Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

9 hours ago

‘Reservoir Dogs’ and ‘Kill Bill’ Actor Michael Madsen Dies at 67

10 hours ago

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

10 hours ago

Trump’s Sweeping Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Wins Congressional Approval

11 hours ago

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

14 hours ago

US Supreme Court to Decide Legality of Transgender School Sports Bans

15 hours ago

Nvidia Set to Become the World’s Most Valuable Company in History

15 hours ago

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

15 hours ago
From the Right: Putin Will Never be Our Friend
Inside-Sources
By InsideSources.com
Published 8 years ago on
August 18, 2017

Share

U.S. should not Do Business with Russian ‘Czar’

 By Luke Coffey
InsideSources.com 

 

Should we really try to do business with Vladimir Putin? This is misguided, wishful and even dangerous thinking. 

 

Since coming to power in 1999, the Russian president has done nothing to indicate that he would be a trustworthy partner to America. At almost every opportunity, he has pursued polices that undermine our national interests and those interests of our closest partners.

 

Putin’s behavior resembles that of the czars more than that of his Soviet predecessors. Everything this imperial leader does aims to maximize and secure his personal power.

 

This has not been good for Russia. His reign has sent  democracy in retreat; eroded basic freedoms (of speech, assembly and a free press); oppressed — and sometimes killed — minority groups and political opposition figures; and left the country’s economy in tatters. In sum, Putin presides over a thugocracy.

 

To distract his people from their many woes, he has pursued a dangerously aggressive and expansionist foreign policy. Along the way, he has undone the post-World War II world order and undermined America’s strategic interests in many parts of the world. 

 

Putin’s Motives on Display in Syria

 

Consider Syria. The United States and Russia share the same common interest in Syria in the same way a customer and a robber share the same common interests in a bank. Some argue that we need to work with Russia to fight trans-national terrorism, and that Syria is just the place to start. But that argument ignores the reality on the ground. 

 

The U.S. interest there, first and foremost, is to fight terrorism. But Russia’s main goal is to prop up Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his brutal regime. That’s because Russia’s only overseas naval base is located in Assad’s ethnically Alawite stronghold. As long as Assad, or someone like him, guarantees Moscow’s use of that base, Putin couldn’t care less if the rest of Syria burns. 

 

Or consider his nefarious activities in Europe. Russia invaded the Republic of Georgia in 2008 and continues to occupy, illegally, 20 percent of that country’s territory. When Moscow invaded, Georgian troops fighting alongside U.S. forces in Iraq had to return home to defend their homeland. At the time, Georgia had the second-largest troop presence in Iraq of all our allies. The invasion drained critical support from the allied war effort.

 

Six years later, Putin invaded Ukraine and illegally annexed the Crimean peninsula — the first time one European country used military force to annex part of another since the days of Hitler. Russia still fuels a separatist conflict in the eastern part of Ukraine, creating strife for yet another. 

Russia’s Goal is Destabilizing Europe

 

Russia has worked to sow anxiety and instability throughout most of the rest of Europe, as well. It has weaponized its natural gas exports to Europe, turning off the tap when countries dare go against its wishes. It has conducted cyber-attacks against NATO member Estonia and NATO partners Georgia and Ukraine and has conducted military exercises to simulate a nuclear strike against NATO member Poland.   

 

Russia is undermining America’s security and interests in other regions of the globe, too. It is widely reported to be providing weapons and training to the Taliban in Afghanistan. It consistently provides diplomatic cover for Iran and its nuclear program and abets Tehran’s destabilizing actions across the Middle East. And for years Moscow has been beavering away, building military facilities in the previously unmilitarized Arctic region.

 

Clearly, Putin’s foreign policy is calculated to build himself up at home by consistently challenging and threatening U.S. interests around the globe.

 

As long as he remains in power, nobody should expect Russia to “play nice” with the United States, much less become a credible partner.

 

In dealing with Putin, the United States needs to show resolve, pushing back when pushed. Moreover, Washington must show that it’s capable of pushing back hard — by rebuilding and modernizing our armed forces. Finally, and most important, America must stick with its friends — especially those in NATO and those countries that aspire to someday join. 

 

Vladimir Putin respects three things: strength, clarity and consistency. President Obama displayed none of these traits. He weakened America’s foreign policy hand by downsizing the military and cutting back our military presence in Europe. Meanwhile, his rebuffed attempt to “make nice” with Moscow (the so-called “Russian Reset”) confused and alarmed many of our allies living in Russia’s shadow.

 

Putin will never be a friend. The sooner we understand this, the safer America and its allies will be. 

 

ABOUT THE WRITER

Luke Coffey is director of The Heritage Foundation’s Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies. He wrote this for InsideSources.com.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Valadao, Costa Spar on What Passage of Trump’s Bill Means for Medicaid Recipients

DON'T MISS

US Military Says 200 Marines Being Sent to Support ICE in Florida

DON'T MISS

Boeing Secures $2.8 Billion US Satellite Contract

DON'T MISS

Kaweah Health Names Its New Chief Nurse. She’s From Texas

DON'T MISS

Clovis Police Say At-Risk Missing Woman Found Dead in Mariposa County

DON'T MISS

Over 100 Former Senior Officials Warn Against Planned Staff Cuts at US State Department

DON'T MISS

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

DON'T MISS

‘Reservoir Dogs’ and ‘Kill Bill’ Actor Michael Madsen Dies at 67

DON'T MISS

Fresno Police Recover Some of the $40,000 in Fireworks Stolen From Bullard High Team

DON'T MISS

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

UP NEXT

US Military Says 200 Marines Being Sent to Support ICE in Florida

UP NEXT

Boeing Secures $2.8 Billion US Satellite Contract

UP NEXT

Kaweah Health Names Its New Chief Nurse. She’s From Texas

UP NEXT

Clovis Police Say At-Risk Missing Woman Found Dead in Mariposa County

UP NEXT

Over 100 Former Senior Officials Warn Against Planned Staff Cuts at US State Department

UP NEXT

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

UP NEXT

‘Reservoir Dogs’ and ‘Kill Bill’ Actor Michael Madsen Dies at 67

UP NEXT

Fresno Police Recover Some of the $40,000 in Fireworks Stolen From Bullard High Team

UP NEXT

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

UP NEXT

Trump to Sign Bill on Friday at 5 p.m., White House Says

Valadao, Costa Spar on What Passage of Trump’s Bill Means for Medicaid Recipients

8 hours ago

US Military Says 200 Marines Being Sent to Support ICE in Florida

8 hours ago

Boeing Secures $2.8 Billion US Satellite Contract

8 hours ago

Kaweah Health Names Its New Chief Nurse. She’s From Texas

8 hours ago

Clovis Police Say At-Risk Missing Woman Found Dead in Mariposa County

8 hours ago

Over 100 Former Senior Officials Warn Against Planned Staff Cuts at US State Department

9 hours ago

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

9 hours ago

‘Reservoir Dogs’ and ‘Kill Bill’ Actor Michael Madsen Dies at 67

10 hours ago

Fresno Police Recover Some of the $40,000 in Fireworks Stolen From Bullard High Team

10 hours ago

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

10 hours ago

Fresno Crash Involving Unlicensed Teen Driver Sends Woman to Hospital

A two-vehicle collision sent a woman driving one of the vehicles to the hospital with a head injury Thursday afternoon in Fresno. Fresno pol...

6 hours ago

A crash causes a traffic jam in northwest Fresno on Thursday, July 3, 2025. (GV Wire/Paul Marshall)
6 hours ago

Fresno Crash Involving Unlicensed Teen Driver Sends Woman to Hospital

The Madre Fire near New Cuyama has burned 52,593 acres with 5% containment, prompting evacuation orders in several San Luis Obispo County zones as of Thursday, July 3, 2025, afternoon. (CalFire)
7 hours ago

Madre Fire Burns More Than 52,000 Acres in San Luis Obispo County

7 hours ago

RIP John Harris: Fresno County Rancher, Racehorse Breeder Was a Visionary Leader Who Leaves a ‘Profound Legacy’

8 hours ago

Valadao, Costa Spar on What Passage of Trump’s Bill Means for Medicaid Recipients

An ICE agent talks with migrants about their scheduled appointments with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Father’s Day, to learn about their immigration status, in Chicago, Illinois., U.S., June 15, 2025. (Reuters File)
8 hours ago

US Military Says 200 Marines Being Sent to Support ICE in Florida

Boeing logo and miniature satellite model are seen in this illustration taken, March 10, 2025. (Reuters File)
8 hours ago

Boeing Secures $2.8 Billion US Satellite Contract

8 hours ago

Kaweah Health Names Its New Chief Nurse. She’s From Texas

Clovis Police are searching for Pathmani Goonawardena, 82, who went missing nearly three weeks ago and was last seen driving a white Volvo near Copper and Auberry, possibly en route to Coarsegold. (CHP)
8 hours ago

Clovis Police Say At-Risk Missing Woman Found Dead in Mariposa County

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend