These are miscalculations, not signs of madness. They’re the kind of miscalculations you make if you are very divorced from reality, because you lead the life of a czar, in vast — if hideous — palaces, surrounded by people who are terrified of you and tell you what they think you want to hear. If I put myself in Putin’s position, I don’t think he’s trying to resurrect the Soviet Union. He’s looking back even further and trying to bring back the Russian Empire, with himself as “Czar Vladimir.”<\/p>\n
It’s an ideology of conservative, orthodox nationalism that Putin offers, that has nothing to do with the Soviet legacy. A lot of people get this wrong.<\/p>\n
He has a huge incentive to speed up the defeat of Ukraine, using more brutal methods if that’s what it takes. Because if he doesn’t win, then I think his position at home will become very vulnerable.<\/p>\n
If I’m him, the crucial thing now is to achieve victory over Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian army as fast as possible so that we can get to some peace negotiation from a position of strength. In that negotiation, Putin might be willing to make some concessions to get the sanctions reduced or removed.<\/p>\n
Read it all<\/a>.<\/p>\n #China<\/a> has ambitions in Central and East Asia that pose a potential threat to #Russia<\/a>, notes historian Niall Ferguson. "At some point their relationship begins to fray because, in truth, neither side really trusts the other."https:\/\/t.co\/dDfabxZvO8<\/a><\/p>\n — Nikkei Asia (@NikkeiAsia) March 14, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \n