Will the Trump/Putin Meeting in Alaska Bring Peace?

By Rich Kozlovich Tags: P&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump, Putin

I subscribe to Geopolitical Futures, which I highly recommend, and there's always a lot of analysis on the Russo/Ukrainian War, and this piece is predicated on some of that analysis.  

On August 15th Presidents Trump and Putin will be meeting in Alaska to discuss bringing an end to the Russo/Ukrainian war, which NATO thinks he's "broken the deadlock".  Yeah, right, that's a real confidence builder. 

Russia's pushing even harder into Ukraine with drone attacks, Zelenskyy is insisting they will never give up any territory to Russia and doesn't care what Trump and Putin agree to, and Western Europe wants Russia punished for it's aggression, but they're broke and need Trump to step up to defend Ukraine.  

While it seems reasonable that Trump actually believes something worthwhile will come out of this meeting, otherwise he wouldn't have agreed to it, and since he forced the meeting to be on American soil instead of the United Arab Emirates as Putin wanted, that's telling, but not all that telling as Trump has had a lot of trouble reading Putin's real intentions in the past, which has been a typical Russian stalling misdirection strategy for decades.  Trump's negotiating skills are amazing, but in business negotiations are between people who want a deal.  That's not always true in geopolitics, which Russia, Iran, China, and Hamas have demonstrated. 

Trump's tariffs have hurt Putin, but he's managed to skirt some tariffs via trade with other countries.  However, Trump has had it with that scheme and is introducing serious tariffs on any country doing business with Russia, especially on Russian's biggest export, oil and natural gas.  And that includes India with Trump willing to impose a 50% tariff on India, which shocked both India and Russia.  And since India typically has a good relationship with the U.S. it sends a startling message to smaller nations.  Don't mess with Trump. 

•  Xi Tells Putin China Ready To Back Peace & Negotiations With US On Ukraine

I do wish people would abandon this "depth of defense against NATO" nonsense as an excuse for Putin's aggression.  After all that’s come out that’s an untenable point of view.  It's revanche, period, an irrational desire to re-create the Russian empire.  Russia has been in a perpetual state of war forever, that's it's history and that history is incontestable.   

Putin believes Ukraine belongs to Russia, and has acted accordingly, but his three year invasion of Ukraine has been a disaster.  The world's twenty second military has thwarted the world's second military for three years, it's devastated Russia's demography losing over one million young Russian men, it's economy is a mess, and it's military has been exposed as something far less that the fabled "Russian Bear" we all thought it was, and has demonstrated just how incompetent Russia's leaders are. 

 And if they'd won what was their long range plan for Ukraine.  Slavery? Confiscation of all resources?  This article in American Thinker, Perpetual Russian Wars, is in my view extremely insightful saying:

The Russian Empire, the USSR, and today’s Russia are all built in a military mold. Yet, the only thing an army truly exists for, the only thing it is supposed to do—at least in theory — is fight wars. An army, and a state modeled after an army, cannot create anything. .........The U.S., Ukraine, and all European countries call on Russia to come to the negotiating table and end this senseless war. Unfortunately, they don’t understand—or prefer not to understand—that Russia doesn’t need Ukraine. Russia doesn’t even want victory! Russia needs war! Only war.

Without war, Russia cannot exist. Peace—even temporary peace—will inevitably lead to internal tensions,........the very existence of the Russian state as a single entity would be threatened. Moreover, the end of the war would require an inevitable transformation of a military economy into a civilian one. But with Russia’s current legal and political structure, this is impossible.

After WWII, the U.S. industries were able to quickly switch to peacetime, something its democratic system made possible. The USSR, however, did not want to, and even if it had, it couldn’t. The Soviet experience showed that state-run industry is inefficient, while private enterprise requires freedom of choice and, most importantly, the rule of law, something Russian history has never had.

Any attempt to shift Russia onto peaceful tracks would cause the collapse of the centralized power and the loss of vast fortunes amassed by the ruling class through illicit means. Therefore, neither the top of the power structure nor the privileged layers of Russian society have any interest in peace.

Putin’s new goal is to stay alive, and he cannot stop his invasion and survive.  But if he continues, he will further destroy his economy, his military, his demography, and Russia’s standing in the world.  And it’s my view his own people are going to kill him anyway.

He’s already lost influence in the Caucuses, and Turkey is becoming ascendant as a result.  I think his meeting with Trump is nothing more than a delaying tactic with false promises in order to get Trump to back away from his new tariff plan, and that may be because there was internal Russian politics forcing him into this meeting. 

I believe any hope for ending this war with this meeting is wishful thinking.  Nothing short of Putin’s removal from power will bring peace. 

Update, 8/13/25:    

• Trump Issues New Warning to Putin Ahead of High Stakes Meeting - Speaking to reporters from the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. Wednesday, President Donald Trump issued a new warning to Russian President Vladimir Putin over his refusal to end the war against Ukraine.   "There will be very severe consequences," Trump said if Putin refuses to follow through with some kind of peace agreement. ..........
•  This Week: World Watches Trump-Putin Summit…EU Meddling Intensifies -European leaders laid out their conditions for any progress on peace in Ukraine in bilateral talks between Russia and the U.S. due this Friday after a call with President Donald Trump........

Editor's Note:  I've written a great deal about this. Here are 21 of my commentaries on this issue.  

1. Putin is Between a Rock and a Hard Place 
2. P&D Geopolitics Edition, Russia, Ukraine, and Donald Trump, Part III
3. P&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump, Part II
4. P&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump
5. This Game Has a New Dealer
6. Let's Try and Get This Right, Just Once, Please! The Russo/Ukrainian War is All Putin's Fault!
7. Thank You Tucker Carlson!
8. This Russo/Ukrainian War is About Revanche, not World Conquest
9. P&D Geopolitical Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, Strategy
10. Economics and the Russo/Ukrainian War
11. P&D Geopolitical Edition
12. Ukraine Isn't Our Fault, Nor is it Our Responsibility!
13. Decisions Clouded by the Fog of Misdirection, Misinformation and Ideology
14. P&D Today, November 12, 2022
15. P&D Today, September 22, 2022
16. Russia, and Putin are in Trouble: Get Over It!
17. Russia Was Scared So They Had to Attack Ukraine, Part II
18. Russia Was Scared, So They Had to Attack Ukraine! Part I
19. Russo/Ukrainian War, Part 2 (b): President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin
20. Russo/Ukrainian War, Part 2 (a): President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin
21. Russo/Ukrainian War: Part One, President Joe Biden

Putin is Between a Rock and a Hard Place

By Rich Kozlovich  Tags: P&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump, Putin

This piece was inspired by a podcast by George Friedman of Geopolitical Futures.   GF is a subscription site, and so I can't link it, and so too are some of my other observations, so you'll just have to take my word for what appears here.  Or not as it please you.  Otherwise information from non subscription sites are linked.  

The Russian oligarchs, former criminals, many of which formerly worked in Soviet intelligence agencies, are outraged at Putin.  They created him and now because of him all their money that’s tied up in European banks are closed to them, they can’t get at it.  

Putin's facing serious economic issues, and it's being reported the Russian economy is suffering, that Russia's economic growth plummeted after Trump took office, and their economic minister says the country is on the brink of recession.  Now  OPEC is going to boost oil production which will cut into Russia's income stream.

Trump was catering to Putin for quite a while, and while Trump is a brilliant negotiator, there’s a difference between economic negotiations, and the negations dealing with national pride..... and survival for Putin.  But Trump is still Trump, and he’s had it with Putin, giving him a deadline for massively larger sanctions and sanctions on anyone who trades with him, and he’s not Obama.

• Clock Ticking For Russia During the presidential campaign, Donald Trump said he believed he could end the Russia-Ukraine war with a few phone calls. I thought he could, too. I thought Russia and Ukraine were both weary, to put it mildly, and would be happy to be given a way out by the U.S. But we were wrong. Ukraine wanted to negotiate an end to the war, but Russia didn’t. ........
• Trump's Eyes Opened on Putin. Now What Will He Do?  - "I'm not happy with what Putin is doing. He's killing a lot of people, and I don't know what the hell happened to Putin," said Donald Trump on Truth Social over the holiday weekend. 
• Trump Warns Russia: Make Peace With Ukraine in 50 Days—Or Monster Tariffs  - President Donald Trump told reporters during a meeting with NATO chief Mark Rutte on Monday that European NATO members would fund billions of dollars of American military equipment, including Patriot missiles, for Ukraine and threatened Russian President Vladimir Putin with a massive 100-per cent indirect tariff if he did not make peace in 50 days....
• Trump’s Ukraine Ultimatum: A Promising First Step - President Trump’s July 14 ultimatum to Vladimir Putin—demanding peace in Ukraine within 50 days and threatening secondary sanctions on countries like China and India if they continue funding Russia’s aggression—is a welcome and long-overdue step. But it is just that: a first step. If the goal is peace and deterrence of future wars, the United States and its allies must go further.......

What Putin is doing in these negotiations are what the Russians have always done.  Talking a lot,  saying nothing, delaying, and all the while pursuing their goals threatening to take more and more dramatic actions in order to force everyone to give in, "pounding Ukraine with missiles and drones a day before the two sides meet for a new round of direct talks in Istanbul."  

His military is undermanned and disgruntled sending Smartphone videos of protest back to their families.  A Ukrainian drone attack destroyed more than 40 Russian planes deep in Russian territory, and Russian retribution for daring Ukrainian strike is postponed, perhaps indefinitely:

Ukraine’s June 1 strike on four Russian airbases exposed severe vulnerabilities in Russia’s air defenses, prompting patriotic outcries and demands for retaliation despite censorship and subdued official responses. Russia’s retaliatory strike on June..

Having around a million casualties from his war with Ukraine, and hundreds of thousands of them dying, Putin faces not only a serious manpower issues for his military, he also faces a serious labor gap.  Now Putin's Ministry of Education is floating the idea they should try to recruit workers from Africa, Latin America, and India, but these are untrained people who will be expected to fill jobs that are far more technical than they capable of performing, in a culture with a language they're don't speak.  That will take time to train them properly.  This isn't a short term fix that can help Putin. 

He's incapable of meeting the needs of his military any longer, and has asked Laos to send "engineering troops to help de-mine the Kursk region".  Laos sent 50 engineers, even "providing rehabilitation support for wounded Russian soldiers."

North Korea is sending "25,000 more troops, 1,000 combat engineers, and 5,000 "military construction personnel to help rebuild Russia's Kursk region," and now Putin’s surrender to Islam:

In March 2025, tens of thousands of Muslims flooded Moscow’s streets for Eid al-Fitr prayers. Loudspeakers blasted the Islamic call to prayer, echoing under the gaze of the Kremlin itself. This wasn’t simply a religious gathering. It was a state-enabled spectacle of Islamic dominance in Russia’s capital—a country once considered the stronghold of Orthodox Christianity. The government not only permitted the display but also provided infrastructure and protection.

He attacked Ukraine only to abandon Russia to elements that will destroy Russia from within.  

Putin has a Central Asian problem.  Former Soviet Republics are, like Kazakhstan, moving in directions that are clearly meant to neutralize Russian influence.  Kazakhstan is negotiating with Pakistan on military issues, and has aims to modernize their military via what they calling multivector diplomacy

Central Asia’s Water Crisis Becoming Russia’s Problem: To the extent that happens—and Moscow’s behavior makes such an outcome ever more probable—three developments are almost certain. 

1. First, the Central Asian countries are likely to distance themselves from Moscow, even as an ever-increasing number of their citizens migrate to Russia to access sufficient water.  
2.  Second, the PRC, Afghanistan, and possibly other countries further from the scene will expand their influence in the region at Russia’s expense.
3. Third, Russia will likely become the site of more ethnic conflict and the political instability that such a development entails. Had Moscow taken a different position on diverting some Siberian river water to Central Asia or even shown itself more sympathetic to the problems of Central Asians, it might have avoided all these unwelcome outcomes. It may now be too late for the Kremlin to recover...............

The Caucuses, which are historically notorious for instability, are growing more and more unstable, and it's clear Russia is so tied up with Ukraine they're losing control involving their own region of Dagestan, along with Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, and now Turkey is involving itself.  Just about everything the Russians have done has exacerbated the issues there. 

The Poles have to worry about everyone.  They don’t like the Ukrainians, the hate the Germans, and they fear the Russians, and rightly so since the Russians are talking about the “final act” an attack against European cities, and presumably they mean nuclear attacks.  Which probably means they’re just talking since you don’t tell the enemy what you’re planning to do.  But Putin is in trouble, and if he can’t do something radical to win this war, he’s toast. 

• Kremlin Increases Anti-Poland Propaganda Executive Summary: Russia is intensifying its hybrid warfare against Poland through cyberattacks, sabotage, and disinformation, while portraying Polish defensive actions as provocations to fuel domestic narratives and justify ongoing hostility. Kremlin propaganda is beginning to..
• Pivotal Poland: Europe’s Rising Power Announcing – Promethean Liberation: Russia’s Emerging National and Regional Movements - The invasion of Ukraine has accelerated the decline of the Russian state and raised the prospects for domestic turmoil. It has resulted in an unsustainable militarization of the economy, falling state revenues, shrinking financial reserves, military failures, and signs of mounting regional and ethnic unrest. Without structural reforms that boost the civilian economy and absent any autonomy among Russia’s 83 republics and regions, the federal structure will become increasingly unmanageable and vulnerable to movements demanding sovereignty or secession.

And now Germany is promoting the idea Ukraine should be part of NATO.  It's not going to happen for a number of reasons, including everyone is getting really tired of Zelenskyy.  

Putin turned Russian politics in its head, and while Stalin never feared the other institutional structures of the communist regime because they all understood Stalin was the new Czar.  Everyone between Stalin and Putin did fear them.  Putin, like Stalin, doesn’t fear them, but he’s not Stalin, and he never built a structure around himself as Stalin did.

If he makes a peace with Ukraine after over three years of war, and a million casualties with the hundreds of thousands of young Russian men dying, billions of dollars in military costs, multi billions lost in economic sanctions, he’s toast.  So, he threatens use of nuclear weapons, which he doesn’t dare do now since Europe fears him and is reaming itself against him.  He’s threatening to attack Europe via an air war for arming Ukraine, but Europe is doing it anyway, and now Germany has deployed military brigades in Lithuania.

Their banking system is collapsing, the Russian people are not happy, but Putin is making it clear he’s in charge, he wants what he wants, and Europe had better be prepared for war, but I do believe there's a von Stauffenberg cabal within his military, and his government, and if that's true, he's not going to last much longer, especially if Trump imposes more economic sanctions on Russia and all those doing business with Russia.  

An Abundance of Uncertainties

By Rich Kozlovich

George Friedman is the owner of Geopolitical Futures, a subscription site, and well worth it, I just upped my subscription for three more years, who has stated on more than one occasion the cold war didn't really end with the collapse of the Soviet Union.  The cold war was predicated on preventing Russia from conquering Europe, hence the creation of NATO.  But the collapse of the Soviet Union didn't alter Russian goals.   They still had the same goal of taking over Europe just as it was the Soviet Union's.   As a result the cold war continued as a practical reality.   George states that concern ended with the Russo/Ukrainian War, which ended the cold war reality.

•  A confusing world without a hegemon  A growing concern dominates Western politics and diplomacy: the unraveling of the so-called rules-based world order. Many place the blame on the Trump administration. However, this shift was inevitable because of geopolitical, geoeconomic and demographic forces, regardless of who occupies the White House.  This world order – never truly universal – provided a framework for relative global stability under the Pax Americana. From the 1950s until the collapse of the Soviet Union, it served as the foundation for peace and prosperity in the free world. The threat of mutual nuclear destruction created a tense balance between the capitalist and communist blocs. ..............

Previous to this, everyone, including me, believed NATO was a wet paper bag without the United States, and it was!   As a result without American support it was reasonably believed Russia could drive down the North European plain right into France, and Europe wouldn't be able to stop them.  While I believed Russia could cut right through Europe, but I didn't believe they could hold it.  Even before this it was clear Russia didn't have the economic wherewithal, nor did they have the manpower to do so as Russia's demographic pyramid was a mess. Well, everyone, including me, was wrong!  Even without American support we now realize Europe still had the technological and military capability and wherewithal to have stopped them in Poland.

Russia has what they consider seven defensive gaps that must be maintained.  Ten years ago they only had manpower to fully man three of them, and it's gotten much worse since then as Putin is destroying his young population.  The Russian demographic pyramid was already all out of whack with the 15 to 50 demographic filled with alcoholics, drug users, victims of AIDS and drug resistant TB.   The critical 15 to 50 age group which creates the economy and the next generation, both of which he's destroying.   Socialism always turns into a form of monarchy.    It doesn't matter whether you call an autocrat Emperor, Chairman, President or King.  An autocrat is an autocrat and invariably they cannibalize the societies they control.

We now we know Russia isn't the mighty bear we thought it was.   Russia had what was considered the number two military in the world, yet it has been unable to defeat the number twenty two rated military in almost four years, and has now had to resort to threatening to use nukes.

Russia's now lost hundreds of thousands of young men, and is now running out of young bodies to fight the war and being forced to using "volunteers" from N. Korea and China.  They can't manufacture all of their own military hardware, and is now being attacked with drones deeper inside Russia destroying their oil and gas depots, which they had already used to  destroy the Russian Black Sea fleet.  Drones are the new military strategic horizon, giving small nations a fighting chance, and that technology is going to expand massively now, right along with laser weaponry, which I've written about. 

The reality of Russia's demographics is coming home to roost as now they're inviting immigrants from Africa and Asia to work in their factories, and that's a poison pill since it was estimated over ten years ago the ethnic population of Russia would be a minority in their own land by 2040, fifteen years away.  I've not seen any recent estimates but I wouldn't be shocked to see that's closer to eight years away now.  It's interesting to see how many are coming from the former Soviet Republics of Central Asia, since they're following their own economic visions with international trade and moving closer to China.   And... Russia's economic minister is predicting a recession.  The hits just keep right on coming. 

So, back to George Friedman.  He notes this real end of the cold war has put the world's leaders in a quandary seeking an anchor to their thinking and planning, and that's moving away from Europe to the Middle East and Asia.

What the world is facing is a much higher level of  geopolitical risks than has existed for decades, none of which will go away any time soon, and those are tied in with very serious domestic political issues which are going go haunt us for decades, much of them due to the unbridled immigration the Obama/Biden cabal forced on America in order to destroy America.  And please stop foolishly believing otherwise because if you can't accept that, you can't understand anything going on.  The evidence of that was obvious to the most casual observer while Obama was President, and now it's overwhelming since Trump was reelected and everything they did is being exposed for the treason it was.  

Islam is the greatest threat to western civilization, the second and third greatest threats to western civilization is debt and an oversized state.  Economically the world is in trouble with the world's nations being in debt to almost 310 trillion dollars,  much of which can't be repaid, and most political "leaders" are averse to fixing that as they're embracing the welfare state mentality to keep their jobs, including America, which I believe the Big Beautiful Bill will demonstrate when it passes. The result is we're looking at inflation and a worldwide recession on the horizon. 

Investors are becoming more and more risk averse, and rightly so, especially the new generation coming up.   Fixed income is in jeopardy, and trade policies are shifting the world's focus on investments with no idea what to do about it.  

Do I believe there will there be less violence, enhanced with a better, safer, and more stable economic climate in the near future?  No!  

And that's the only thing I'm certain about. 

Update:  This article appeared on June 18th, America and what 250 years may mean asking, "can anyone give me a convincing argument that we are not living through the end of America?" I responded saying I’ve read three books on historical cycles, all complicated, and if there ever was a history regimen that needed an academic discipline, that’s it. All the authors have their own terminology and time frames, but all three agreed on one thing. We’re facing the end of this historical cycle, and it’s worldwide. All end cycles are filled with violence and economic downturns, but for a nation to survive it needs six (I amended my original comment) things.

1. It must be able to feed itself.
2. Fuel itself.
3. Arm itself. 
4. Defend itself.
5. Create it’s own internal market.
6. Pay off it’s national debt.

America is the only nation in the world capable of all six. Will there be serious issues? Sure, but the nation is capable of surviving intact, even if diminished. The world is not only in a domestic state of flux, it’s in a geopolitical state of flux looking for an anchor for their decision making and direction. When the new historical cycle begins things will be different, when that begins and how different it will be no one can say, but it’s my belief there are a lot of existing nations that will be broken up into smaller states, not an uncommon occurrence throughout history.

P&D Geopolitics Edition, Russia, Ukraine, and Donald Trump, Part III

Today the KGB, in all it's manifestations over the last 100 years, has now outlived communism and Russia is no longer a state with a security service, instead the security service has a state. 

By Rich Kozlovich, TagsP&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump, Putin

In December a Russian general was assassinated, and six days ago another Russian general was assassinated, very near Moscow, and it's not being done by the Russians, not their style when dealing with internal conflicts.  That's why they have gulags and work camps.  These were vehicle detonations and most likely done remotely.  

This might be viewed a small thing in the overall picture, but I see this in a different light.  I think it's a very large small thing, and is a foundational insight into the Russian military, their internal security is deteriorating, and I've stated in the past it seems likely to me there's a Claus von Stauffenberg cabal in their military.  As I read this I wondered if this isn't a subtle evidence of that being so, as it seems this required inside information.   Just a thought... as I said... subtle evidence. 

There are two camps in the Russian hierarchy, the war mongers who insist on fighting until total victory is attained, because like all criminals, they just can give up on the con.  They insistent on clinging to the fallacious argument NATO and Europe, with support from America, are now, and have been on the verge of attacking Russia.  The ridiculous "depth of defense" argument that's been used to justify their unwarranted attack on Ukraine by Russia.  I'll tell you what, we'll come back to that.

Then there's the group who sees reality and recognizes they need peace as a matter of practicality.  This was has cost them hundreds of thousands of young men who will no longer be around to contribute to their population, which has a serious demographic problem.  Ten years ago it was estimated by 2040 ethnic Russians would be a minority in their own nation.  That drop in the Russian ethnic demographic has now been speeded up - a lot.  Putin's insane war has put Russia's demographics in free fall.

Russia has seven defensive gaps they feel they must defend, and ten years ago they only had enough manpower to fully man three of them.  Now their manpower level is so bad there are now mercenaries from 48 nations with boots on the ground including N. Korea and China, seriously exposing the Russian military isn't a bear.   They're so desperate they've duped poor young Indian nationals desperate for foreign employment into fighting in Ukraine. In fact this war has turned into a meat grinder. A riot broke out over this in Krasnodar and their desertion problem is real.

The economics of this war is killing them and they want a restoration of economic stability and a return of international investments, but they don't want to make any concession until they conquer more territory. 

According to Ekaterina Zolotova, an expert analyst for Geopolitical, that's a reflection of the Russian mentality overall.   The majority want peace, a minority wants war, but a huge majority of all Russians insist there should be no concessions or minimal concessions.  That's Putin's conundrum. 

The drop in the price of oil and U.S. sanctions has caused Putin serious budget issues.  Central Asian nations that were former USSR republics are now doing more business with China, who is even wanting to fund building a small nuke power plant in one of these nations, and that's a pattern that won't end when this war is over.  

China's cut a "comprehensive strategic partnership" deal with Azerbaijan involving travel, trade, science, energy and...get this... tourism.   But here's the kicker.  They're agreeing to affirm mutual support for sovereignty and territorial integrity.   How far will that range?  As for right now Azerbaijan agrees that Taiwan is part of China and China agrees to support Azerbaijan in their conflict with Nagoya-Karabakh.   Didn't even know there was such a thing did you, but this is a major small conflict on Russia's border that's been going on for years, and one that Russia can't resolve due to this Ukraine war.  Azerbaijan is on the west cost of the Caspian Sea, right in Russia's back yard, and China is stepping in where Russia has failed.   Russians can't even manufacture their military needs, so China does, and has been doing so for some time.

Even Pakistan is involving themselves in the Russian sphere of influence, and truth be told, Putin needs to worry far more about China than NATO or the U.S.

Back to the "Depth of Defense" big lie.  In February Putin predicted Trump was going to make Europe's leaders ‘Bend at His Feet’ saying:

“They just don’t like Trump. They forgot him actively, really interfered in political life, in the election process of the United States. And then they were confused when Trump suddenly won,” Putin said. “But I assure you, Trump with his character, persistence, he will restore order pretty quickly. And all of them, you’ll see, it will happen quickly, soon, all of them will stand at the master’s feet and gently wag their tails.”

Why is that important?  It's a tacit acknowledgement that Putin understood who and what these European NATO "leaders" were and had to know they had no plans, desires, or ability to attack Russia.  

There have been prominent writers who claim Putin doesn't bluff, I think that's a load of horsepucky.  I've paid a lot of attention to him over the years, and read a lot of Russian history, and he's still practicing what Russian communists have been practicing since they took over, it's called maskirovka, a masquerade.  

The Russians always bluff unless they have an overwhelming advantage where there's no need bluff in order to get their way, then they just use the hammer.  Just like when the USSR crushed the Hungarian Revolution in 1956, or the Czech revolt known as the Prague Spring in 1968, where nothing could have stopped Soviet troops from overwhelming those nations.   That's not the case now, and what advantage he had has dissipated massively, at many levels.

Russia was considered the number two military nation in the world, which has been fighting a war against the 22nd military nation in the world for three years, but he's not going to launch nuclear weapons against Ukraine.  He can't take the risk of retaliation, and NATO is now aware of how dangerous Putin is, and is talking retaliation, which makes you wonder from where they're getting their natural gas now, and do they really want Warsaw or Berlin to become a nuclear waste land?  

But Putin really doesn't want Moscow to become one either, and I don't believe he will take that chance.  I also believe he's facing some internal political issues that scares him. Is there a Claus von Stauffenberg cabal within his military?  Absolutely!  Historically, being Caesar is the scariest most dangerous job in the world, or in this case Czar, without the religious trappings.  

There's always a Stauffenberg cabal, look at what happened to the American military establishment.  Would they take action if he attempted to use nukes?  I think so.  He's not the chess player we thought he was, but that's when he was dealing with nitwits like Obama, but I also don't think he's that stupid either. He's not really all that smart, he's just clever.  Even if there's no retaliation the international consequences will be massive.  He's already destroyed Ukraine far beyond his economic ability to rebuild it, and nukes would merely make it worse, so where's the victory? 

He's failed to defeat Ukraine in three years, and it's clear Russia's military, and especially it's military leadership are not all that after all.  Bad leadership, bad training, bad strategy, poor logistics, terrible planning, lousy intelligence, and stupid arrogant conclusions, all of which has been the problem with Russia for 125 years, going back to the the 1904 Russo/Japanese war, which Russia lost, and then WWI, which they lost.  They only defeated Germany in WWII because Germany was overstretched.... way over stretched....  and America provided much needed hardware, especially the Dodge truck.  

It's been said the Dodge truck saved the Soviet Union, as that allowed Stalin to quickly transport men and material around the country, which he was incapable of doing before that.  Horse cart supply lines don't cut it. If Germany had finished off England first, and hadn't declared war on America, Russia would have lost, badly, even with the 30 divisions he had stashed in Eastern Russia to repel a feared Japanese invasion.

This war has exposed just how fragile Russia is economically, industrially, and domestically.  As a result,  Putin's international credibly is in the toilet, and he needs for this war to go away.  He also needs to come out looking good, or at least not as the loser, since in Russia failed leaders aren't well tolerated, and I've no doubt, given the murderous thug he's been, he legitimately fears for his continued existence.  

He also knows France and others are talking about putting boots on the ground, and Trump didn't want to keep funding Ukraine any longer.  He clearly needs Trump to work some diplomatic magic as he did with the Abrahamic Accords, and that will have to be a multinational agreement that binds Russia to Ukrainian protection, which will require an entire restructuring of Ukraine's government.  Good luck with that, as each time they seem to reach an agreement one or both parties reneges, and Trump made it clear he's had it and is more than willing to walk away. 

But now Trump has allegedly cut a deal with Zalenskyy over mining in Ukraine, as a result, a fund would be created out of that to rebuild Ukraine and Trump is partially ending his ban on military hardware.  A lot of military hardware.   Fifty billion dollars worth of military hardware, so we'll see what happens, but make no mistake about this.  There are no good guys in this war, only one worse guy, and that's Putin.

P&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump, Part II

By Rich Kozlovich, Tags: P&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump, Putin

On February 20, 2025 Victoria White Berger published this article, Oh, horrors! Trump pursues peace and tells the truth about Zelenskyy, saying:

The war machine is up and screaming. Zelenskyy is having a hissy fit for not continuing to be the absolute center of attention as Trump proceeds, diplomatically, to pursue perfectly legitimate routes to, firstly, engage the “aggressor” (Russia) in talks for peace. For the first time since the current Ukraine/Russia war began—exactly 3 years less 4 days ago—the leadership of America is speaking for the people, those being killed, and all those paying for it.

Zelenskyy is furious that America, whose taxpayers have financed “his” war, did not yet include him in the first diplomatic efforts with Russia. But this is not all about Zelenskyy, fortunately.  It most absolutely stands to reason that the peace talks, from the perspective of any historically successful diplomacy, must begin with the most powerful participant: Russia. This is Diplomacy 101.

There’s only one thing in this article I disagree with and this is “Zelenskyy’s war”. It’s Putin’s war, and his excuses for starting it are pathetic. And none of this could have happened if it wasn’t for Joe Biden stealing the election via massive voter fraud because he gave Putin carte blanche for supplying energy to Europe when he shut down all the drilling, and even started buying oil from Venezuela. That funded Putin’s war, and it put all of Europe in a bind.

However, that wouldn’t have been a problem if Europe’s leaders hadn’t gone insane, aka, green, buying into the global warming lies.   Now Europe had to buy so much more natural gas and oil from Russia. They’re either stupid or crazy. 

If the Ukrainian government hadn’t been one of, if not the most corrupt government in Europe, they could have easily provided for adequate defenses to thwart any Russian invasion.  And if there are all these wealth building natural resources there, as is being reported, why didn’t they develop them before and become a very wealthy nation, capable of buying or building a huge defense capability that would have thwarted any invasion.

Russia has been at it against Ukraine since 2014, not to mention all the other former Soviet states they've attacked, so they had to know it was coming.  Putin would have known those defensive capabilities were in place, and this would have never happened.   But you can’t corruptly line your pockets and meet the needs of the nation at the same time, and it seems perfectly clear that’s what has been happening all these years.

From the beginning my view is this is Europe’s problem, let them fix it or not, if they don’t it’s on them.  If they do, it’s still on them, we have no skin in this game.  And all this insane clabber about how the US and NATO forced him to attack is nonsense.  

NATO was set up to prevent aggression by the Soviet Union against Europe, and that was a very real threat.   But NATO, no matter who became members had no desire to attack Russia, and without US support they couldn't have beaten their way out of a wet paper bag, and Putin absolutely knew that.  This attack wasn't about depth of defense, it was about revanche, the return of the lost territory of what was the Soviet Union.  

If you’re a moral person you must feel compassion for the people of Ukraine, the same people who suffered the death of millions at Stalin’s hands, but if you’re a rational person, you must realize this isn’t our fault, nor is it our responsibility.

There's been a lot of effort by the Trump administration to bring this Russo/Ukrainian War insanity to an end, and it's also clear neither Zelenskyy or Putin want that as they're both playing games. 

Below are some of the latest articles dealing with this insanity.   Today we're told there will be peace.  Tomorrow neither Putin or Zelenskyy will sign a peace deal unless ___________ add the caveat of your choice here.   

Now there's all this talk about Europe putting boots on the ground in Ukraine, and now that Russia is using both North Korean and Chinese troops, it give Ukraine and the rest of Europe an excuse to do the same. Any talk about other countries coming to Ukraine’s aid is hot air, which Europe’s leaders are exceptionally good at. 

• U.K. to Rush Experimental Laser Weapon into Service to Deploy in Ukraine - Oliver JJ Lane Ukraine is to become a giant testing ground for a revolutionary new laser weapon which, if successful, promises to radically alter the economics of warfare, the British government says. The “sovereign” British Dragonfire laser was successfully tested at an Army range in Scotland earlier this year. Now, defence procurement rules are being changed to rush it to deployment five years early, and perhaps to the front line in Ukraine even sooner. British Defence Minister Grant Shapps said the rollout of the anti-air laser to the Royal Navy warships was being brought forward five whole years, from 2032 to 2027, but made clear it could be seeing action earlier yet...........

There will be no European troops on the ground doing any fighting, there will be little organized efforts to give them money, as Europe keeps saying they're going to finance Ukraine, but they don't seem to know where the money will be coming from, and now because Trump has put the hammer down on NATO about meeting their financial obligations, they're all investing far more money in their own national defenses, and their national debt keeps climbing.

Ukraine is running out of bodies and military supplies, a lot of which has ended up on the black market. If the US walks away, it’s over, Zelenskyy knows it, Putin knows it, Europe knows it, and Trump knows it, irrespective of all of the grandstanding by Zelenskyy and Europe's leaders against Trump.

Here was Jack Hellner's  overview of the Russo-Ukrainian war, from 2008–2025, which I thought was a good article, with excellent time lines, and clear definitions of who is who and what is what. All necessary as the Pravda media keeps trying to redefine reality and history.

There's a reason why he wasn't included in negotiations.  President Trump: It’s “Not Important” for Zelensky to be Involved in Peace Talks – “He Makes It Very Hard to Make Deals”.  Arrogant on the part of Trump?  Possibly, but Zelenskyy has demonstrated beyond any doubt he's not reliable, and the yellow jacket in your soft drink.

1.  Trump resurrects Kissinger 
2.  Trump Torches ’Dictator’ Zelensky For Opposing Peace Push 
3.  Trump Gives an Update on Russia-Ukraine Peace Talk 
4.  Analyzing the Trump/Zelensky meeting

Let's try and get this right, just once, please. Zelenskyy is a dictator.   His government was corrupt and given everything that's happened there's every indication it still is.  There's no way of knowing how many millions of dollars Biden gave to him ended up in Ukrainian officials pockets because Joe wouldn't allow that money to be tracked. How insane is that?

As you go through these posts you will see a man who can twist himself into a pretzel with his proclamations, but it seems perfectly clear nothing he says can be trusted.   And the same absolutely goes for Putin.  

1.  Zelensky Says ‘Ready’ to Resign for the Sake of Peace, NATO Membership
2.  Zelensky Offers to Resign for Peace, but There's a Catch
3.   Zelensky surrenders to Trump and will sign rare earth mineral deal within hours.
4.  WSJ broke the story, full details here.
5.  Media Fears: Could Lose If He Holds Elections
6.  Zelensky Tantrum: Cancels Peace Talks Trip
7.  No, President Zelenskyy and the EU, you don’t dictate American foreign policy
8.  No, Zelensky is not Churchill
9.  Yes, Voldemort Zelenskyy Is a Dictator
10.  Marco Rubio Confirms Snakelike Behavior of Zelensky During Negotiations and Peace Talks
11.  What Zelensky Didn’t Get
    

Is peace possible? Not now it isn't, and no matter how much effort Trump puts into bringing it about, he can't make them want peace, and that's the key, neither party wants it, nor does Europe.

1. ‘Freezing’ Ukrainian Conflict Will Not Bring Peace Both Kyiv and Moscow say they are not interested in “freezing” the conflict in Russia’s war against Ukraine. Moscow insists that any accord must address the “root causes” of the conflict, and Kyiv........
2. Is ‘Peace’ a Dirty Word?
   
3. A Possible End to the War in Ukraine 
4. Is the Ukraine war everyone's war?
5. Why Ukraine Is Cautious
6. All the Ukrainian Known Knowns

Russia is in trouble, and Putin will tolerate no dissent.  He's jailed four Russian journalists who were supporters of political rival Navalny, who he had arrested and then murdered, and he's causing trouble everywhere, and the reason why more nations joined NATO, and is causing a lot of unrest with all of their neighbors.  Belarus is now openly supporting Putin, which is positioned on Ukraine's North West border allowing for attacks behind Ukrainian forces, and Turkey is walking an economic tightrope. 

1. Russia’s Double Game in Arctic is Cooperation in Name, but Confrontation in Practice 
2. Sweden’s SÄPO Reports that Russia is Evolving Sabotage Tactics
3. Ukrainian War Unsettles Russian Regions and Non-Russian Republics
4. Russia Uses Black Sea Ceasefire Talks to Regain Former Hegemony

This war has impacted Russia negatively at many levels.  Internally ethnic enclaves are spreading across Russia, in effect they're saying they're not Russian, and that's scaring Putin, but he has serious economic issues he can't resolve while continuing this war, and what Putin's seeing play out is the central Asian nations are now doing far more business with China than in the past, and that's going to grow.  

1. Global Trade War Does Not Diminish Pressure on Russia to End Its War
2. China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway Emerges as Competitor to Kazakhstan’s Rail Network

I thought this was an interesting piece by Jordan Schachtel, Washington's $300 billion dilemma, saying:

 

 What are the implications of stealing hundreds of billions of dollars from Russia? After the onset of Russia’s invasion into Ukraine, western powers responded with haste to impose a plethora of sanctions against Moscow, hoping to use the dollar as an economic weapon to strike back against the Kremlin’s kinetic activities in Ukraine.   Two years ago on this very day, the Biden Administration’s Treasury Department moved to freeze hundreds of billions of dollars in Russian assets that are held in the United States. The number held by the U.S. and European powers is estimated today to amount to $300 billion.

 

Interesting information, and I thought it worthwhile to highlight it, but it seems clear to me he's a Putin apologist, and Putin apologists just irritate me.

 

Conclusion?  It seems to me at some point Trump is going realize he's wasting his time, and say, I've had it.  No more money and no more negotiations.  Letting Europe, Zelenskyy, and Putin know, they're all on their own.

P&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump

By Rich Kozlovich  Tags: P&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump

I just watched a podcast that got a lot right, and a lot wrong. It was suggested Zelenskyy's snit at the White House was staged by Trump, and that was from someone I have a great deal of respect for, but it's still clearly irrational. It was staged by Zelenskyy. When they have these meetings with the reporters it’s like a stage play with everything largely scripted out. It was Zelenskyy who went off script, and did so at the behest of the Democrats and RINO's who he met with previously, somehow convincing him he could embarrass Trump in front of the nation and get things he wanted that were not agreed to.

Is this Russo/Ukraine War the real end to the cold war? For the most part, yes, since now everyone knows the Russian military bear is a Teddy Bear, and Europe no longer needs to fear being attacked. The number two military nation in the world couldn't beat the number 22 military nation in the world in three years, and now needs recruits from North Korea to man their army.

While this is the true end to the Cold War, Russia will still be playing the bad boy on the block as long as they still have a quasi-Soviet form of governance. A form of governance that’s almost genetic in Russians, just as is their irrational fear of being attacked, while historically based, it’s now irrational, except for China. There’s more to be seen there in the future, at least until both their economies collapse along with the EU.

Call their leader a President, Premiere, dictator, or Czar, it’s a tyrannous form of governance, and is foundational to their centuries long social paradigm.

There was a comparison made between Putin and Ukraine and Lyndon Johnson and Vietnam. But there was a difference. America entered that mess because they tried to please the most unpleasable people in Europe. The French! Their anti-Soviet fears were valid, Stalin really did want to conquer the rest of Europe, but their actions regarding Vietnam were foolish, and make no mistake, the French are the most unreliable ally the world has ever known, and it was they who cause the Vietnam War, and no matter the public demonstrations, there is absolutely no European nation that trusts the French, and there are centuries of history that justify that view.

The French conned us with rhetoric about giving a form of independence to the Vietnamese, which some very smart people who were rabid anti-communists bought into embracing preconceptual politics. France was a country that should have been labeled as a collaborator nation after WWII, which it was, and never given a seat at the UN. But America’s leaders allowed themselves to be bullied by De Gaulle, who threatened to join with the communists if they didn’t give him what he wanted. Support their recolonization of Indochina. And this was the beginning of the cold war, which enabled preconceived notions refusing to accept what was known in favor of their preconceptions. They ignored the things known, and made up the things unknown.

The real culprit was FDR, who finally acknowledged just before he died Stalin had broken every one one of the promises he made at Yalta, and there was more than enough intelligence to know that’s exactly what was going to happen, and yet Truman failed to deal with it at Potsdam. FDR created the Cold War, Truman ran with it, and the rest of the world was stuck with it. That’s the problem when you have too many “really smart people” who are in charge with massive egos, and little intelligence, just like Kissinger and Nixon. They have no concept about “the basics” and no use for them, and ideology makes smart people stupid.

As for their inability to recognize there could be no military victory in Vietnam simply because they couldn't get the people on their side isn't entirely true. There were those, including respected military men, who pointed that very thing out, and yet, they recommended more military intrusion. The reason? Preconceptualism.

Preconceived politics, preconceived journalism, preconceived science, all refusing to recognize anything that may refute their preconceived notions, leading to failure.  Whether it involves global warming, or geopolitics.   But, then again, everything is geopolitical at some point, and once again, this idea that Putin was claiming  Russia needed a buffer between Russia and the west because they were scared, is horsepucky.  Get real, this argument they were afraid they were going to be attacked is folly.  It was all about revanche, plain and simple, and it would appear that’s the geopolitical hill so many are willing to die on, which I find flabbergasting. 

He knew there was no physical threat to Russia by anyone. He knew NATO couldn’t beat its way out of a wet paper bag. He knew the Europeans would do nothing, and we know that was what he believed when he acknowledged Europe’s leaders would end up coming to Trump wagging their tails. He had their number, so all this “depth of defense” clabber is nonsense.

America had no intention of invading Russia, and any claim Putin couldn’t know that and had to plan for the worst, is also horsepucky. The Russians have spies in every institution in America, and they’re excellent at infiltration. Their intelligence services use all the tools possible, and that includes electronic tools.

I’ve said this in the past and I’m going to restate it. I worked in intelligence when I was in the service, and every action being planned leaves trails. Trails that once picked up on are tracked, and there were absolutely no trails indicating America was going to attack Russia, and Putin knew it. How do I know that? Simply, no one in Russia is claiming any evidence of an attack in planning, which would have justified Putin's aggression, something he's desperately sought.

They knew America didn’t plan to invade, didn’t want to invade, and wasn’t going to invade, and merely wanted Russia to stop acting like the international bully they are. As for the argument Trump wants Putin to continue in power, since as a defeated Russian leader, he's weak and can be negotiated with, well, that may not matter.  Putin failed, Russia is suffering economically, and who knows how many hundreds of thousands of young mens lives have been wasted in this war.   He’s already showing signs he’s scared, and his goal now is to survive, so he desperately needs this war to end.  

There's already resistance in his government and even protests in Siberia.  Russian leaders who fail are discarded, and he’ll be replaced with someone who was against the war in the first place and who will see the big time advantage of having America on his side. Besides, the Chinese are going to be a problem for Russia down the road, and I don’t care what kind of big public agreements and statements they’re making now.

On February 20th Victoria White Berger published this piece, Oh, horrors! Trump pursues peace and tells the truth about Zelenskyy saying:

Zelenskyy is furious that America, whose taxpayers have financed “his” war, did not yet include him in the first diplomatic efforts with Russia. But this is not all about Zelenskyy, fortunately. It most absolutely stands to reason that the peace talks, from the perspective of any historically successful diplomacy, must begin with the most powerful participant: Russia. This is Diplomacy 101. 

Well, Zelenskyy is out, and so too are the European nations.  They have nothing to offer, and their eternal bickering is counterproductive.  But now they're scrambling to appear consequential promising to come up with their own plan, spending more money on Ukraine, sending more equipment and even saying they're going to put boots on the ground. It's all CO2. If they believed saving Ukraine was so important, they should have done that three years ago when it would have meant something.

This is Putin’s war, and his excuses for starting it are pathetic, as I've already shown. And none of this could have happened if it wasn’t for Joe Biden stealing the election via massive voter fraud because he gave Putin carte blanche for supplying energy to Europe when he shut down all the drilling, and even started buy oil from Venezuela. That funded Putin’s war.

However, that wouldn’t have been a problem if Europe’s leaders hadn’t gone insane, aka, green, buying into the global warming lies. They’re either stupid or crazy.

If the Ukrainian government hadn’t been one of, if not the most corrupt governments in Europe, they could have easily provided for adequate defenses to thwart any Russian invasion. And if there are all these wealth building natural resources there, as is being reported, why didn’t they develop them before and become a very wealthy nation, capable of buying or building a huge defense capability that would have thwarted any invasion?

Russia has been at it since 2014 they had to know it was coming, and Putin would have known those defensive capabilities were in place, and as a result, this would have never happened. But you can’t corruptly line your pockets and meet the needs of the nation at the same time, and it seems perfectly clear that’s what has been happening all these years.

From the beginning my view is this is Europe’s problem, let them fix it or not, if they don’t it’s on them. If they do, it’s still on them, we have no skin in this game. If you’re a moral person you must feel compassion for the people of Ukraine, the same people who suffered the death of millions at Stalin’s hands, but if you’re a rational person, you must realize this isn’t our fault, and Ukraine is lost, Russia is in trouble, Europe isn't a nation it's a continent filled with conflicted nations, all of whom behind closed doors admit this war is lost, and needs to end, and the only one who can do that is Donald Trump, and he will not allow Zelenskyy, his corrupt government, or the stupid leaders of Europe to interfere, or he'll just walk away and let them play this mess out for as long as they like. We're going to take our marbles and go home.

One more thing. As a result of Trump’s views that the Russo/Ukrainian War isn’t our problem nor is it our responsibility, that it’s Europe’s problem and they can fix it or not, and we don’t care what they do, what they say or think because they don’t count, it seems clear to me he’s been reading my articles in P&D. Waddayathink?

This Game Has a New Dealer

By Rich Kozlovich  Tags: P&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump, My Russo/Ukrainian War Series, Putin,

 

Trump has been negotiating with Putin to bring this Russo/Ukrainian War to an end, and he's calling it, “Zelenskyy’s war”.  That's just nuts, this is Putin’s war, and his excuses for starting it are pathetic. And none of this could have happened if it wasn’t for Joe Biden stealing the election via massive voter fraud, which I happily substantiate with My Voter Fraud Commentaries.  As a result of his insane energy policies shutting down production, even buying oil from Venezuela, that gave Putin carte blanche to supply energy to Europe.  That funded Putin’s war.  

However, that wouldn’t have been a problem if Europe’s leaders hadn’t gone insane, aka, green, and bought into the Net Zero global warming lies leaving them vulnerable to Russian energy supplies.   They’re either stupid, crazy..... or .... I opt for both.

If the Ukrainian government hadn’t been one of, if not the most corrupt government in Europe, they could have easily provided for adequate defenses to thwart any Russian invasion. And if there are all these wealth building natural resources there, as is being reported, why didn’t they develop them long before this and become a very wealthy nation?  A nation capable of buying or building a huge defensive capacity that would have thwarted any invasion.

Russia has been at this since 2014 they had to know it was coming, and Putin would have known those defensive capabilities were in place, and this would have never happened. But you can’t corruptly line your pockets and meet the needs of the nation at the same time, and it seems perfectly clear that’s what has been happening all these years.

From the beginning my view is this is Europe’s problem, let them fix it or not, if they don’t it’s on them. If they do, it’s still on them, we have no skin in this game. If you’re a moral person you must feel compassion for the people of Ukraine, the same people who suffered the death of millions at Stalin’s hands, but if you’re a rational person, you must realize Ukraine isn't our fault, nor is it our responsibility!  All this talk about Europe sending troops there …. well …. it’s too late now.

As for all these demands by Europe that America keep sending untraceable billions and even putting boots on the ground, well, that just ain’t gonna happen.

Ukraine is lost, no matter what deal is struck.  Bretton Woods is over, we don’t have the money, and a great many of us don’t have the desire, to bail them out, nor care what happens to Europe.  It's time for America to cut the umbilical cord for Europe's defense, and I don't care how hysterical they get over the positions taken by Vice President Vance and Secretary of Defense Hegseth.   They no longer have a say, they're incapable of coming to the table with any worthwhile solutions.

On Monday French President Emmanuel Macron hosted an emergency summit of selected continental leaders, which generated abundant kvetching but little more.   Ukraine and its European advocates warn of a new Dark Age if the U.S. makes peace with Russia, as President Donald Trump is trying to do. Even worse, NATO members fear the loss of their heretofore presumed birthright to defense by America. Governments which have repeatedly claimed that Kiev’s defeat would invite a reformed Red Army to march to the Atlantic are preparing new excuses for failing to spend more on defense. The spectacle resembles a theatrical farce.

For decades they’ve arrogantly and stupidly looked down their noses at the nation that spent untold gallons of blood and trillions of dollars to save them during two world wars and one cold war. A continent that would crash economically overnight if we ended all trade with them. And these snots think they have a right to tell us what’s acceptable?   

 

Zelensky’s says he won't accept any deal in which he's not a party to ...... says the man who ended elections in Ukraine in order to stay in power..... well....okay with me.... you're on your own.  But he faces a disgruntled population that's fleeing Ukraine, and a military force that badly depleted and can't be replaced, inadequate arms, much of which has ended up on the black market, he has no resources he can use and his infrastructure is largely destroyed.  Well.... good luck with that.   

 

Let's also understand this whole thing:

1. There are no good guys in this mess.
2. Both Zelenskyy and Putin are corrupt beyond belief tyrants.
   
3. Putin is most assuredly a murderous thug and if he's ever kicked out, he's dead, and he knows it. 
4. Europe is a spent force that has embraced every insanity there is that’s destroying their nations, their culture, and their economy, and it won’t be long before the EU collapses and it’s a toss up which will go belly up first, France, Italy, or Greece.   Europe is doomed, and I don’t care, since their doom is coming about the “old fashioned way, they earned it”. 
5. As for Russia and China, when the EU crashes, they’ll be following right behind them. 
6. Trump knows no matter what happens, Russia loses, China loses, Ukraine loses, Europe  loses.....and we win.  

We don't need them, they need us. 

• Update, 2/21,1:22PM:   This article The Trump Strategy for Ukraine by Jacob Fraden enumerates just how bad Zelenskyy really is, and substantiates all I've said. RK

 

Let's Try and Get This Right, Just Once, Please! The Russo/Ukrainian War is All Putin's Fault!

By Rich Kozlovich Tags: P&D Geopolitics Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, and Donald Trump

 

I've taken the position this war was created by Europe, let Europe fix it or not, but I really am sick of this clabber about how the west forced Putin to attack. That's simply nonsense, he's been pulling this crap for decades on his neighbors.

One writer claimed Putin was forced to attack because feared the loss of Ukraine to the West. How could Russia lose Ukraine? Russia didn't own Ukraine, so how could they lose it?  Ukraine wanted to be part of the E.U. and join NATO, and any clabber about Russia being afraid of NATO is strictly propaganda to justify his aggression in these former Soviet states.

Russia Was Scared, So They Had to Attack Ukraine! Part I
Russia Was Scared So They Had to Attack Ukraine, Part II

 It's called revanche, the desire to require lost territory. Everything else is horsepucky!!!!!

This Russo/Ukrainian War is About Revanche, not World Conquest

So many writers will post some good stuff over this conflict, and what needs to be done, and then ruin everything by coming back and blaming the wrong people for this mess. One writer nonsensically claimed:

 "There has been enough recklessness in our relations with Russia over the past decade, starting with the Maidan coup that was engineered by Victoria Nuland."   

The Maidan coup was engineered by Victoria Nuland?  What nonsense, while it's true the US supported this effort for freedom by Ukrainians, this is all ....every bit of it.... on Putin!!  

 Ukraine Isn't Our Fault, Nor is it Our Responsibility!

Let's stop this clabber how the west forced his aggression on Ukraine.  The Maidan revolution was triggered by the government's abandon of the Ukraine constitution by then President Yanukovych, who years earlier the Russians tired to assassinate by poisoning him with dioxin, and they were sick of the corruption, the abuse of power, the impact of Ukrainian oligarchs on their economy, police abuse of power, all of which entailed human rights violations, all of which were extended through the revolution. 

Ultimately what did Russia do as a result of this effort in freedom?  Putin invaded Ukraine and annexed Crimea.  Putin's rules.  Stay obedient or I will invade.  Don't do anything that may diminish Russian influence, or I will invade.

It's the Balkans Again!
P&D Geopolitical Edition: Russo/Ukrainian War, Strategy
Economics and the Russo/Ukrainian War
Decisions Clouded by the Fog of Misdirection, Misinformation and Ideology
P&D Today

This entire mess is all on him. If you really want to extend the blame to stupid Europeans who embraced green energy insanity, or Biden for destroying American energy independence, all of which put the Europeans at the Russian's mercy causing a rise in energy costs and ultimately funded Putin's invasion, then I will give you that. Otherwise.....this is all on Putin, period. 

 

P&D Geopolitics Edition

The Israel/Hamas/Hezbollah/Iran War, the Russo/Ukraine War, and More

By Rich Kozlovich

For years I've been busy explaining to the world what they're doing wrong, and they just refuse listen to the bugman. Imagine that!   Let's start with:

 

The Israel/Hamas/Hezbollah/Iran War.

 

The reality of Islam is unending conflict, within and outside of Islam.  The current open war with Israel is an example.  Iranians are Shiite Muslims as are Hezbollah and Hamas are Sunni Muslims, and they hate each other.  Which is why some claim that explains why no one came to Hamas' support at the initial onslaught of this war, which seems clear they expected.  Who knows, but Muslims operate on a different set of values than the rest of the world, including their dealings with each other.  

 

When others stab their friends in the back, they know that's what they're doing, no matter what excuses and justifications they may offer.  When Muslims stab others in the back, they recognize no moral ambiguity, as in some way they'll claim what their doing is based on the Koran, and they're gaining merit with Allah. 

Israel is now more united behind Netanyahu, but given Israel's political and social structure that can change overnight, but it's clear Israel is fighting on seven fronts.  That's a war of survival, and Israel will have to destroy these groups, and at some point attack Iran, and make clear any nation that harbors and abets these monsters are at war with Israel, and may be attacked.  I find it interesting the media, the Democrats, all leftists, and Iran condemn Israel as "terrorists" for using exploding pagers to take out a lot of terrorists, but these are the same people who danced at the vile disgusting crimes Hamas committed against innocent Israeli civilians, as Daniel Greenfield notes: Rape is Resistance and Beepers are Genocide. 

 

All of a sudden they're decrying the "breakdown of international law", which never seemed to bother them when all these terrorists rained down missiles on Israeli civilians, which actually has gone on for decades. 

 

It doesn't seem to bother them that Iran has declared a war against Israel but they've declared war without officially declaring war, and the UN, that "vile wretched hive of scum and villainy", says nothing about it, making it clear they want Israel destroyed and are now demanding Jews must leave Jerusalem.   Since there's no appeasing them, other than committing suicide, Israel will now openly ignore them, and rightly so, attacking all their adversaries on all fronts, with no holds barred.

 

"U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the Security Council Wednesday. "An all-out war must be avoided at all costs. It would surely be an all-out catastrophe."    Okay, and that catastrophe will be for whom?   It's clear these cease fire nitwits know the catastrophe will be for the terrorist movements and Iran.  And that's bad why?

 

Israel has picked up the gauntlet, but they're not going to duel on their adversaries terms, but on their terms, and that will be with the understanding there can be no peace with Islam....ever.  Any Abraham Accord style agreements that may come into being if Trump is elected are mere respites, and Israel should embrace them, all the while undermining any adversaries, and preparing for the next assault.

 

Israel must become less dependent on the US since one of the political parties is an antisemitic ogre. This is a forever war, and it's high time that was emphasized, and state clearly Israel is not the real target. Western civilization is the target, Israel is the canary in the coal mine.  Muslims have been murdering innocent people for almost 1500 years, and it's time we stopped excusing them.

Western Europe is lost.  In Lyon the Muslim population is 30% and now the French are so afraid to offend them they're bending to Sharia law and rules.  Israel is where America has skin in the game, not Europe.  It's my hope if Trump is elected he will stop funding the UN, and that's long over due.  

 

At this point there are only three European nations immune to a Muslim conversion.  Poland, Hungary, and Russia.  Three traditional historical enemies who may have to converge in order to survive the conversion of the rest of Europe.Think about that.  Poland may save Europe again.

 

But Europe is a spent force, and can only survive as Europeans if they abandon the UN, seriously restructure the EU, declare the WEF a criminal organization, and that Islam isn't a religion but a criminal political movement masquerading as a religion, and have mass deportations, and if necessary, revoking citizenship of Muslims.  In short, they will have to do what Spain did after the Reconquista.  That's history, and that history is incontestable.

 

History is everything as the patterns of life play out over and over again, and I've often wondered if any of these highly educated nitwits in leadership roles ever read a history book. As for those who have, like Henry Kissinger, the Tallyrand of the 20th century, did they care?  "Ideology makes smart people stupid."

 

Let's Review the Russo/Ukrainian War. 

 

I read a lot of clabber about the Russo/Ukraine War, and often times I see insane claims Putin didn't have a choice, it was the fault of America, Ukraine, Europe, and it never seems to end the number of people they point their fingers at in order to justify Putin's aggression. 

Let's try and get this right, no matter how many side bars are presented, this falls on Putin!  He chose to attack.  Having said that, while having compassion for the Ukrainian people, I don't care what happens to Ukraine as a nation.

This is a failure of Biden and his energy policies that funded this invasion, the stupidity of European leaders and their energy policies, and the stunning corruption of Ukrainian leadership who failed to proper fund arming themselves instead of funding their own bank accounts.  But it was Putin who chose to make this a shooting war. 

Ukraine's government was and is corrupt, and perhaps if they were allowed to have the election Zelenskyy prevented things might be different. Who knows, but either way, none of this is our fault, nor is it our responsibility.

We're throwing away billions on Ukraine, none of which the Biden administration tracked, nor would they allow it to be tracked, in order to support Europe.  All of which is wasted money as Europe is a doomed spent force, and we no longer have skin in that game, and yet they're quibbling over millions for Israel where we really do have skin in that game. There's where the real enemy of western civilization is in play.

Will Putin use nukes? I put this in a 60/40 "no" category as he has a lot of dissent behind the scenes, and I'm still convinced there's a von Stauffenberg contingent in his military. If he attempts to use nukes, he could be out, and survival is his primary goal now, but he still can't let loose of this insane war HE started. When Caesar fails or appears weak, he's not Caesar much longer.

However, if he does use nukes will there be a European nuclear response? I'm 100 % convinced the answer is no. Does anyone really believe Europe is willing to sacrifice Warsaw, Berlin, Paris, and London in a nuclear exchange over Ukraine?

How will this end? I've been convinced Ukraine can't win simply because they don't have enough boots on the ground. Many have fled, and many resent Zelenskyy and his coterie. But Putin's coterie is so blatantly incompetent this has gone on shockingly long, and what we're seeing is the break out for the wars of the future.  Drones and lasers. 

Putin and Zelenskyy should both hope Trump is elected, as I think he will find a way to resolve this, with no one being happy, which should be the goal. 

Long term consequences? 

Russia is toast as a world shaker.   They can't even manufacture the military hardware they need as they're buying military hardware from Iran and N. Korea.  The EU will collapse, Russia and China will go broke, and the world will be facing what historians call a historical end cycle, which always involved massive economic downturns and violence before a new cycle begins.

Based on history, I'm not optimistic.

Definition Leads to Clarity

Let's take a minute to review terms that are thrown around that actually end up confusing the world about who and what these politicos are, and why they make the decisions that make. 

Left, right, conservatives, liberals, and socialists, all are being used a lot to define characters around the world, and that's especially true of Europe after the recent elections, which has "the left" fearing "the right" is taking over.  Well, that's not exactly the way things are. 

When talking about classical liberals it should be realized they no longer exist, and in fact, Republicans come closest.

Leftists in the late 19th and early 20th century didn't dare call themselves socialists in America because socialism is foundationally atheistic, and that didn't play well in America. So, they called themselves progressives, then liberals, then back to progressives. But now they so deeply entrenched in America's institutions, they're boldly calling themselves socialists, and that justifies their antisemitism, violence, lies, corruption, and what can hardly be called anything less than treason. 

 

Having said all that, it's important to understand conservatism is cultural and the differences in different cultures. Currently, our concern is understanding what it means in America, so we can understand what it means in Europe. Their newly embraced "rightist" views isn't conservatism as we know it, but, is in my opinion a mixed bag of mild socialism and nationalism. They remind me of libertarians. No one knows what they really believe, including libertarians.

Truth be told, the only political party in America that knows what it believes are the Democrats. They know they hate America, Americans, capitalism, and the Constitution.  Which explains why they support terrorists, criminals, illegal migration, high taxes, burdensome regulations, and the murder of the innocent unborn. 

That's the world as I see it, and it ain't pretty.