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Putin’s Early Signs of an Aggressor
In a previous article, titled “Putin’s 1st Red Flag: The Five Day War,” I argue that Putin’s war in Georgia in 2008 was Putin showing us his hand. It was at this point, and at a conference in Germany in 2007, that Putin revealed his illiberalism.
I stand by those words. But there were a series of actions leading up to 2008 that could have also showcased how much he would do in order to gain power and popularity.
It’s easy to look back on the events that led up to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. But it’s also important. By doing this, we might learn from our mistakes. And that’s all we can do now.
The Bombings in Moscow
Looking back, Putin showed a lot of signs of an aggressor.
It started in 1999 when bombings in Moscow were blamed on Chechnyan rebels which provoked Putin’s launch of a horrific bomb raid on the Chechen capital, Grozny, killing tens of thousands of civilians.
This act of war only solidified Putin’s popularity ratings with the Russian people — curiously enough — for reasons that are above this post. We now know that these bombs in Moscow were planted by the FSB (present-day KGB), which Putin arguably put in motion.
We could parallel this event and the popularity that it garnered for Putin, with…
