Bret Stepens isn't my favorite Token Right Wingnut (not sure having a favorite such would mean about me) on the NYT op-ed circuit. But, alas, every now and again he shows he's reading these missives. I'll take my props where I find them.
Suppose for a moment that Putin never intended to conquer all of Ukraine: that, from the beginning, his real targets were the energy riches of Ukraine's east, which contain Europe's second-largest known reserves of natural gas (after Norway's).So, which is it? The storehouse of riches in the ground? Or the second edition of the Great Russian Empire? Well, who said it can't be both? Putin's still a young guy, by dictator for life standards, just 69. He's overrun Chechnya, Georgia, Belarus, and of course, Crimea. So, he nibbles at Russia's west-facing borders, going for the resources first. Turns out, Bubba was right. In due time, he gets to be Tsar.
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