CBC has an interesting analysis on NATOs current inability to dissuade Russia from acting aggressively.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ukraine...utin-1.2589288
Quote:
We've now heard from the supreme commander of NATO in Europe, Gen. Philip Breedlove, that the 150,000 Russian combat troops on Ukraine's eastern border are "very, very sizable and very, very ready." NATO on the other hand is "unwilling, unable and unready," at least if you go by some of its vocal military critics in recent years.
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From a military standpoint, the Ukraine crisis hits Europe at a time when its European members have slashed $45 billion from their militaries in recent years (the equivalent of the entire German defence budget).
Those cuts have left the U.S. to carry 75 per cent of the NATO burden, and they are coming at a time when Washington has been showing much less interest in European security, as it "pivots" its military strategy to the Pacific.
By contrast, Russian military spending has surged 92 per cent in just four years and will rise by 18 per cent this year, according to the authoritative Janes Defence Weekly military publications and Russian state figures.
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Another wrinkle here is that Europe has grown critically reliant on Russian energy supplies. And clearly a formula must be found to reduce Ukraine's and probably central Europe's dependence on Russian energy.
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It's for all these reasons combined that I truly doubt that Russia's actions are based on a fear of the West, rather than just seeing an opportunity to make the West fear them. They have never been so secure and now would be the wrong time to rock the boat if they were actually afraid that the NATO could actually do something about it.