Michael Harris writes that, in the Ukraine War, the soul of the West hangs in the balance:
Ukraine’s pop-star president, the guy in the T-shirt, says if Ukraine goes down, it’s not just the end of one country. It is the end of the world. In other words, if Ukraine dies, ask not for whom the bell tolls. You know the rest.
It is true that war leaders deal in hyperbole, but Volodymyr Zelensky has a point. As he said, Ukraine is the border between the civilized world, and what used to be known as the evil empire; between democracy and brutal dictatorship.
Vladimir Putin, the villain of this piece and more than a few others, is proving to be a one-man geopolitical pandemic. Despite all the death and destruction Putin has already caused, French President Emmanuel Macron warns that the “worst” is yet to come in this unprovoked and savage war against a sovereign, democratic state.
When Putin invaded Crimea, he learned that the West would not fight for Ukraine:
Russia has now used its uncontested land grab in Crimea as a key staging area for a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine. It is a war that could create five million refugees and kill 50,000 civilians. This time the target is not Sevastopol, it is Kyiv.
True, the West has imposed disastrous sanctions on Russia. But they are not enough to stop Putin:
So far, there is no sign that severe sanctions have done anything but make Putin double down on his outrageous invasion of Ukraine. Russian forces continue to inexorably close in on the country’s key cities, including Kyiv, in what has been called by U.S. intelligent analysts, the “slow annihilation” of Ukraine’s military assets. Despite Putin’s denials, civilian targets are also being ravaged by intense shelling.
So if the goal of the sanctions, the shaming, and the isolation of Putin and his band of thugs and oligarchs was to stop the invasion, it hasn’t worked, at least not yet.
And even if, over time, the sanctions work, what if the net result is an isolated Putin driven into the arms of China? What if China becomes the buyer of last resort for Russian wheat and energy? What if the two countries conspire to set up a course of their own, buying and selling securities and commodities in a non-dollar currency? If your neighbourhood is Asia, how tempting would it be to work with Peking rather than New York, even if the deals weren’t denominated in U.S. dollars?
Emmanuel Macron is right. The worst is yet to come.
Image: news.sky.com
19 comments:
“it hasn’t worked, at least not yet” you really think? What a travesty this war is. We have people crying out “ HEIP US “ and WE are doing nothing. Get some UMPF for the love of humanity. Oh Yes our hands are tied. Putty might let a nuclear bomb go off. It is time that vile man was challenged right down to the wire. What do you all think Churchill would do? Are we being Cowards? Anyong
The atomic bomb changed calculations, Anyong. It made cowards of a lot of people.
As he [Zelenski] said, Ukraine is the border between the civilized world, and what used to be known as the evil empire; between democracy and brutal dictatorship.
Nothing like a little xenophobia to help things along. And this from the president of a country that has explicitly Nazi military formations in its army.
What do you mean by "Nazi military formations," jrk ?
jrk is code for RT. You're being used.
"What do you mean by "Nazi military formations," jrk ?"
Well, start off by researching 'AZOV'. (Hint: known for killing Russian speakers in Donbas.)
Then perhaps read this:
"How Ukraine’s Jewish president Zelensky made peace with neo-Nazi paramilitaries on front lines of war with Russia"
https://thegrayzone.com/2022/03/04/nazis-ukrainian-war-russia/
Troubling if true, PoV. I'm not familiar with the source and I have no idea if it is reliable.
It's really critical to check the sources of your information, Dana.
Russia is keen to discredit the Azov Battalion (now regiment) because they've been kicking Russian butt in the Donbas for years. And indeed, there are neo-nazi elements in the regiment, enough for the propaganda against them to work. Russia, however, is much less interested in talking about its Wagner Group, which also has strong neo-nazi elements. Russia likes to claim the Wagner Group is an independent group of mercenaries, but that would be against Russian law. WG is in reality the armed GRU, used for plausible deniability. Their leader, Dmitry Utkin, nom de guerre Wagner, has Nazi insignia tattooed all over, which is quite something in a country that lost over 20 million people fighting the Nazis. He's an associate of an oligarch with close ties to Putin. The bottom line is that neither side has clean hands when it comes to neo-nazis and we can safely discount this as the pot calling the kettle black.
Cap
Thanks, Cap. I appreciate that clarification.
Yes
Check your sources
AND
Remember they are only as good as the information they are given
Q. What is the first casualty of war?
War is 50/50 ... two to tango ... pot and kettle both black
The real fools are the pro nuke crew
Who see this neighborhood dispute as bipolar world conflict
not the rich making the rich richer at everyones' expense that it is
War can always turn a profit for some, lungta.
We have reached a point where many unpleasant truths are coming to light.
Both sides of the political coin are having their affiliations questioned.
In the name of profit, growth and whatever we have turned a blind eye to the truth.
It may be truth of our past or truth of current affairs but increasingly we re chanting, I cant hear you , I cant hear you!!
To deny that there are no Nazis in the Ukraine is to deny there are no gun loving US nationalists wishing to pursue America is exceptional goals or the seldom mentioned new American century .https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_for_the_New_American_Century .
As for sitting on their arse Canadians supporting the truck convoys without questioning their real motives and financing, is there any any reason to wonder why the world is destroying itself?
Truth is , we put up with some shitty governments as long as they line our pockets with $$ .
It's the way of the west that votes for what lays in his or her wallet.
TB
It seems to be human nature to want to turn a profit, TB -- as long as someone else pays the bill.
I'll publish your question, Anon, if you initial it.
@ Owen
Re: Nazi
Google "Azov Battalion".
These guys are the lineal descendants, ideologically at least, of those Ukrainians that served in the Nazi SS. One of their idols is Stepan Bandera.
They have a, probably well-earned, reputation for atrocities in the 8 year long between Kiev and the breakaway Donetsk People's Republic and Lugansk People's Republic, collectively called the Donbas Republics.
"Russia, however, is much less interested in talking about its Wagner Group, which also has strong neo-nazi elements."
Ode to Cap ....
Nazis to the left of me, Nazis to the right.
Here I am
stuck in the middle with you ;-)
Meanwhile Jr. says OK to more war-industry spending (aka defense) and Alberta tries to breath life in Keystone XL.
jrk is code for RT
It is amazing how quickly one becomes a Putin stooge as soon as one deviates a millimetre from the accepted line of thought. Joe McCarthy lives!
It's always been wise to tread carefully around "true believers," jrk.
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