Ukraine

( Tomdispatch.com ) – Face it, we’re living in a world that, while anything but exceptional, is increasingly the exception to every rule. Only the other day, 93-year-old Noam Chomsky had something to say about that. Mind you, he’s seen a bit of our world since, in 1939, he wrote his first article for his […]

History

The Ukraine Invasion and the Weight of the Crimean War: “We hate most those we harm the most”

Hugh J. Curran

Orono, Maine (Special to Informed Comment) – There are some fascinating similarities between the Crimean War of the 1850s and the Ukraine War of 2022. According to Norman Rich, author of “The Crimean War” its main purpose was the containment of an expanding Russia as European powers had become fearful of Russia’s extension of power […]

Far Right

Putin and Le Pen: The History of an Alliance between Russia and France’s far Right

The Conversation

By Marlene Laruelle, George Washington University | – Days before the second round of the French presidential elections, far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen (Rassemblement National, RN) spelled out some of her foreign policy priorities: limit military support to Ukraine and steer clear from voting new sanctions against Russia; leave NATO’s integrated command; and relaunch […]

Featured

Putin sees Israel’s Occupation of Palestinians as its and the West’s Achilles Heel on Ukraine Crisis

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Israel’s attempt to stay more or less neutral on Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine is faltering, as the government of Naftali Bennett has come under enormous pressure from the Biden administration to take a stand. But even neutrality would not please Vladimir Putin, who wants the Israelis to back the […]

Israel/ Palestine

From Ukraine to Palestine: The Boycotting Double Standard

Middle East Monitor

By Abderrahmane Amor | – ( Middle East Monitor) – It was Putin’s recognition of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent breakaway regions in Eastern Ukraine that paved the way for an all-out Russian invasion of a sovereign Ukraine. Since the beginning of the invasion, we’ve seen a united global boycott of Russian goods, events and […]

Peace

How to End the War in Ukraine: A Solution Beyond Sanctions

Alfred W. McCoy

( Tomdispatch.com ) – As the war in Ukraine heads for its third month amid a rising toll of death and destruction, Washington and its European allies are scrambling, so far unsuccessfully, to end that devastating, globally disruptive conflict. Spurred by troubling images of executed Ukrainian civilians scattered in the streets of Bucha and ruined […]

Afghanistan

Historian Adam Michnik: Putin’s Invasion Of Ukraine Will End Like Brezhnev’s Afghan War, And Spark A ‘New Wave’

Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty

By Vadim Dubnov | – ( RFE/RL ) – Vladimir Putin “has driven Russia into a trap” by invading Ukraine, the former Polish dissident Adam Michnik has said, predicting ultimate defeat for the Russian leader and a chance for much-needed liberal reforms afterward. “In Russia, changes took place after wars were lost — after the […]

nationalism

The Rise of Russian Grievance Culture

The Conversation

By Gregory Carleton, Tufts University | – The range of anti-Russian measures taken by countries around the world since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is virtually unprecedented and hearkens back to the darkest days of the Cold War. They’ve assumed many forms but broadly include economic sanctions, military support for Ukraine and boycotts […]

Joe Biden

Can President Biden Wage Economic war against Russian Aggression without Hurting US Economy?

The Conversation

By Gorana Grgić, University of Sydney | – Any sort of analysis that tries to draw lessons from an evolving event such as an ongoing major war is a potentially futile task. On the one hand, there is a fog of war that prevents us from understanding the tactical developments. On the other hand, the […]