Posted on 03/30/2022 8:01:26 AM PDT by Mariner
The conventional wisdom is that Vladimir Putin catastrophically miscalculated.
He thought Russian-speaking Ukrainians would welcome his troops. They didn’t. He thought he’d swiftly depose Volodymyr Zelensky’s government. He hasn’t. He thought he’d divide NATO. He’s united it. He thought he had sanction-proofed his economy. He’s wrecked it. He thought the Chinese would help him out. They’re hedging their bets. He thought his modernized military would make mincemeat of Ukrainian forces. The Ukrainians are making mincemeat of his, at least on some fronts.
Putin’s miscalculations raise questions about his strategic judgment and mental state. Who, if anyone, is advising him? Has he lost contact with reality? Is he physically unwell? Mentally? Condoleezza Rice warns: “He’s not in control of his emotions. Something is wrong.” Russia’s sieges of Mariupol and Kharkiv — two heavily Russian-speaking cities that Putin claims to be “liberating” from Ukrainian oppression — resemble what the Nazis did to Warsaw, and what Putin himself did to Grozny.
(Excerpt) Read more at dnyuz.com ...
Second only to Norway in Europe. 1.09 trillion cubic meters.
What if Putin had wheels? He’d be a trolley car.
Well, those who read the article will have that question answered too.
“The conventional wisdom is that Vladimir Putin catastrophically miscalculated.”
“Conventional Wisdom.” In other words, the western media and governments. We know we can rely on anything they tell us.
NOT.
I disagree. Putin has made a bet that has cost him a lot in the short run. But it will quickly be more than worth it. Russia has declared war on our CIA. Yep, Russia is at war with our government. And the question is whether our government is backed by our people. I don’t think so. The CIA has gone rogue. They feel they are a global elitist entity with no shackles from our politicians. In fact they control our politicians. Russia is not fighting Ukrainians. Russia is fighting our CIA. Our CIA has hired the Ukrainians and provided weapons to fight Russia. Putin wants a CIA free Ukraine. This is not a foreign war. Its a US vs. Russia war. We just haven’t figured it out yet. Thats why the propaganda is do dense. The CIA wants US popular backing without our population understanding that the CIA has caused this. They have set up shop in the Ukraine decades ago, playing all sorts of dirty tricks on Russia and paying off Ukrainians to get what they want. They even impeached Trump for getting in the way. We need to understand that the CIA is not the American CIA. They are an entity which has become no better than MS-13, a menace to the world. We need to stuff them back into their bottle and cork it up.
I think it’s entirely plausible that Putin would consider walking away with Novorussia to be a win. But his defeats have been so significant, it’s not clear he can achieve even that much. I’d really like to know what the situation in Kherson and Mariupol really is. All this to achieve ONLY a demand that the breakaway Republicans of Donetsk and Luhansk, which is his current negotiation stance, would seem to such a small gain for such a preposterous cost. And they seem to be a fairly special case, difficult to compare to Estonia, Poland, or whatever.
Author is Bret Stephens
** I’d really like to know what the situation in Kherson and Mariupol really is. **
Kherson is under Russian control together with the entire province (it is a provincial center); new civil administration is being set up, police is being hired. (Ironically Kherson province is fully liberated unlike DNR and LNR).
Mariupol — fighting continues but the Azov/Uke forces are now split and it is basically moping up. Azov commander made two attempts to escape by a helicopter; the first copter was shot down, the second turned away. It may take another week to finish, the Russians basically need to check every building.
hth
What poinq said!
Or, in other words, you are “on poinq”.
The CIA definitely appears to be a rogue agency, controlling our politicians.
This is what I’ve wondered all along. What if Putin has actual strategic proposes other than what is being cartoonishly portrayed?
My analogy for what’s going on in ukraine: your family is on a road trip and Ukraine is your little sister sitting next to you in the back seat that keeps bugging you and bugging you and bugging you and finally you haul off and slap her and your parents turn around and punish you for it. I.e, I’m not really sure Russia is the one to blame here. Sometimes you got to let the kids duke it out themselves.
Z
ROFWL against the speculations of someone who does not know Putin at all, an opposed to quite a number of Russians who do know Putin and have reported his real megalomaniac aims - restoring imperial Russia.
All you seem to be doing is imparting your own beliefs about things into Putin’s mind. It’s laughable.
If this was Putin's ultimate goal he could have done just that - invade and take over Ukraine’s eastern border - with much less pushback and global outrage. He could have accomplished this in days. He may receive this as a "consolation prize", but I don't think that it was his "Plan A".
Post 10::::: Really, the CIA rouge? Shocking!
Will,
Parents DON’T let big brothers slap around little sisters.
Oooo - and if he had wings, he’d be a shiny shiny aeroplane!
I remember our political oligarchs plotting and planning on how to spend the peace dividend after the wall fell in Berlin.
American liberals were enamored with the bloody communist….that is until the wall came tumbling down. Hillary's reset with the Russians did not go her way, thus she and her gang set about accusing the Russians for President's Trumps election win..
And the neocons are blinded with a blood rage over Russia settling a few scores in Ukraine..
It’s still a NY Times piece. You can go straight to the link on the Times (bottom of the article) if you want and read it directly. So what is your point?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.