https://www.huffpost.com/entry/chris-christie-trump-putin-russia-ukraine_n_621d6cefe4b03d0c803d5bec
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) lambasted Donald Trump’s praise of the Russian invasion of Ukraine last week, saying history was watching despite the former president’s repeated comments about Vladimir Putin being a “genius” who had been “smart” about the ruthless assault.
“How can anyone with any understanding of the world call Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine ‘genius’ and ‘very savvy’ as we watch him unite the rest of the world against Russia in nearly an instant?” Christie asked Monday on Twitter. He went on to say that Putin has two choices now: an “unwinnable occupation of Ukraine” or a “humiliating retreat.”
The statement at the time was accurate.
ReplyDeleteLook, consider the first Lebanon War. Had Israel done what it originally set out to do - clear the PLO out of southern Lebanon and establish the SLA as the local dominant militia and then pull out within a couple of months - Begin and Sharon would've been permanent leaders of the country. It's when they went beyond that and it turned into a foreign occupation that things fell apart.
Had Putin managed to get to Kiev in 2-3 days, install a new government, declare victory and quickly pull out with a minimum of casualties, he'd also have been seen as successful. He miscalculated but that only became apparent 3-4 days in.