re: #111 Kafitrar

Does Putin want a war? Recently, Russian warplanes have been aggressively flying near American ships and planes. A few days ago, a SU-27 fighter (roughly equivalent to an F-15) barrel-rolled over an Air Force RC-135 (an unarmed reconnaissance plane). And earlier this week, a couple other Russian military aircraft buzzed a Navy destroyer. The Navy reported that one of them came as close as 30 feet to the ship. That’s about the plane’s full wingspan. Idiots.

I think Putin views Barack Obama as weak and thinks if he ratchets up the pressure high enough Obama will quietly order US air and naval forces to not go anywhere near Russia or Russian forces. Putin plans to then present that as a Russian victory and an American defeat.