The on-again, off-again civil war in Ukraine is now in its third winter. The Ukrainian government, the U.S. and Russia — or their proxies in eastern Ukraine — are testing the limits of Trump’s apparently still-blossoming friendship with Putin. Whatever transpires as a result of the bombardment of Avdiivka, it is Putin rather than Trump who may face the toughest choices in Ukraine. Nor has there been a military breakthrough in Avdiivka, where, perhaps because it was -13 on Tuesday, fighting has suddenly abated. With the bloody stalemate in eastern Ukraine likely to continue, Putin may try to keep his personal popularity high at home by spooling up a military adventure in the Baltic states.

Source: National Post February 08, 2017 15:28 UTC