There is a "referendum" underway in Crimea today, in which voters are asked whether (1) they want to leave Ukraine and unite with Russia, or (2) they prefer to gain autonomy for Crimea alone while reducing ties with Ukraine. There is no choice to maintain the current level of ties with Ukraine. No matter which alternative wins, the Crimean voters will "choose" to reduce ties with Kiev and to line up with Moscow. As if this travesty were not bad enough, there are pictures on the internet which document the fact that many of the ballots to be used in the "referendum" today are already marked for the option in which Crimea joins Russia. Voters may "vote", but the choice has already been made for them.
So we have a sham election being carried out under the guns of Russian troops who have occupied Crimea. The outcome is already known even though the votes have yet to be counted. Russia is simply holding a rigged vote to justify its annexation of Crimea.
This is the sort of behavior that Europe has not seen since the aftermath of World War II. Even during the Cold War, borders of states were not changed. Sure, we saw a country like Yugoslavia fall apart, but it broke into its six constituent republics (like America's states). The borders did not change. When the Soviet Union collapsed, the same thing happened; each of the republics that formed the USSR became a separate nation. By bringing back the movement of borders, Putin and the Russians are opening a can of worms that bedeviled Europe for centuries and led to millions of deaths in battles.
To make things worse, Russia is doing all this despite its treaty obligations to respect and defend the territorial integrity of Ukraine. That agreement was signed in the early 1990s by Ukraine, Russia, the UK and the USA. What the Russians are doing is a clear violation of their treaty obligations.
This situation needs a clear American response. Our allies in Europe are waffling on how to respond. On the one hand, they are horrified to see the old Russia, the Russia that controlled the USSR return to the world stage. The idea of a "civilized" and "unified" Europe that gained such currency after the fall of the USSR has been shown to be a false one. On the other hand, the Europeans have small armed forces that they do not want to enlarge; valuable business ties to Russia that they also do not want to lose; and a strong dependence on the oil and natural gas that Russia sells to them. For the most part, this situation immobilizes the Europeans. There is no country other than America that can act in this situation. We have none of the problems that stop the Europeans from acting. We need a clear headed view of the issue and a resolute and intelligent response.
Here's what we are getting: the national security team met last night at the White House to consider America's response to the "referendum". Secretary Kerry has already said that there will be consequences for the action, but the threat was a vague one lacking any details of our response. Kerry was at the meeting as was Secretary of Defense Hagel, the National Security Advisor and representatives of the Joint Chiefs and intelligence agencies. But here's the key: president Obama did not bother to attend. That's right, there is a crisis in Europe that threatens the stability of that continent that took us three times to global conflicts both hot and cold during the last century. Obama, however, was too busy with other items to get involved himself.
The single most important duty of any president is to keep America safe. Sadly, Obama could not be bothered to get involved. He really is a terrible president.
So we have a sham election being carried out under the guns of Russian troops who have occupied Crimea. The outcome is already known even though the votes have yet to be counted. Russia is simply holding a rigged vote to justify its annexation of Crimea.
This is the sort of behavior that Europe has not seen since the aftermath of World War II. Even during the Cold War, borders of states were not changed. Sure, we saw a country like Yugoslavia fall apart, but it broke into its six constituent republics (like America's states). The borders did not change. When the Soviet Union collapsed, the same thing happened; each of the republics that formed the USSR became a separate nation. By bringing back the movement of borders, Putin and the Russians are opening a can of worms that bedeviled Europe for centuries and led to millions of deaths in battles.
To make things worse, Russia is doing all this despite its treaty obligations to respect and defend the territorial integrity of Ukraine. That agreement was signed in the early 1990s by Ukraine, Russia, the UK and the USA. What the Russians are doing is a clear violation of their treaty obligations.
This situation needs a clear American response. Our allies in Europe are waffling on how to respond. On the one hand, they are horrified to see the old Russia, the Russia that controlled the USSR return to the world stage. The idea of a "civilized" and "unified" Europe that gained such currency after the fall of the USSR has been shown to be a false one. On the other hand, the Europeans have small armed forces that they do not want to enlarge; valuable business ties to Russia that they also do not want to lose; and a strong dependence on the oil and natural gas that Russia sells to them. For the most part, this situation immobilizes the Europeans. There is no country other than America that can act in this situation. We have none of the problems that stop the Europeans from acting. We need a clear headed view of the issue and a resolute and intelligent response.
Here's what we are getting: the national security team met last night at the White House to consider America's response to the "referendum". Secretary Kerry has already said that there will be consequences for the action, but the threat was a vague one lacking any details of our response. Kerry was at the meeting as was Secretary of Defense Hagel, the National Security Advisor and representatives of the Joint Chiefs and intelligence agencies. But here's the key: president Obama did not bother to attend. That's right, there is a crisis in Europe that threatens the stability of that continent that took us three times to global conflicts both hot and cold during the last century. Obama, however, was too busy with other items to get involved himself.
The single most important duty of any president is to keep America safe. Sadly, Obama could not be bothered to get involved. He really is a terrible president.
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