Good Times in Ukraine and Russia

[Hollyw00d]

The people on the Crimean Peninsula are of Russian ethnicity, not Slavic.

 

 

can you please post a map with a color scheme that is brandon-friendly?

[fan_since79]

Putin tells Obama to pound sand:

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/vladimir-putin-rebuffs-obama-on-ukraine-says-russia-cannot-ignore-calls-for-help/2014/03/07/d322cac0-a60c-11e3-84d4-e59b1709222c_story.html

[mtangelsfan]

Yeah Putin..............?

[Blarg]

Vladi­mir Putin rebuffs Obama on Ukraine, says Russia ‘cannot ignore calls for help’

 

Which puzzles Obama because he has successfully ignored the American people calling for help about the ACA.

[fan_since79]

The American people are liars. The ACA is wonderful in every way. There are no problems with it.

[fan_since79]

Russian troops are storming a Ukrainian Air Force base in Crimea, Reuters is reporting.

 

No shots fired so far.

[arch stanton]

If we want to be totally honest about this we should concede that neither side really gives a fat rat's ass about the ethnicity of the Crimean people. They are much more interested in the ethnicity of the ones who will control the shale and natural gas deposits of the Crimean peninsula. The question now is whether NATO has enough members who are willing to take on a nuclear superpower so the EU can add an energy producing nation to its numbers.

[Blarg]

Kuwait part duex,

[gotbeer]

Crimean 'Nazi' Billboard Highlights Propaganda Problem: U.S.

 

[HaloMagic]

Nazi Germany or Russia? Is one of those supposed to be better than the other?

[mrwicked]

Nazi Germany or Russia? Is one of those supposed to be better than the other?

 

both suck.

ask the hungarians.

[Lhalo]

Russian troop buildups on the Ukraine/Russian border happening. It will be interesting to see what happens once Crimea votes to join Russia.

[IEAngelsfan]

Germany's Merkel getting tougher.

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/14/world/europe/germany-urges-russia-to-help-solve-ukraine-crisis.html?rref=world/europe&module=Ribbon&version=context&region=Header&action=click&contentCollection=Europe&pgtype=article

[TobiasFunke]

Hopefully she doesn't want to be known as the Neville Chamberlain of this shindig

[fan_since79]

Uh oh, John Kerry is drawing red lines now. He's giving Russia until Monday to reverse course.

 

http://washingtonexaminer.com/john-kerry-russia-has-until-monday-to-reverse-course-in-ukraine/article/2545610

[mtangelsfan]

Putin, being the ass he is, is probably thinking "or what"?

 

You have to make the consequence clear, do you not?

[Lhalo]

Putin, being the ass he is, is probably thinking "or what"?

 

You have to make the consequence clear, do you not?

 

But what would the consequences be?

[mtangelsfan]

That is the point, Putin knows the threats are empty.  The only true recourse he is going to feel is from his own people.

[Lhalo]

That is the point, Putin knows the threats are empty.  The only true recourse he is going to feel is from his own people.

 

You're probably right but I don't see that happening.

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2014/03/13/we-treat-him-like-hes-mad-but-vladimir-putins-popularity-has-just-hit-a-3-year-high/

[TobiasFunke]

You're right MT. If Ukraine (who is not Georgia by any means) stands up to Russia and makes Russia thinks twice about a war, THEN there needs to be pressure not only from the EU but from Russians that the last thing they want is a struggle with the rest of Europe over a small piece of land that isn't even theirs. 

 

It would be nice, though I don't know legal, for the Ukrainian government to tell the ethnic Russians in Crimea that if they don't want to be a part of the Ukraine to jog on. If Putin is using the "i'm only here to protect ethnic Russians" then Ukraine needs to tweak their attack to giving a chance to let any Ukrainians that don't want to be a part of the Ukraine anymore to cross over to their new country, Russia.

[mtangelsfan]

Oh I am not arguing it will happen, just that there really isn't anything that the west can do.  He knows that.  Nobody is going to approve of military action at this point.

 

Europe wont have it and the U.S. wont have it.  He really did pick the perfect time. 

 

The point of my initial on Kerry's threat was that an empty threat is worse than no threat at all.

[Lhalo]

The point of my initial on Kerry's threat was that an empty threat is worse than no threat at all.

 

You hit the nail on the head MT. All of this jawboning and saber rattling has done nothing but make the US look weak. There is no teeth in any of the west's threats. Sure we can freeze some of the oligarch's accounts and take away visas but in the end Russia controls the fossil fuels that Europe needs. Putin is calling Obama's bluff and it looks like Sunday is when everyone will have to show their cards.

[fan_since79]

The idea that the U.S. would go to war against Russia over Crimea is pure insanity.

 

There will be some posturing and some economic sanctions, but little else.

[TobiasFunke]

The idea that the U.S. would go to war against Russia over Crimea is pure insanity.

 

There will be some posturing and some economic sanctions, but little else.

 

The only people that I've heard talk about war or anything but threats and sanctions have been John McCain and Lindsay Graham (surprise surprise)

[Tank]

The idea that the U.S. would go to war against Russia over Crimea is pure insanity.

 

There will be some posturing and some economic sanctions, but little else.

One of my students is Russian. He said the Russians are convinced the U.S. Plans to use nukes, start a war, and invade Mother Russia.

Bear in mind he's 12.