Fascinating new RAND report urges Washington to get the hell out of dodge in Ukraine, as "US interests would be best served by avoiding a protracted conflict," and "costs and risks of a long war...outweigh the possible benefits"!
rand.org/pubs/perspecti…
RAND pushing US/Western escalation against Moscow for a very long time. In 2019 it published report on "Extending Russia". Many of its recommendations subsequently came to pass. Three years earlier, an investigation of US/China war also made a subsequently fulfilled suggestion:
RAND's reasons for ending proxy war are manifold, but "US ability to focus on competition [ie war] with China" looms large. Intriguingly, it is feared the longer this goes on, the closer Moscow and Beijing will become, which Washington absolutely fears, and does not want!
RAND is a highly influential body, which informs - and reflects - elite thinking and imperial policy. This report particularly significant given numerous US officials have similarly expressed doubts about Washington keeping this grinding on. We shall see...
Having now re-read this, it's remarkable how on the nose so much of the language is (this is a frequent feature of RAND reports - always study them closely!), and how in line it is with what anti-imperialists have been warning about *since before the war began*.
The hits keep coming. The "significance" of "international norms" and Ukraine's economy are "debatable", therefore Washington shouldn't give a shit about either, or indeed Ukraine reclaiming territory. I hope every US ally studies this report, and takes lessons from it.
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