Originally Posted by
AmericanPride
The U.S. is not at war with Russia - so far, so good. Now how's your "no negotiations" position working out for the Ukrainians? And since you seem to think that the closer someone is to the conflict, the better they understand it - you might have missed that the Ukrainian president himself has participated in negotiations. So it seems to be that the credibility of argument is... well, nil.
Yes - because, as stated repeatedly, the U.S. does not have the coercive means to reverse Russia's gains in Ukraine. The implication is that any Russian reversal will be voluntary; ergo, by negotiation. You still haven't described for anyone how sanctions will be effective in reversing Russia's achievements to date. Please elaborate.
It's always been Russian policy to protest NATO encroachment on their borders; i.e. to protest that there is no strategic space between Russia and the West. Russia's nuclear strategy does not change this calculus since there are a range of conflicts between peace and nuclear war (as evidenced by Ukraine).
If no geographic buffer exists to create strategic space, transitioning to a position of nuclear first strike makes perfect sense. The lack of space means a contraction of time, which increases the value of a first strike. But since you insist that the Russians are in an "altered state of reality", I don't expect you to understand their strategic perceptions.