Putin Could Burst Xi’s Olympic Dream With a War in Ukraine
The Chinese president is due to host his Russian counterpart at the Beijing Winter Games in early February.
Updated on
Still, some say if Putin does plan to act, he will do so at the best time for Russia, despite the potential fallout.
“Putin can’t sacrifice Russia’s strategic interests and security to make a neighbor feel good, even if he is highly respected and strategically important,” said Tatiana Stanovaya, a political consultant and founder of R.Politik. If the Russian leader believes security talks with the U.S. are achieving nothing “then he will go into Ukraine, regardless of any request from China.”
