Re: Putin warning...
 

Whichever way you look at it, President Putin is the consistently re-elected leader of Russia. Working with Russia means working with him. Deals are done all the time with leaders we might not 100% approve.

Talking of which, I hope Alex Salmond becomes the next Deputy PM. He's an astute politician who would run rings around the present incumbent.

Re: Putin warning...
 

Of course you can be "constantly re-elected" if it's rigged....

Re: Putin warning...
 

Right now the west doesn't seem to want to work with him and I can't see that changing until his behaviour does.

Re: Putin warning...
 

We have to work with what we've got not what we'd like.

Re: Putin warning...
 

it worked for sadam for long enough :)

Re: Putin warning...
 

And we've tried but he isn't interested. It's also not conductive to our relationship with them when he takes over part of a foreign country.

Re: Putin warning...
 

Do you work for Russia Today, perchance? ;)

Re: Putin warning...
 

Sputnik's output really does betray an astonishing degree of pro Govt bias. It's laughable when compared to serious western media.

Re: Putin warning...
 

I recall we were outraged when Soviet troops entered Afghanistan and the West funded the resistance. What happened after does not need repeating. Suffice to say, invasion of foreign countries is not restricted to Russia.

No :). I just believe in the maxim that you can't really understand another person's experience until you've walked a mile in their shoes. I'm not sure we think enough about how others might see things.

Re: Putin warning...
 

Considering the number of shirtless pictures of him I'd say he's already done that many times over, good job he has all those embezzled billions to buy replacements.

---------- Post added at 01:50 ---------- Previous post was at 01:48 ----------

It's a good maxim as not only do you end up a mile away from them, you've also got their shoes to

Re: Putin warning...
 

Ruble weakens on S&P warning of downgrading Russia

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/...0K20EG20141224

Re: Putin warning...
 

Actually, in a previous life, part of my job was to understand the Russian military and civilian psyche and behaviours, with a focus on how the Stalinist era and the WW2 shaped that (and I have kept that up as a civvy) - if we didn't try to understand how and why they would potentially do stuff, our analysis would be faulty/skewed.

Re: Putin warning...
 

Thunk! (That's the sound of Hugh playing his trump card...)



:D

Re: Putin warning...
 

My comment was intended in more general terms at the press manipulated British public and I include myself in that :dunce:. Since childhood, we've been fed this 'dangerous-Rusky-threat-they-want-to-nuke-us-all' rubbish. The (certainly modern day) Russians are not our enemy nor do we need to starve them back into the 1950's imho.


A curious comment from the normally informed and articulate contributor that you are. I doubt very much that Hugh feels our exchange in this thread has been some form of one-upmanship. Gawd.

Re: Putin warning...
 

Neither do I. You didn't notice the :D then??


Just to explain further, it wasn't an entirely serious comment. ;)