Maybe you have a point, but context is important. Afghanistan is a foreign land of savages, worth little. Eastern Ukraine is primarily populated with Russians. To many Russians, eastern Ukraine is Russia.
The Soviet-Afghan War lasted from 1979 to 1989. From 79 to 89, the Soviet Union was led by Brezhnev, Andropov, Chernenko, and Gorbachev. In intelligence, resolve, and planning, none of these men compare to Putin. As the 80s were coming to a close, the USSR was imploding. Different place, different time, different people in charge.
I'm certainly no mind reader, but seems to me that Putin demonstrated how far he is willing to go to keep Russia intact in Chechnya, particularly Grozny. Much like Afghanistan, Chechnya looked unwinnable under Yeltzin. But Putin made short work of it.
Regardless, tanks are massing and have been painted with invasion stripes to distinguish Russian hardware from Ukrainian, as the Soviets did before the invasion of Czechoslovakia in the 60s, so it really looks like it's going to happen. I don't know what will happen, or how it will play out, but I bet Putin does and has planned for all of it.
Syria? I think you're overstating it a bit. Bashar al-Assad is still in power and holds most of the populated areas. The Qatar pipeline is still not happening. Nord Stream 2 is almost finished, so the Qatar pipeline looks less likely every day that passes.
Different place, different time, different people in charge (on one side). Putin certainly seemed to learn not to provoke Trump. But Biden is no Trump. And Syria is not Ukraine.
New presidents get tested by adversaries. Biden is being tested. We'll see.
Maybe you have a point, but context is important. Afghanistan is a foreign land of savages, worth little. Eastern Ukraine is primarily populated with Russians. To many Russians, eastern Ukraine is Russia.
The Soviet-Afghan War lasted from 1979 to 1989. From 79 to 89, the Soviet Union was led by Brezhnev, Andropov, Chernenko, and Gorbachev. In intelligence, resolve, and planning, none of these men compare to Putin. As the 80s were coming to a close, the USSR was imploding. Different place, different time, different people in charge.
I'm certainly no mind reader, but seems to me that Putin demonstrated how far he is willing to go to keep Russia intact in Chechnya, particularly Grozny. Much like Afghanistan, Chechnya looked unwinnable under Yeltzin. But Putin made short work of it.
Regardless, tanks are massing and have been painted with invasion stripes to distinguish Russian hardware from Ukrainian, as the Soviets did before the invasion of Czechoslovakia in the 60s, so it really looks like it's going to happen. I don't know what will happen, or how it will play out, but I bet Putin does and has planned for all of it.
From the Pede comments to historical links, I learn so f'in much on this site.
Putin got punched in the face in his most recent proxy war so maybe he'll be a bit more wary.
Syria? I think you're overstating it a bit. Bashar al-Assad is still in power and holds most of the populated areas. The Qatar pipeline is still not happening. Nord Stream 2 is almost finished, so the Qatar pipeline looks less likely every day that passes.
Different place, different time, different people in charge (on one side). Putin certainly seemed to learn not to provoke Trump. But Biden is no Trump. And Syria is not Ukraine.
New presidents get tested by adversaries. Biden is being tested. We'll see.
Not Syria. They lost against Turkey