Press review of the Ukraine war: “Caesar mania” and memories of 1939

The comments of the international press are almost exclusively devastating for Russia. In the opinion columns, however, the consequences for the West and China are also analyzed. Understanding, on the other hand, comes from: Russia.

“Chained to China as junior partner”

The Vienna newspaper “The press” writes about Russia’s President Vladimir Putin: “The willingness to engage in ruthless brutality gives him an advantage that he coldly exploits. Putin has a clear path. The western world has nothing to counter it apart from words and sanctions. The West’s deterrence didn’t work. (. ..) Psychologizations are mostly an unhelpful means of political analysis.

In this case, however, the question arises as to whether Putin is suffering from distorted perceptions and an advanced stage of Caesarian delusion. Lies, war and intimidation – these are his methods. The international community must not let him get away with it. But it will, because there is no international community. The world is deeply divided. China will not stab its ally in Moscow in the back – and then chain it to itself as a junior partner. Putin has blocked the way to the West. He is now completely dependent on Beijing.”

“At a turning point in history”

In the Netherlands “the Volkskrant” states: “The consequences of the Russian invasion will not be overlooked. First of all for the population of Ukraine, where the first attacks indicate an imminent bloodbath. Second for Russia itself, whose citizens are paying the price for the inevitable heavy sanctions of the West And third, for the European Union, which needs to look in the mirror and blame itself for exploiting Russia’s military weakness and economic dependence.

There are important lessons to be learned from this – with significant implications, for example for the energy supply and the defense of Europe. In order to strengthen NATO, the European member states should significantly increase their contributions. With an aggressive neighbor to the east and an fickle ally to the west, Europe now stands at a turning point in history.”

“Putin never had to play by the same rules”

The Belgian “The Standard” states: “The Russian President has fooled countless top European politicians, devised one ruse after another and started his war at exactly the same time as the UN Security Council was holding an emergency meeting. A more cynical approach to the international legal order could hardly be imagined.

And yet it is all too easy to dismiss leaders like Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz as gullible fools. As the Chamberlains of the 21st Century. The harsh reality is that Putin has never had to play by the same rules as his Western opponents. A head of state who does not have to answer to his people, who jails his critics and has a powerful army at his disposal can afford to lie, violate peace agreements and use 200,000 soldiers against a neighboring country.”

“From Cynical Autocrat to Military Dictator”

“La Stampa” from Turin describes the transformation of the Russian President: “Vladimir Putin has developed from a cynical autocrat into a military dictator who is attacking not only Ukraine but all of Europe. We haven’t faced such a threat since 1939. The invasion, which spread across the country from Donetsk and Luhansk provinces in a matter of hours clearly shows – for those who still have doubts – Putin’s intentions.

The Russian President cares little about European security architecture, arms control or risk reduction. He cares little for assurances that Ukraine will not join NATO for decades. On all these points, the West, starting with US President Joe Biden, had offered the Kremlin a way out. The path of diplomacy was open and has been eagerly trodden in recent weeks by European capitals, notably Paris and Berlin. But Putin has revealed his cards first in words and now dramatically in deeds.”

“Most important consequence: strengthening NATO”

The people of London “time” looks at the North Atlantic Defense Alliance: “Ukraine is not a member of NATO and cannot invoke Article 5, which obliges all members to rush to the aid of a NATO country that is under attack. However, this does not prevent Ukraine’s neighboring countries from Even Germany, which has so far been reluctant to send arms, has admitted it underestimated the extent of Putin’s duplicity and aspirations.Berlin is now among those urging the toughest measures to stop the Russian state political and cause economic damage. (…)

If Putin believes that Ukraine is only the first step in extending Russia to its tsarist borders, including Finland, he must now be shown that NATO is as ready to reject him as it was to Stalin and his successors. The most important consequence of Putin’s cynical deceptions can only be the immediate strengthening of NATO.”

“The Beginning of the End of His Reign”

the “The New Zurich Times” demands: “Russia must be weakened and isolated as far as possible internationally – politically and economically. It is important to make the devastating consequences of Putin’s unacceptable actions clear to the Russian population and even more so to the business magnates and the rest of the Moscow elite. This includes a long-term policy of the West to reduce dependence on Russian raw materials, because the revenues from the export of oil and gas have made it possible for the Kremlin to expand its armed forces and turn it into a threat to all of Europe.

Economically, Russia is more dependent on the West than vice versa – and this dependence makes the Kremlin vulnerable. Isolated from the world and deprived of part of its revenues, this regime cannot survive. As bleak as the situation in Ukraine is at the moment, there is still hope that Putin’s plan will not work. His ruthless attack would not be the harbinger of triumph, but the beginning of the end of his reign.”

“Cold War Continuation”

the “New York Times” also recognizes a turning point: “What is now clear is that Putin has plunged Europe into the most dangerous conflict since World War II (…). He has started a continuation of the Cold War, a potentially more dangerous one because of his claims and demands offer no ground for negotiations and because Russia, with its nuclear arsenal, is capable of launching a massively destructive cyber war.(…) In his two televised addresses this week, (US President) Biden showed the determination and calm of a tried and tested leader and the Western alliance demonstrated a rare unity in the face of the Russian onslaught.The West is strongest when it stands together for its shared values ​​and against a common enemy.However difficult it may be, our pain is nothing compared to the torment of Ukraine’s people by an invading army.”

“China is the winner”

“Australia” believes that the leadership in Beijing in particular will benefit from the war: “In a way, China is the winner of this conflict because Putin will become more dependent on (China’s President) Xi. China will be Russia’s economic lifeline once sanctions take hold and a long-term occupation Ukraine is bleeding Russia dry. Just like North Korea, Beijing now has a second wandering ‘little brother’ who is constantly plotting terrible evils in secret. But China wants to own the world order, not destroy it like Putin. The two countries’ conflicting worldviews will become one for the other to get nervous about.”

“Collective West does not recognize genocide”

The pro-government Russian “Rossiyskaya Gazeta” defends the decision to attack Ukraine: “The collective West is not prepared to recognize the eight-year killing of civilians in the Donbass by Ukrainian nationalists as a war crime, nor as a genocide.

Moreover, representatives of the Euro-Atlantic world – who over the centuries have had a great deal of experience with the mass extermination of people for ethnic or other reasons (…) – still laugh at the very notion that the murder of Russians or Russian speakers people can be called genocide.”