It has to be recalled that he stated he was against war in general when he grudgingly backed NATO’s wars in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan and Libya. It is supremely difficult to effectively argue against war while granting the advocates of it all their premises.
From his campaign website: “NATO has been the most successful military alliance in, probably, human history. I will stay in NATO.”
His allies in the House voted for the NATO Support Act of 2019.
Decades ago a local Vietnam Veterans Against the War chapter had a banner that said Oppose the War, Support the Warrior. The distinction isn’t clear. How can one oppose war but enthusiastically applaud the people or organization that wages it, as with Sanders’ statement above?
If by some miracle the current, unprecedented crisis is ended before it develops into something catastrophic, the precipitant for it – NATO – will not disappear on its own.
====
The Guardian
February 9, 2022
Bernie Sanders: We must do everything possible to avoid an enormously destructive war in Ukraine
Excerpts
We should be clear about who is most responsible for this looming crisis: Vladimir Putin. Having already seized parts of Ukraine in 2014, the Russian president now threatens to take over the entire country and destroy Ukrainian democracy. In my view, we must unequivocally support the sovereignty of Ukraine and make clear that the international community will impose severe consequences on Putin and his associates if he does not change course.
With that said, I am extremely concerned when I hear the familiar drumbeats in Washington, the bellicose rhetoric that gets amplified before every war, demanding that we must “show strength”, “get tough” and not engage in “appeasement”. A simplistic refusal to recognize the complex roots of the tensions in the region undermines the ability of negotiators to reach a peaceful resolution.
***
Putin may be a liar and a demagogue, but it is hypocritical for the United States to insist that we do not accept the principle of “spheres of influence”. For the last 200 years our country has operated under the Monroe Doctrine, embracing the premise that as the dominant power in the western hemisphere, the United States has the right to intervene against any country that might threaten our alleged interests. Under this doctrine we have undermined and overthrown at least a dozen governments. In 1962 we came to the brink of nuclear war with the Soviet Union in response to the placement of Soviet missiles in Cuba, 90 miles from our shore, which the Kennedy administration saw as an unacceptable threat to our national security.
We must vigorously support diplomatic efforts to deescalate this crisis and reaffirm Ukrainian independence and sovereignty. And we must make clear that Putin and his gang of oligarchs will face major consequences should he continue down the current path. At the same time, we must never forget the horrors that a war in the region would cause and must work hard to achieve a realistic and mutually agreeable resolution – one that is acceptable to Ukraine, Russia, the United States and our European allies – and that prevents what could be the worst European war in over 75 years.
Anti-bellum 
You can be sure that Sanders will have nothing to say about what NATO will do as he wholeheartedly supports the organization. Totally coopted shill. Probably has always worked for the government in one capacity or another.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s true. It’s my understanding he has never had a full-time job outside of elected office.
LikeLike
He was probably a red diaper baby who played the game for a while, got tired of it and went to the other side to make a lot of money, just like a lot of other lefties did from the 60’s.
LikeLike
War in the Ukraine is the Pentagons version of “build back better”. Only the war profiteers and their politico stooges benefit while Europe suffers and the USA goes down in defeat; impoverished and directionless, a hapless horde of consumers.
LikeLiked by 1 person