Biden Doesn't Understand Putin's Plan: Humiliate, Not Negotiate

Biden comments on the Ukraine-Russia crisis during an event in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on February 18, 2022, in Washington, DC. (Getty Images)

The Ukraine crisis has entered a phase of maximum danger. The coming weeks will serve as a foreign-policy test of the Biden administration rivaled only by the August withdrawal from Afghanistan. If it is to emerge successful, the White House must embrace two simple but essential truths of Russia policy: Putin is in conflict with us, and he only respects strength, writes Peter Rough in New York Post.

How Effective Are Sanctions in Stopping Putin’s Assault on Ukraine?

Russian President Vladimir Putin summons a meeting of Russia's Security Council at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia on February 21, 2022. (Getty Images)

Vladimir Putin’s renewed assault on Ukraine’s sovereignty has intensified calls for democratic governments to target Russian oligarchs. While financial pressure won’t stop Putin in the short term, it’s vital to winning the long war against Russian revanchism, writes Nate Sibley in National Review. The U.S. and its allies can eventually put his regime in danger by crippling Russia’s economy and pursuing a maximum-pressure campaign against the Russian elites who prop Putin up.

🎙Counterbalance | Can Ukraine "Not Lose" Against a Russian Invasion?

Listen to Hudson Senior Fellow Bryan Clark discuss Putin’s Ukraine strategy and what the U.S. can learn from the Russian military’s force structure with Marshall Kosloff and Mike Doran.

What Putin Has Already Gained From Biden

Russian President Vladimir Putin greets U.S. President Joe Biden during the U.S.-Russia Summit 2021 at the La Grange Villa near the Geneva Lake, on June 16, 2021 in Geneva, Switzerland. (Getty Images)

For weeks, President Biden has been advertising that while the United States is providing supplies and logistical support, he would not send U.S. servicemen to fight Russia in Ukraine.” Spelling that out was a gift to Mr. Putin, Claudia Rosett argues in The New York Sun.

Virtual Event | Turkey's Role in the Ukraine Crisis

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (R) attend a press conference following their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, on February 3, 2020. (Getty Images)

Turkey has conducted a delicate balancing act in its relations with Russia. While Ankara has emerged in recent years as a staunch supporter of Ukraine, it has also sought to compartmentalize its differences with Moscow. Mike Doran joined experts Svante Cornell, Rich Outzen, and Sinan Ülgen to examine whether fears of Russian expansionism will push Turkey to strengthen its ties with Ukraine.

BEFORE YOU GO...

Don't miss Hudson’s special ongoing analyses of the Ukraine crisis, including our most recent newsletter examining the potential role of the Black Sea in Russia’s invasion strategy and five scenarios to watch for in Ukraine.