Author: Unknown
Published on: 18/01/2025 | 00:00:00

AI Summary:
Joe Biden is about to wrap up what many perceive as a disastrous presidency. His departure from the White House could potentially mark a turning point in both the Russia-Ukraine conflict and in the three decades of poorly thought-out Western policies which resulted in the alienation of Russia. But that hinges on the incoming President Donald Trump’s ability not to repeat the mistakes of his predecessors. American historian Mary Sarotte writes in her book Not One Inch that this useful framework was derailed at its inception by a small number of securocrats in Washington. She specifically talks about “the pro-expansion troika” consisting of Daniel Fried, Alexander Vershbow, and Richard Holbrooke, who pushed for an aggressive expansion of NATO. Zelenskyy ordered a clampdown on Putin’s Ukrainian ally Viktor Medvedchuk. He launched loud campaigns for Ukraine’s NATO membership, the return of Crimea and the derailing of the Russo-German Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project. Azerbaijan’s victory over Russian-backed Armenian forces in the fall of 2020 gave hopes that high-tech warfare against Russia could be successful. Three weeks after the publication, Putin began deploying troops on the Ukrainian border, embarking on 11 months of hair-raising brinkmanship. This period saw the British warship HMS Defender entering what Russia had declared its territorial waters off the coast of occupied Crimea in June. The US started secret supplies of weapons to Ukraine in September and finally the US and Ukraine announcing a strategic partnership in November. Western policymakers to do some soul-searching on how to reverse the situation. This is not about absolving Putin’s government from accountability for crime of aggression. It is about removing conditions which caused Russia’s transformation into a militarised dictatorship.

Original: 1250 words
Summary: 292 words
Percent reduction: 76.64%

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