Quote:
Originally Posted by stormlion1
Actually an option is to call Putins bluff of there being no Russian troops on the ground in the Crimea by arming the populace and letting them take pot shots at the unmarked troops. Kill a few and see if Putin changes his story.
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This is similar to a line of thinking I had last night while watching news footage of Russian troops trying to intimidate a group of unarmed Ukrainian Airforce personnel. The Ukrainians returned to barracks after the Russian troops allowed a bunch of balaclava-wearing, rag-tag uniformed pro-Russian militiamen to turn up. The Ukreainians (wisely) recognised it as a deliberate provocatiuon and withdrew.
Under international law an occupying force is legally obliged to keep law and order. That certainly doesn't mean that it's ok to let a bunch of private citizens form their own armed unregulated militia groups and start pushing their weight around (unless that's an ok thing to do under Ukrainian domestic law). If I were the Ukrainians I'd be arguing that the occupying forces are totally in breach of their obligations to keep the populace safe. Then again, that's probably the least of their problems in terms of the blatant illegality of what the Russians are doing.
I have two very separate minds watching all of this. My logical, knowledgeable mind considers the history of the area and the unfolding machinations and makes predictions on the outcomes. My passionate, emotive mind is screaming on the inside of my skull that the Russians deserve to have their arses handed to them.