Cracks in Western Resolve on Russia

"French President Emmanuel Macron scrambled Sunday to stop a Russian invasion of Ukraine by arranging a possible summit between President Biden and Vladimir Putin. It's hard to see what the Russian will accept beyond concessions that would compromise NATO's security, and meanwhile Italy is already blinking on sanctions.

U.S. officials at the weekend Munich Security Conference kept insisting how unified the trans-Atlantic alliance is in the face of Russian aggression. It's almost as if they are trying to convince themselves as much as Mr. Putin, since they know the cracks that exist below the surface claims of resolve and unity.

"We are discussing sanctions with the EU and in the course of these discussions we have made our position known, that they should be concentrated on narrow sectors without including energy," Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said Friday. This kind of pre-emptive surrender is exactly why Mr. Putin figures the price of an invasion would be lower than advertised.

Italy imports some 90% of its gas and is one of Moscow's biggest clients on the Continent. The Italian leader doesn't want his legacy as a national unity Prime Minister tarnished by an energy crisis.

Asked over the weekend whether Brussels would impose sanctions on Russia's Gazprom, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen responded that "everything is on the table." She added that Europe could "bring the necessary gas to Italy so that Italy is also on the safe side."

Energy isn't the only concern, and Rome isn't the only European capital that may waver on sanctions. Germany's reluctance is well-established, and Hungary is afraid too. Banning Russia from the Swift financial clearing system has already been ruled out as it could imperil tens of billions of dollars in payments to Russian creditors in Austria, France and the Netherlands.

As for a Biden-Putin summit, the Russian leader is in control of events as his forces are poised for a blitzkrieg. He wants to extort concessions that will make Kyiv subordinate to the Kremlin and weaken NATO's defenses. On Monday the Kremlin cast doubt on plans for a summit, as it continues its information operations claiming Ukrainian aggression. On Monday Mr. Putin formally recognized Ukraine's two breakaway regions as independent states -- a potential excuse for an invasion.

The West's weakness was exposed in Munich in remarks by Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky that should haunt Europe. "We don't need your sanctions after the bombardment will happen and after our country will be fired at, or after we will have no borders and after we will have no economy or part of our country will be occupied," Mr. Zelensky said. "Why would we need those sanctions then?"

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken replied that as soon as sanctions are used they cease to be a deterrent, even as he and Mr. Biden say an invasion is all but inevitable." [1]

 The only Landsbergiai are not afraid of anything. They are already standing in barrels with crap of sanctions against the East harmful to Lithuania. The poor lack air, but what will you not do for the sake of world fame ...

1.  Cracks in Western Resolve on Russia
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 22 Feb 2022: A.16.