Guest wrote: ↑Tue Jan 18, 2022 9:40 pm
DaKardii wrote: ↑Wed Jan 12, 2022 7:37 pm
Xeraphim1 wrote: ↑Wed Jan 12, 2022 6:33 pm
Are we supposed to ignore the fact that Nursultan ran a very tight ship and strongly limited all foreign influences?
It was under Nursultan that Kazakhstan joined the CSTO. A literal military alliance with Russia. It was also under Nursultan that Kazakhstan joined the Eurasian Economic Union, which basically cannot function without Russian membership.
Xeraphim1 wrote: ↑Wed Jan 12, 2022 6:33 pm
Are we supposed to ignore that fact that Kazakhstan removed price caps on fuel at the same time as the Ukraine standoff?
Color revolutions ALWAYS start off as organic unrest based on existing grievances. They then become color revolutions because outside forces exploit those grievances to their own advantage.
Xeraphim1 wrote: ↑Wed Jan 12, 2022 6:33 pm
The US has never had a very strong interest in Central Asia despite what you pet theory says.
You're definitely right that we have no natural interests in the region. But the consensus among so-called "geopolitical experts" is that we need to copy the British Empire and wage our own version of the "Great Game." Why? Because they think if we control Central Asia, we control the world? Why? Because Heartland Theory.
Xeraphim1 wrote: ↑Wed Jan 12, 2022 7:13 pm
Russians refuse to ask why all the countries that used to be part of the Russian Empire/USSR/Warsaw Pact want to join NATO. They refuse to accept that the one common feature is Russia. If Russia didn't have such shitty policies and shitty relations with its neighbors, they'd have no interest in NATO.
That may be true, but it isn't in our interests to protect them. Also, our NATO membership is arguably unconstitutional because Article V could be used as a pretext to enter an armed conflict without a Congressional declaration of war.
That’s a modern equivalent of what they said about Poland in 1939. Great stuff!
Russians can remember their history, and how the West cannot trusted. Let's recall that of the deaths in WW2, Russia's was the greatest at nearly 27 million, nearly 50% of the total number of deaths. What price do you pay for defending your country? We in the West congratulate ourselves on the victory, but let's not fool ourselves: without Russia's sacrifice, the war wouldn't have been won without nuclear weapons.
Post-Brexit, we see geopolitics through the lens of American hegemony. We have cut our ties with our closest partner, the EU. So now we have firmly allied our foreign policies with those of Uncle Sam. A caution comes from the DT's adversary, the Guardian:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfr ... er-dispute
We, in the UK, are becoming increasingly involved in the dispute, being the slaves of the Americans that we are. Our involvements in the Middle East as the American side-kick, brought about nothing good, yet our bereaved families mourn the deaths of their loved-ones, who were part of the British troops sucked into America's war on the Middle East. Ukraine is not our problem, either. Neither for that matter is it America's. It is the EU's problem.
Our Vlad is playing his chess game masterfully. Full marks to him. What would he do with an invaded Ukraine where most of the population would be hostile to his invasion? Clearly, the troops amassed at the border are there as a bargaining chip. He does not want Ukraine to become part of NATO, because if it did, Western missiles would be stationed there aimed at Moscow.
The Yanks must butt out. It's for the EU to give the necessary assurances and to de-escalate the situation. But there you go: the US and UK love their wars.