The theory has been: stop Russia on the ground in Ukraine + economic sanctions = victory.
The theory is wrong because it supposes Putin cares about the economic consequences of sanctions either directly (because he cares about the Russian people) or indirectly (because he and others in office are subject to periodic elections). No. Putin is a megalomaniac. He cares about achieving immortality as a conqueror. Like Attila the Hun, Genghis Khan, Napoleon Bonaparte and Adolph Hitler. Winning would be good, and you have to initially win, but great conquerors gain a certain kind of immortality even if they ultimately lose.
(The theory is also wrong because the sanctions are leaky. But, that’s another issue.)
The new theory is that Ukraine has to go on the offense. This is tricky. IF Ukraine threatens to take Crimea, Russia might be persuaded to return to the 2014 lines in order to prevent Ukraine from taking Crimea. There’s a certain logic to this theory. But, like the original theory it supposes Putin is rational.
The last time Russia was defeated was during WWI. Yes, Russia’s army was defeated in the west (that is, by Germany; the Russian front is to the east of Germany and the German front is to the west of Russia). But, Russia was knocked out of WWI by internal collapse, not by the defeat of its army in the west. To borrow a phrase from Erich von Ludendorff, Russia was “stabbed in the back.”
The psychological analysis of Putin suggests that Russia might only be defeated by internal collapse, not by the defeat of its army in Ukraine combined with some kind of loss calculation. And, being an increasingly totalitarian country, internal collapse in Russia would take a lot.
You know Putin how ?
As I thought, just STOOPID
And after the Russian army was beaten in WWI, we were treated to 70 years of brutal communism. The DC and London globalists would do well to remember that.
They fantasize that some WEF clone will rise to power in Russia and spread their legs for DC and our bankers.
It will likely be the exact opposite. There will be a hardliner that makes them miss Putin.