• ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.ml
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    2 years ago

    Russia started a war in Ukraine. The west started the economic war with Russia in response to that. Then Russia retaliated against the west. Russia was perfectly fine trading with the west while fighting a war in Ukraine. What part of this are you struggling with specifically?

    • Sh3Rm4n@lemmy.ml
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      2 years ago

      Great. Finally a sane, almost friendly answer of yours. Very rare occasion.

      Russia was perfectly fine trading with the west while fighting a war in Ukraine.

      Yes of course, why wouldn’t Russia be fine? But you also have to acknowledge that Russia prepared for that economic war well before the current conflict. And even though EU might have started the economic war, Russia started the decrease of delivery of gas to pressure the EU.

      But of course it is mostly the EUs fault to so heavily rely on Russia gas in the first place. In hindsight the signals of the geopolitical shift Russia took where clear even before 2014 but the EU ignored them.

      • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.ml
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        2 years ago

        The original point was that EU started the economic war which is now destroying EU. This was not the fault of Russia. Glad you’ve finally managed to acknowledge that.

        • Sh3Rm4n@lemmy.ml
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          2 years ago

          But this is where we disagree. The EU sanctioned Russia which did exclude things like gas.

          It is very much Russias fault that those prices are going up now as it stopped the delivery of gas.

          But that is not to say that the EU could’ve known better.

          • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.ml
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            2 years ago

            It doesn’t matter what EU chose to sanction. EU started an economic war with Russia, and Russia responded. If you punch me in the face and I proceed to kick you in the balls, that’s not me starting the fight.

            • Sh3Rm4n@lemmy.ml
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              2 years ago

              Oh it does. And also it does matter because Russia started the war. The sanctions where the response.

              So Russia was the face puncher while Europe the ball kicker to stay in your analogy.

              • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.ml
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                2 years ago

                Sanctions were a poorly thought out response. Russia started a conflict in Ukraine, and Europe chose to participate in that conflict by sanctioning Russia. Once Europe became a party to the conflict, Europe can no longer complain that Russia is retaliating against Europe economically. This is a fight Europe chose and these are the consequences.

                • Sh3Rm4n@lemmy.ml
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                  2 years ago

                  Europe can no longer complain that Russia is retaliating against Europe economically.

                  But it can, the same as Russia can complain that NATO members are supporting Ukraine.

                  This is a fight Europe chose and these are the consequences.

                  True. But this fight was chosen in response to Russias agression. Diplomatic solutions before the war failed because of Russias maximalist claims.

                  • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.ml
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                    2 years ago

                    But it can, the same as Russia can complain that NATO members are supporting Ukraine.

                    It can complain all it likes, but the fact is that Europe chose to start an economic war with Russia and it is losing this war. Meanwhile, Russia is systematically destroying the Ukrainian army and NATO weaponry in Ukraine instead of complaining.

                    True. But this fight was chosen in response to Russias agression. Diplomatic solutions before the war failed because of Russias maximalist claims.

                    If I punch your friend in the face and you choose to stab yourself in the gut that’s a response. It’s just not a smart response. Meanwhile, Russia asked for very reasonable things such as Ukraine being neutral and implementing Minsk agreements which both Ukraine and NATO agreed to. If you think that’s Russia being maximalist then you have no clue.

    • PolandIsAStateOfMind@lemmy.ml
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      2 years ago

      Russia started a war in Ukraine.

      Wouldn’t that be rather continuation of the war in Donbass? Russia did invaded Ukraine and joined it, but the war was already ongoing for 8 years.

      • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.ml
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        2 years ago

        I’ve kind of given up on having any sort of nuance here. Most people in the west think that Russia just randomly invaded Ukraine because they’re evil orcs and there’s nothing you can say to change that. It’s easier to point out that their strategy is ultimately self destructive and hurts them more than it does Russia.

        • PolandIsAStateOfMind@lemmy.ml
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          2 years ago

          Maybe. It’s not even an nuance at this point. I just get downvoted for stating the dryest, most easily checkable fact, while in the other threads we see things like complete reality denial get pushed.

          I do think that it’s pretty important fact though. That the war was started by the maidan coup regime murdering people in Donbas who didn’t even wanted to join Russia or be independent at first, they just wanted to not be shock therapied, treated as the second class citizens or murdered like the people in Odessa.

          • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.ml
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            2 years ago

            Oh yeah I completely agree, I made a lengthy post that provides some context a little while back. I’m just kind of tired of having to repeat that over and over when people clearly have no interest to engage with reality.

            • Sh3Rm4n@lemmy.ml
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              2 years ago

              But what should this context tell us? At the very least this is in no way any justification for russia starting a war against the whole Ukraine.

              • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.ml
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                2 years ago

                At the very least it’s clear that there were plenty of off ramps that could have avoided the war. Russia tried to find diplomatic solutions for eight years while both the west and their puppet regime in Ukraine refused.

                Furthermore, the war is directly modelled on what NATO did in Yugoslavia where NATO recognized the independence of breakaway regions, then had them invite NATO for support on the pretext of genocide, and ran referendums for the regions to separate. Russia is just following the precedent established by the west here.

                • Sh3Rm4n@lemmy.ml
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                  2 years ago

                  Russia tried to find diplomatic solutions for eight years while both the west and their puppet regime in Ukraine refused.

                  Not only Russia tried that. The USA, France Germany and most importantly Ukraine tried it as well. No one wanted that war to start (well Russia apparently eventually chose to do so anyway)

                  Furthermore, the war is directly modelled on what NATO did in Yugoslavia

                  "directly? I’m pretty sure that this is not true even though those things do look familiar on the surface. This is definitely an argument Russia is using why they started the war. But one wrong doing of NATO does not in any way justify a wrongdoing of Russia.

                  • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.ml
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                    2 years ago

                    Not only Russia tried that. The USA, France Germany and most importantly Ukraine tried it as well. No one wanted that war to start (well Russia apparently eventually chose to do so anyway)

                    That is a lie. The west actively encouraged Ukraine to be belligerent. Ukraine failed to implement Minsk protocols for 8 years.

                    "directly? I’m pretty sure that this is not true even though those things do look familiar on the surface. This is definitely an argument Russia is using why they started the war. But one wrong doing of NATO does not in any way justify a wrongdoing of Russia.

                    Yes, directly. I’m going to guess that you have no clue regarding how NATO invaded Yugoslavia if you think these things are only similar on the surface. And this isn’t just one wrong. It’s been the continued policy of NATO to invade countries and encircle Russia. That’s the threat that Russia responded to. NATO expansion was the root cause of this war.