We remember this. We didn’t forget. The West claims to bring freedom and democracy to other countries but it’s the exact opposite of the truth. The unipolar world is anti-democratic by its very nature. It is a lie. They used nuclear weapons, creating a precedent. They flattened German cities without “any military need to do so”. There was no need for this except to scare us and the rest of the world. Korea, Vietnam. To this day they “occupy” Japan, South Korea and Germany and other countries while cynically calling them “allies”.
Wait, does Putin not consider Germany part of “The West”? If not Germany, then who, beyond the US?
He’s not saying things to express some coherent worldview. Germany could be an enemy on May 9th or a victim of US colonialism another day. People’s right to self-determination is important when we want to occupy Crimea, but inside Russia separatism is a crime. Whichever argument best proves that Russia’s good and West is bad.
I wonder what he thinks an (ideologically) unoccupied Germany would be like? Surely he can’t be thinking of the Statsi DDR he was part of when he was working in Dresden?! Maybe he thinks that Germany is naturally nazistic, and he just forgot to pretend to be against nazism?
Or maybe he is just saying words that are good at getting people angry at the west, but don’t make much sense when you think more about them?
“don’t make much sense when you think more about them” seems like the only answer. Japan and Germany haven’t been occupied puppet states for a long time now. Most likely he is trying to reach out to left-wingers in Germany/other European countries (who tend to be vaguely anti-USA) and try and persuade them that they are somehow being muggs/US-puppets. What is weird is I think Putin lost several family members in the European theatre of WW2 and is often said to have a strong anti-German feeling.
I came across a bit more information about Putin’s relationship with Germany. In an interview with German media in 2001, Putin said that the first words of his daughter were in German (which is plausible given that Putin’s wife was a German teacher).
According to another article, the daughter frequently traveled to Germany because she has a German boyfriend. That information came out in August of this year and it’s quite interesting that it exists in it’s current form. iStories had the scoop. It’s interesting that someone decided to leak it. It’s someone saying to Putin “look your op-sec for your daughter isn’t as good as you thought”.
I was told it by someone who was halfway through reading a Putin biography (I believe the Philip Short one) - they presented it as a well known (“often said”) thing which I took it as. Looking now this seems to not be google-supported, although I have not read the book.
I think there is a discussion to be had about if a country that has countless military bases of another country in their land is occupied of just an “ally” It’s not clear to me there is a big difference in practical terms.
I don’t think US is occupying Japan, because US bases in Japan are there by mutual consent. Similarly for South Korea and Germany.
But yes, US is occupying Okinawa. US bases in Okinawa are not there by mutual consent. Japan consents, Okinawa doesn’t. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma is, like, the single biggest political issue in Okinawa. Just look at the aerial picture. It is absurd.
Similarly, US was occupying Seoul, Yongsan Garrison in particular. After a long negotiation, US bases relocated to Pyeongtaek, where they are welcome. Putin does have a point here. US should do more of Pyeongtaek.
Not every occupation is the same, but nations occupied by military force are often denied the ability to run their own affairs with regard to legal proceedings, defence, etc. In particular not being allowed to have final authority over legal matters on their own soil seems to historically be a great sticking point: see the Austro-Hungarian demands of Serbia leading to WW1.
This is one of the key domains which defines the authority of a sovereign nation, whereas it doesn’t seem that uncommon in history for there to be foreign military assets in a nation as a non-occupying force that does not damage the sovereignty of that nation. Auxiliary troops, mercenaries, allied soldiers.
From this perspective, U.S. bases look like occupation insofar as they damage the sovereignty of the occupied nation, and look like anything but occupation to the degree that they protect or abide by that sovereignty. Russian propaganda would of course claim, that the former dramatically outweighs the latter.
Wait, does Putin not consider Germany part of “The West”? If not Germany, then who, beyond the US?
He’s not saying things to express some coherent worldview. Germany could be an enemy on May 9th or a victim of US colonialism another day. People’s right to self-determination is important when we want to occupy Crimea, but inside Russia separatism is a crime. Whichever argument best proves that Russia’s good and West is bad.
I wonder what he thinks an (ideologically) unoccupied Germany would be like? Surely he can’t be thinking of the Statsi DDR he was part of when he was working in Dresden?! Maybe he thinks that Germany is naturally nazistic, and he just forgot to pretend to be against nazism?
Or maybe he is just saying words that are good at getting people angry at the west, but don’t make much sense when you think more about them?
“don’t make much sense when you think more about them” seems like the only answer. Japan and Germany haven’t been occupied puppet states for a long time now. Most likely he is trying to reach out to left-wingers in Germany/other European countries (who tend to be vaguely anti-USA) and try and persuade them that they are somehow being muggs/US-puppets. What is weird is I think Putin lost several family members in the European theatre of WW2
and is often said to have a strong anti-German feeling.I came across a bit more information about Putin’s relationship with Germany. In an interview with German media in 2001, Putin said that the first words of his daughter were in German (which is plausible given that Putin’s wife was a German teacher).
According to another article, the daughter frequently traveled to Germany because she has a German boyfriend. That information came out in August of this year and it’s quite interesting that it exists in it’s current form. iStories had the scoop. It’s interesting that someone decided to leak it. It’s someone saying to Putin “look your op-sec for your daughter isn’t as good as you thought”.
Do you have a source for why we should believe that Putin has anti-German feelings?
I was told it by someone who was halfway through reading a Putin biography (I believe the Philip Short one) - they presented it as a well known (“often said”) thing which I took it as. Looking now this seems to not be google-supported, although I have not read the book.
I think there is a discussion to be had about if a country that has countless military bases of another country in their land is occupied of just an “ally” It’s not clear to me there is a big difference in practical terms.
I don’t think US is occupying Japan, because US bases in Japan are there by mutual consent. Similarly for South Korea and Germany.
But yes, US is occupying Okinawa. US bases in Okinawa are not there by mutual consent. Japan consents, Okinawa doesn’t. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma is, like, the single biggest political issue in Okinawa. Just look at the aerial picture. It is absurd.
Similarly, US was occupying Seoul, Yongsan Garrison in particular. After a long negotiation, US bases relocated to Pyeongtaek, where they are welcome. Putin does have a point here. US should do more of Pyeongtaek.
Not every occupation is the same, but nations occupied by military force are often denied the ability to run their own affairs with regard to legal proceedings, defence, etc. In particular not being allowed to have final authority over legal matters on their own soil seems to historically be a great sticking point: see the Austro-Hungarian demands of Serbia leading to WW1.
This is one of the key domains which defines the authority of a sovereign nation, whereas it doesn’t seem that uncommon in history for there to be foreign military assets in a nation as a non-occupying force that does not damage the sovereignty of that nation. Auxiliary troops, mercenaries, allied soldiers.
From this perspective, U.S. bases look like occupation insofar as they damage the sovereignty of the occupied nation, and look like anything but occupation to the degree that they protect or abide by that sovereignty. Russian propaganda would of course claim, that the former dramatically outweighs the latter.