I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Putin actually showed certain world leaders (one of) their missiles with the control panel set at 21 27 N 39 49 E - close enough! Deterrence means nothing unless you have the will to follow through and others know it well. Does anyone - anyone - think that Putin wouldn’t if “something really bad” happened there?
How's that been working with the Chechens ... :-) and how are the terrorist bombings going these days?
Oh..., wait a minute ... I just read, from another FReeper on this terrorist stuff over there in Russia, that it was the FSB Agents who were setting off these bombs...
So, what is Putin going to do now, blow up the FSB headquarters now? LOL ...
“How’s that been working with the Chechens ... :-) and how are the terrorist bombings going these days? “
I don’t know, I have no idea what retaliatory actions that they may or may not take, may or may not have already done and/or may not ever be known, or what the thresholds for those actions are. That’s how the implied “uncertainty” part of “certain response” works, which, after working fairly well for 60 years or so, the Strategic Genius of our Time has now upset.