RUSSIAN AGGRESSION NOT SURPRISING
Once again, the roller coaster ride of world politics took a corkscrew dive this week with the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. It should not have come as a surprise to anyone, however, since Vladimir Putin had left the signs and markers of his plan as clearly as Adolf Hitler outlined his with the release of “Mein Kampf.”
Growing up during the Cold War, my generation never really trusted Russian leadership. Anytime U.S. leaders planned to meet with them, there was always a tense, hold-your-breath attitude. The general American thought was always one of caution and a reminder that you could never trust the Ruskies.
It’s no wonder we feel this way. During WWII Russia was an ally in the fight against the Axis powers, but were always a little on their own, and Stalin was always at arm’s length from Roosevelt and Churchill. After the fall of Berlin, the city was divided into four sectors, with the Soviets setting up the blockade in the summer of 1948.
Thirteen years later, in 1961, East German soldiers started laying barbed wire and bricks as a barrier between Soviet controlled East Berlin and the democratic area of West Berlin, affecting individual families and all of Europe for years.
Within months, the Soviets took another bold move after Fidel Castro led a communist revolution in Cuba and planned to bring missiles to the island nation located a mere 90 miles off the Florida Keys. That event led to the Cuban Missile Crisis in which the world narrowly evaded another war.
The 1980s had several interactions and changes with the leadership of Reagan and Gorbachev. Meetings between the two were held in Switzerland, Iceland, Washington D.C., and Moscow, and were considered a success even after getting off to a rocky start. Reagan’s view of the Soviet Union as the “Evil Empire” softened over the term of his presidency as the two leaders considered one another rivals yet friends. Most of us thought we would never see the fall of the Berlin Wall or the change the reform-minded Gorbachev brought to the table, leading to the fall of the USSR. It was a great time to be an American and made other nations of the world a little nervous at this newfound partnership.
With the election of Putin, however, the mindset of the old Soviet Union returned. Governor Mitt Romney saw this and brought it up during the debates with then-President Obama. Instead of taking the threat seriously, Obama mocked the governor saying he was living in the 1980s and that the Cold War was over. Obama should have listened, and while Romney bounces in and out of favor with democrats and is not necessarily well liked by conservatives, both sides need to admit he was right about Russia still being a threat.
With the strategy of a spy, Putin, a former KGB agent himself, has worked behind the scenes rebuilding Russia’s military strength and striking deals with other nations to depend on his nation for their energy, goods, and other natural resources. All this while America was distracted with asinine nonsense like Hillary bringing plastic toy buttons to Russian diplomatic meetings and arguing over what English pronoun to call someone.
It wasn’t too long-ago Trump chastised NATO allies for being too dependent on Russian oil and gas, as well as other resources, and today Europe and the world are paying the price. The feigned shock and disbelief over what is happening now can be put away, because we should have always known you can’t fully trust Russian leadership.
Randy Gibson is the CEO of RDG Communications Group, LLC, and the former director of the Tahlequah Area Chamber of Commerce and the Texas State Rifle Association.
