President Biden believes Russia will invade Ukraine, warning of dire consequences if that occurs.
As the world watches what is happening along the Ukrainian border, the big question is what is Vladimir Putin’s motivation behind the military build-up?
“Some people think it’s because (Russia) is planning an invasion (or) it is sending a signal in order to get something else,” said Yoshiko Herrera, a Univ. of Wisconsin political science professor.
Russia is looking to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO, according to Herrera.
“Russia is showing it’s serious,” she explained. “There is status, honor, and prestige on the Russian side. There’s a military strategic aspect to it, but there’s an emotional status aspect.”
“The stakes are very high. It’s very dangerous for nuclear armed countries to get into military conflict.”
No matter what happens, Putin isn’t going anywhere.
“It’s a mistake to think if we use the miliatary option, that it will resolve anything,” she said. “There is no getting rid of Putin. We’re going to have to deal with a bad regime one way or another.”
