heybruce

Yet Russia kept pushing Ukraine and other countries to seek NATO membership by invasions and interference in internal affairs.

You need to explain and defend your interpretation of the Minsk agreement.

Huh? How was giving Ukraine time to strengthen its armed forces to defend itself if attacked negotiating in bad faith?

Manchin might actually attract the votes of Republicans sick of Trump. Or you could run Liz Cheney for the same effect.

Hunter took advantage of the inherent corruption and gullibility of some Chinese. If you have the right contacts in China and can convince them that you can pull strings for them then you can also take them for easy money. Good luck.

It helped Ukraine, and by extension it helped all countries supporting Ukraine by reducing the amount of aid lost to corruption.

I go by definitions: proxy war noun [ C ] uk /ˈprɒk.si ˌwɔːr/ us /ˈprɑːk.si ˌwɔːr/ Add to word list a war fought between groups or smaller countries that each represent the interests of other larger powers, and may have help and support from these: The new nuclear superpowers fought their first proxy war for global supremacy in the Asian heartland of Korea. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/proxy-war Russia, a large country, invaded Ukraine, a small country. That does not fit the definition of a proxy war. People who call this a proxy war are trying to disguise the fact that this is a war of conquest by Russia in an attempt to recreate the Soviet empire or something similar. This is a war of empire, and it's going badly for the would be empirical power. It's not a proxy war.

In that case the "others" don't know what a proxy war is.

If the war in Ukraine causes Putin's fall then his successor will understand that it is in his interest to end the war.

You called the "special operation" a fact. The fact is that an invasion with the intent to seize a country's capitol and topple the government is a war. You also failed to explain how support for Ukraine with the only stated goal being the survival of the nation is a proxy war. That makes your opinion fact free.

Do you really think Trump is diplomatic, or were you making a joke?

So peace will have to be negotiated with Putin's replacement. That's ok.

Do you think Russia doesn't have a problem with demographics? "Russia is about to enter a prolonged and painful period of demographic decline at home—complicating its expansionist ambitions abroad." "From 1993 to 2007, the fertility rate (defined as the number of children a woman can be expected to have over the course of her lifetime) fell below 1.5, far below the 2.1 replacement rate needed to hold a population steady." https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/01/03/russia-demography-birthrate-decline-ukraine/

war 1 of 4 noun ˈwȯr often attributive Synonyms of war 1 a(1) : a state of usually open and declared armed hostile conflict between states or nations (2) : a period of such armed conflict (3) : state of war b : the art or science of warfare c(1) obsolete : weapons and equipment for war (2) archaic : soldiers armed and equipped for war 2 a : a state of hostility, conflict, or antagonism b : a struggle or competition between opposing forces or for a particular end a class war a war against disease c : variance, odds sense 2 https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/war Please explain how this "special military operation" does not satisfy the definition of "war". Regarding the "proxy war" nonsense: "One reason the “proxy war” doesn’t apply here is the core U.S. objective is helping Ukraine achieve a goal it set for itself: To fend off the expanded Russian invasion." https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/05/03/why-ukraine-isnt-proxy-war-yet/ The US didn't start the war, tried to prevent it from starting, and seems unclear on how it should end other than with Ukraine's survival as a nation. That doesn't strike me as a proxy war.

When all pertinent facts show that an opinion is wrong, then it is not an opinion it is a fantasy. Stating that any nation other than Russia started the war in Ukraine is a fantasy.

"Or an alternat narrative , if the facts point in that direction. " The fact is that Russia invaded Ukraine. That makes Russia the aggressor.

If you don't trust the media then you must have other sources for information or accept that you are ignorant.

It's amazing the number of people who won't accept the obvious fact that the country that invaded Ukraine and started the war is the aggressor. Regarding the risks of nuclear war, don't overthink it. A few above ground nuclear explosions would damage global communications so much as to shut down the world economy, resulting on global anarchy. It's pointless to speculate beyond that.

When the MAGA crowd uses "patriot" they mean loyalty to Trump. It shows how far they've deviated from the true meaning of the word.

Where is the evidence that President Biden is guilty of any crimes. Remember, "Comer says" nonsense doesn't count as evidence. Neither does right-wing speculation.

Considering the state of Ukraine's government and military in 2014 the options for responding to Putin's invasion were limited at that time. However I agree that making Putin pay for his crimes is necessary, as he's demonstrated that he's a ruthless opportunist. That's why it's important to continue to support Ukraine. I think Trump would sell out the US and any other country in exchange for a profitable sweetheart deal with Putin.

So what are your sources?

Putin either didn't know the true history or is trying to rewrite it; there were never guarantees against eastern expansion. The only reason countries want to join NATO is to deter Russian aggression. Putin could have prevented NATO expansion by not bullying Russia's neighbors.

Do you seriously expect an update on nine years of world events, or are you just trolling?

And we have our answer to the question of credible vs troll.