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Countless civilian deaths have finally shaken the US and the West out of their stupor and made it decide that Putin needs to be dealt with strongly with courage and conviction. The European Union and Ukraine initiated a probe after the horrendous sight of bodies being strewn on the streets of Bucha, a suburb near Kyiv came to light. It spurred the US to speed up sending of sophisticated weapons to Ukraine while the European Union is coming under increasing pressure to cut off Russian oil and coal imports totally. Ukraine’s authorities have revealed from the newly liberated areas that the Russians unleashed unimaginable atrocities on civilians, something that wasn’t witnessed even during the Nazi invasion.
The West has Its Limits and Putin Knows It
The toughest sanctions ever imposed on Russia and the nation’s complete isolation haven’t however, deterred Putin yet. If there’s no major political upheaval in Russia, the possibility of Putin being tried for war crime is virtually nil. Again, with the world’s largest nuclear arsenal at his disposal, Putin fully understands that the West won’t interfere in the war directly by implementing a no-fly zone.
Putin’s defiance in the face of the West’s attempts to rein him in might influence other autocrats to consider acquiring nuclear weapons. The Western invasion the world witnessed in Kosovo or Libya is not possible in Ukraine simply because of the military behemoth the West is up against. Putin is armed with a deadly arsenal and his saber-rattling does have the world rattled. Eighty years after the world saw seemingly invincible dictators like Hitler and Stalin spread terror, it’s faced with Putin—an unchallenged autocrat whom the West is failing to deter.
Is Vladimir Putin Invincible?
Putin is willing to absorb punishments imposed on him and his nation that has given him some sort of invincibility. The sanctions imposed on Russia may cripple the nation in the long run, but they have failed in deterring Putin from unleashing his war machine on Ukraine. In the face of stubborn resistance by the Ukrainians, Russia has been suffering heavy casualties as well; but that’s something Putin appears ready to tolerate.
The war may seem an apparent disaster for Russia. However, if Putin intends to simply create victory footage for the Russian state media by destroying as much of Ukraine as he can, he is certainly achieving a perverse success. The West’s sanctions against Russia hope to deter Putin by taking a far more logical view of what interests Russia has and Putin’s limitations. However, logic isn’t holding Putin back and despite the West’s support to the Ukrainians, military and economic, refugees keep flooding in and Putin knows that.
Conclusion
The West and the United State’s knee-jerk support and assistance to the Ukrainians have come too late in the first place. Besides, what the US and the West have on their table so far isn’t enough to deter Putin. Putin is well aware of the limitations the West has, such as its dependence on Russian gas. It’s a situation he’s exploiting to the hilt that has seen Germany and France keep diplomatic channels open. Can the US and the West make Putin pay for the misery he has brought upon Ukraine? Only time can tell.
