Maps -- Preface-Katrina vanden Heuvel -- Introduction: Collision course -- 1. How 2014 set the stage for war -- 2. The success and failure of the Minsk II Peace Plan -- 3. The Russian invasion of Ukraine -- 4. NATO: Myth vs. reality -- 5. Information warfare -- 6. The consequences of western sanctions on Russia -- 7. Flirting with nuclear war -- Conclusion: How on earth will this end? -- Acknowledgments -- Acronyms -- About the authors.
Summary:
"Russia's brutal February 2022 invasion of Ukraine has attracted widespread condemnation across the West. Government and media circles present the conflict as a simple dichotomy between an evil empire and an innocent victim. In this concise, accessible, and highly informative primer, Medea Benjamin and Nicolas Davies insist the picture is more complicated. Yes, Russia's aggression was reckless and, ultimately, indefensible. But the West's reneging on promises to halt eastward expansion of NATO in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union played a major part in prompting Putin to act. So did the U.S. involvement in the 2014 Ukraine coup and Ukraine's failure to implement the Minsk peace agreements. The result is a conflict that is increasingly difficult to resolve, one that could conceivably escalate into all-out war between the United States and Russia--the world's two leading nuclear powers. Skilfully bringing together the historical record and current analysis, War in Ukraine looks at the events leading up to the conflict, surveys the different parties involved, and weighs the risks of escalation and opportunities for peace. For anyone who wants to get beneath the heavily propagandized media coverage to an understanding of a war with consequences that could prove cataclysmic, reading this timely book will be an urgent necessity." -- [page 1]
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.