My 2 cents on the Ukrainian crisis for those who care (and yes I have been asked), if you dont care, read no further: Western leaders will find it hard to avoid allegations of double standards by not only promoting but enforcing the doctrine of self-determination in the Balkans yet actively opposing it in the Ukraine. To Slavic people this is an obvious example of ideology developed to support its needs. Defenders of Western intervention, I imagine, will point to two major differences in the situations; (a) The ethnic Russians in the Ukraine are generally the descendants of Russians settled in the area (often forcefully) under Stalin in his effort to avoid nationalism by diluting ethnic majorities. In this sense the ethnic Russians may be perceived in much the same manor as Catholic Irish view loyalist protestant English descendants in northern Ireland, as illegitimate natives; and/or (b) Some may argue that intervention in the Balkans was only required due to the glaring human rights abuses (on all sides of the conflict). With so much hatred ensuing it could be argued that unification was never an option post conflict. Whilst there is truth to these arguments, I believe the need for Western support in the Ukraine (note I have not used the word intervention) comes down to one factor, Putin. Putin, to summarise a complex character, is fearless and dangerous. He holds absolute power in a nuclear state that provides much of the energy needs for Europe. He is a dictator that was trained as a KGB spy in an era of Russian hegemony in the region. He aspires to make Russia a global superpower and he is domestically revered for it. If the West continue to appease him they will face a similar problem to Europe in the 1930s. Barack Obama and the west have drawn the line in the sand, the next few days will be crucial to test the mettle of the West to stare Putin down. So do yourself a favour and watch SBS news over the next few days, history is being written! There... done... now I can talk about getting drunk and going to the gym again.
Posted on: Wed, 07 May 2014 08:34:06 +0000
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