Thursday, January 25, 2024

Kaliningrad and the caged rat






"Where will the next fire break out? Yemen? Iran? Lebanon? Ukraine? China? North Korea? Kaliningrad? It seems the menu for military problems grows larger and more dangerous all this time. Time to tell Uncle Joe to wake up. Climate change is not our enemy."


By the way, if you don't think that Europe is still a tinderbox, think again. There are so many things happening right now in the next phase of the Ukraine War, as well as the redefinition of NATO, just about anything can happen. And happen quickly.

At the end of World War II, when the spoils of war were divided up in Europe, a chunk of Germany was given to Russia. At that time, the Soviet Union was forming, and this piece fit in nicely. That is, until the Soviet Union was no more. Now the province of Kaliningrad, is an orphan. Still owned by Russia, but now surrounded by the NATO countries of Lithuania and Poland. Kaliningrad is much more a part of Europe than it is a part of Russia. And therein lies the rub.

The capital city of Kaliningrad is Kaliningrad. Before the WWII ended, the city was German and known by the name Konigsberg. Prior to that, in the 15th century, it was Polish and known by the name Krolewiec. Poland wants to rename Kaliningrad, Krolewiec. This act is making Putin furious. The tension between Poland and Russia was palpable before this renaming - now it is off the charts.

Is Poland afraid of Russia? Not anymore. Poland has built up their military to such a level, they now have the strongest military in Europe. So much so, they might not even need Article 5 (collective defense) of the NATO agreement to beat back the Russians. What does Putin think about this? He is seething. Could Kaliningrad be a flash point in Europe as tender as Ukraine is? Absolutely. 

One might ask, what is the difference between Russia trying to take back Ukraine, and Poland trying to take back Kaliningrad? Good question. I don't see a hair's width of difference. But Putin would be quick to remind everyone that he has nukes and Poland does not. Other than that, Putin's army is all show and little go. 

Where will the next fire break out? Yemen? Iran? Lebanon? Ukraine? China? North Korea? Kaliningrad? It seems the menu for military problems grows larger and more dangerous all this time. Time to tell Uncle Joe to wake up. Climate change is not our enemy. Who is? Just look around the globe. We need to get prepared.     

1 comment:

  1. Pooty-Poot shouldn't care what Poland wants to call this city, so long as Russia still runs it.

    ReplyDelete