Tag: Putin

Putin the RiMyGma (inspired by the Turducken)

In 1939, Churchill famously called Russia, “… a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma”

Vladimir Putin takes that famous quote and elevates it to a whole new level. He has been in power since 1999 (He was Prime Minister from 1999 to 2000 becoming Acting President on 31 December 1999, when Yeltsin resigned). The term limit was, at the time, two consecutive terms of four years. However, in 2008, Medvedev was installed as a puppet president while Putin yielded all power through the office of Prime Minister. One of the first acts, “by Medvedev”, was to increase the term limit to two consecutive terms of six years to begin at the end of his presidency. In 2012, Putin regained the presidency this time for his second tenure, first term, of six years. He is due for re-election in 2018—can there be any doubt as to the result of that election which will put Putin in power again until 2024?

What would you call a politician who has remained in power for eighteen years, so far, despite an original term limit of eight years—a dictator, perhaps?

Putin’s chess game is working

This article in Time magazine has got it dead right:

As Moscow Advances, U.S. Allies Look Warily to Trump for Clarity

Putin is playing a chess game with his pawns and knights while distracting the West. He has no interest in ISIS, Syrian rebels, or the Crimean people but has his eyes on Europe. He wants to break the EU and NATO and he is achieving his goal.

Putin’s aims are the ports of Crimea and Syria with access to the Mediterranean and he is now focusing also on Montenegro. He has stimulated the rise of nationalism in the UK, and the USA and soon to follow will be France (Marine Le Pen has promised to leave NATO), the Netherlands, and Germany. Similarly, influencing Eastern European countries such as Hungary, Bulgaria, and other former Eastern Bloc “members”. He continues to test NATO resolve with forays into Estonia and Eastern Ukraine.