The Russian propaganda had to say this. It would be very embarrassing for them to lose to small Ukraine that they were supposed to destroy in 3 days. Now going on 5 months into their 2 day war and stalemated, they have to save face and blame the super powerful USA instead of puny Ukraine.
Yes, it’s surprising that people can’t see how it is actually in Russia’s interests as well as Europe’s that the USA supports Ukraine, but doesn’t actively deploy there.
At some point Putin’s successor is going to have to find a face-saving solution to this ridiculous, retarded, party-like-its-1917 wank fantasy of the revanchists.
Which way do y’all want it to go?
1. Russia backpedals under new leadership, argues that the denazification of the south and east of Ukraine is complete, with global famine and China-Taiwan about to kick off some things are more important than their revanchist dreams, and ends the campaign.
Reaffirm the Budapest Memorandum but with amendments to allow internationally monitored and constitutionally sound referenda on federalisation, devolution, full autonomy or full independence to be initiated in the contested oblasts. Only with the active consent of Kyiv’s government can a Ukrainian oblast that’s already voted for full independence over any of the alternatives (and done so entirely without Russian or Ukrainian national interference) be allowed to join Russia.
If Donbas and Crimea insist on voting to be Russian, I’m pretty sure the rest of Ukraine would just say, okay. Because they’d be two battles that just aren’t worth repeating.
2. We - well, the USA and UK primarily - do what the Putinbots have always wanted us to do. Which is, just cave in EVERY TIME Russia invades somewhere because we just mustn’t ever poke the utterly postal, foaming-at-the-mouth rabid the bear gets, just in case the postal bear gets even more upset by virtue of it being poked. There are so many problems with that solution that it’s difficult to know where to begin.
(a) We signed the Budapest Memorandum WITH Russia on the basis that neither they NOR US had the right to violate its territorial integrity. Having biolabs in Ukraine, or training Ukrainian military, doesn’t violate Ukrainian territorial integrity. Promoting separatism in several ex-SSRs, annexing oblasts in several SSRs, and launching land invasions in several SSRs, HAS violated pretty much every single agreement Russia made when the USSR was converted into a Commonwealth of INDEPENDENT States.
(b) Russia still has not articulated a single “causus belli” for this war that would stand up in any international court - its series of lame excuses don’t come close to justifying this latest of a series of naked revanchist land grabs that are always blamed on a combination of rampant paranoia, bullshit, and butt-hurt.
If you go one step further than looking the other way, and actually conspire to REWARD Russia for such blatant and repeated violations of its own treaties with its neighbors (that we witnessed, remember), then ANY similar treaty ANYWHERE in the world gets undermined.
Might as well sign off a Chinese full-blown invasion of Taiwan.
“Now going on 5 months into their 2 day war and stalemated...”
Six months. It’s into the sixth month.