Russia's War Against Ukraine
OP-ED
John R. Bolton: Pushing back against Putin
The beach is deserted near the village of Shirokine, some 23 kms east from Mariupol, on September 6, 2014, a day after the signing of a 12-point pact backed by both Kiev and Moscow to end a conflict, which triggered the most serious crisis between Russia and the West since the Cold War. Ukraine said on September 6 that the truce was largely holding in the war-battered east, despite fears it may ultimately fail to halt a pro-Russian insurgency still threatening to tear the country apart. AFP PHOTO/ANATOLII BOIKO
Vladimir Putin’s efforts to establish hegemony over Ukraine may now have reached a decisive point both for the balance of power in Central and Eastern Europe and for the NATO alliance. Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko warned on August 30 that Russia’s invasion of his country and extensive aid to pro-Moscow separatists could soon “reach the point of no return,” becoming a generalized conflict. German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that “the situation is increasingly getting out of control.”
