Russia Is Not Nazi Germany

Russia Is Not Nazi Germany

Apr 02, 2014 03:00 am | Chase Carter

Chase Carter

Americans hate to see Russia win, but much to our chagrin, Russia has been winning quite a bit lately. From Russian leadership on Syria’s chemical-weapons negotiations, to the Sochi Olympics, to Russia’s expansion into Crimea, Vladimir Putin’s triumphs are piling up. Idealists and liberals are incensed that Putin thumbs his nose at international norms, while hawks would have you believe he threatens the entire American-led global security system. But as US policymakers squirm with discomfort over Russian aggression in Ukraine, perhaps we should question whether Moscow’s latest victory really threatens American interests at all.
In recent weeks, editorials have been full of “I-told-you-so” attitude and alarmism, citing American “weakness” and falling NATO budgets as a cause for Putin’s actions. Some have even gone so far as to make the comparison to the appeasement of Hitler at Munich. Of course the use of military coercion to redraw borders in Europe should give us pause. But there are few substantive parallels to draw between the expansionist Third Reich and Putin’s Russia. The conditions leading to these crises and the gravity of their consequences are completely different. The distinction is important, because the lens through which we view Crimea will greatly influence policy prescriptions.
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