Why the US Misunderstands Russia
Prof. Glenn Diesen with Judge Napolitano
I had the great privilege of speaking with Judge Napolitano about why the US misunderstands Russia. The US tends to conflate Russia with the Soviet Union and thus assumes that conflicts derive from Moscow’s pursuit of security through dominance and empire.
In reality, our conflicts with Russia derive from the failure to establish a mutually acceptable post-Cold War political settlement. We initially had agreements for an inclusive pan-European security architecture based on indivisible security, but this was abandoned in favour of hegemony through NATO expansionism. Many American leaders, such as George Kennan and US Secretary of Defense William Perry, therefore recognised in the 1990s that NATO expansion would betray and undermine the post-Cold War peace. Bloc politics was revived and deeply divided societies in the shared neighbourhood between NATO and Russia became pieces on a chessboard. Pulling Ukraine into NATO’s orbit was the ultimate red line for Moscow as it is considered to be an existential threat to Russia. If we can recognise the security concerns of our adversaries, then we can mitigate the security competition and establish peace.
nothing good ever came out of a country or bloc of countries conspire to dominate the world. There is no room to accommodate others when you want to be the hegemon. similarly, the world cannot allow a hegemon to dictate.
First of all thank you very much Professor Diesen for your brave efforts to disseminate your lucid explanations about the Ukraine war for years.
I would like to underline an obvious nuance: every time that anybody talks about the US in geopolitics is NOT talking about the people of the US but about some neocon politicians, their puppet masters and all their accomplices (mainly mainstream media and corrupt officials). To my eyes 99% of the US people are NOT accountable of the monstrous crimes of US politicians.
And I would also like to remind that the FINAL GOAL of these US politicians is to dismember Russia to be able to steal all its wealth (petrol, gas, rare minerals...) and to eliminate any restriction, any counter power to the arrogance of US politicians.