Well Russia just annexed Crimea

[elipson]

Interesting stuff. Hardly a week after the Olympics are done and Russie invades a country practically within view of Sochi.

Hard to fight off an invasion when you're not even sure who is in charge of your country! Not to mention about to go bankrupt.

I'm not sure what Putins end game is here. He will likely not be pushed out of Crimea by force, but there will be sanctions up the ass for this and he can kiss all his gas contracts with Europe goodbye.

I think he will end up claiming that Crimea suceded (sp?) from the Ukraine by choice (and Putin knows a thing or two about free elections!) and then he will set up a puppet regime there. Not exactly sure why though....

[ghost55]

Why? Because he can. Putin loves waving his dick around on the international stage.

[Sam Browning]

Strategically it guarantees his control of Russia's warm water port. Even though there is an existing treaty, the Ukranians could have possibly revisited the issue. It also reduces the Ukrane's access to the West and gives Putin the ability to put more pressure on this country. On the downside, it means that there are fewer Russian voters inside the Ukrane so it's slightly more difficult to disrupt elections.

If the Ukranians attempt to eject the Russians from the Crimea, then Putin can use that as an excuse for war, if he desires. Alternatively he could hold the territory hostage for some sort of political arrangement.

From a ruthless power politic point of view I don't think there is a downside for Putin.

[elipson]

Is that the only rusian port on the black sea? Its makes more sense if it is.

The execution was flawless so far. Reminiscent of how they invaded kabul via commercial jetliners.

[goodlun]

By Lord Tennyson

The Charge of the Light Brigade
Half a league, half a league,
  Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death,
  Rode the six hundred.
'Forward, the Light Brigade!
Charge for the guns' he said:
Into the valley of Death
  Rode the six hundred.

'Forward, the Light Brigade!'
Was there a man dismay'd?
Not tho' the soldiers knew
  Some one had blunder'd:
Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
  Rode the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
  Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
  Rode the six hundred.

Flash'd all their sabres bare,
Flash'd as they turned in air
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army while
  All the world wonder'd:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right thro' the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reel'd from the sabre-stroke
Shatter'd and sunder'd.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
  Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell,
They that had fought so well
Came thro' the jaws of Death,
Back from the mouth of Hell,
All that was left of them,
  Left of six hundred.

When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
  All the world wonder'd.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
  Noble six hundred!

[DCS]

Well, Crimeans being scared of the 'democratic' Svoboda guys, and knowing how fast western democracies react to ethnic cleansings, makes calling Putin for help a sensible option.

[elipson]

Ha! U think putin is there because he is worried about the crimeans???

[DCS]

Crimeans are the ones worried. Seeing this kind of people as the new 'democratic' government is a bit scary, don't you think?





Putin is there for profit.

[elipson]

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/01/world/...l?c=homepage-t

You were saying something doofa?

[elipson]

I was following the live bbc feed at work yesterday. It was pretty clear that the whole thing was a Russian invasion.

You had men who were clearly well armed, well trained, and disciplined take over the parliament and the airport. They weren't militia or terrorists groups, as they made no demands and "were not authorized to make statements". Capturing the airport only makes sense if you plan on bringing more men into the country, and witnesses say they saw several large transport planes land.They shut down communications within the region. Men in APCs from the Sevestopol naval base were seen heading for the airport. The Russian government was completely silent on the whole matter, which means they were not sabre rattling. While all this was happening Russia conveniently had 150,000 troops moving for combat exercises right across the border.

Putin did something similar in Ossetia Georgia. He sent in men to cause trouble and start fighting, and when Georgian troops fought back, Russia claimed there was ethnic cleansing going on and sent in "Peace keepers" who were really an occupation force. I think Putin was hoping for a brawl so he could do the same thing in Crimea.

It's interesting that Yanukovych is now completely irrelevant. He was a Russian puppet, but now they don't even care what he says or does.

The execution has been brilliant. Hardly a shot fired.

[ChenPengFi]

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=287_1393605865

[Styygens]

Strategically it guarantees his control of Russia's warm water port. Even though there is an existing treaty, the Ukranians could have possibly revisited the issue. It also reduces the Ukrane's access to the West and gives Putin the ability to put more pressure on this country. On the downside, it means that there are fewer Russian voters inside the Ukrane so it's slightly more difficult to disrupt elections.

If the Ukranians attempt to eject the Russians from the Crimea, then Putin can use that as an excuse for war, if he desires. Alternatively he could hold the territory hostage for some sort of political arrangement.

From a ruthless power politic point of view I don't think there is a downside for Putin.

I fear this will sound like an apology for the Russians, it is not; but I think it's important to note for perspective's sake that Crimea was Russian from the 18th to 20th Centuries until Stalin redrew the map for reasons that aren't entirely clear.

I don't see the US, UK, and NATO going to war over this. It's simply a question of how heavy-handed the return of Crimea to Russia will be.

Welcome back to the Game of the Great Powers...

[DCS]

It was Khrushchev who transferred Crimea to Ukraine, not Stalin.

[Styygens]

It was Khrushchev who transferred Crimea to Ukraine, not Stalin.

My mistake; feel free to smack me with a shoe...

[W. Rabbit]

Anybody alive during the Soviet era knows where the military authority truly lies across the old Union, and its ashes.

It was all carefully designed. Putin can essentially do as he pleases.