Gee willikers, Hoppy! I wonder why Putin's troops are packin' up and

[Atticus]

leaving the Ukraine border area!

Could the "new sheriff in town" have anything to do with Vlad's sudden change of heart?

[H to HE]

1. YEP

you know it!!!

[empedocles]

2. Seems like Biden found a very sensitive spot to poke on putin?

[gab13by13]

3. They may be leaving one area,

but they are still fighting in other areas. We need to help Ukraine with money and weapons.

[Voltaire2]

4. No.

Realistically there is nothing we can do short of starting a nuclear war to stop Russian military operations in Eastern Europe.

Whatever the objectives were for the force build up, the mission is over for now. Meanwhile Russia continues to undermine Ukrainian sovereignty in eastern Ukraine, and will continue to assert a national interest in what it claims are Russian people inhabiting that area.

[Atticus]

5. "---nothing we can do short of starting a nuclear war---"--------That pessimistic approach

has been abandoned.

[modrepub]

6. Limited Options

Not that we don't have any but we're not going to start a shooting war. Ukraine and Russia have a complex relationship. Russia considers Ukraine part of their territory via their Run origin story. Ukraine remembers the starvation Stalin purposely imposed on them in the decade before WW II. Millions died due to starvation because the Ukrainian agricultural structure wouldn't accept the commune system imposed by the Soviets.

The cold reality is we probably won't help Ukraine directly. Maybe through monetary and weapons support. Ukrainians will have to make up their mind what system they want. A western styled capitalistic democracy or a Russian inspired crony capitalistic system with autocratic bent.

In all likelihood, the best we can do is try and support folks who do not want to be under the yoke of the Russian oligarchs and Putin. We did the same in Afghanistan in the 1980s. I'd remind folks that that wound up giving rise to islamic militants that still plague Russia today and culminating in the 9/11 attacks and Boston bombers on US soil.

[Midnight Writer]

11. Plenty of economic options, especially with a leader who can enlist strong allies.

Biden knows where the levers are and he knows how to use them.

[Voltaire2]

9. No realistic military options.

[Firestorm49]

7. I think that world wide pressure, not only from us, but from Germany, Great Britain

and other European nations aided in his decision. I think he was just testing the new waters.

[2naSalit]

8. I think...

That Biden has very quickly re-established the NATO alliances and pooty has seen he is in check at the moment.

[Mysterian]

10. Pooty knows NATO would kick his butt

and end his tyrannical reign.

[mitch96]

12. Rootin tootin putin's line in the sand just move back a bit...

The russian economy is about as big as Italy from what I've read and all they have going for them is oil and gas.. putin is walking a fine economic line and it does not look good with all this talk about his corruption.. YMMV
m

[11 Bravo]

13. Vlad doesn't have anything to hold over Joe's head.

No hooker piss tapes, no shady business deals, nothing!