Even Bush, the cowboy, would have been deterred and the American people would have been spared a bloody, pointless and hugely expensive war. For an even better example, look at Europe today, peaceful and cooperative at last. It is difficult to imagine this pleasant state of affairs had Russia not acquired nuclear weapons in the 1950s. The Russian-American stand-off, called the cold war, allowed Europe the opportunity for peaceful and democratic development. It is interesting that 50 years of being in between crazy Russians and Americans, yelling at each other and threatening to destroy the world, was just what European countries needed to start seeing reason. And this example brings me to the heart of my discussion. The world today needs a strong and democratic Russia.
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It would be an over-simplification to think that the only reason why the world needs a strong and free Russia is to credibly contain American adventurism. I do not think that Russia, by herself, is a good counter-weight to the United States on a long-term basis. The geopolitical interests of the two countries are too similar. For example, it is hard to believe that Moscow and Washington are really at odds over a missile defense system in Europe. The idea that Russia is a threat to Europe, her number one customer for gas and oil, doesn’t make sense. Historically, Russia is one of the least aggressive of all European nations. And the American excuse that the missile defense system is really to protect Europe against Iran doesn’t make sense either. Iran has no long-range missiles that are a threat to Europe and it is impossible to imagine that her neighbors would allow her to develop them.
The only country that has such weapons, and that could pose a real and present threat to Europe, is China. But of course, since the Chinese hold almost 1 trillion dollars in American Treasury bonds, the Americans are in no position to speak of such things openly. And of course, the huge border that Russia shares with China means that Russia would also be ill advised to engage in such open discussions. But regardless of where the truth lies with this particular issue, a strong and free Russia, because of her unique position in both Europe and Asia, because of her rich natural resources and culture, and because of her special history down through the centuries, is very necessary to keep the peace and to serve as counter weight against extremes, both East and West.
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