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By: David Murrin, Spartent Global Solutions

We have already expressed our concern over Western policies in Ukraine that have pushed Russia away from the West into the hands of China, the negative consequences of which are expected to unfold with the next decade.

However, since then, the fall of the oil price in combination with sanctions has created a serious economic problem in Russia, which has effectively cornered Putin. To any observer of his psychology it is inevitable that, when Putin is cornered, he will come out fighting. This creates a huge short term risk of the expansion of the Ukraine conflict with untold consequences. One always has to be aware of events in history that escalate and create wars that catch everyone out, like Argentina’s aggression in the Falklands. That invasion was designed to divert attention away from a disastrous domestic situation to a war that they hoped would polarise the population against England, not the junta.

Whatever we think of Putin’s significant moral failings we must not underestimate the power he has as the leader of the Russian nation. Recently, Putin has been walking the well-trodden path of blaming others, in this case the West, for the problems he has caused to the economy via inefficient policies and the channelling of money to himself and his cronies. Alarmingly, this blame game goes much further than mere political posturing and it is obvious that Putin is seeking to polarise his people by using the war in Ukr......................

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