As an intro to the topic of the Russian approach to any negotiations—which I characterized yesterday as “maximalist”—I’m going to suggest that readers follow two links (since I can’t embed X videos here).
Re-enforcing a judging freedom episode with LTC Shaffer on from about 3 months ago.
To the main idea of the post..
The West is in a bind. They tricked/ negotiated in bad faith with the russians one too many times. There is now ( rightly so) no trust there. Like was said before....why negotiate a half baked peace?
All you are doing with such a situation is setting yourself up for failure by allowing your enemy time to re-group/re-arm and come back to fight you a few years down the road.
The Russians would be fools to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Did we do so with the Nazi's or Japs ? Of course not. Otherwise Europe and Asia would look a lot different today.
That's one of the reasons I maintain that it's not smart to be appointing clowns like Waltz and Kellogg. One of the main jobs for Russian diplomats is to stay on top of what's being said in the US--not just public opinion polls but especially influential opinions expressed by the ruling class--regarding Russia. They notice and report back. They don't like dealing with unpredictable people--as Putin has stated.
I have a sneaking suspicion that Europe might be afraid of the blow back a divided Ukraine might have on European soil.
An ideologically insane right wing rump state with an axe to grind with a military network closely associated with international terrorist groups will be a nightmare.
Right. And according to Gordon Hahn, the remnants in Ukraine could turn eastwards - the complete opposite outcome (blowback?) of the “Neocons” game plan for Eurasia! A long article, takes a lot of close reading to unpack, but Mark has referred to Hahn before…
There's a sort of subtext to Hahn's very good article. Ask yourself, Does the West care what sort of regime remains in Ukraine? Obviously not, as long as it's anti-Russian--that it could be anti-Western is beyond their imaginative capacity. This is SOP for Anglo-Zionists, as we have seen in the Middle East. The strategy is to create a zone of chaos and turbulence. That remains the minimum Anglo-Zionist goal against Russia. It will backfire. It's profoundly anti-human, and forces will arise to counter it.
"The Russians may now be willing to take Trump’s rhetoric about wanting to stop the carnage more seriously. Thus, in a sense, Trump’s continued performance in the Middle East may prove very important to resolving our war on Russia."
Yes, thank you very much for making the connection! A glimmer of hope, at the least.
just an aside...
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/war-behind-war-what-world-war-iii-really-being-fought-over
Re-enforcing a judging freedom episode with LTC Shaffer on from about 3 months ago.
To the main idea of the post..
The West is in a bind. They tricked/ negotiated in bad faith with the russians one too many times. There is now ( rightly so) no trust there. Like was said before....why negotiate a half baked peace?
All you are doing with such a situation is setting yourself up for failure by allowing your enemy time to re-group/re-arm and come back to fight you a few years down the road.
The Russians would be fools to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Did we do so with the Nazi's or Japs ? Of course not. Otherwise Europe and Asia would look a lot different today.
That's one of the reasons I maintain that it's not smart to be appointing clowns like Waltz and Kellogg. One of the main jobs for Russian diplomats is to stay on top of what's being said in the US--not just public opinion polls but especially influential opinions expressed by the ruling class--regarding Russia. They notice and report back. They don't like dealing with unpredictable people--as Putin has stated.
Mark, you are absolutely right, and I completely agree.
Maybe Patrushev and Witkoff are kindred spirits?
I have a sneaking suspicion that Europe might be afraid of the blow back a divided Ukraine might have on European soil.
An ideologically insane right wing rump state with an axe to grind with a military network closely associated with international terrorist groups will be a nightmare.
Right. And according to Gordon Hahn, the remnants in Ukraine could turn eastwards - the complete opposite outcome (blowback?) of the “Neocons” game plan for Eurasia! A long article, takes a lot of close reading to unpack, but Mark has referred to Hahn before…
https://gordonhahn.com/2025/01/11/the-potential-for-an-anti-western-ukrainian-turn-to-the-east/
There's a sort of subtext to Hahn's very good article. Ask yourself, Does the West care what sort of regime remains in Ukraine? Obviously not, as long as it's anti-Russian--that it could be anti-Western is beyond their imaginative capacity. This is SOP for Anglo-Zionists, as we have seen in the Middle East. The strategy is to create a zone of chaos and turbulence. That remains the minimum Anglo-Zionist goal against Russia. It will backfire. It's profoundly anti-human, and forces will arise to counter it.
I remain cautiously optimistic at this point, but the signs are encouraging.
"The Russians may now be willing to take Trump’s rhetoric about wanting to stop the carnage more seriously. Thus, in a sense, Trump’s continued performance in the Middle East may prove very important to resolving our war on Russia."
Yes, thank you very much for making the connection! A glimmer of hope, at the least.