As I described in my entry of yesterday, most of my time was spent on writing and doing the laundry after lunch. I also read the Globe and Mail and my regular news sites.
In particular the report in Trouw - Dutch - about the fate of the Ukrainian soldiers [computer update interrupt] at the hand of the rebels in the railway town of Debaltseve battle. Those stories tell me that these are war like battles with the rebels having plenty of supply.
My take on the Ukrainian conflict is that it is the result of Nato overstepping its agreed to limitation, which was to not have Nato countries at Russia’s immediate border. The Baltics violated that early agreement and now the Ukraine threatened to become a repeat. This endangered Russia marine base on the Crimean peninsula, which has been a red line item for over a century. That much was acknowledged by several former German Chancellors.
Recall Mao’s adage: ‘Power grows out of the barrel of a gun’; Mao maybe dead, but his saying is valid for any state.
The battle for eastern Ukraine is about secure overland access for Russia to the mentioned marine base. That makes Mariupol the next location of a battle zone. There is not much the West can do to prevent it, because Russia military might today is formidable and a far cry from the time that Nato bombed Serbia unilaterally. That Russia had to watch from the sidelines as their Slavic compatriots were brought to ground is painfully remembered and informs Putin’s priorities and decisions today. Recall Mao’s adage: ‘Power grows out of the barrel of a gun’; Mao maybe dead, but his saying is valid for any state.
I think that most government leaders know Putin’s plans and intentions, but need to posture opposition to it for the general public. In the mean time during the various peace conferences limited actions and behaviours are agreed to behind the scenes. A bit like the way the Western Allies pulled out of Czechoslovakia after WW2 ended, making room for the Soviets as had been agreed in advance at Yalta and Potsdam.