The US and other allies shouldn’t wait till February. They should instead move ahead immediately. Ukraine needs all the weapons and supplies it can get as quickly as possible. There is no reason to wait. Indeed, waiting will just unnecessarily prolong the war and associated suffering, enabling the Russian military to commit more atrocities and war crimes, as the Ukrainians run low on munitions.

[It’s certainly a better alternative than sending them Western assets, which I do support but in the context of a more cohesive plan with much better oversight on use. However, it would be a one-time move, would likely lead to confiscatory retaliation in Russia and elsewhere, and could undermine confidence in the US rule of law over financial matters. Somin addresses those concerns in a separate post, so be sure to check that out as well. I’d argue that this still needs more discussion than less. — Ed]