One of the West’s most attractive qualities is self-criticism, but taken to extremes it corrodes self-confidence, and thus our ability to defend ourselves. We do not take our values, our promises or our allies seriously.
Two new books exemplify this. One is “Frontline Ukraine: crisis in the borderlands”, by Richard Sakwa, a British academic of Polish descent. The other is “Russland verstehen. Der Kampf um die Ukraine und die Arroganz des Westens” (Understanding Russia. The battle over Ukraine and the arrogance of the West), by Gabriele Krone-Schmalz, a veteran German Russia-watcher.
Both books make similar arguments. The West has mishandled Russia over …read more
Source: European Voice
