One particularly dangerous idea I’ve heard recently — even from someone posing as a “representative” of the White House — is this: “Russians fought and died for Ukrainian territory. Therefore, it should now belong to Russia.”
This logic is a blatant distortion of both history and justice. If accepted as a principle, it would legitimize conquest and aggression across the globe.
If military conquest and bloodshed alone are enough to justify territorial claims, then the world map should be in a constant state of flux, redrawn after every war. Just consider the implications:
Should Spain reclaim Mexico and much of Latin America because Spanish conquistadors fought and died there?
Should Mongolia assert control over vast parts of Asia and Eastern Europe because Genghis Khan’s armies once conquered them?
Should Turkey demand back the Balkans, Greece, and parts of the Middle East because Ottoman soldiers died in those territories?
Should Britain reclaim its former colonies where British troops perished?
By this logic, Native Americans would have the most legitimate claim to North America, having fought and died in great numbers defending their ancestral lands from European settlers.
And yet the hypocrisy becomes clear when this principle is selectively applied. Those who argue that Russian military deaths justify claims over Ukraine never suggest returning lands inside Russia to the peoples who resisted its imperial expansion — the Chechens, Circassians, Crimean Tatars, and many others who lost their lives and territories fighting Russian conquest.
This argument also conveniently ignores the Ukrainian blood shed in defense of these very lands against Russian invasion. If sacrifice grants rights to land, then Ukraine’s enormous losses — both historical and in today’s full-scale war — only strengthen its claim, not weaken it.
The “blood-claimed territory” logic also runs directly counter to Christian teachings on justice, peace, and the dignity of all people. Jesus explicitly rejected worldly power gained through violence, saying: “All who draw the sword will die by the sword” (Matthew 26:52). His Kingdom is not built through conquest, annexation, or occupation — but through justice, mercy, and peace.
This “might makes right” philosophy isn’t justice. It is idolatry — the worship of political power — regardless of the flag it bears. And it is a direct contradiction of the Gospel, which calls us to protect the vulnerable and pursue peace rooted in righteousness.
