I joined Poland’s TVP World on Monday to preview the week in global politics, from Egypt’s pseudo-elections for the authoritarian military rulers who seized power in 2013 to talks among the presidents of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania about border security and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The other guest is political analyst Stephane Włodarczyk.
Watch from 17:26:
There is a specific issue for the Baltic States of border security, as Russia tries to push refugees and migrants into Finland.
The broader issue is that we are at a critical moment for Europe over the question of continuing support for Ukraine against the Russian invasion.
It has been clear from autumn 2022 that Russia was not going to win on the battlefield. The question is whether Vladimir Putin will win politically by breaking the will of the international community to support Ukraine.
We also chat about the situation in the US, as Volodymyr Zelenskiy visits Washington and Republicans block aid to Kyiv, and in Europe with Hungary’s Viktor Orbán trying to sabotage assistance from the European Union.
Egypt Psuedo-election! Did this author even make any sort of investigation about the people choice and the polls in Egypt to be certain that their presidential elections are false?
He is loosing his credibility as an author.
[Editor’s Comment: A good example of the pro-Kremlin line trying to break support for Ukraine’s resistance of Vladimir Putin’s invasion….]
Is Orban “outrageous” or sensible? He’s aware of a political crisis brewing in Ukraine — the criticisms of Zelensky coming from Kiev’s mayor; he’s aware of Zelensky’s rift with Zaluzhny, and the fear of a public backlash if a general mobilisation is called. He knows the latest polls in the US indicate the American public’s unwillingness to send more aid to Ukraine (47% if recall correctly). Orban also has accurate information on Ukraine’s losses on the battlefield.
The panelists think Orban is an extremist, but he’s basing his position on the facts. Zelensky’s trip to Washington may be the one in which he is told that he must attempt to negotiate with Moscow and freeze the conflict. Will Russia negotiate with what it considers a puppet government? Probably not. Moscow will want to negotiate with Washington only because it doesn’t take the Europeans and the government in Kiev seriously. Orban is aware of all of this, and that is why he is an outlier.