As a soldier, I can tell you exactly what Putin has just done: He is preparing his country -- and the rest of the world for that matter -- that Russia is gearing up for war. I had to prepare my company when it was time for us to be deployed, and this is exactly what it looked like.
This is a long time coming, and military and foreign policy experts are debating not if, but when this will happen.
Why is Putin doing this? Well, because he can. He already invaded and illegally annexed Crimea with zero pushback from the international community!
I know people will say, "Richard, how can you say 'zero pushback'? That was all anyone could talk about for weeks when it happened, sanctions were levied, and Russia was kicked out of the G8!"
Well, I'm going to tell it like it is: All of those things were a weak, very measured response that Putin took as a green light to move forward with his ultimate agenda, which is to rebuild the "great" Soviet Empire.
Since Vladimir Putin is a dictator, he doesn't need anyone's permission to go to war, but he does need his country's support. So what he's doing, in that press conference and elsewhere, is painting a picture for the Russian people showing Russia and himself as blameless victims, and NATO, led by the United States, as the big bully aggressor.
Ultimately, we all know that is BS, but the Russian people have been brainwashed by Putin for years now, and they believe anything he says, even if it's just out of fear. Putin might just be the most evil person on the planet because he yields so much power and only uses it for destruction. The Russian economy is shambles, they have no major exports outside of weapons, planes, oil, and vodka. (Those are not my words, they are Putin's!)
Putin's remarks were also directly aimed at President Biden. He is sending a message and President Biden will respond, and I guarantee you, Putin will not like his response.
Putin wants to weaken NATO, so we must strengthen it. How do we do that? We use diplomacy, we sign more treaties with more countries. We expand NATO to include Ukraine.
That kind of bold leadership will show Putin that the days of him terrorizing the world are over.
President Biden needs to continue to let the Russian people know that they are failing to thrive only because their leader chooses war at every chance rather than embrace the rest of the world.
Enough with Russia's old outdated way of thinking and acting! Ukraine is an independent sovereign country. Russia needs to respect that, and if they don't, there will be serious consequences.
But -- and this is very important -- the consequences don't have to be military in nature. I am not talking about drobbing bombs in Moscow. The only person in this conflict who likes to drop bombs and kill innocent civilians is Vladimir Putin.
The consequences America dishes out will come in the form of economic sanctions that will, sadly, cause great hardships for the Russian people. But it is Putin who leaves us with no other choice.
Ultimately, it is the Russian people that need to stand up and scream with one loud, unified voice: "No more war, we want peace! No more invading foreign countries, and no more proxy wars in the Middle East."
I truly hope they do.
Sappers clear the way, Airborne all the way!
--Richard
