If Europe wants to check Russian expansion, they can do that. But it’s none of America's business. I don’t think it actually affects someone in Ohio if the French were speaking Russian tomorrow.
>But it’s none of America's business. I don’t think it actually affects someone in Ohio if the French were speaking Russian tomorrow.
It does affect someone in Ohio if any single government manages to get control the entire European Plain from France to Russia plus the current territory of Russia because a country with those natural resources and that population stands a decent chance of becoming stronger than the US -- maybe not right away, but after a few decades -- so it is good realist politics for the US to try to prevent that from happening. (Americans are significantly more secure than they would be if the US had only the second strongest economy and the second strongest military in the world.)
The reason the US shouldn't spend much money helping Ukraine is that the current Russian government does not want to expand that far (much too risky for its tastes) and that it almost certainly would fail if it tried. (It also should have stayed out of Iraq and Afghanistan.)
> If Europe wants to check Russian expansion, they can do that. But it’s none of America's business.
Neither Russia nor China seems willing play by the rules of a rules-based international order. OK, fine, that puts us into power politics — which means we get to make it our business, for reasons we deem sufficient. We're not bad guys for preferring, and exerting our muscle to seek, a Eurasian continent that's not dominated by China and Russia (and Iran), whose governments think it's OK to imprison or defenestrate dissenters or to blow up insurrectionists' planes in mid-air. Does that touch off Russian- and Chinese cries of "unfair" American hegemony-seeking? Tough shit — FAFO.
It’s as much our business as Hitler was. We didn’t go into WWII to stop the Holocaust, we went into stop Hitler.
> don’t think it actually affects someone in Ohio if the French were speaking Russian tomorrow
Ohio is an industrial and agricultural export powerhouse. 17% of its exports go to Europe, $1.1bn of which to France [1]. Even if we reduce this to a pockebook issue, Paris falling into Moscow's sphere of infuence makes Ohio poorer.
More pointedly: we made a promise to Europe, through NATO and various agreements, to protect it from Moscow. If Putin's in Paris, we're treaty bound to fight him. (And if Ukraine is a borderline issue in America, you know Western Europe won't be. Dithering on Ukraine increases the chances we get sucked into a massive foreign war.)
> It’s as much our business as Hitler was. We didn’t go into WWII to stop the Holocaust, we went into stop Hitler.
Hitler plausibly threatened American security. I don’t see any indication that Russia could do the same. Realistically, Russia can’t even take over Western Europe.
Look, we know where playing world police—treating every border aggression like it’s literally Hitler—takes us. For the last 80 years we have pissed away trillions of dollars and countless American lives defending borders few Americans could find on a map. It’s not worth it, and most of the world (except Europe who gets to free-ride on the security we provide) hates us for it.
> Ohio is an industrial and agricultural export powerhouse. 17% of its exports go to Europe, $1.1bn of which to France
If we stopped dicking around being the world police, why would a Russian-controlled France stop buying stuff from Ohio?
> Hitler plausibly threatened American security. I don’t see any indication that Russia could do the same
How? Hitler wasn’t in Cuba [1]. Putin challenges America directly in a way Hitler never did prior to our entering the war.
> It’s not worth it
I agree in general. Not in Europe, and not with Putin.
> why would a Russian-controlled France stop buying stuff from Ohio?
Same reason Europe and our allies in the Middle East preferentially buy from us. Commercial ties follow spheres of influence. It’s not some random coincidence our trading partners in the Middle East, Africa, Caucasus and Southeast Asia track our military alliances.
> NATO—it’s obsolete
You’d prefer another European free for all? Because again, when that happens, it’s obvious we’d get involved. You may prefer we not. But we would, and then you’ve got a major foreign war on your hands.
