When Russia Became a Threat

Town Hall - Allen West:



So, the G20 summit in Hamburg Germany is over and we will now be inundated with analysis and assessments of the first meeting between Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin. There has been so much built up about this engagement, which in my estimation went far too long. But, there is an overarching question that we need to answer, when did Russia become a threatening menace?



I remember the week that Obama Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel announced a massive reduction of our US Army and the intent to retire the US Air Force A-10 Warthog close air support platform. It was later that week that Russian-backed separatists and camouflaged militants overran Crimea. Now, one would have thought at that time Russia would have been perceived as a threat, nah. And then there was the blatant invasion by Russia of a sovereign Nation, Ukraine, and a subsequent shooting down of a civilian airliner by Russian paramilitary forces, using Russian equipment. Yet, President Barack Obama only sought to issue a terse statement, try to stare down Putin at summits, and send the Ukrainian Army socks, not weaponry.



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