Putin’s bound to retaliate. But will an end to the conflict, which cannot be perceived by the world as even a partially successful campaign for Moscow, translate into a weakened, politically vulnerable Putin? The prognostications range over a wide spectrum.
Putin is already seen as a pariah internationally, which doesn’t mean he’s lost any overbearing sense of contempt for the West. But the “we must avoid humiliating Putin”, is a cautionary warning that has significant resonance among European politicians. The most audible proponent has been French President Emmanuel Macron who stated this to the media in June. His reasoning? The fighting will eventually cease and a diplomatic solution will be available only if Putin is treated as a competent, reasonable party to a possible agreement.
This conventional wisdom also stresses that Putin must not be humiliated so as to keep him from doing something dangerously insane. Many say it’s vital that a self-confident, proud Putin be invited to the negotiation table because a disgraced adversary will not co-operate in any meaningful way.
Other observers insist that Macron got it wrong. Humiliation is not about shaming Putin. It’s about achieving real peace and the only path to this is a total defeat of the Russian military, a dismantling of the Putin regime so that a significant part of the Russian population - Putin supporters - will abandon their delusions.
Become a subscriber to continue reading!
Every week we bring you news from the community and exclusive columns. We're relying on your support to keep going and invite you to subscribe.
Starting from $2.30 per week.
