The Vineyard of the Saker: Western international diplomacy as a dead baby joke

I have just been watching the news and, frankly, I ended up laughing.

First, I saw the Eurobureaucrats adding another 12 or so names to a list of 20 or so (sorry, I was not paying attention) names which are going to be on the sanctions list.  The US did something similar yesterday.  Looking at that circus, I was wondering: does these imbeciles really believe that these puny sanctions of 30-40 individuals will make Russia suddenly change course, apologize and leave Crimea? Have they forgotten that during WWII Leningrad was blockaded by German forces for nine hundred (900!  Not 33 like Hezbollah or 78 like the Serbs - 900) days and that it was pounded by the German Air Force and artillery during each one of these 900 days, that most men died and that the city at the end was defended by mostly women, that hunger was so bad that people were making "soup" from glue used to put up posters, that medicine had run out and that the winter colds were brutal and yet that the Russian people did not surrender?!  Don't they understand that for Russians Crimea is at least as important as Stalingrad was?  Do they seriously think that their stupid little sanctions will affect a country which was - and still is - willing to go to war over Crimea?

Amazing.  Just amazing...

Then, I saw that western credit rating agencies were about to lower the credit rating of Russia (which up to now had been BBB, iirr).  Russia with a debt of 12% would be lowered, while the USA with a debt over 100% maintained a AAA.  Who is going to take that seriously.  But even better, the net result of that will be that it is going to be more expensive for Russians to get financing from western banks.  Again, I wonder in total awe.  Do these western financiers really not know that the issues of the high interest rates inside Russia (in comparison to the interest rates enjoyed by Russian companies with their corporate headquarters in the EU and US) was a major political issues which constantly opposed the "Eurasian sovereignists" to the "Atlantic integrationists"?  (for an explanation of these terms see here, here and here).  Think of it - what does Putin want?  He was a) a bigger share of investment in Russia coming from Russian banks, b) more companies incorporated in Russia c) a way to prevent Russian officials from having any assets abroad.

Frankly, Russia and Putin owe the western financiers and bureaucrats a big "thank you!!" for helping the Eurasian sovereignists in their struggle against the Atlantic integrationists...

   

The Vineyard of the Saker: Western international diplomacy as a dead baby joke