Yeah, Russia realized they need a plan B. Musburger, you’ve posted that this is about Putin’s desire for a bipolar world. I think, if so, he doesn’t get it.
The competition is not between nations or peoples or religions. It’s between ideas. There is free markets vs. planned economies. There is individual rights vs. authoritarianism. There is property ownership vs. collectivism. There is inquiry vs. orthodoxy. There is rule of law vs. preferred classes (social Justice can get on the wrong side of this one). The society that incorporates the most winning ideas gets to grow the richest, most advanced and happiest.
Criticize the US, if you want, for not going hard enough on the winning ideas, or consistently enough, for sure. But don’t tell me that ******* Putin has a better handle on it.
This war can end with a battered and reduced Ukraine, licking its wounds, but (mostly) free of Russia. Russia will certainly work, within its new economic constraints, to improve its military. Ukraine, a smaller nation, will as well (I suggest they consider adopting a Swiss style militia). I suspect Ukraine will be more successful, because they incorporate more of the winning ideas than Russia. At least, Putin’s Russia.