Kameron Schreffler- Blog Post #2

 Kameron Schreffler

Blog Post #2

02/24/2022


"The Return of Geopolitics" by Russell Walter Mead can be connected to the current geopolitical situation between Ukraine and Russia and the United States' role in the situation. The United States' role in the Ukraine/Russia situation connects to Mead's article well because of how the Ukraine and Russia interactions started and the sanctions that the United States put in place to hurt the Russian economy. We can also connect these issues to our in-class discussions about the Iraq war. Although this situation does not directly involve the United States, we can evaluate how much the United States should intervene. Should the United States send troops to help Ukraine? Should the United States put more sanctions on Russia? These are essential questions that need to be evaluated.

I feel that the current actions taken by the United States are necessary and were a very appropriate response to the situation. As the Iraq war developed, it became a lose-lose situation. The United States was in the war for too long, and it became tough to leave, and I feel that the purpose and mission of the war were lost. Currently, the United States has a minor role in the intervention of the Ukraine-Russia situation. The United States sending troops to Ukraine at the moment would only escalate the situation, making it another lose-lose situation, as the United States would gain little to nothing while jeopardizing lives along with other valuable resources. The United States needs to stay in its place and play a minimal role. With that being said, I do believe that the restrictions that the United States already put on Russia are appropriate but should stop. 

The United States should only intervene more if it directly affects our national security or greatly hinders the economy. The current restrictions that Biden has set on Russia are solely on Russia's national banks(amanda_m_macias, 2022). Expressly, these restrictions forbid United States banks from interacting with Russian banks. These sanctions include the National Wealth Fund of the Russian Federation the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation(amanda_m_macias, 2022). The goal of these restrictions is to hurt the Russian economy. The United States expects its allies to move in the same direction regarding restrictions against Russia(amanda_m_macias, 2022). These sanctions have severely hurt the Russian economy as the value of the Russian ruble has fallen and to keep the Russian stock exchange closed for a day(amanda_m_macias, 2022). To make matters worse for Russia, the United States, Canada, and other European countries have decided to remove big Russian banks from SWIFT (the interbank messaging system)(amanda_m_macias, 2022). This makes Russian banks unable to communicate safely with banks in other countries. 

With that being said, my stance is that the United States should not send troops, induce sanctions, or intervene anymore unless the Ukraine-Russia situation hurts the nation in a strong negative sense. If the United States chooses to intervene, I could see Russia making irrational decisions that escalate the situation. If the United States gets involved, it is a lose-lose situation, and we need to learn from our past mistakes regarding the Iraq war. The current restrictions that other countries and the United States have put on Russia are appropriate and should not be taken any further at this time. The United States military and economic power throughout the world is evident and does not need to be flexed on Russia. We need to see how this situation plays out and not escalate it.

Citations

amanda_m_macias. (2022, March 1). Biden administration expands sanctions against Russia, cutting off U.S. transactions with Central Bank. CNBC. Retrieved March 2, 2022, from https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/28/biden-administration-expands-russia-sanctions-cuts-off-us-transactions-with-central-bank.html

Comments

  1. Grant VoytovichMarch 8, 2022 at 5:08 PM

    I agree with your stance that the US shouldn't send troops to Ukraine as of now. Can you think of any reasons why we should send troops? Or do you think there isn't justification for that?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kameron SchrefflerMarch 9, 2022 at 11:32 AM

      I believe that currently there is no justification for sending troops.

      Delete

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