World War I had no good guys and no winners. France rightly sought the return of the provinces Germany had annexed in 1870. Russia rightly feared that German influence would sever its industrial centers and tax base in the Western parts of it its empire; England feared that Germany would encroach on its overseas empire; Germany feared that Russia’s railroad system would overcome its advantage in mobility and firepower. None of them wanted a war, but each of them decided that it was better to fight in 1914 than fight later at a disadvantage.
Historian Christopher Clark in his 2013 book The Sleepwalkers forever buried the black legend of German aggression in 1914, with proof from Russian archives that the Czar’s mobilization – with French incitement – provoked the outbreak of war. There’s no hero to cheer, no villain to boo in the first tragedy of the 20th century, just mediocre and small-minded politicians unable to step back from the brink.
All of them acted rationally in the pursuit of their vital interests, but at the same stupidly as well as wickedly, and the ensuing world wars undid the achievements of a thousand years of Western civilization. We look back to 1914 in horror, and wonder how the leaders of the West could have been so pig-headed. Nonetheless, we are doing it again today.
That should be an object lesson for today’s Ukraine crisis. Vladimir Putin acted wickedly, and illegally, by invading Ukraine, but also rationally: Russia has an existential interest in keeping NATO away from his border. Russia will no more tolerate American missiles in Kyiv than the United States would tolerate Russian missiles in Cuba.
The United States could have averted a crisis by adhering to the Minsk II framework of local rule for the Russophone provinces of Eastern Ukraine within a sovereign Ukrainian state but chose instead to keep open Ukraine’s option to join NATO. That was rational, but also stupid: It backed Putin into a corner.
There is no excuse for Putin’s action, but there is an explanation that’s similar to one that applied to his forbears of 1914: Putin chose to attack before the West had the opportunity to arm Ukraine with sophisticated weapons that would raise the future cost of military action.
[Interesting Read]
See Also:
(1) Russian Barbarism, American Incompetence, and Ukrainian Suffering
(2) ‘Total Failure’? Russian Intelligence Official Allegedly Warns of Disaster in Ukraine
(5) In nod to Russia, Ukraine says no longer insisting on NATO membership
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Funny how the United States ends up with dirty hands in the wars of the 20th and now 21st century. Trust seems never to have been a thing its all down to options. In canada we recently learned that lesson when trudeau declared war on us, only to be beaten back by the banksters.
So, who really is running things? Given the collusion of the NDP it sure isnt the majority of the votes that were cast. Trudeau didnt even get a majority of those in the last two elections. At least biden has an excuse for being a scapegoat, he has lost it. Trudeau has no excuse. What the two have in common is that they both sure act like puppets..