The Putin Factor

Teaching the World a Nuclear Lesson

There was a recent suggestion on Russian TV of nuking Warsaw, to teach NATO a lesson, according to the Bolt Report. This corresponds with yesterday's interview by Christiane Amanpour with Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin-spokesperson. "President Putin intends to make the world listen to and understand our concerns," said Peskov. "We've been trying to convey our concerns to the world — to Europe, to the United States — for a couple of decades, but no one would listen to us."

"No one is listening to us," is Putin's refrain before he was re-elected in March 2018, when he revealed the development of powerful new nuclear weapons, in violation of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces agreement, leading to the U.S. withdrawal from the treaty.

"No one listened to us then. So listen to us now.” Putin, 2018

In a February 10, 2022 meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss in Moscow, Russia, Lavrov again reiterated, the meeting was, "a talk of a mute with a deaf."

It is now obvious that Russia's development of the most powerful nuclear weapons in the world came at the direct expense of the other branches of its armed forces. Russian ground forces have multi-million ruble anti-aircraft systems riding on dry-rotted tires. Some of the captured field rations had expiration dates of 2016, if the ground forces had any rations at all. Frostbite has taken its toll on Russian troops in the northern part of Ukraine when temperatures dropped below seasonal averages.

We Can't Control Putin—Only Our Response

Any opinions contrary to Putin's are not tolerated in Russia. Investigative journalists have been imprisoned or murdered. Any potential Putin rivals have been eliminated. Only yesterday, Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny?was given an additional nine years prison sentence for "new" charges. In early 2021, Navalny?questioned the ownership of a palatial palace on the Black Sea reportedly owed by Putin. Soon after he was jailed and put on trial.

So perhaps there is a serious communication problem when it comes to Putin. Perhaps it's my way or the highway (or gulag) if one dares to communicate anything outside of Putin's Weltanschauung. How can anyone communicate with someone who is unable to listen?

We can only be responsible for our response to Putin's actions. While many Russians are in an information vacuum, some do know the truth, and the truth will set them free.

Putin needs to be officially put on notice:

• Further Russian aggression will not be tolerated by the world.
• Russia will be held responsible for the continued destruction of Ukraine
• Russia will need to make full reparations for its wanton destruction

Russians, too, taking part in illegal orders, murder and kidnapping of civilians, bombing of hospitals, and other crimes against humanity, need to put on notice that they will held responsible for their actions, no matter who gave the command.

In the meantime, as long as Putin decides to conduct his war on Ukraine, the Ukrainian people are deserving of the world's full support. That is the only thing we can control.

Be it a matter of days, weeks, or months, at some point in the future, Ukrainians will return to what is left of their homes and Ukraine will need to be rebuilt, Ukrainian lives remade, and memorials held for the many who didn't make it.

To get to this point in time will take decisive action. Many people from around the world are already helping Ukraine and the Ukrainians, be it financially, offering moral support, a helping hand, or with their prayers. Even if the war would end tomorrow, it will take years to put Ukraine back together again. That will perhaps be the easy part.

If communication is the real problem, we need to be clear and decisive: our word is our bond. Our good words will be followed by good deeds.

If communication is the real problem, then is it too much for one man to put aside his fragile ego and attempt to communicate? ■