Quote Originally Posted by Antonio1986 View Post
In the last days I am studying the book of Sun Tzu, the "Art of War" and I have collected many "clever lines". Three of them I think apply in the case of Russia:
1. The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.
2. Pretend inferiority and encourage the enemies arrogance.
3. The winner will be the the country that knows when to fight and when not.

Russian government has many other tools to use and the biggest is it's political influence in: (a) China (b) Iran (c) Syria (d) Libya (e) Venezuela (f) Cuba (d) Eastern Europe (e.g. Moldavia, Belarus, Baltics) (e) Central Asia (f) Caucasus (g) Central Africa (h) Pakistan etc.
No need for an economic war with economic superpowers like USA and EU.
I think the most effective tool would have been ignorance and pretending that nothing happens to Ukraine.
Shortly, keep the line of Putin: "What happens in Ukraine doesn't have do to anything with Russia"
Everything about that is incorrect or inaccurate. The Russians who replied are in denial (not surprising). Every one of them.

Today, big-talking Putin has sanctions against Canada's imports of food. It will hurt the domestic/farming market in Canada but for Russia, stuff like that will cause inflation and shortages of food. I think Russia should ban food products/imports from every Western country it can. Have fun receiving Chinese food imports? Or wherever they're going to get it. Even if Russia finds other partners, it won't help to choose China instead. Russia will be at a trade disadvantage. They are not sustaining. Putin might want to make Russia into some EurAsian empire but other than getting cheap labour from the Caucasus, their main exports are still the same ones - oil, mining(?), machinery/weapons(?). Also, I believe that imports from agricultural products often came from Ukraine? So, they are in trouble there, too. Expect some economic consequences in those areas that are probably unanticipated or ignored by many Russians who refuse to consider the fallout because they have been taught to avoid criticism of Government policies and bow down to anything the Kremlin does. This is not a 'pro-West' view by any means, it one of realism and a critique of another Government that doesn't sustain itself. Western ones don't either but they are not getting hit with as many sanctions. The reason that the EU was soft on the sanctions is the same reason - they are not sustaining and also invested heavily in the Russian economy so certain entrepreneurs and large companies (read: corporations) didn't want to take the hit.