I am mortified by the recent off-the-cuff comments by the likely presidential candidate of the Republican Party, stating he would encourage our historic enemy from the Cold War (Russia, formerly the Soviet Union) to do what it wants with our allies in Europe.

My parents and their siblings lived through World War  II; they made sure their children understood the horror of WWII and mistakes made by both us and Europe in that war. As our independent Sen. Angus King frequently reminds his constituents, remember the Sudetenland in 1939, and do some reading from reliable historical sources.

Vladimir Putin is again rattling his saber this time regarding Poland (a NATO member) next door to Ukraine. Isolationism has never worked for us and the world. Leaders who are susceptible to flattery by Putin risk all of our lives. The Atlantic and Pacific will not protect us as they have in the past.

We must uphold our treaty obligations in Europe and around the world without question. Our futures and those of the world depend on it.

Jane Pentheny, Poland