'..The opportunist in Putin spotted the weaknesses within the U.S. political system this election and seized the moment with glee, and American democracy has indeed suffered. But Putin has also managed to make Russia’s role so evident that it demands some kind of U.S. response.
..
In some ways, the story of Putin’s foray into American politics follows the same trajectory. A cute plan to use deniable assets to stir up trouble abroad..'<blockquote>'..One senior parliamentary aide recently expressed to me the worry that “Russia is becoming the new South Africa,” referring to the 30-year era of boycotts and sanctions that isolated that country when it was still white-ruled and characterized by apartheid.
..
..The opportunist in Putin spotted the weaknesses within the U.S. political system this election and seized the moment with glee, and American democracy has indeed suffered. But Putin has also managed to make Russia’s role so evident that it demands some kind of U.S. response.
The Kremlin’s problem, among others, is that Putin the Opportunist is consumed by the moment. He is focused on what he can accomplish tomorrow, without necessarily thinking through to what the consequences may be the day after. He also too easily assumes that he will remain in control of what he started; this, too, is something we’ve seen before.
When the Kremlin decided to intervene in Ukraine’s Donbass region, arming local malcontents and sending men and guns to back them, it must have looked like a shrewd tactic. Kiev, the thinking went, would be forced to capitulate, and Moscow could claim not to be involved. More than two years later, Russia is still mired in a vicious and bitter conflict, bankrolling the thuggish pseudo-states of Donetsk and Luhansk out of a shrinking state budget.
In some ways, the story of Putin’s foray into American politics follows the same trajectory. A cute plan to use deniable assets to stir up trouble abroad and force an opponent into a weak position has once again proved too cute for its own good. Putin’s claims that his hands are clean look increasingly flimsy; the chaos takes on a life of its own and even begins to threaten its maker.'
- Mark Galeotti,
Putin’s Chaos Strategy Is Coming Back to Bite Him in the Ass, October 26, 2016</blockquote>
Context<Blockquote>
'[Putin is doing] anything that can and will expand Russian influence to U.S.S.R.-era levels of power.''..on February 3, Poroshenko said Russia had implemented "not one single point" of the Minsk accords..''..I, for one, couldn’t imagine that Russia would flout international law to the point of annexing Crimea..''..Zero tolerance for Russian intrusions .. Estonia .. policy of publicly naming or prosecuting spies..''..Moscow hopes to destabilize Europe and create a vacuum into which it can project its own power..''The Hybrid War: Russia's .. Campaign Against Germany .. an "information war." In fact, he says, this is the "primary form of warfare" today.''..a clear understanding between Washington and Moscow about the rules of the road - that we are not trying to bring down each other's systems..''..Russia's relations with the West..'</blockquote>