Russell Rhodes Blog

Backed into a corner.

There’s nothing worse than getting backed into a corner. That’s what’s happening with Russia’s Vladimir Putin.

I talked yesterday about how the war in Ukraine is not going well for Putin. Seven months in, the Russians are in retreat.

Now, Putin is calling in reservists. Something Russia hasn’t done since World War Two. In a televised address, he also threatened the use of nuclear weapons. He also said that he wasn’t bluffing.

The fallout from all this had been quick. At the United Nations General Assembly meeting, world leaders were indeed united in their condemnation of Putin.

Now, Russians are reacting to all this. The New York Times reports how the war has gone from bad to worse for Vladimir Putin. Russia is now on defense in Ukraine.

The Times talks about how more than 40 elected Russian officials have signed a petition demanding that Putin resign. Russian police detained more than 1200 protesters. In Moscow, crowds yelled, “Send Putin to the trenches.”

I was listening to the BBC yesterday. They had a text from a Russian citizen who fears being drafted and was looking at ways of getting out of the country. A woman called in to say she feared for the safety of her younger brother if he was called up for duty.

Even Putin supporters are backing off. China’s leader Xi Jinping said last week that he had “questions and concerns” about the war. India’s Prime Minister said, “Today’s era is not of war.”

Vladimir Putin is backed into a corner. It’s of his own doing. The problem is… when you get backed into a corner, you do stupid and crazy things.