Ukraine crosses Putin's red lines again, but he just blinks – The Washington Post

Ukraine's incursion through Russia's defences during the first major foreign invasion since World War II has exposed the Kremlin's seemingly imaginary red lines and revealed a passive and muted response from Russian ruler Vladimir Putin.

Source: The Washington Post

Quote: "Kyiv's lightning incursion into Kursk in western Russia this month slashed through the reddest line of all – a direct ground assault on Russia – yet Putin's response has so far been strikingly passive and muted, in sharp contrast to his rhetoric earlier in the war.

On day one of the invasion in February 2022, Putin warned that any country that stood in Russia's way would face consequences 'such as you have never seen in your entire history', a threat that seemed directed at countries that might arm Ukraine.

If Russia's territorial integrity were threatened, 'we will certainly use all the means at our disposal to protect Russia and our people. It’s not a bluff,' he said a few months later in September. 'The citizens of Russia can be sure that the territorial integrity of our Motherland, our independence and freedom will be ensured – I emphasise this again – with all the means at our disposal,' making a clear reference to Russia’s nuclear weapons.

But Ukraine's punch through Russian defences in the first foreign invasion since World War II exposed Russia’s military flaws and laid bare Moscow's apparently illusory red lines."

Details: Some in the West are now questioning Washington's strategy towards Ukraine: "a slow, calibrated supply of weapons to Ukraine to avoid escalating tensions with Russia that critics argue has dashed Kyiv's chances of driving Russia out and resulted in a grinding war of attrition with massive casualties".

It is noted that Ukraine has repeatedly crossed Moscow's imaginary "red lines". In particular, the sinking of the Russian flagship Moskva, the explosion on the Crimean Bridge in 2022, drone attacks on the Kremlin and Moscow in 2023, the murder of propagandists on Russian territory and attacks on Russian strategic air bases.

In addition, the Western equipment used by Ukrainian forces was also once a "red line".

Many analysts believe that the US policy on military assistance to Ukraine should have been a shining example, but it remained timid.

An unnamed Russian academic, who spoke on condition of anonymity and has close ties to senior Moscow diplomats, said that the Russian leadership takes the use of US and Western weapons deep inside Russia "very seriously", but it is unclear whether a decision has been made on how to respond.

The Russian government is trying to downplay the significance of the Ukrainian incursion and the failure of its military leadership.

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