Putin Won

13 comments

1. Franklin Foer: “Over the past 25 years, the world has bent to the vision of one man. In the course of a generation, he not only short-circuited the transition to democracy in his own country, and in neighboring countries, but set in motion a chain of events that has shattered the transatlantic order that prevailed after World War II. In the global turn against democracy, he has played, at times, the role of figurehead, impish provocateur, and field marshal. We are living in the Age of Vladimir Putin. [https://theatln.tc/EEbsmqfH](https://theatln.tc/EEbsmqfH) 

   “Perhaps, that fact helps explain why Donald Trump’s recent excoriation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office felt so profound. The moment encapsulated Putin’s ultimate victory, when the greatest impediment to the realization of the Russian president’s vision, the United States, became his most powerful ally. But Trump’s slavish devotion to the Russian leader—his willingness to help Putin achieve his maximalist goals—is merely the capstone of an era.

   “Nothing was preordained about Putin’s triumph. Twenty years ago, in fact, his regime looked like it might not survive … Preserving his power, both at home and abroad, necessitated a new set of more aggressive tactics. 

   “… Putin’s objectives were always clear: He craved less hostile leaders in the West, people who would work to dismantle NATO and the European Union from within. Above all, he hoped to discredit democracy as a governing system, so that it no longer held allure for his own citizens. … One of Putin’s core objectives was the protection of his own personal fortune, built on kickbacks and money quietly skimmed from public accounts. Protecting this ill-gotten money, and that of his inner circle, relies on secrecy, misdirection, and theft, all values anathema to democracy.

   “… As Putin has sought to impose his vision on the world, Ukraine has been the territory he most covets, but also the site of the fiercest resistance to him—a country that waged revolution to oust his cronies and that has resisted his military onslaught … Just three years ago, as European and American publics draped themselves in Ukrainian flags, Putin’s Russia seemed consigned to international isolation and ignominy. For succor and solidarity, Putin was forced to turn to North Korea and Iran, an axis of geopolitical outcasts. But Trump is bent on reintegrating Putin into the family of nations. 

   “… The Russian leader’s rise wasn’t uninterrupted, but the ledger is filled with his victories, beginning with Brexit, an event he deeply desired and worked to make happen. That was a mere omen. His populist allies in France and Germany now constitute the most powerful opposition blocs in those countries. Within the European Union, he can count on Viktor Orbán to stymie Brussels when it is poised to act against Russian interests. Meanwhile, the European Union’s foreign-policy chief claims that the ‘free world needs a new leader,’ and former heads of NATO worry for the organization’s very survival.

   “Putin is winning, because he’s cunningly exploited the advantages of autocracy. His near-total control of his own polity allows him to absorb the economic pain of sanctions, until the West loses interest in them. His lack of moral compunction allowed him to sacrifice bodies on the battlefield, without any pang of remorse, an advantage of expendable corpses that Ukraine can never match. Confident in the permanence of his power, he has patiently waited out his democratic foes, correctly betting that their easily distracted public would lose interest in fighting proxy wars against him.”

   Read more: [https://theatln.tc/EEbsmqfH](https://theatln.tc/EEbsmqfH) 

2. It’s mind blowing that a country with an economy of the size of Italy can have such big effect on the West.

   Putin turned against the West around 2010, and the far-right parties started to gain strength in Europe exactly since that time. And accidentally they are all pro-Russian. We can just hope they can be stopped.

   The USA was a harder challenge, but 14 years, and the grand work is finished there.

3. Bad piece from The Atlantic.

4. That is quite a stretch to say he “won”. Russia is balls deep in a war it can’t win with half a million casualties and near the entire Soviet stockpile decimated. The Russian economy is struggling and future outlook is terrible. All of Russia’s European neighbors are now hostile (besides Belarus and sort of Hungary I guess) and NATO has more members than ever before. Europe is increasing their military budget and is even talking about forming a unified army. Ukraine went from a potential neutral buffer state to furious enemy due to Putin’s actions. Even if the US was to permanently cut off aid (unlikely) Ukraine has its own ability to produce drones that are now dominant on the battlefield. It’s existing weapons stocks paired with external donations mean Ukraine will handle itself just fine for the next year.

   Meanwhile Putin is old and just like Trump when he dies his replacement will not have the same cult of personality. Post Putin Russia might have a lot of turbulence to work through. 

   Speaking of Trump, because that’s what everyone is thinking, he flip flops on every single issue almost daily. What he says is irrelevant, what matters is what he does. His actual actions do point to a more neutral outlook which, admittedly frustrates me to no end. But he’s far from a Russian puppet. His presidential powers are also limited and have been stopped by the Supreme Court and Congress several times. In the US public opinion on Ukraine is divided but actual elected officials regardless of political party are almost universally pro Ukraine, or at least anti Russia. It’s incredibly unlikely the US truly takes a pro-Russia stance at any point.

   Tl;dr Putin managed to send Russia’s demographic future to their deaths and dismantle the Soviet army in exchange for a few hundred km of burnt out depopulated ruins and managed to turn all of its European partners into long term enemies. He did not win.

5. Putin won if the idea was the whole Soviet block would flip to the western neoliberal consensus. Belarus, eastern Ukraine and Russia staying out of the West’s orbit isn’t dismissible, but the rest of the Warsaw pact joining nato and the eu is a major defeat

6. The article says that Putin is a cunning, ruthless, and patient autocrat. Basically an evil mastermind and the author is totally praising him.

7. It is not over yet. The US is spiraling, yes, but there are still offramps that the US can take to stop the crash. If Trump is still president in 4 years, then Putin has indeed won.

8. This sounds like something Putin would want someone to write. And no, he hasn’t won. Ukraine and NATO are still holding him off, meanwhile Trump recently flip flopped on Russia after realizing Putin will most likely stab him in the back. Russia’s economy is plunging cause of all the money/resources spent on this pointless war. Even inviting N Korean troops was a massive fail.

9. Doesn’t the person with the most money always win? Richest man in the world gets what he wants…Every billionaire is a criminal, every single one of them.

10. The world is returning to the authoritarian strongman status quo. Democracy and liberalism has been the exception, not the rule in human history. By nature, people are attracted to and default into this form of governance, unfortunately.

11. He won? He decimated the Russian military and drained his stockpiles while pushing all of Europe to step up their defense spending and create a “European army.”

    He’s in a nightmare situation right now, even if the US completely pulled out of Europe (unlikely)

12. Putin is president of America. What else is new?

13. The Blob always wins.

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