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Will Conflicts in Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan Deepen in 2024?
America’s foreign policy footing got shakier in 2023. Could 2024 be worse?
As much as media outlets would like it to be so, Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine cannot yet be called “Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ill-fated invasion of Ukraine.”
While it may be true that Vladimir Putin’s efforts to bring Ukraine under his control haven’t been completely successful thus far, Putin shows no sign of giving up and may yet prevail.
Putin would have likely preferred a quick, more painless “annexation” of Ukraine akin to the efforts Moscow took to “annex” Crimea in 2014 — but, like any good general, he is surely willing to accept lesser forms of victory.
In 2014, Russia’s controversial annexation of Crimea sent shockwaves through the international community, leading to a severe — if temporary — deterioration in Russia’s relations with the West. The move was initiated following Ukraine’s political upheaval and the subsequent ousting of President Viktor Yanukovych, which left the strategically important Crimean Peninsula in a state of political uncertainty.
Under the pretext of protecting the rights of Russian-speaking citizens in Crimea and responding to what it perceived as Western interference in Ukrainian politics, Russia…