'a Quarrel In A Far Away Country, Between People Of Whom We Know Nothing'.

[sandyRoe]

Is Putin a latter day Hitler and could the world be sleepwalking towards another major war?

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/feb/18/us-accuses-russia-of-breaching-ukraine-ceasefire

[Gromit]

So the US might vote against a UN Resolution. Nothing new there then.

[Peter Pedant]

I wonder about sleep walking....
and the parallels of 1938

Putin has apparently decided that war-war in Ukraine will take everyone's mind off Russian home problems, so he has decided to keep it smouldering.

Excuse me people live there - and he is talking about their homes and lives

[keyplus90]

Just another American adventure where they create the reasons, a villain and the atmosphere in which they drag other nations but try to become heroes themselves and above all, sell some of their best product for the humanity, weapons.

[sunny-dave]

Blimey - I have no time for the Imperialistic Yanks, but that comment is astonishing, keyplus. How do you manage with only one eye?

[Gromit]

The US is just *** because it was a EU brokered Truce. Throughout this conflict the US have upped the cold war rhetoric but have been rather impotent in seeking a solution.

The current violations of the ceasefire in Debaltseve have been broken by BOTH sides. Each was supposed to retreat to 30-80 miles to create buffer zones. It is sabre rattling by the US to blame Putin for violations. Both sides need to pull out to their agreed positions.

[ichkeria]

I am astounded by some of the ignorant comments on here. Peter P is not far off the mark though and neither is Sandy

[xstitcher]

A very interesting question. One would hope that lessons learned from other wars will not be forgotten.

[Old_Geezer]

Every hostility could escalate into a major war, but most will not for those trying it on know they don't wish to get embroiled though their own stupidity. So they go to the brink hoping the other lot will blink first. This does rely on the big players being sane or sanish though, and knowing when they have gone too far, and accepting they can't win every move.

[ichkeria]

The latest Russian army tanks have been seen at Debaltseve in the last few days. Russia signed a ceasefire agreement it had no intention of adhering to. Russian forces attacked Ukrainian positions 117 times in the days following the ceasefire deadline. In such a situation you cannot expect Ukraine to withdraw its heavy artillery. So to say that Russia had violated the ceasefire is something of an understatement, you do have to be concerned at the intentions of a government which exports terror to its neighbours and lies so blatantly about its involvement and intentions
Yesterday in the Eusdian parliament the leader of the Liberal Democrats, a man who had previously stood for President, stood up and declared that Kyiv should be napalmed. I'm not sure even Nazi Germany could have matched that

[ichkeria]

Eusdian is autocorrect for Russian apparently

[sandyRoe]

Their Lib-Dems aren't like ours, then? Sandal munching, lentil wearing, wafflers.

[ichkeria]

Ha ha no not exactly.

[youngmafbog]

I find it more worrying that some will try to blame the Great Satin rather than see Putin for what he is.

Unbelievable.

[ludwig]

//Is Putin a latter day Hitler //

Sort of. I'm pretty sure he'd like to restore the boundaries of the old USSR to their pre-80s 'glory days' if he could.

The worrying thing about Putin is that he could be around for years yet.

[-Talbot-]

What is that ....The richest man on the planet?

[ichkeria]

I'd say that Putin is not like Hitler in that he is not driven by ideology. However what he is driven by is potentially just as dangerous: the desire to hold onto his kleptocratic system at seemingly any cost mixed with a genuine oaranoia and hatred of and jealousy of the waste. Hatred because of what the West did to his Stasi world in E Germany and jealousy because he knows that for all their patriotic huff and puff many Russians vote with their feet and get the hell out of the country.
One thing to bear in mind is that Russia needs the west. In that respect there is not an existential or direct threat to 'us' from that direction but the danger is that conflict will arise because the refusal of either side to back down. Then you have to ask : what are the consequences for Europe and the civilised world if we do let him get away with this. Merkel made the grand statement that the borders of Europe must not be redrawn in this way: and then was a key part of an agreement which allowed just that. From which Putin will conclude that he can do pretty much what he likes? Think he'll stop on this side of the NATO fence? Watch that clip from Yes Prime Minister I posted a few days ago: it may be comedy but then there are elements of what is happening now which are rather surreal

[mikey4444]

Putin's hands are dripping with blood over his meddling in the affairs of another sovereign nation. He can deny it all he wants but it doesn't alter the truth of the matter. I have heard the BBC correspondent being interviewed on the lunchtime news, and the ceasefire just isn't working. And he is to blame.

We ignore this interference by Russia at our peril. What is to stop him meddling in the affairs of all the other ex-Soviet countries ?

[naomi24]

Mikey, //We ignore this interference by Russia at our peril.//

What do you think we should do?

[mikey4444]

Naomi....if I knew the answer to that question.........

We can't just stand back and let Putin get away with his naked aggression and expansionism, but what the free world should do is difficult. I think he should be told that we won't put up with his dangerous antics any more.

[-Talbot-]

Good plan, mikey.


http://www.usnews.com/dims4/USNEWS/f1f75e3/2147483647/resize/652x%3E/format/png/quality/85/?url=%2Fcmsmedia%2F83%2F84%2Fff63ef734476b7b8bd9561bb75ed%2F20140514edwas-a.tif

I think Europe and the US need to start singing from the same hymn book.