Super helpful responses, thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Apparently the USA has sent a war ship to the Black Sea. I expect they don't come there very often... or?
As far as I know, such ships are usually only deployed to make a statement.
However they HAVE been used for real, for example in the Gulf Wars.
I can see a scenario where the USA claims they want to "deploy peacekeepers" in Crimea, or something like that to. Although I doubt they would get anywhere near the shores of Crimea if the Russian navy base has anything to say about it....
In the Cold War there was usually stalemate most of the time. But right now, anything can happen. And Crimea is definitely a Queen on the chessboard. Or at least a tower.
I am so upset on behalf of the Ukrainians. All of this must be intolerable.
They have good reasons and every right to be suspicious of Russia. On the other hand, their entire capital is smashed up. *Somebody* orderered the shooting of civilians with sniper rifles. Some yobs are in power who might very well be extreme nationalists, possibly Nazis, and the whole country is about to get into the clutches of the IMF, Washington and Brussels. The poor will get poorer and everything more expensive while everyone helps themselves to anything that's worth any money internationally.
Hard to blame those who resign and think "sod all this, I can't take any more, my grandmother was Russian so just give me a f-ing Russian passport".
Never heard of him but I'll take a wild guess that he is a crook and very corrupt. What's going on with the Imperial uniform? Akhmetov, some kind of Muslim or something? Is he Russian or what?
I'll read the article, but it will take me a while...
Yes indeed - seems to have been quite a trend with Soviet l eaders, to give Russian land to other Soviet republics!!!Khrushchev giveth, Putin taketh away.
I never knew that this had happened at all, anywhere until recently. I always assumed the Soviet republics were based on actual ethnic groups or traditional borders.