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Has The West lost courage and heart before Russia’s continuous press to undermine EU/NATO political coherence, cohesion, and resolve?

Have Moscow / Moscow-Tehran-associated chaos and conflict and their fallout in mass migration tired the western public and made some parts benevolent and others mean?

Have Moscow-aided (Taliban) and Tehran-sponsored terrorism (Hamas, Hezbollah) made us — citizens of the west — defensive and smaller than we were 20 years ago?

Have western leaders been compromised?

This juxtaposition represents a conjecture:

Schindler, John. “Exploring Al Qaeda’s Murky Connection to Russian Intelligence.” Business Insider, June 10, 2014.

Tiplady-Bishop, Lottie. “Costcow: Jeffrey Epstein boasted about ‘flying to Moscow to visit Vladimir Putin’ as secrets behind his millions are revealed.” The U.S. Sun, July 19, 2020.

There should be a song, “Kompromat” being so much a theme with Moscow’s mafia-style influence on the world’s foreign affairs. Whether or not some number of western leaders or their subalterns — or family members — have been compromised and leveraged — and some have already been made to bow to Russian energy projects — is something I wouldn’t even pretend to know, but I would consider it possible.

Would Russian tanks invading Ukraine then not be bombed by Ukrainian and NATO forces — or defending Russian jets not be driven from the skies by the same?

We are about 20-1/2 years out from September 11, 2001 and our Soviet/post-Soviet old Cold War foe appears on the warpath unstoppable, facing only western opprobrium and sanctions, neither of which appear to have affected any of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attitudes, behaviors, beliefs, martial and political designs, philosophies, or, perhaps, critical inner-circle relationships.

Shall we all wring our hands and say, “Oh dear”?

Should Putin not “take” Ukraine and plant nukes, for example, in Crimea — he is already defending that wholly invaded space (see, for example, Newdick, Thomas. “Russia Still Uses This Cold War Relic of an Underground Anti-Ship Missile System in Crimea.” The Warzone, The Drive, October 18, 2020)?

Where do American and related European posturing and prostration before Moscow (or Tehran) end?

Will Russia’s tanks be rolling into Ukraine before I publish this post?

Or after?

I have more questions than answers this morning.

The only man on earth who would seem to have answers would be the Russian president (whether Russians like him or not).

***

The Daily Mirror has had cause to report an assault force of 107,000 troops “amassed at Ukraine’s border” — a little more tease before you click to the piece:

EXCLUSIVE: Russia will soon have an assault force of 107,000 troops along Ukraine’s border, with an estimated 1,300 battle tanks, 3,700 drones, 1,300 artillery and mortar units and 380 multiple launch rocket systems —

Hughes, Chris. “Russia paints ‘invasion stripes’ on assault vehicles as forces gather near Ukraine border.” The Daily Mirror, April 14, 2021.

RUSSIAN tanks painted with “invasion stripes” are gathering on Ukraine’s border as Putin is reportedly set to deploy 30,000 more troops.

A local in the Russian Astrakhan region, 350 miles from the border, filmed the BTR 80 armoured vehicles with white crosses painted on them.

Ibrahim, Magda, Mark Hodge. “Trouble and Stripe: Russia paints ‘invasion stripes’ on tanks as Putin ‘deploys ANOTHER 30,000 troops to Ukraine.” The Sun, April 15, 2021.
April 15, 2021.
April 15, 2021.
April 15, 2021.
April 14, 2021.

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