TNN, Washington :
With the eyes of the world trained on it over perceived decline of American power and a weak-kneed response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Barak Obama administration began crafting a raft of punitive measures, including expelling Moscow from the Group of Eight (G-8) nations.
Freeze on Russian assets in the US, canceling trade talks, and a visa ban on its officials were among the other steps being considered as Washington began rallying its allies to what some are calling Russia’s Afghanistan II, a reference to the Soviet invasion of that country in 1979 that resulted in the collapse of Russian primacy and the end of the Cold War.
Analysts trying to understand why Vladimir Putin is repeating the same “mistake” are suggesting he has always wanted to reassert his country’s power a generation after his predecessors lost the Cold War.
But there is a major difference. The Crimean peninsula in Ukraine that Russian forces invaded last week and have now taken control is under far greater Russian influence (with a majority Russian speaking population) than Afghanistan. Moscow is also economically better off, with Ukraine and parts of Europe dependent on it for gas supplies.
