JMA and Outlaw,

Your dialogue and prescriptions for the Ukraine-Russia issue presupposes that Russia (and confronting it) is a major policy issue. But it's not - and part of that is that many on the Hill believe Russia is not a 'great power' any longer and therefore not worth confronting. But it's that attitude which has generated tension in the first place since Washington has been thoroughly dismissive of addressing what Russia would consider it's vital interests.

Quote Originally Posted by Kaur
Now the country is splitting between those lines. Who is responsible?
In Ukraine we witnessed the limits of soft power. Washington poured billions of dollars and many years into developing a 'democratic' opposition and into muscling them onto the political scene. The February Agreement was an agreed upon political transition to ensure stability - but it collapsed under the weight of political opportunism. That prompted the Russian response since the flight of Yanukoyvch created a desperate situation in which Moscow lost all political influence on the Kiev government. Now with a territorial dispute in Crimea, unrest in eastern Ukraine (artificial or not), and the economic weapon, Moscow has reasserted its leverage. There is no such as a 'clean break' in this scenario. Either the West continues confronting Moscow on Ukrainian issues or some kind of accommodation is which which also satisfies Russian interests.