Who should be Trump's VP choice and why?

[hollodero]

(06-12-2024, 03:15 PM)Sociopathicsteelerfan Wrote: Got it.  I think it could literally be as simple as promising not to he Ukraine join NATO.  Withdrawal to pre-war borders and that's it.

Man, I so hope you're right, but I also am afraid you are not. I never thought that this war had much to do with fear of NATO or a possible NATO expansion in the first place really, and I don't think Putin is in any way inclined to just withdraw on the basis of such a promise. For starters, that's a tough sell for his own people at this point, who increasingly lose loved ones in this war too, not to mention economic loss. I sure can not look inside Putin's head, but imho, he thrives for a place in the history books by expanding the Russian empire and leading it to former glory, which just includes annexing Ukraine (and then some). I don't really think he is willing to settle for less.

(06-12-2024, 03:15 PM)Sociopathicsteelerfan Wrote: I don't think any ending that involves Russia being punished or to lose face is possible without escalating the conflict.  

Maybe not. The only 'good' solution probably would have to include Putin's fall or Putin's death. Maybe the war at some point can not be upheld economically, this hurts Russia immensely after all. Maybe some oligarchs revolt when it's clear that this war is just much ongoing suffering without victory or reward. The worse solution is to at least make his ambitions in Ukraine increasingly difficult and unrewarding, which sure puts Ukrainian people in a bad spot, but at least somewhat confines the whole conflict.