First of all I am not an Apologist for Vladimir Putin. I’m not a big fan of Russia and I was really against the Olympics being hosted in that country. The only positive aspect of the Olympics being hosted by Russia was the fact that many negative issues were brought to the forefront as a result. That being said, I think the United States had no business in the issue of Russia and the Ukraine.
Who are we to tell Russia how to handle a country that is in complete disarray that touches their border. I think it is extremely out of line politically and logically for the United States, a country half way around the world to tell a country next door how to respond to the chaos in that country. I just think that is completely out of touch. For example, if a similar situation happened in Mexico and if we felt it was in our National Security interest to enter that country and make some military moves to stabilize, it shouldn’t be the business of a country halfway around the world that has absolutely no realistic interest in the stability of that region. Yet we seem to think it is okay to do the same. What about when the State Department said that Russia interfering could disrupt the balance of the region. If the administration in control before the coup was Russian friendly how can Russia moving in there to “stablize” it upset the balance of the region? To make matters worse we periodically help US friendly leaders take control of countries on their continent. I just don’t understand this administrations logic on this….
Also, what in the world is Secretary of State John Kerry talking about when he gives these “warnings” to Russia concerning the Ukraine? The one that comes to mind first is where Kerry states that Russia invading the Ukraine would be a “grave mistake”. That quote really bothers me. That phrase has somewhat of a confrontational connotation to it. Is Kerry trying to tell Russia that if they invade the Ukraine we may take military action. I doubt that is what he meant, but when dealing with a country who we already have a rocky relationship should we choose our words a little more carefully? Not that they will lead to a war or anything but afterwards if we do nothing or very little it will just be another example of showing how weak this administration actually is….
The bottom line is that I am not sure we have any business in dictating how another country responds to serious unrest on their border. there is absolutely no logic involved in this position whatsoever.
Want to debate it, the Modern Day Machiavelli is ready as always!
Modern Day Machiavelli 
re “out of touch”
I agree, but the mechanism running in geopolitics is deeper – essentially it’s MacKinder’s “earth island” v “sea peoples” – and the sea peoples are the angloamericans. Russia was is and shall be the target, then China. Unless they stop… But they cannot stop. Similarly, as you must know, the Russians have always fought to the end – and so far anyway the end occurs when their opponent is obliterated. The american president has the charge of achieving this goal – the alignment of russian resources with “western capitalist desires” – whatever physical or rhetorical outrages may be “necessary” this goal is not negotiable.
The Russian geopolitical philosopher A. Dugan has spoken and written on his own views. Logical. Marxist in the sense of taking a logical and scientific aproach to things…a Russian nationalist…Mac, you might have read him.
BTW, Steve Allen did a Meeting of the Mind that’s on YT – with Machiavelli as one of his dinner guests. Fun show!
Later OM