If you're a senior Russian foreign-policy pundit, how close can you get to saying the war was a mistake? This close (and not a centimeter further, friends!):
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Stephen Sestanovich
@SSestanovich
Columbia U. prof, CFR sr fellow, USG survivor, author of Maximalist: America in the World from Truman to Obama. (And hey, no liking: just retweet!)
Joined November 2013
Stephen Sestanovich’s Tweets
Start with everything the Beatles copied from somebody else: “Twist and Shout,” “You Really Got a Hold on Me,” etc.
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What's a cover song that's better than the original?
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Caspar Weinberger—remember him?—had a phrase for what you have in mind: “horizontal escalation.”
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A naïve question. Is it “escalation” of the war against Ukraine if say the US decides to “take out” the Iranian factories producing Shahed drones?
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Read this. (Find yourself wondering how many palms the Russians greased to close the deal?)
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Wait, you’re saying Putin wasn’t rooting for the cheaters?
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Folks like to complain that the World Series isn’t global enough, but if that means Kremlin propagandists don’t bother choosing sides, I think all sports should follow the MLB’s model.
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Exactly. (Unnerving thing is, Marx’s joke was about Napoleon III, who hung on for almost 20 more years—these farces can last!)
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The Trump digital cards reminds of nothing so much as the line that history first appears as tragedy, then as farce.
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Hitting his stride yet?
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As of today, it's been exactly a month since Trump announced his latest candidacy for President.
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Let’s watch the show tomorrow night too—this is interesting.
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Russian rapper Ptaha says on Russian TV that people have no idea why Russia is at war with Ukraine.
He adds that Wagner's mercenaries are fighting because they earn money that way (their salaries really are large).
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Denazification is not for the faint of heart.
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A Russian tank in what remains of the town of Maryinka. Just look at what Russia is turning Ukraine into
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Putin in his Garbo phase: the guy wants to be alone…
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#Putin will not do press conference, address Federal Assembly or host New Year's reception.
New evidence of his desire for self-isolation: Kremlin spox says Putin will forgo his New Year's Eve hockey match, in which others let him score lots of goals.
#COVID concern in #Russia?
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Exactly—target away, Dmitry!
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Kremlin spox Peskov says that, if US provides #Patriot air defense system to #Ukraine, #Russia's military would target it.
So? Russian military has been targeting US-provided HIMARS vehicles for 5 months with little to show for it.
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Great demonstration of how the lack of case endings in English can obscure meaning…
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Russia sent 13 drones in the morning to attack Kyiv. All 13 shot down our air defense forces! Great job!
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When Putin begs for mercy and grovels for forgiveness, please call me.
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When putin begs for mercy and grovels for forgiveness, do not forget the crimes he committed.
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Putin presumably asked Peskov, any chance any of these events will make me look good, spare me embarrassment? Looks like Peskov gave him an honest answer…
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Putin will skip his year-end press conference this year, for the first time since 2005. It's also unclear whether he might address the Federal Assembly, or even host his annual "hotline" for speaking with ordinary Russians. Peskov puts off clarifications.
meduza.io/en/news/2022/1
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LBJ used to complain about Lady Bird wearing “muley” colors—now we know the colors he really liked!
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With apologies for another plumbing metaphor, Lavrov seems to know he’s circling the drain…
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Replying to @SSestanovich
But some in the West are missing that cesspool-centered diplomacy.
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Surprising that the military lacked the oomph to stick with the mandate—so much for “thank you for your service!”
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So the Swedes were right to join NATO!
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Once a fearsome diplomat, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is now complaining about gender-neutral toilets in Sweden
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If any of this were true, wouldn’t former president Petro Poroshenko, the guy Zelensky beat in the 2019 election, say so? When I interviewed him in an on-the-record meeting in DC 2 weeks ago, he was full of praise for Zelensky.
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Tucker Carlson: "Zelensky is far closer to Lenin than to George Washington. He is a dictator...A dangerous authoritarian who has $100 billion in U.S. tax dollars to erect a one-party police state in Ukraine."
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Very sad but very true.
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If Sergey Markov is praising your actions, maybe you should be rethinking those actions.
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“You can’t just take people from the street—they could ask anything!”
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Remember when Putin met with “mothers of the mobilized” to hear their opinions on the war? Turns out, only three of them have sons who have been drafted, and many are members of Putin’s party or employees of state-funded organizations. meduza.io/en/feature/202
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5’7” on a really good day…
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You are mistaken. The 5' 7 "man" trying to drag the world into WWIII was Time Person Of The Year in 2007. twitter.com/EndWokeness/st…
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Not quite the same as saying they’re actually good…
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Thought: rutabagas are an under-appreciated and underutilized gift to mankind.
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ALT
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What about this possible factor—alarm in his own national security establishment?
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Kremlin has notably toned down #nuclear rhetoric since October. Likely reflects several points:
- #Russia's threats had no effect on #Ukraine
- West held steady, promising "serious" consequences
- threats played badly with China and Global South
cisac.fsi.stanford.edu/news/kremlin-t
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“Irony” is too mild a term for how Putin feels about his unexpected role in Zelensky’s limelight moment. (Think ketchup-on-the-wall times a thousand!)
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Oh the irony for Putin, that he invaded Ukraine to make his mark on history, and that action results in Zelensky being named as Time Magazine’s person of the year. Putin is seen as a murdering, war criminal and genocidal maniac. And Zelensky as the hero.
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Whispered claim at the Japanese foreign ministry was that the first time he heard a senior Japanese official mention the Korean War, Trump interrupted: “There was a war in Korea?”
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Well, remember that John Kelly said that Trump didn't know what happened at Pearl Harbor. Maybe Spicer gave the president the pre-trip brief. twitter.com/pptsapper/stat…
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An utterly amazing list—the entire universe of honest journalists in Russia. Any chance Latvia will reconsider? It really should—this is way too important.
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We at @meduzaproject disagree with Latvian national media authority's decision to strip @tvrain of their license. Fully acknowledging Russia's role in this war, we don't see how this can help restore either Latvia's or Ukraine's security. Our statement: meduza.io/en/feature/202
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"Putin, who started the war. TV Rain, which tells the truth about Putin and the war. Stripping TV Rain of its license only helps Putin," Kira Yarmysh, press secretary to Alexei Navalny.Reporters Without Borders: "serious blow to freedom of information"
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Hard to top Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts.
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What SONG tells a GREAT STORY?
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And Ike treated him that way too!
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When President Eisenhower gives a TV speech at (then little-known) Resolute desk in White House “Broadcast Room” on ground floor, 1954, he is watched by Richard Nixon, who looks here more like waiting butler than Vice President:
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Isn’t the Macron formula of offering security guarantees simply to get Russia to the table (“the same day,” the man says), um, ridiculous?
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I'm not optimistic about any discussions with Russia about a new security architecture. But that does not mean they aren't worth considering. danieldrezner.substack.com/p/emmanuel-mac
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A) Excellent thread. B) Not a good look.
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Let me tell you a few words about the so-called Ukrainian Orthodox Church allegedly banned by Zelenskyi this week 
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Maybe just the first former presidential candidate to do time?
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Michael Avenatti gets 14 years in prison for stealing millions of dollars from clients latimes.com/california/sto
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One of the biggest experts in Russia & USSR on , talking about new Western strategy towards Moscow. Fascinating!
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To prevail in Ukraine, Western governments should focus on the one vulnerability they have not bothered to exploit: Putin’s absurd claim that Russia’s survival as a nation is at stake, argues .
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National nervous breakdown.
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Meanwhile in Russia: in all seriousness, pundits and experts on Russian state TV argue whether President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky is the Antichrist or just a small demon.
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In a new book, out TODAY, analyzes China's attempts to become a media, information, and influence superpower, seeking to shape the domestic politics, local media, and information environments around the world.
Order your copy ⬇️
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“Faulty “ is one word—but nutty, lunatic, fictionalized, preposterous are all better.
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SIWPS member @SSestanovich has a new piece in @ForeignPolicy titled, "It's Time to Debunk Putin's Existential Fallacy." He discusses the importance of exposing Putin' faulty argument for the war in Ukraine. Read it here: bit.ly/3FaB1F6
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One key to securing peace in Ukraine will be exposing the faulty argument for the war’s necessity, argues in .
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