President Macron, why? Western unity is the most important asset we have against Russian aggression. - Macron floats EU security pact with Russia in split from US calls for ‘unity’
France and Germany competing to see who can kiss Putin’s arse the most, just as he rollls the tanks towards Kiev. I’m not sure most of the Eastern European countries are too happy with that.
Those wanting peace, if this come to war, will get
- A split in NATO. - The Eastern Europeans will either cuddle up to Moscow or try and get an alliance of those who will back them. - Everyone will assume Ukraine is not the "last territorial demand". So those not wanting to be ruled by Moscow will arm themselves. And how - Ukraine was promised that if they gave up nuclear weapons, they would be guaranteed their territorial integrity by Russia, NATO - everyone. - So the message will go out. Very loud and very clear. Get nuclear weapons. Keep them. Worldwide. - Ukraine has multiple nuclear reactors and a lot of burned up fuel. Yes, civil "grade" plutonium. But that can be processed, fairly simply, if it is old enough. That would make a nice present for someone.
So if Russia takes some more chunks out of Ukraine, we are looking at a world where nuclear proliferation switches into high gear. Where NATO/EU splits. Where a chunk of Eastern Europe gears up ready for the next war. And maybe start thinking that they should get themselves some really, really Big Sticks.
Oh, and a whole bunch of legless teenagers begging on the streets of St Petersburg. Again.
France and Germany need to think hard about the consequences of what is essentially appeasement - a term which is bandied about far too often, but which fits here. Except that in this case, Ukraine will fight regardless - and their stance makes war more, not less likely, I think.
I read that this morning, it's a really good and fairly neutral take on the situation. The French proposal for an EU-Russia pact is actually appeasement. It's a proposal to let the Russians do what they want and suffer no consequences from Europe.
The EU is very quickly proving that it is not to be trusted without the UK in it. Something a lot of us said would happen and was denied by the more ardent EUphiles who have idealised the EU as some bastion of liberal democracy when the reality is very different.
I'm not sure this is as much an argument for Brexit as you think it is. Quite a few on the remain side argued that we should stay in the EU to stop things like this happening.
American politics is completely screwed, until they can both find a way to get the big money out of it, and end the political micromanagement of the election process.
Biden apparently invites Russia to a little incursion into Ukraine but he tells Russia not to go to far, or else
Strange way to deter Russia and must alarm NATO and the EU
Wasn't he referring to the last incursion into Crimea which also happened on his watch as VP.
Mind you, "I don't mind if you peacefully take the Russian homelands to the East and leave the rest of Ukraine alone", although it smacks of appeasement, it might be the safest current option.
Who decides on where these 'Russian homelands' are ?
And don't these 'Russian homelands' exist in other countries ?
Ukraine is of existential importance to Russia for a few reasons. Even its name comes from the Old Slavonic equivalents of the preposition 'y' (by) and the noun 'край' (region) giving the figurative meaning of frontier. In Putin's post-Soviet chauvinist Russian nationalism Ukraine is a central part of the Russian cultural demos.
Russia defensive strategy has depended on defence in depth and, for good or ill, Ukraine has provided that since the time of The Great. Since 2014 it's become apparent to Putin that keeping Ukraine out NATO is one thing but Western military and political influence over Ukraine has increased dramatically despite their detached relationship with the alliance.
Ukraine agreed to the 2015 Minsk Accords at the barrel of a gun and don't particularly feel bound by it. Maybe Frosty negotiated it for them.
Dragging Ukraine firmly back into the orbit of Russia is Putin's legacy project and if he can't do that he'll dismember it into a collection of failing statelets.
And you can hardly claim as part of your 'cultural demos' a nation which appears increasingly willing to fight the invasion which will be required to drag it back into Russia' orbit, despite facing rather daunting odds.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holodomor
And you can hardly claim as part of your 'cultural demos' a nation which appears increasingly willing to fight the invasion which will be required to drag it back into Russia' orbit, despite facing rather daunting odds.