Want to help Ukraine? Let’s stop investing Ky’s pension funds in Russian assets.

As human tragedy unfolds in Ukraine, the world wakes up to the need to stand firm and brook no quarter to threats to the rule of law. Might does not make right. Russia is not entitled to deprive a sovereign people of their lives, freedoms, land or nation. However, might must meet might to ensure that the principles of democracy and the rule of law, two sides of the same coin, withstand the unconscionable acts of megalomaniac war criminal and autocrat Vladimir Putin. But what can Kentucky, as a state, do to help Ukraine defeat Russia?

Though the United States and many other nations have sent an array of military equipment, millions in financial resources, and tons of humanitarian aid, Kentucky can’t really do that. Article I of our United States Constitution leaves foreign policy to our federal counterparts alone (please call your D.C. representatives everyone). Fear not, however. Kentucky is not out of options, our power can yet be felt on the world stage.

Kentucky and Kentuckians have economic leverage over Vladimir Putin and Russia. It might not rise to the level of freezing Russia’s foreign currency reserves or halting trade, like the United States government can and has done, but, as with boycotts of South Africa during apartheid, we can help bankrupt a despotic government by spending our money a little more wisely.

At the end of 2021, Kentucky’s Public Pension Authority held over $25 million worth of Lukoil, Russia’s largest state owned oil company, $2.2 million worth of Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank, $1.6 million worth of X5 Retail Group, a Russian food retailing company, $8 million worth of Magnitogorsk, a Russian steel company, and millions more in a slew of other Russian company shares. States like Pennsylvania, Georgia, Colorado, California, and others are already taking this action. We should too.

All of the financial and trade penalties being placed on Russia converge to put enormous negative economic pressure both on Putin directly and, more importantly, on every other Russian on whom Vladimir Putin relies for his legitimacy as their ostensible leader. If enough Russian businessmen and everyday Russians learn that Putin is costing them more than he is benefiting them, then Putin might never make use of the two additional Presidential terms he recently allowed himself.

Also, to highlight how Ukraine’s trouble is very much already on our doorstep: Remember Rusal? The Russian company behind former Braidy Industries’ bid for an aluminum plant in eastern Kentucky? (They still owe Kentucky $15 million dollars btw). Rusal is one source of Senator Mitch McConnell’s “Moscow Mitch” title - the other primary source of that nickname was Senator McConnell’s downplaying Vladimir Putin’s foray into manipulating our own elections in 2016 and subsequent steadfast refusal to legislate away foreign powers’ ability to do so again. Remember what Political Action Committees (PACs) are? Those are the “independent” campaign finance organizations that successfully funneled millions from foreign entities into certain candidates’ campaigns. Remember that? Y’all. We really need to help Ukraine win this. 2024 is just around the corner.

Please, call your state legislators and ask them to divest all our public pension money from Russian companies. Let’s help Ukraine as we are able, as much as we are able. They are the front lines in a fight for their lives, homes, dreams, nation, and, ultimately, for us. We need them to win this. We need the influence of Russia to go away from the world stage. To go away from the stage of our own internal elections. We need democracy and rule of law to thrive. Slava Ukraine.

Ezra Dike is an amateur gardener and professional attorney in Eastern Kentucky with too many dogs.