“Exactly right. The Black Sea situation has developed into a massive disinformation campaign reminiscent of the Cold War. Only this time, it is the West on the offensive”
Absolute BS.
Really? Putin has been playing defense since the the February coup overthrew the elected Ukrainian government that had been friendly toward Moscow. Make no mistake about it, that coup was fomented and aided by the United States and our NATO allies with the intent of installing a West-friendly government in Kiev that would join NATO. Putin could not allow that to happen, as Russia's strategic naval and air bases in the Crimean peninsula are vital to its southern defense via the Black Sea -- and that's why Moscow immediately occupied Crimea to prevent its bases from falling into NATO's hands.
NATO tried a similar land grab six years ago in Georgia, and Russia thwarted us by invading Georgia and ensuring a friendlier government in Tbilisi. What many in the West fail to accept is that control of the Black Sea is vital to Russia's strategic defense -- which means Russia must and will do whatever it takes to retain its control. This is not unlike our own longstanding Monroe Doctrine, which declares that any colonization or interference in our hemisphere by a European power is viewed as aggression against the United States. NATO's expansion to Russia's borders is similar to one of our distant enemies signing treaties and basing its forces in Mexico, Quebec and British Columbia.
A little background into NATO's treachery... At the time of Germany's reunification in the early 1990s, NATO promised Russia that it would not expand eastward if Moscow withdrew its troops from former Soviet bloc countries. Then, in two batches in 1998 and 2004, NATO admitted 12 new Central and Eastern European members - right up to the borders of Russia itself. The Atlantic alliance that was founded to defend against Soviet invasion had morphed into an offensive alliance hell-bent on encircling and dominating Russia itself. Moscow pushed back when NATO began courting Black Sea nations, beginning with its Georgian invasion in 2008. NATO's hand was caught in the cookie jar in Tbilisi, just as it is now exposed in Kiev.
Frankly, I don't give a damn. I have nothing against any party in this fight, as it is none of my business. Likewise it is no business of the United States; contrary to all the War Party rhetoric, our security is not threatened one iota by the events along the Black Sea. Unless we choose to stick our nose where it doesn't belong, and we get bitten.