Putin warning...

[Ignitionnet]

Originally Posted by Osem

Yes we now have nukes but it only requires one side or other to 'believe' they're under immediate threat to set off a chain reaction which is hard to stop. Unlikely it may be, but anyone who thinks we're too clever to blow ourselves up is overestimating our collective intelligence I feel.

Of course. Our ability to destroy things is well ahead of our maturity as a species.

There have been tons of suggestions of immediate threats that fortunately haven't escalated. Mercifully none of the nuclear powers, beyond perhaps North Korea, are cavalier about their power.

[Osem]

Let's hope there are a few sensible Russians keeping a close eye on Putin and prepared to act if he lapses further. The last thing we need is another desperate maniac in Europe.

[Sirius]

Originally Posted by Osem

Wars don't have to be planned, they just require the right conditions and right now there's enough strife around the globe to set one off. Look back to WWI to see how things can escalate. Yes we now have nukes but it only requires one side or other to 'believe' they're under immediate threat to set off a chain reaction which is hard to stop. Unlikely it may be, but anyone who thinks we're too clever to blow ourselves up is overestimating our collective intelligence I feel.

Indeed just look what happens when you get a group of religious nutters together, If enough of one group believe they are at threat it will escalate in no time.

[Gavin78]

That's what I was saying it's ok watching Russia but if we take the eye off the ball with all the other maniacs out there N korea as an example then who knows what will happen

[Osem]

Therein lies a big problem - uncertain times can result in all sorts of unlikely alliances and acts of opportunism or desperation.

[Taf]

He's now desperately trying to reassure his followers (and those who don't like him) that the financial problems in Mother Russia will only last a couple of years. With all the money leaving the country for safe havens, he could face more than a couple of years of problems.

[Osem]

And as it all goes pear shaped you can bet his rhetoric will grow ever more aggressive towards the West. He'll need to distract the ordinary people from what's gone wrong and there's no better way than to point towards us.

[Kursk]

It makes no sense whatsoever to turn the screw on Russia. It is a country full of people not too different from ourselves and I hope that in the netherworld of global politics there is an alliance that cannot be made public. I'm sure there is.

[papa smurf]

Originally Posted by Kursk

It makes no sense whatsoever to turn the screw on Russia. It is a country full of people not too different from ourselves and I hope that in the netherworld of global politics there is an alliance that cannot be made public. I'm sure there is.

maybe channel 4 can do the next SKINT in Moscow following the proud members of a once oil and gas reliant economy .

[Kursk]

Originally Posted by papa smurf

maybe channel 4 can do the next SKINT in Moscow following the proud members of a once oil and gas reliant economy .

Sneering at the poor, wherever they are, would not be my choice of viewing. Hopefully, Russia will join the EU, where the wealth of other nations can be shared to sustain it through difficult times.

[Osem]

Nice thought but it isn't going to happen.

[Kursk]

Originally Posted by Osem

Nice thought but it isn't going to happen.

But let's not give up on it. If Russia is pushed into a corner the possible outcome is unthinkable. If she is brought to her knees it would be a heinous crime.

At present, propaganda rules.

[Sirius]

Originally Posted by Kursk

But let's not give up on it. If Russia is pushed into a corner the possible outcome is unthinkable. If she is brought to her knees it would be a heinous crime.

At present, propaganda rules.

I am sure it will all be ok when he gets his military out of the Ukraine

[Osem]

Originally Posted by Sirius

I am sure it will all be ok when he gets his military out of the Ukraine

That would help greatly. He's been denying it all along and that hasn't helped - much of it has been ludicrous.

[Kursk]

The change that has taken place in the USSR/Russia in comparatively recent times is a thread of its own. Continued change is perhaps understandably viewed with suspicion.

Our economy is now intertwined with our former mortal enemy, Germany. If we can manage that, we should be able to achieve the same with Russia to our mutual benefit. And let's face it to the benefit of Europe.

There is no modern World alternative imho; patience is a virtue.