Why Is The Biden Administration - Or The National Security State - Continuing To Bankroll Putin?
The business with SWIFT is a distraction, it's kabuki, it's not real. The US, by continuing to import Russian oil and gas, is paying Putin $1 billion each day - and that's keeping him in business...
And it’s keeping Russia’s invasion of Ukraine financially feasible - while screwing up the economy here in the US. Less than a year and three months ago, the US had very low inflation, little prospect of a financial crisis, and was producing more energy than it could use. Due to the new energy policy of the “Biden Administration”, this stopped, the US became dependent on Russia - and this made Putin’s invasion possible, because then he had leverage over the US - and a steady source of funds. Of course, this isn’t the first time in recent years that the US National Security State and Military Industrial Complex have funded and given material support to both sides in a foreign war - it was the case most recently with the al-Nusra Front, supported with US weapons from CIA - and the US Army was fighting them - and both sides were consuming huge amounts of what the Military Industrial Complex was supplying. Going farther back, to World War II, the MIC owned a plant which built Messerschmitt aircraft (General Motors) and trucks and tanks for the Wehrmacht (“German” Ford - Adolf Hitler had a life-sized portrait of Henry Ford in his office). And so this profiteering is nothing new. So right now, the same thing is going on - the US is bankrolling Russia - and then selling Javelin missiles and other armaments to Ukraine. Embargoing Russian oil and gas and producing our own - which can be done quickly - shut-in wells can be brought back on line, pipelines can be re-started - would cut off a serious source of funding. Yet the “Biden Administration” fails to do this, citing pretty much nonsense reasons, and in the meantime the Military Industrial Complex gets richer - perhaps when Lenin said that “the capitalists will sell us the rope we use to hang them with”, he was correct. Look at this:
Meanwhile, from Graham Seibert in Kyiv, citing an article by Robert Homans, who writes The Russian Column (I’ll try to find the Zoom call on Tablet’s site):
”Edward Luttwak – Last night I participated in a Zoom call with noted military expert Edward Luttwak along with Vladislav Davidzon a Ukrainian journalist. The call was organized by Tablet Magazine (https://www.tabletmag.com/). I follow both Lutwak and Vlad on Twitter, and I know Vlad personally. Here is some of what was discussed:
· Mud – This time of year, before sowing begins, Ukrainian fields are extremely muddy, forcing Russian columns to stick to paved roads, making them easy targets for Ukrainian anti-tank rockets. Apparently, the mud is forcing large Russian column north of Kyiv to advance 3 abreast along the highway (more on the column later), preventing ability to maneuver to avoid strikes by anti-tank missiles
· Low Morale Among Russian Troops, Especially Draftees – Probably adding to the low morale is the fact that enlistment periods for many of the draftees ends on March 31st. They are facing extension of their enlistment period, death or injury, or both.
· Economic Sanctions – By themselves, economic sanctions won’t help stop the war, at least in the short term. What could happen is the people around Putin, many with substantial interests in the West, could decide that Putin has become too much of a liability. As Luttwak said, “it only takes one person to follow Putin into the Kremlin Men’s Room.
· Nukes Not a Worry – Luttwak said that Russia has controls over its nuclear arsenal similar to what exists in the U.S. The military won’t allow Putin, or those around him, to use nuclear weapons.
· No Flattening of Kyiv or Kharkiv – Luttwak said that any order to destroy either city would be a “red line” for those around Putin. He said that this was acceptable in the 2nd Chechen War, when Russia flattened Grozny, but for Kyiv or Kharkiv.
· Cyber Attacks – Luttwak said he expects cyberattacks against the West to take place. However, according to this very interesting article in the NY Times, we have better cyber defenses, and we are sharing with Ukraine. This is probably one reason why in Ukraine the lights are still on.
· Weapons Deliveries From NATO Countries – Luttwak said that they’re increasing, and Ukraine is able to distribute the weapons to frontline units within 24 hours after their arrival in Ukraine.
· Pres. Zelenskyy – Both Luttwak and Davidzon agreed that Zelenskyy’s status has risen far above any other Ukrainian political leader, and that the 73% of Ukraine’s electorate who voted for Zelenskyy “got it right.” Davidzon said that the U.S. had pressured Zelenskyy to establish a “War Cabinet,” including members of his Party and opposition parties. Apparently, Zelenskyy declined. Instead, his stature has risen so far above the other political leaders that he’s effectively established a unified leadership, without having to establish a war cabinet.
· Effect of Television – Davidzon said that all the broadcast television stations, including stations owned by opposition figures, are now solidly behind the government. NOTE: after the television tower was hit yesterday, the broadcast stations are all back in commission. Davidzon said that the stations were referring to Russian troops, as “the horde,” using a Mongol word now incorporated into Russian. When Ukrainians meet Russian troops, they are also referring to Russian as the horde. He said that this must un-nerve Russian troops, who were told that they’d be greeted by garlands of flowers.
· Urban Tactics – Luttwak said that the urban tactics used by the Russians, sending tanks and APC’s into urban areas with no infantry support, is a recipe for disaster. So far, that has proven to be the case. Tanks are picked off, occupants of APC’s get out of their vehicles, and they are immediately hit by small arms fire and Molotov cocktails thrown by civilians. Indeed, the Russians have still not taken any major urban areas in Ukraine.
· Collective Memory of Stalin – The current brutality displayed by Russia is like gasoline poured onto the embers of the collective memory of Stalin, including the famine. The Russians are seen as destroying what Ukraine has built up over the last 30 years of independence.
· Dead Russians – Luttwak thinks that the Russian body count that has been gathered by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense is high but, at the same time, when the boys aren’t returning home will cause opposition to the war in Russia to build.
Luttwak believes Ukraine will win, eventually. No one, not even Luttwak, is willing to predict how the war will end. Always the optimist, I think it will end sooner rather than later.
The Russian Column – The 40-mile-long Russian column of tanks, APC’s and other vehicles has been effectively stranded outside of Kyiv for 2 – 3 days. There have been problems with fuel, Russian soldiers punching holes in gas tanks, and other delays. The question I am asking myself is why Ukraine doesn’t hit the column. Ukraine has destroyed several Russian armored columns, primarily using aircraft and drone strikes. Ukraine has recently taken delivery of additional Turkish drones. Why not this column. I have two theories:
1. That Ukraine has concluded that the benefits of destroying the column with the resulting great loss of life to soldiers who might be ready to defect or surrender, aren’t worth the cost of infuriating Putin even further than he already is?
2. That the column containing a relatively small number of infantry, 40,000 by Luttwak’s estimate, doesn’t constitute a threat to Kyiv.”