The week or so since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine has been full of what Karl Marx called “days in which 20 years are embodied.” Previously unthinkable developments — Germany rearming, Switzerland breaking its tradition of strict neutrality, Finland formally debating NATO membership — have followed in quick succession. Such rapid shifts can easily take on a momentum all their own. In adapting to the new environment created by the Russian invasion, the West needs to play the long game and not give in to the desire for morally satisfying but strategically dubious actions.
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Jeffrey Mankoff is a Distinguished Research Fellow at the Institute for National Strategic Studies, Center for Strategic Research at National Defense University.
The views expressed are the authors own and do not reflect those of the National Defense University, the Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government.