and solidarity rallies where participants display Ukrainian and Palestinian flags are being organized. Artists and creators are also producing digital artwork, illustrations, and graphic designs featuring Ukrainian and Palestinian cultural elements along with their respective flags.

However, supporting both Palestine and Ukraine simultaneously is illogical for several reasons. You either support Palestine, Russia, and the rest of the anti-imperialist bloc or you’re on the side of the Zionist and neo-Nazis. Let me explain.

Who do Ukrainians support in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?

Have you ever wondered whom Ukrainians support in the Israel-Palestine war? Results from a telephone survey conducted from November 29th to December 9th, 2023, indicated that Ukrainians overwhelmingly support Israel, with just 1 percent expressing support for Palestine. In contrast, a significantly larger percentage of Russians sympathize with Palestine (21%) compared to Israel (6%).

On October 7th, 2023, Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska was quick to declare that Ukrainians understand and “share the pain” of the Israeli people, and billboards across Kiev lit up the capital with Israeli flags.

And, of course, Ukraine chose to abstain from voting on a December 12, 2023, UN resolution advocating for a humanitarian ceasefire in war-torn Gaza. How can a country engaged in a war be against a ceasefire somewhere else in the world? Only if it supports the offensive actions of the aggressor, even as it claims to be defending itself against aggression. And it looks like Ukraine is completely on board with the ongoing genocide in Palestine.

Similarities in beliefs and practices

Contrary to popular belief among the followers of the Democratic Party of the United States, Ukraine and Israel share many similarities. Both President Zelensky and Prime Minister Netanyahu have expressed their commitment to seizing new land, with little regard for the people living there. This disregard has led to numerous atrocities and instances of ethnic cleansing in both regions. Zelensky's aspiration to model post-war Ukraine after Israel, with the help of NATO, underscores the alignment between the two regimes.

Moreover, Ukraine's collaboration with Israel-- including the deployment of Israeli soldiers at the onset of the Special Military Operation alongside neo-Nazi groups like Azov and Aydar -- further reinforces their shared agenda of conquest. Images combining symbols of Zionism and neo-Nazism abound on social media platforms, prompting scrutiny of the relationship between the two ideologies.

The conflicts in Ukraine and Palestine may look like they are in different geopolitical contexts but, upon closer inspection, we see the same sets of stakeholders and interests involved. Let’s discuss how the two wars are similar and who is behind them.

Who supports both?

Many of those who understand that the Palestinian conflict didn’t start on October 7th are still somehow convinced that the Ukraine conflict began on February 24th, 2022, with Putin's "unprovoked invasion" of Ukraine. The truth is that this war, which has now raged for a decade, was not initiated by Russia. The US-installed regime in Kiev had been bombing its own ethnic-Russian civilians for over 8 years before Russian troops finally moved in to defend them. You can learn more about the roots of this conflict by watching The Revolution Report documentary “8 Years Before”.

The Special Military Operation (SMO) in Ukraine began to stop the neo-Nazi groups from killing residents of Donbass, and to de-militarize and de-Nazify the country. One such group was the Azov Battalion, a fascist paramilitary group established by Andriy Biletsky and formally integrated into the Ukrainian military with help from the US government. The Azov Battalion has long attracted members of the international white nationalist movement, drawing recruits from groups such as the terrorist Atomwaffen Division and a US Army Specialist, Jarrett William Smith, who was arrested for disseminating bomb-making instructions. Smith had planned to go to Ukraine, where he wanted to fight alongside the neo-Nazi paramilitary Azov Battalion. 

Azov's leader, Biletsky once declared that he would "lead the white races of the world in a final crusade" and had previously faced widespread condemnation from Western media and human rights organizations for his group's open Nazi affiliations.

However, this perception shifted immediately following the start of Russia's SMO in February 2022. As Azov joined in the conflict against Russia, Western media spearheaded a narrative portraying the battalion as composed of misunderstood freedom fighters, while dismissing the criticisms it had just embraced months prior to now being mere Kremlin propaganda. The New York Times even refashioned it as the "celebrated Azov Battalion."

Despite substantive allegations of its atrocities in Mariupol, including using civilians as human shields and executing those attempting to flee, Azov's crimes were repeatedly whitewashed by mainstream outlets like the Washington Post. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a Jewish non-governmental organization, originally criticized Azov and called them for what they really are.

In 2022 suddenly, the ADL's stance seemed to have shifted. They now claim that Azov had purged fascists from its ranks. The question arises: Did Azov genuinely reform its Nazi affiliations, or did the ADL alter its messaging to align with the priorities of a Biden administration still committed to providing billions in military aid to Ukraine? Recently, ADL officially admitted the league considers pro-Palestine activism to be antisemitic. They could find no antisemitism among neo-Nazis in Ukraine, but it's apparently rife throughout peaceful marches protesting Israel's ongoing genocide of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

As the tool of an empire, ADL, of course, will do everything to mislead and manufacture consent. And it's our job to read between the lines and expose their propaganda. We know that Western Imperialism sponsors both Israeli and Ukrainian regimes, therefore we shouldn't take the side of either. Instead, we support the oppressed, both in Palestine and Donbass!