In a blatant display of chest pounding, Vladimir Putin threatened the U.S. and our allies with his announcement of “invincible” nuclear missiles and other technology. With an upcoming “democratic election” in Russia later this month, Putin is convincing his voters that under his guidance, Russia is the world’s greatest nuclear power. If his goal is to intimidate President Trump and the American people, he is deceiving himself. Obama capitulated to Putin on every potential area of conflict including the sale of 20% of our uranium supply to a Russian proxy. President Trump, on the other hand, is pouring money into our military and deploying Patriot missile defense systems in several allied nations. Putin’s remarks were obviously made to make our allies feel less secure that the Patriots could stop incoming Russian nukes. Putin also boasted about developing “cruise” missiles (which we have used for over a decade) and an underwater drone capable of launching a nuclear weapon. Obviously Putin is relying on his nuclear arsenal for his chief deterrent as conventional hardware is lacking. As we have seen in Syria, Russian mercenaries were no match for our forces and even Turkey has shown the ability to shoot down a Russian aircraft. I grew up with the belief that those who talked the loudest and the toughest were often unable to back up such talk. I’m not asking for a fight with Russia, but we now have someone in the White House who will not cower to Putin’s tough talk. President Trump has enough experience in the business world to know bluster when he hears it.
I can only surmise that Putin’s speech was purely political, meant to win over any doubters to his presidency. Since opponents are either jailed or assassinated, I don’t believe there is a reasonable fear for an election loss. The defeats within his presidency, such as economic setbacks and battlefield failures in Syria, are not shared with the Russian public. Instead of seeking better relations with America, Putin is returning to the Cold War era of mutually assured nuclear annihilation. Such bold talk doesn’t suggest he will reign in North Korea’s nuclear program either. Those who still believe that climate change is the greatest threat to humanity are living in a fantasy world!
