Only problem is Obama did zip to stop Putin's annexation of Crimea, which is vital to Ukraine's long term economic success. So in my book stares don't achieve much; it requires appropriate ACTION!
Chuck, not an expert, let alone a big expert, just an observer. The single most important thing he could have done was send arms to Ukraine, as we did after the invasion. He could have called a NATO meeting to help the EU determine an appropriate response, but instead he said that Ukraine would always be vulnerable to Russian invasion, therefore giving a big green light to Putin for the 2022 invasion. Weakness always encourages aggression and his failure set the stage for the current war and the mess we're in.
I agree on what Obama could have done. But Obama didn't suck up to Pootie and make promises without Ukraine input, call Zelenskyy an unelected dictator, call for Ukraine elections, try to extort profit by demanding half of their resources in exchange for our help (because it is all about the money), snub our NATO allies and threaten to pull out, or ambush Z in front of the cameras while the world watched a stupid political stunt. Keep in mind Russia hasn't honored any of the treaties it signed.
I love when Obama stared Putin down. :) THAT was a Presidential POTUS!
Only problem is Obama did zip to stop Putin's annexation of Crimea, which is vital to Ukraine's long term economic success. So in my book stares don't achieve much; it requires appropriate ACTION!
Since you are such a big expert on this, let's hear what your idea of action should be.
Chuck, not an expert, let alone a big expert, just an observer. The single most important thing he could have done was send arms to Ukraine, as we did after the invasion. He could have called a NATO meeting to help the EU determine an appropriate response, but instead he said that Ukraine would always be vulnerable to Russian invasion, therefore giving a big green light to Putin for the 2022 invasion. Weakness always encourages aggression and his failure set the stage for the current war and the mess we're in.
I agree on what Obama could have done. But Obama didn't suck up to Pootie and make promises without Ukraine input, call Zelenskyy an unelected dictator, call for Ukraine elections, try to extort profit by demanding half of their resources in exchange for our help (because it is all about the money), snub our NATO allies and threaten to pull out, or ambush Z in front of the cameras while the world watched a stupid political stunt. Keep in mind Russia hasn't honored any of the treaties it signed.
We're watching The Truman Show and it's 24/7 insanity