Shortly after the Olympics were held in Sochi, Russia, Russian military forces invaded the small peninsula of Crimea, a southern region of the Ukraine, without any authorization or impetus beyond sheer hubris and opportunism.
Since the Olympics, the spotlight directed at Russian President Vladimir Putin has grown much brighter on the international stage. He helped broker a peace deal with Syria, which only further entrenched the violent Assad regime, and has also orchestrated the most corrupt and expensive Winter Olympics, well, ever. With these actions escalating to a foreign invasion, the West’s response has to be proportionate to Putin’s brazen actions.
Of course, this pattern is not entirely new. Putin, a former member of the KGB, has slowly but surely tightened his grip on power over the once-dilapidated former USSR. The result has been a somewhat stable Russian economy, built on an oligarchy and funded by oil from Gazprom, which has given Putin the room to convince the stalwart electorate of his legitimacy (although, the validity of the most recent elections are certainly in question).
If opportunities continue to knock, there is nothing to stop Putin from subjecting the Russian population to harsh injustices.
These developments have further enshrined his power and now, bolstered by such firm support, he has decided to take it to the next level: unauthorized, illegal invasions of other sovereign nations.
The United States, perhaps the only legitimate force able to coerce Russia, has made an effort to affirm a strong posture in opposition to the invasion. They have discussed punishing economic sanctions, which would also impact a huge swathe of the EU, and some are calling for Western nations to refuse attendance at 2014’s G8 summit to be staged in Sochi, Russia.
These moves, which are quite similar to the weightless proclamations issued to Syria, reek of weak-kneed diplomacy and political theatre. Putin is a realist and an opportunist. Losing Crimea was a sore spot for Russians in 1992, and if they reclaim the small peninsula, it is yet another big political win for Vladimir Putin.
Now, no one is asking for a war or armed conflict against Putin’s regime. If Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya have proven anything, it is that intervention only leads to more civil strife and struggle. But we are dealing with an individual who has wilfully imprisoned contrarian journalists, marginalized LGBTQ groups, and has a litany of Human Rights Watch accusations. Now Putin has infringed upon the sovereignty of another nation and some are standing around either defending or validating such a decision.
The Russian administration is operating in the real world, where power and money are motivating factors. The Western democracies, proponents of global justice and the proliferation of liberty, are standing at podiums and shuffling their feet. If opportunities continue to knock, there is nothing to stop Putin from continuing to abuse his citizenry, imprisoning people at his own will, and subjecting the Russian population to harsh injustices.
If we are to stand by our principles as free nations helping others in need, we have to act in the real world with rigorous diplomacy and a show of force. A famous quote from Theodore Roosevelt could not be more relevant here: we need to “speak softly and carry a big stick.”
