Replies

To: Jim Robinson

What does he want? Simple and obvious - he wants better access to the Mediterranean. Crimea, with its warm-water ports, is only the first step, because two things still block easy access:

Access to Crimea from Russia - Ukraine stands in the way. I don't expect Putin to invade, since I don't think he'll need to. He already has the Ukrainian gov't pretty well cowed into submission.

Access to Mediterranean from Crimea: Turkey has already threatened to close the Straits of Bosporus to Russian shipping due to the Crimean situation. That can't sit well with Putin. Turkey will be a much tougher nut for Putin to crack, IMHO.

28 posted on 03/22/2014 11:28:08 AM PDT by ZOOKER (Until further notice the /s is implied...)

“Turkey has already threatened to close the Straits of Bosporus to Russian shipping due to the Crimean situation. That can’t sit well with Putin.”

Turkey has its hands full with internal problems right now.

29 posted on 03/22/2014 11:32:16 AM PDT by tcrlaf (Well, it is what the Sheeple voted for....)

Turkey probably more than Western Ukraine. To retrieve Constantinople is a Russian dream since 1453

91 posted on 03/23/2014 12:34:07 AM PDT by Cronos (ObamaÂ’s dislike of Assad is not based on AssadÂ’s brutality but that he isn't a jihadi Moslem)

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