Biden and his national security team might have classified intelligence that suggests that these risks of escalation are greater than I can assess through open sources. If not, however, then the free world needs to provide Ukrainians with the quality and quantity of weapons to prevail in Donbas. A Ukrainian win or stalemate in that battle will make us and our NATO allies more secure. A loss will produce the opposite.
A stalemate on land in Ukraine and on the water of the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea would provide time for Russia to exploit domestic divisions in other European nations, adapt to sanctions it cannot lift, and learn lessons from the defeats in combat. It would limit Ukrainian economic recovery. And it would allow international uncertainty about energy, food, and other economic concerns to remain or grow.
The United States of America, other NATO nations, and additional EU allies already have experienced Russian meddling in their political processes. There already have been Russian military offensives. Putin’s Russia has already used its spin on international relations to build its domestic political strength. In short, there already is plenty of reason to know Russia is a threat. Slightly more, due to shipping military weapons, is unlikely to change the basic calculus.
Ukraine ought to determine the conditions and terms for peace it is willing to accept. The US of A ought to facilitate getting to those terms as quickly as possible, offering material and political support for the democratic nation facing the autocracy/oligarchy/kakistocracy/criminal enterprise of the current Russian regime.
Please, please, please do not feed the trolls. All it does is fill up the thread with garbage and no one is listening to anyone else.
Agreed.
Step away for a day and the daily thread goes to hell. Wow.
But this one is cheaper
The West shouldn’t back down in the face of Putin’s threats – Michael McFaul
A stalemate on land in Ukraine and on the water of the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea would provide time for Russia to exploit domestic divisions in other European nations, adapt to sanctions it cannot lift, and learn lessons from the defeats in combat. It would limit Ukrainian economic recovery. And it would allow international uncertainty about energy, food, and other economic concerns to remain or grow.
The United States of America, other NATO nations, and additional EU allies already have experienced Russian meddling in their political processes. There already have been Russian military offensives. Putin’s Russia has already used its spin on international relations to build its domestic political strength. In short, there already is plenty of reason to know Russia is a threat. Slightly more, due to shipping military weapons, is unlikely to change the basic calculus.
Ukraine ought to determine the conditions and terms for peace it is willing to accept. The US of A ought to facilitate getting to those terms as quickly as possible, offering material and political support for the democratic nation facing the autocracy/oligarchy/kakistocracy/criminal enterprise of the current Russian regime.
Totally agree. The EU, NATO, the UN, and others need to figure out what a danger Putin is to our world, if they haven't yet.
Those weird egg-laying bunnies don’t stand a chance against Patriot Jeezis!
