Russian invasion of Ukraine

That's all well and good. But doesn't mean Putin is a good bloke. Remember, Stalin similarly was on our side against Hitler, but he was still a wrong un as it turned out.
Putin isn't a good bloke at all but he's standing against the pressures he is dealing with in the region. Ukraine are likely to do at least one of two things in the next 15 years and that's either to join the EU or join NATO (or maybe both!).

Neither of these are acceptable for Putin, it means at least a loss of trade to Europe or it means accepting an effective American backed nuclear state on his doorstep.
 
Putin isn't a good bloke at all but he's standing against the pressures he is dealing with in the region. Ukraine are likely to do at least one of two things in the next 15 years and that's either to join the EU or join NATO (or maybe both!).

Neither of these are acceptable for Putin, it means at least a loss of trade to Europe or it means accepting an effective American backed nuclear state on his doorstep.
He was attempting to be funny.
 
Nice to see in the middle of a pandemic the Russians moving troops and equipment to the border with Ukraine. US are sending their navy ships into the Black Sea, are we going to see another repeat of the annexing of Crimea which amongst other things saw a Malaysian Air mh17 shot down by the Russians. A bit of sabre rattling or something to be more concerned about?

If it were to turn into a hot war (probably won’t) then the west will protest and provide weapons to Ukraine in equal abundance, the Russians will do likewise but probably forget to pack their insignia’s again so they won’t really be Russian troops but mercenaries coming to the aid of their Russian brethren. The US will stomp up and down a bit, send some navy might to the area, everyone will impose sanctions but realising they can’t prove its a Russian invasion will leave it at that.

Western media will tell us how wicked the Russians are, Russian media will say how wicked the Ukrainians are picking on Russians and how the west doesn’t understand the region.

So nothing for us to fret about just yet, but plenty to keep the Ukrainians awake at night.

Alternatively it could go to shit with constant policy misjudgments and a belief the other side will back down and we end up at war. Fortunately all our leaders are very considered and don’t chat shit, ever.
 
That's all well and good. But doesn't mean Putin is a good bloke. Remember, Stalin similarly was on our side against Hitler, but he was still a wrong un as it turned out.
Putin is defending his nation. I'm sure Biden would be doing the same if he had enemy military NATO bases surrounding his country.

He uses a playbook that suits him based on good old-fashioned cold war paranoia. The West calls him a ****, his people call him a hero. It's difficult to decipher real information about him and his true methods because we're in the fog of a disinformation war.

This is by no means a post defending him. From the little I understand about him, I get the impression he misses the old Soviet block, and as a person who was personally affected by its collapse, he became angry. Fuelled by seeing his countries leader being taken the piss out of by Clinton in his home city. Putin rose from his position as a prole in St Petersberg to create a Russia in his own image which harks back to his glory days but paid for by criminality. Ukraine may be the domino he sees as taking down the west by a peg or two.
 
>> That's all well and good. But doesn't mean Putin is a good bloke. Remember, Stalin similarly was on our side against Hitler, but he was still a wrong un as it turned out.
Putin is evil incarnate - he cares nothing whatsoever except for personal gain and expansion of his personal power and that of his beloved mother Russia.

Putin will do anything whatsoever to advance these aims.
 
Ukraine to join NATO, big move before the Biden/Putin summit, if it happens.

President Zelensky of Ukraine says NATO has agreed to admit Ukraine into alliance. This is a move President Biden backed. @PBS
 

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