Putin’s Criminal Invasion of Ukraine Highlights Some Ugly Truths About U.S. and NATO however this does not relieve him of his reckless behavior

[Razoo]

MOST READ ​

Putin’s Criminal Invasion of Ukraine Highlights Some Ugly Truths About U.S. and NATO​ Jeremy Scahill​ The fact that Putin is trying to justify the unjustifiable in Ukraine does not mean we must ignore the U.S. actions that fuel his narrative. READ MORE →

 

[Razoo]

Why Russia's Ukraine invasion should matter to Americans


Published: March 2, 2022 • By Nicole Mueksch
As Russian forces continue to invade Ukraine, more questions are being raised about the reason behind the invasion, what will happen next and what this could mean for the future of Europe.

CU Boulder experts in Russia and Ukraine held a roundtable discussion Feb. 28, and shared insights into what has led to the crisis, how citizens of both countries are reacting, what effect economic sanctions could have on both Russia and the West and how Americans can help from afar.

Below are the five key takeaways from professors Erin Hutchinson (history), John O’Loughlin (geography), Sarah Wilson Sokhey(political science) and David Bearce (political science).

Putin’s motives are unclear, but it’s unlikely he’ll back down​

Russia’s decision to invade Ukraine befuddled Russia experts because it didn’t make strategic sense, Hutchinson said.
Erin Hutchinson

“Even Russia-based Russia experts were confused because it doesn’t seem like a good strategic decision,” she said. “We don’t understand what is going on in Putin’s head right now.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin has made many claims justifying the invasion: that Ukraine was committing genocide against Russians; that Ukraine is not an independent nation but rather a part of Russia; that the invasion was an “act of self-defense” against the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

“Putin is really reviving these old Imperial myths that there’s no such thing as a Ukrainian nation and it’s all just one big Russian nation,” Hutchinson said.

What does seem to be the case is that Russians are ramping up attacks against civilians—they’re moving toward a strategy like Chechnya. It does not appear that Putin has any intention of backing down.

The unintended outcome: Europe, Ukraine comes together​

The invasion has also had an unintended effect: Instead of creating divisions within Ukraine and among European countries, people and nations have actually come together, the panelists said.

John O'Loughlin
O’Loughlin pointed out that the Russian government believed Ukraine would easily submit to a Russian invasion, noting the Ukrainian people have faced significant economic hardship—a recent survey showed 44% of Ukrainians could not afford their utility bills. It’s clear Putin didn’t expect a large Ukrainian resistance.

“[Putin’s] long-term strategy is clearly not going to work given the opposition in Ukraine and the outside support,” O’Loughlin said.

Rather than weakening NATO as Putin may have intended, the invasion could wind up giving that alliance new relevancy.

“It’s really hard to see, without NATO disbanding, how Putin would not have used [NATO] as some sort of Western Boogeyman that had to be defeated,” Sohkey said.

“What Putin may have accomplished very unintentionally is unifying Europe and getting more European countries into NATO,” she said. Six European Union nations—Austria, Cyprus, Finland, Ireland, Malta and Sweden—are not NATO members.

Most Russians didn’t want this to happen .....​

Why Russia's Ukraine invasion should matter to Americans

 

[TheParser]

Maybe the war criminal is correct to some extent when he claims that Ukraine is historically part of Russia.

I say this because maybe that is why the Ukrainians are such tough people.

They are tough like the Russian people who withstood Hitler's forces in World War II.

The war criminal thought that the Ukrainians would be pushovers.

Had he forgotten his own claim that Ukrainians were Russian (and therefore no pushovers)?

 

[multivita-man]

As much as I've droned on about Putin's outrages, the article's not really wrong. The U.S. has acted hypocritically, and a lot of people warned back in the early 2000s that the invasion of Iraq would give future would-be thugs cover for their own aggression. I was among those voices, although at the time, I was thinking more of China than I was at Russia, which was just crawling its way out of the wild ride that was Boris Yeltsin and the 1990s.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

CNN reports, "Vice President Kamala Harris is jetted to Europe Wednesday for a trip that became more complicated after one of her hosts – Poland – caught the United States by surprise with a proposal to provide its Soviet-era fighter jets to Ukraine.

"What seemed like a straightforward mission turned more fraught when the Polish foreign ministry announced it was prepared to deploy the jets to the US Air Force’s Ramstein Air Base in Germany, which in theory could then be provided to Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has pleaded for more aircraft amid the Russian invasion."

The Polish offer "appeared designed to avoid the appearance of Poland directly arming Ukraine in its battle against Russia, but created a conundrum for the United States, which is also intent on avoiding direct conflict with Moscow," CNN.

Based on geography that reasoning is spurious at best. Poland is far more vulnerable that the U.S. Poland has a long border with the war zone, meaning Ukraine. Also, Poland has a substantial border with Belarus, a Russian puppet that is assisting Putin in his attempts to obliterate Ukraine. The Russian forces attacking Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, come from Belarus.

The U.S. is on a different continent separated by an extremely wide ocean.

The reactions from Moscow and Washington are interesting because they both are disingenuous.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "The [Russian] Defense Ministry has already commented on the possibility of using any other airfields for takeoffs of military planes."

"This is an extremely undesirable and potentially dangerous scenario," he added.

Which, of course, means nothing. Like many threats coming from the Kremlin, they are unsubstantiated.

The American reaction to the Polish proposal is extremely disheartening to many.

The official Pentagon statement reads in part, "The prospect of fighter jets "at the disposal of the Government of the United States of America" departing from a U.S./NATO base in Germany to fly into airspace that is contested with Russia over Ukraine raises serious concerns for the entire NATO alliance. It is simply not clear to us that there is a substantive rationale for it.

No substantive rationale for it. Incredible rationale, indeed, on the part of the Pentagon. Ukrainian cities are being bombed into oblivion, and Putin seems bent on killing as many civilians as possible. The lives of men women, and children mean nothing to this evil man , but the Pentagon does not see the need to fight the monstrous evil.

Putin is isolated and probably deranged by an obsession, but he is not stupid. Putin will not attack NATO.

In diplomat-speak the Pentagon says the MiG transfer "raises serious concerns for the entire NATO alliance," meaning the Pentagon thinks Putin may attack NATO.

In other words, the Pentagon thinks Putin may be suicidal. He is a bastard, but he is not suicidal.

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing

 

[Hamish Howl]

This sounds like "Well, I disagree with Putin BUT..."

It also sounds like someone that thinks NATO is just America in a funny dress.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing

CNN reports, "The swift US rejection of a Polish plan to get MiG-29 fighter jets into Ukraine is the clearest example yet of the complications that the US and its NATO allies face trying to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia’s brutal assault while ensuring they don’t get dragged into a wider war.

"On Wednesday afternoon, the Pentagon bluntly announced it was opposed to the idea, which Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin conveyed in a call to his Polish counterpart."

“Secretary Austin thanked the minister for Poland’s willingness to continue to look for ways to assist Ukraine, but he stressed that we do not support the transfer of additional fighter aircraft to the Ukrainian air force at this time, and therefore have no desire to see them in our custody either,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said at a briefing.

That is pretty blunt to an ally we are supposed to be aiding in the fight against Russian aggression.

CNN continued, "The Pentagon’s rejection of the plan to provide jets came after Secretary of State Antony Blinken endorsed the idea earlier in the week, and one senior GOP lawmaker said there were divisions inside the administration about what to do on the issue."

Officials tell CNN that all of the public discussion about the plan make it less likely to happen, because it only increases Moscow’s ability to call any moves escalatory.

So what? Is Putin running the Pentagon now? Don't do this or I will call it escalatory.

The Pentagon is afraid Putin will attack NATO. Nothing is more ridiculous. He can't even defeat Ukraine, and he has lost a lot of soldiers, tanks, APC's, warplanes, trucks, and other military hardware trying.

The Poles were willing to make this exchange and they are a lot closer to the danger.

Many are ashamed of our military right now and its irrational fear. Our Commander-in-Chief needs re-examine the Pentagon's decision regarding this matter and sooner is better than later.

As in now!

 

[Sandy Shanks]

The Pentagon is afraid Putin will attack NATO. Nothing is more ridiculous. He can't even defeat Ukraine, and he has lost a lot of soldiers, tanks, APC's, warplanes, trucks, and other military hardware trying.

The Poles were willing to make this exchange and they are a lot closer to the danger.

Many are ashamed of our military right now and its irrational fear. Our Commander-in-Chief needs re-examine the Pentagon's decision regarding this matter and sooner is better than later.

"The Poles were willing to make this exchange and they are a lot closer to the danger."

The Russians attacked the airfield in Lutsk today. Lutsk is 70 miles from the Polish border.

As is my daily pattern, I watch about two hours of the news today using mostly ABC and CNN. The attacks on Ukrainian cities from the air and from the land continued. The damage is horrific, and, if anything, it is going to get worse. The Russians are attempting to circle Kyiv, the capital. It is estimated that around 600 civilians have been killed. 2.5 million Ukrainians have become refugees and have fled the country.

It is self-evident that Russian tanks, artillery, APC's, and troop carriers are vulnerable to air attacks, air attacks like say from the MiG-29. However, the swift US rejection of a Polish plan to get MiG-29 fighter jets into Ukraine severely weakened Ukraine attempts to attack from the sky. The President's decision also severely limited Ukraine's ability to defend itself from Russian war planes.

As a consequence the Russian war planes are relentless in their bombing attacks on Ukrainian cities.

A word about the MiG 29 since the Pentagon is making every effort to assert the fighter is substandard. The mainstays of the U.S. Air Force are the F-15 and F-16. The MiG 29 was developed to be on equal footing with the F-15 and F-16. Other fighters on both sides are superior but are limited in number.

When the media talked about future ways the U.S. could help Ukraine, it completely ignored the elephant in the room -- the Polish MiG's and our President's refusal to allow the transfer because Putin may call it escalatory.

There was no mention of the 28 Polish MiG's. The shame is palpable.

Biden made a speech today. Instead of discussing the real threats to the Ukrainian people such as artillery and tank bombardments, missiles, and Russian air attacks, Biden talked about imaginary threats such as Russia using CBW or attacking a NATO country. He promised "severe consequences" if either happened.

Biden then announced new sanctions on Russian vodka, caviar, and diamonds.

The shame is palpable.

 

[Craig234]

The problem here is people who can't understand "Putin is totally wrong" AND "the US has also done wrong" at the the same time and think that admitting any of Putin's propaganda means having to accept the rest of his propaganda.

That is wrong, and it undermines the truth, undermines morals and laws, and turns issues into simply a contest of totally believing one side's propaganda or the other's, with the truth dismissed as an option.

It weakens the US to try to do that; it helps Putin's propaganda succeed, when the US denies its own wrongs and some people like Russians say "well, I see the US lying, so Putin must be right".

On the other hand, this only works in 'good faith' for the truth. A bad actor like China will be totally one sided and ONLY talk about US wrongs, while ignoring all of theirs, and ignoring how the US is far better than them overall. For a country like China, it very much is nothing but a 'contest of whose message is stronger' as they try to use power to lie as much as they can.

 

[independentusa]

​

MOST READ​

Putin’s Criminal Invasion of Ukraine Highlights Some Ugly Truths About U.S. and NATO​ Jeremy Scahill​ The fact that Putin is trying to justify the unjustifiable in Ukraine does not mean we must ignore the U.S. actions that fuel his narrative. READ MORE →

In essence you are saying two wrongs make it okay for Russia to do as they are doing.

 

[Integrityrespec]

Maybe the war criminal is correct to some extent when he claims that Ukraine is historically part of Russia.

I say this because maybe that is why the Ukrainians are such tough people.

They are tough like the Russian people who withstood Hitler's forces in World War II.

The war criminal thought that the Ukrainians would be pushovers.

Had he forgotten his own claim that Ukrainians were Russian (and therefore no pushovers)?

Doesn't matter that is was a part, it was given it's sovereignty. That's over done and now by force Putin is trying to take it back. As far as Putins plan to divide Europe, I don't think that was nearly as important to him as the acquisition of Ukraine. Anything else was bonus. I'm sure he would like a split in Europe but I think getting Ukraine is much more important. I think he may have believed his hold on Europe's energy needs would keep some nations quiet.
He was wrong there but it took a while for some nations to speak up. However, their reaction seems meager when you see what is being allowed to continue in Ukraine.

 

[TheParser]

However, their reaction seems meager when you see what is being allowed to continue in Ukraine.

That monster has often reminded the West that Russia has nuclear weapons.

That has clearly scared the blank out of the West.

As it should.

What that monster is doing to the civilians in Ukraine is surely an offense against humanity.

He has to be stopped -- and personally punished in some way.

Hopefully, he will soon be a victim of his hubris.

 

[Razoo]

In essence you are saying two wrongs make it okay for Russia to do as they are doing.

No I am not saying that ........... it's only good that we know these things about our government. In spite of our questionable activity which I condemn how can we sit back and watch Putin pull another Hitler before our very eyes?

I would prefer that we the USA either help Ukraine or stop saying we will help Ukraine. Until Ukraine has the capacity to stop the tanks and missiles Ukraine will be history.

On the other had indiscriminate bombing will kill large numbers of people who do not support the Putin effort.

Until Putin runs out of weapons he will continue massive destruction and killing. Putin is all about Putin and is not a reasonable man.........

I say we kidnap and/or assassinate all individuals in the immediate chain of command.....to include Putin.
With the help of others. Many surrounding governments no doubt feel threatened.