Exactly, the only people who can end this war are the Russian people opposing the regime. How and with what effect on their well being is anybody's guess. As long as Russia' civil society continues to accept, en masse, an oppressive regime as 'government', it will always be hostage to the personal interests of 'strong(wo)men' and their hench(wo)men. For 'marketing' purposes: never say "I oppose the Government" as it is an institution that will always be there, but do frame your rhetoric around opposition to individuals or parties, who purport to look after you, while, in fact, they do not.
Regime security versus national security is an academic concern. The Euromaiden and Maiden Revolutions evoke Occupy Wall Street which culminated a decade later in the Summer of Floyd insurrection riots. Like in America, Euromaiden began with a meetup call on facebook that attracted 1500 people in Nov 2013. By the time of the Maiden Revolution three months later, numbers were a couple hundred thousand which eventually routed the government. And like the Summer of Floyd revolutionaries, The Maidens were united by youthful indiscretion gone wild. However, the Maidens always, always, insisted on achieving tight integration between Ukraine and EU. Russia feared that but feared more the visuals from the Arab Spring, Euromaiden, Maiden, and the destabilization of the regime and the nation such a thing might cause in Russia should it spread. Now, if negotiation is fruitless then Ukraine is in a tight spot. And so is America, now that it's thrown-in with the revolutionaries.
I think an additional point supporting your view is the cost-benefit ratio of the attritional war in Donbas:
The Russian military is paying dearly in casualties and will need years to build back the losses of this latest phase of the war, while gaining only small pieces of land that are strategically insignificant from national defense point of view.
However, it does give Putin additional ammunition when he has to prove that he did not make a mistake and everything is going as intended.
After watching the PBS Putin Files YouTubes, I think that Putin would prefer Russia to be isolated from the West. His fear appears to be the West triggering a colour revolution hitting when he is in is old age, and unable to do anything to protect his regime - i.e. his personal liberty and finances. (In the way he he protected Yeltsin and Yeltsin's family). Taking Ukraine would be a brick in that wall, ensuring it doesn't become westernised, but continued conflict and polarisation suits him too.
Exactly, the only people who can end this war are the Russian people opposing the regime. How and with what effect on their well being is anybody's guess. As long as Russia' civil society continues to accept, en masse, an oppressive regime as 'government', it will always be hostage to the personal interests of 'strong(wo)men' and their hench(wo)men. For 'marketing' purposes: never say "I oppose the Government" as it is an institution that will always be there, but do frame your rhetoric around opposition to individuals or parties, who purport to look after you, while, in fact, they do not.
Regime security versus national security is an academic concern. The Euromaiden and Maiden Revolutions evoke Occupy Wall Street which culminated a decade later in the Summer of Floyd insurrection riots. Like in America, Euromaiden began with a meetup call on facebook that attracted 1500 people in Nov 2013. By the time of the Maiden Revolution three months later, numbers were a couple hundred thousand which eventually routed the government. And like the Summer of Floyd revolutionaries, The Maidens were united by youthful indiscretion gone wild. However, the Maidens always, always, insisted on achieving tight integration between Ukraine and EU. Russia feared that but feared more the visuals from the Arab Spring, Euromaiden, Maiden, and the destabilization of the regime and the nation such a thing might cause in Russia should it spread. Now, if negotiation is fruitless then Ukraine is in a tight spot. And so is America, now that it's thrown-in with the revolutionaries.
The authors didn't present any new prospective beyond what John Meirshimer had. Just go to the source, forget the copycat
I think an additional point supporting your view is the cost-benefit ratio of the attritional war in Donbas:
The Russian military is paying dearly in casualties and will need years to build back the losses of this latest phase of the war, while gaining only small pieces of land that are strategically insignificant from national defense point of view.
However, it does give Putin additional ammunition when he has to prove that he did not make a mistake and everything is going as intended.
After watching the PBS Putin Files YouTubes, I think that Putin would prefer Russia to be isolated from the West. His fear appears to be the West triggering a colour revolution hitting when he is in is old age, and unable to do anything to protect his regime - i.e. his personal liberty and finances. (In the way he he protected Yeltsin and Yeltsin's family). Taking Ukraine would be a brick in that wall, ensuring it doesn't become westernised, but continued conflict and polarisation suits him too.
No, Putin is fighting evil. NATO et al, is now a corrupt military complex that needs continuous wars to feed itself.