Putin, Girkin, and London
Today, I will keep it short. The first is a statement from Vladimir Putin, which, at least to me, speaks to likely internal pressure. It also references the capitulation of the Soviets to Germany in 1918, the Treaty of Brest.
This treaty saw Russia withdraw from the Great War, and the Soviets had good reasons. The civil war was coming. Ukraine achieved a short period of independence, as well as Poland. The two would become allies during the brief war to come. Poland remained independent. Ukraine was absorbed, by force, into the nascent Soviet Union.
What is significant about what Putin said is who he blamed for this treaty. It was Trotsky. He was Jewish. His antisemitism is not coded anymore. However, the fact that he even said it might matter. Russia wants to freeze this conflict. He needs time to rebuild, break Western unity, and try again. He also needs Donald Trump, or somebody like him, in the White House. So here is the post. It’s not as innocuous as it looks:
Russia cannot stop fighting while Ukraine is carrying out a counter-offensive, Vladimir Putin said.
“We are not Trotskyists,” he added.
I will also add that Leon Trotsky was murdered in Mexico on orders of Joseph Stalin decades after that. It’s not unlike Putin ordering hits on his enemies, whether in front of the Kremlin or abroad. So…