Putin’s long-term strategy
The debate over Crimean independence has grown more heated as Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to insist that citizens in the majority ethnic-Russian region of Ukraine should determine their own political fate. He points to yesterday’s limited Crimean vote favoring joining Russia as evidence, and has also endorsed Crimean independence, at least in the short term. But many other world leaders disagree, arguing that Ukraine’s national sovereignty is being violated and that Putin is simply exercising a power grab. By email, Nicholas Burns, professor of the practice of diplomacy and international politics at Harvard Kennedy School, answered questions about the growing crisis, its implications, and possible outcomes. GAZETTE: What is President Putin’s strategy toward Ukraine? BURNS: Following yesterday’s referendum in Crimea, Putin’s strategy is crystal clear. He seeks to build a band of buffer states in an orbit around the Russian Federation and to deny them the right to look westward for...