This. Seems. Ominous.
As the Russian dictator prosecutes his war “on the civilized world of international law, democracy, and any threat to his power” (Garry Kasparov), it is important to note that he is not alone in that effort. He has allies, writes Daily Beast columnist David Rothkopf in a tweet thread:
The two big stories tonight-about Russia’s attack on Ukraine and Trump’s attack on democracy-are the same story, part of an extended, global effort by Russia to attack democracies worldwide. Their techniques differ. There is no equating the suffering Ukraine is going through…
…with what we have experienced in the US or has been experienced in other western democracies in which Putin has invested time and assets to try to weaken. But denying the connections, not acknowledging the bigger picture, will make it that much harder to defeat Putin’s efforts.
The reflexive ferocity with which these ties are denied is a sign of how dangerous it is to all involved to reveal the truth, detail the connections, bring to light the broader strategy and the common purpose behind the broader Russian plan.
This is not a conspiracy theory. It’s a conspiracy fact. We have seen it. Investigations have provided mountains of evidence. And now it is time to find a holistic solution for dealing with it. When President Biden speaks of the battle between autocracy and democracy…
…this is a part of it, this is the reality of it. War in Ukraine. Subterfuge in the US. Armies abroad. Traitors at home. Links between right wing ethnonationalists worldwide. Bombs & disinformation. All with a single objective: Undercut, diminish, obstruct & destroy democracy.
I can only imagine the howls and the lies and the slurs that will end up in the timeline following this thread. But intellectual honesty demands we see these connections as does a desire to defeat Putin and his anti-democratic coalition worldwide. So, sleep on that tonight.
And then tomorrow, if you doubt it, check the facts. And then, as you see them, find a way to fight back. The stakes are too high. For us, for our allies, for our friends and for our children and our children’s children.
Rothkopf follows up at Daily Beast with suggestions for fighting back without fighting World War III. “[I]f the conclusion from this war is that nuclear-armed states have the ability to do whatever they want to their neighbors, however cruel and unjustified, because the risks of fighting back against them are too high, the world will not be left a safer place,” Rothkopf writes.
Putin has found he can use his nuclear weapons as a shield against NATO interference. NATO formally joining any fight is just the step Putin needs to save his ass which, owing to his own hubris and missteps, now is on the line. He will not attack NATO; NATO will not attack him. So, what are our options?
Shoulder-launched missiles. Lots of them, says Lt. Gen. Doug Lute, former U.S. ambassador to NATO and former deputy U.S. national security adviser. Anti-armor Javelins and anti-air Stingers. Easy to transport and use, they can be handed off to Ukrainians at the borders with Poland and Romania. Plus, secure digital communications.
Diplomatic solutions may have appeal. But offering Putin a face-saving way out — a step-down in NATO’s European nuclear posture, etc. — may not be enough. It won’t satisfy Putin’s ambitions or set aside his fears that, as dictators go, he has made himself a target. His political allies know he has put them at risk as well.
Average Russians (especially those already isolated in Russia’s far east) know their lifestyles are at risk as well. (Good luck, signatories.)
Rothkopf believes Putin may eventually withdraw without having achieved his ends “if the U.S. and our allies maintain our resolve and our unity and by ratcheting up existing measures rather than taking steps that risk escalation.” Even then, the costs will be high:
That may not come soon. The cost to get to that outcome may be horrific. But fortunately, the X-factor backing up all these measures from the U.S., NATO, the EU, and allies worldwide is the courage and the commitment of the people of Ukraine. Whatever advantage Putin may have in terms of military hardware, that is not something he can replicate or, it increasingly appears, defeat.
We know by observation that one of our major politcal parties has all but rejected democracy in this country. The former president from their party openly cosied up to dictators and autocrats, cheered on by the Republicans’ propaganda arm. We know also that plutocrats’ longterm goal has been to roll back the 20th century to the last Gilded Age. It seems now there is a more feral global movement to go even further, to roll back the Enlightenment that breathed life into the U.S. Constitution as well. Pray that the rest of the world quickly will disabuse them of that delusion.
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