it isn't his position as an influencer that is important though - its his position as a supplier (almost a monopoly supplier) that gives him the opportunity to shape opinions
all this "western side of things" is a bit odd too. if by some act of God both sides announced a ceasefire tomorrow morning and it held, we'd see the benefit pretty quickly wouldn't we?
I would love to see an end to all of this killing but I agree with the position that if Putin is not defeated, even if he has a small win then this will open the floodgates to autocracies and dictator led oppression and imperialism globally.
If Putin is not stopped Taiwan will be next. Any fight for freedom in Iran will be brutally annihilated. South Korea will face an emboldened North Korea and all of Europe will be under threat. Africa would face a bleak future.
In 2014 you may have been saying the same about Putins invassion and annexing of Crimea. If this latest imperialistic conquest is allowed all of Ukraine will be next to fall.
If Putin wins his handiwork in Europe and America will continue and the US will get another Trump who might actually pull out of Nato. The EU will fracture and Russia will push all the way to Berlin if allowed.
Appeasing an imperialist dictator does not work.
The world will never be quite the same again but we need to unpick the sabotage that we have allowed Putin to sow globally if we want are children and their children to live free lives.
