Blinken to Moscow: Or Else!

Vague threats is all this administration will muster. Blinken warns Moscow of consequences amid troop buildup near Ukraine

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday he was concerned about the number of Russian troops amassing on the Ukrainian border and warned Moscow that “there will be consequences” for aggresive [sic] behavior.

Apparently they don't have the budget for spellcheckers at CNBC. Or maybe they are showing that they agree with the "spelling and grammar are instruments of white privilege" nonsense.

The geniuses who ran the Obama State Department did nothing while Russia invaded and annexed Crimea. Now they will make vague threats as Russia amasses troops on the border with Ukraine.

And they also don't seem to have an appreciation for what happened as recently as when Obama was in office.

In recent weeks, Moscow has increased its military presence along the Ukrainian border, sparking concerns in the West of a budding military conflict between the two neighboring countries.

For those of you who were asleep when Obama was in office, Russia invaded an annexed Crimea. There is an article linked at the bottom of this post for some historical information.

NATO, in the meantime is again taking credit for something done by the US. Two US Destroyers Enter Black Sea; Russia Responds. Two guided missile destroyers, that is, though I doubt any missile will be fired on the Crimean peninsula.

NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu praised the decision to send three ships to the waterway, welcomed the deployment, saying “in response to Russia’s illegal and illegitimate annexation of Crimea from Ukraine and its ongoing military build-up in the Black Sea, the Alliance has increased its defensive presence in the region and remains strongly committed to Black Sea security.”

As for the "warning" that our esteemed Secretary of State gave the Russians... Things like that always put me in mind of the following scene from Demolition Man.

.

Here is a review of the invasion and annexation of Crimea by Putin in March of 2014. That position has since been consolidated. From March of last year... Crimea: Six years after illegal annexation.

Ukraine’s Maidan Revolution ended in late February 2014, when President Victor Yanukovych fled Kyiv — later to turn up in Russia — and the Rada (Ukraine’s parliament) appointed an acting president and acting prime minister to take charge. They made clear their intention to draw Ukraine closer to Europe by signing an association agreement with the European Union.

Almost immediately thereafter, armed men began occupying key facilities and checkpoints on the Crimean peninsula. Clearly professional soldiers by the way they handled themselves and their weapons, they wore Russian combat fatigues but with no identifying insignia. Ukrainians called them “little green men.” President Vladimir Putin at first flatly denied these were Russian soldiers, only to later admit that they were and award commendations to their commanders.

The West (Obama and company) urged Ukraine to do nothing. Let Russia fire the first shot.

By early March of 2014 Russia had control of the entire Crimean penninsula, and on March 18th the annexation was made official. Today, Ukraine couldn't retake Crimea. And with Obama 2.0 in the White House, my guess is that Putin will take another bite of the apple.

The Obama adminstration was confused by the events in Crimea. Someone (Biden?) was surprised by the action taking place in the 21st Century. Surely human nature had changed fundamentally in the past 50 years! Or something. They will be equally shocked and dismayed and confused by the next crisis, wherever it occurs. (Russia isn't the only one making faces at old enemies.)