#Putin's call for a "partial" mobilization is the clearest sign yet that his #Ukraine invasion has been a pitiful failure.
That flights from Russia to its immediate neighbors are now selling out at 100mph tells you everything you need to know.
We *must* keep the pressure on.
That flights from Russia to its immediate neighbors are now selling out at 100mph tells you everything you need to know.
We *must* keep the pressure on.
#Putin's nuclear threat, meanwhile, should be taken even less seriously than 6 months ago -- anyone who actually says "this isn't a bluff" has already lost his/her own credibility.
Following through on the threat would kill off his few remaining friendships -- chiefly #China.
Following through on the threat would kill off his few remaining friendships -- chiefly #China.
On days like this, the "we must give #Putin an off ramp ASAP" camp will speak up -- but such a gut response only benefits #Putin & repeats our mistakes of the past.
If #Putin wants an out, he has to be the one to ask (or plead) for one. It's actually happened before, in #Syria.
If #Putin wants an out, he has to be the one to ask (or plead) for one. It's actually happened before, in #Syria.
Though the stakes were smaller, #Putin ordered a major offensive on NW #Syria in Feb 2020 -- declaring a military solution the only one.
#Turkey intervened, absolutely routing pro-#Assad forces for 5 days.
#Putin swiftly did a 180: requesting ceasefire talks. He stepped down.
#Turkey intervened, absolutely routing pro-#Assad forces for 5 days.
#Putin swiftly did a 180: requesting ceasefire talks. He stepped down.
#Putin's decision to invade #Ukraine presented very minimal domestic political risk.
His decision to mobilize, on the other hand, is a very risky move -- it's clearly unpopular for some & will be all the more so once untrained/ill-equipped conscripts begin not coming back.
His decision to mobilize, on the other hand, is a very risky move -- it's clearly unpopular for some & will be all the more so once untrained/ill-equipped conscripts begin not coming back.
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