Seeing that my last comment to you was instantly deleted, (perhaps it was too direct and pointed and therefore seriously ruffled some Youkazoid's hyper-delicate feathers), I will ask again but this time simply and directly: What were you doing in Youcrayne?
“I will ask again but this time simply and directly: What were you doing in Youcrayne?”
REMINDER:
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‘Nuff said :)
Dude, it’s nothing to do with you.
We could all just as easily pester the pro Putin lot here (the ones who’re openly jonesing for the annihilation of Ukraine, quite like the sound of Putin’s policies, and really don’t care if Putin starts a third continental war all across Europe so long as the USA doesn’t get dragged into it) what they’re getting up to in St Petersburg.
Because it’s pretty clear they’re shilling for Russia, against America’s best security interests.
There’s no scenario where Putin can invade another country west of Russia and the USA doesn’t get dragged into it by virtue of mutual defense agreements and other treaty obligations going back decades.
You want to cut the spending? Putin needs to be put back in his box BEFORE those treaties can all get revisited.
Before you ask - I do humanitarian work in eastern Europe, but since the invasion of Ukraine I’ve been helping Russians and Ukrainians settle in the UK. There’s always been a community here in my county with Russians and Ukrainians coexisting happily, paying taxes and working hard...but we’ve had over 500 ethnic Russian families flee here to join them.
Ethnic Russians from the Donbas.
Funny. Putin’s logic would suggest that folks like them would’ve fled 200 miles east towards Rostov on Don at any time in the last nine years.
They tell me saw no reason to flee until the SMO. The serious fighting between Russian separatists and Uke ultranationalists pretty much ended five years ago.
And even then as long as they have holes between their butt cheeks, they still won’t submit to proxy rule from Moscow. They’d rather flee West, and start afresh with nothing but the clothes on their back.
And they’re the Russian speaking Ukes that Putin reckoned would be on his side!
You’ve got some anecdotal evidence from other Freepers who reckon that they know ethnic Russian speakers in east Ukraine who wanted annexation. They do exist, but they were a minority within a minority that represented less than 15% of the ethnic Russian population, was comprised mostly of 1st/2nd generation settlers from western Russia, and a high proportion of them are pensioners voting with their pockets.