Europe needs to massively step up investigation and prosecution of the shadow fleet.
There’s more than enough reasons to do so, and arguably or probably enough cause as well, in many cases.
“It’s piracy, and how do you deal with pirates?” Putin said. “You destroy them. It doesn’t mean that tomorrow a war will erupt all across the global ocean, but certainly the risk of confrontation will seriously increase.”
I love how he immediately paddles back in the next sentence like the coward he is. Your almighty fleet got crippled by a nation without a navy. There will be no “ocean war”. Europe is doing what it should have done years ago.
Get wrecked.
This article just shows how uncertain European countries feel about how to handle the current situation. They can’t even make firm policy, let alone clear process. Putin runs circles around them, only needing banter and jokes.
If you are going to decide to be strong and firm, you need to define your box, includ9ng the corners - and then stick to it. If you are wrong, your are wrong, but at least you were firm.
I guess it’s just a anti-European kind of strategy, so they are so poor at using it. Don’t fight where you are weak - how old is that concept?
I think there’s that, but also, I heard a compelling argument which may also be true. European and Nato countries continue to supply Ukraine, which may be the most effective counter-measure. Not giving in to Russian provocations directly, but answering with support for Ukraine, which is fighting Russia directly. That support is what Russia ultimately wants to reduce, by disrupting, confusing, and threatening other countries. The seemingly weak responses are certainly deescalating in the direct confrontation, and evades the question of direct confrontation which may split countries and opinions.
