Vladimir Putin wants to be Russia’s Ronald Reagan. It’s morning in Moscow, a vibrant new dawn of growth, pride and prestige—that was the Russian President’s message Tuesday as he announced the annexation of Crimea. But is it midnight in America? President Barack Obama wanders in the dark over what to do, trapped by his own philosophy and the results of his own policies. His most emphatic act has been to restrict visas on 11 people out of 145-million Russians. That wasn’t a sanction; it was full employment for comedy writers. The contrast is vivid. “Joy in the streets of Moscow,” declared ABC News‘ Martha Radditz. “Thousands strong bellowing the Russian anthem, welcoming Crimea back to fatherland Russia. … their leader, Vladimir Putin, basking in his moment … blasting the United States.” He accuses us of hypocrisy for intervening in other nations such as Iraq and for supporting a secession vote in Bosnia while opposing it in Crimea. Putin’s soaring popularity in Russia is far more pronounced than his disrepute in Washington. He’s not loved everywhere, but universally he commands respect. In global politics, that’s enough. By contrast, under Obama, America is slipping in respect, in military power and in economic power. As they watch events in the Ukraine and remember the events in Georgia, nervous leaders among other parts of the former Soviet Union wonder if they will be next in Putin’s divide-and-conquer chess moves. And they find America an unreliable partner under current leadership America’s moves are tentative. Vice-President Joe Biden says the USA “may” rotate ships and other forces into the Baltic region to reassure former Soviet satellites such as Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania—which are now part of NATO. ...
Posted on: Thu, 20 Mar 2014 02:46:57 +0000
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