A Rough Chronology of Events:

February 24, 2022: Vladimir Putin’s Russian military forces invade Ukraine. Putin predicts total surrender within days, or weeks at the most. He seriously underestimates Ukraine’s strength and the response of the international community.

Today: The war in Ukraine is still raging. Estimated casualties on both sides thus far: somewhere in the neighborhood of half a million, though exact figures are impossible to obtain due to Russia’s refusal to release accurate statistics.

In the Interim: Crippling sanctions have been placed on Russia and many of its top officials and oligarchs. The International Criminal Court has issued a worldwide warrant for the arrest of Vladimir Putin for war crimes involving the forcible removal of Ukrainian children from their homeland, thus isolating him and making it impossible for him to travel to all but a few countries throughout the world.

Putin has repeatedly said that he wishes to negotiate an end to the hostilities . . . though, of course, only on his terms, which include his keeping all Ukrainian territory he has thus far managed to occupy, as well as guarantees that Ukraine will never be allowed to join NATO. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says, in effect, “When hell freezes over.”

November 13, 2024: Poland and the U.S. inaugurate a NATO missile defense base in Northern Poland, integrating it into NATO’s defenses. As expected, Russia’s Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, responds:

“. . . And, of course, this leads to the adoption of appropriate measures to ensure parity.”

November 15, 2024: Putin reaches out to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, expressing Russia’s readiness to look at energy deals if Berlin is also interested. This is widely viewed as a desire on Putin’s part to begin wriggling out of the aforementioned sanctions.

November 17, 2024 (Ukraine time): Russia launches one of its largest air strikes on Ukraine, principally on its energy infrastructure and other civilian sites in cities throughout the country. Is this blatant escalation of hostilities what the Kremlin deems to be “appropriate measures”?

In an understandable display of defensive readiness, neighboring Poland scrambles its fighter jets.

November 17, 2024 (U.S. Eastern time): American President Joe Biden gives the go-ahead for Ukraine to use long-range missiles supplied by the U.S. to strike farther inside Russia — permission long sought by Ukraine but heretofore held back for fear of escalation.

*. *. *

It is now just past midnight on November 18th. This started two years and nearly nine months ago. It’s not likely to end overnight tonight, so I presume there will be follow-up later today. I can hardly wait.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
11/18/24