| "Let's assume for a moment that Vladimir Putin succeeds in gaining full control of Ukraine, as he shows every intention of doing," writes contributing columnist Robert Kagan. "What are the strategic and geopolitical consequences?" That question is more pressing than ever after the Russian president recognized two separatist regions of Ukraine as independent and ordered troops to deploy there for sham "peacekeeping" operations. The ramifications, Kagan predicts, will reverberate far beyond eastern Ukraine. "The first will be a new front line of conflict in Central Europe," he says, at NATO members' doorsteps. "Russian forces will thus be arrayed along Poland's entire 650-mile eastern border, as well as along the eastern borders of Slovakia and Hungary and the northern border of Romania. ... The ability of the United States and NATO to defend the alliance's eastern flank will be seriously diminished." Meanwhile, 4,000 miles away, Beijing will be more likely to make its own moves with the U.S. occupied in Europe. "It is time," Kagan warns, "to start imagining a world where Russia effectively controls much of Eastern Europe and China controls much of East Asia and the Western Pacific. Americans and their democratic allies in Europe and Asia will have to decide, again, whether that world is tolerable." (Washington Post illustration; photo by Getty Images) What are the strategic and geopolitical consequences of Russia's invasion? By Robert Kagan ● Read more » | | | | The 'ultimate political performance artist' edges far out on a limb with his actions in Ukraine. By David Ignatius ● Read more » | | | | What good is Western unity if it doesn't include the people facing attack? By Josh Rogin ● Read more » | | | | Were Trump in office, Putin's threats toward Ukraine surely would have been less costly to Russia. By Eugene Robinson ● Read more » | | | | A growing number of voices within Russia are taking a stand against the possibility of war. By Vladimir Kara-Murza ● Read more » | | | The co-founder of Partners in Health, who died on Monday at age 62, simply did not accept the idea that inequality of health-care access is natural or inevitable. By John Green ● Read more » | | | | Voters are showing discontent with certain Republican policies. By Jennifer Rubin ● Read more » | | | | A former federal judge has said "simple justice and equality in the workplace will be sacrificed" if she is the Supreme Court nominee. That's unfair. By Kenneth W. Mack and Andre M. Davis ● Read more » | | | Ohio's Senate primary has turned into a war of the trolls. By Max Boot ● Read more » | | | | From abortion to contraception to race to sexuality, the reactionary right-wing backlash takes shape. By Paul Waldman ● Read more » | | | | The walls seem to be closing in. By Jennifer Rubin ● Read more » | | | |
0 Comments:
Post a Comment