, Columnist
Vladimir Putin Is Playing With Fire in Ukraine
The Russian leader has fallen into the aging autocrat’s trap, making a gamble he cannot win.
A dark moment.
Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The worst, it seems, has now happened in Ukraine. In a pre-dawn televised address, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced he had ordered an operation aimed at demilitarizing Ukraine. He blamed the U.S. for crossing “red lines.” Kyiv, he said, would be responsible for any bloodshed. Reports of explosions and gunfire in cities across the country began immediately.
It’s a dark moment for Russia, for Ukraine, for Europe — the darkest in Putin’s two decades at the helm. It is also a point of no return for Russia’s leader, and one with lasting consequences for the world.