Thomas Theiner

Today Putin blinked. He was visibly uncomfortable in formulating a suggestion to postpone the illegal Donetsk referendum being organized by a few thugs with a photocopier. This was the strongest indication yet that Putin’s second attempt at creating a pretext for invading Ukraine has failed. Certainly, he is now working on Plan C, a pretext that won’t rely on forces outside of his control but will be entirely the work of Russia’s intelligence agencies.