How a country surrounded by great powers in history can remain an independent country.The Kingdom of Thailand was not colonized.
2022-03-24
Category:Ukraine
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Kingdom of Thailand remained an independent country
Speaking of how a country sandwiched between two major powers manages itself, there is the Kingdom of Thailand, which maintained its independence during the Asian colonial era. The white Asian colonies were ruled by the United Kingdom, which centered on India, France, which centered on Vietnam and Cambodia, and the Netherlands, which centered on Indonesia, so that they were not adjacent to each other.
Due to its geographical condition of being sandwiched between British and French colonial areas, Thailand takes advantage of the fact that Britain and France dislike being adjacent to each other, and does not lean towards either side, but acts as a buffer zone and transit point for both. Traded as land and profited from it.
Sino-Japanese/Russo-Japanese War
On the Korean Peninsula, the Treaty of Tianjin was signed after the Kashin Coup, and the Japanese and Qing forces withdrew from the peninsula. This has the same meaning as the neutralization that Russia is seeking from Ukraine, which was confirmed in a treaty between Japan and Qing. However, due to the rebellion of the Donghak Party, Queen Min upset the balance and the Sino-Japanese War broke out. Empress Min thought that she could not control the civil war that had broken out in her country, so she requested reinforcements from the Qing Dynasty.
After the Sino-Japanese War, the Korean Peninsula became an independent country and established the Korean Empire, but it was devoted to Russia and tried to keep Japan and Qing in check. The Russo-Japanese War was the result of Russia's advance southward. In this case, too, it was a war between Japan and Russia.
The Korean Peninsula continued to defect to major powers
The Korean Peninsula has no interest in the benefits of being a buffer zone, and has constantly implemented policies that disrupt the balance. As a result, the Korean government, believing that it would be unable to prevent the expansion of Russian interests, signed the Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty. Japan and Korea are not at war here. What is different from the Ukraine issue is that the Korean Peninsula was not subject to military invasion, and the issue was resolved between the major powers involved (Japan-Qing, Japan-Russia).
Ukraine has been shaken
In Ukraine, a pro-Russian president and a pro-Western president have alternated every election. The eastern part has many residents who benefit from the economy with Russia, while the western part does business with Europe. With regard to domestic economic issues, if a pro-Western president is inaugurated, economic policies will be focused on Western areas, and if a pro-Russian president is inaugurated, economic policies will be focused on eastern areas. It will be done.
Although it may appear to be a security issue, economics has a lot to do with national elections. And while the current Zelensky administration is pro-Western, it has also taken an anti-Russian line. As a result, the security balance in Europe was seriously disrupted by the NATO membership issue.
POINT In any case, times are different now. Russia has faced much criticism from the international community for its military invasion of these issues.
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Japan, the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and the EU announced sanctions against Russia.The content is limited, not enough to corner Russia.
Sanctions include (1) suspension of visa issuance and freezing of property for two "Republic" , (2) prohibition of import and export of two "Republics", and (3) prohibition of the issuance and distribution of new sovereign bonds in Japan.
Before that Japan's Foreign Minister Hayashi announced Japan will do sanctions in line with the G7, but the sanctions are not very strong.
German Chancellor Helmut Scholtz said on Wednesday he would suspend the approval process for a new gas pipeline (Nordstream 2) in Germany and Russia.Nordstream 2 is a pipeline that imports natural gas from Russia in the future without going through Ukraine, but will be suspended.However, it is doubtful how effective the sanctions will be because the current pipeline is exported to European countries via Ukraine.
The sanctions announced by the U.S. government are very limited.Pro-Russian-controlled areas are prohibited from doing economic transactions with the U.S. It was not sanctions against Russia.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has imposed sanctions on five banks and three Russian billionaires, saying they will be banned from traveling to Britain.
The EU said it agreed to target 27 individuals and organizations that "play a role in weakening or threatening Ukraine's territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence."
In any case, it is not a comprehensive plan to corner Russia's economy, but a partial, limited, and future solution.
Russia was subject to economic sanctions over the Crimean Peninsula last time, and based on its experience and current economic relations between the U.S. and Europe, it predicted the size of the sanctions and decided to send troops to Donetsk and Lugansk.Territorial disputes will benefit the region permanently after its conquest.Crimea ,Donetsk and Lugansk have 3,796,000 people, and after all Russia will occupy their economy.
Economic sanctions against territorial aggression cannot be used as a countermeasure from the beginning.Unless Russia returns it, losses from economic sanctions will be recovered from the region.
Can economic sanctions stop Russia's war?The cause of the war has not yet been discussed.
President Vladimir Putin has no intention of stopping the war amid economic sanctions imposed on Russia.In a telephone conversation with French President Jacques Macron, he said, "We will not stop attacking Ukraine until Russia has achieved its goals."Many media outlets, including Japan, predict that Russia will eventually end the war due to economic sanctions, but this is not the case.What is needed mainly to wage war is weapons to fight, fuel to power them, and food for soldiers.If these are missing, it will be difficult to continue the war.The idea that it is economically disadvantageous and profitable is a prewar discussion.
I want you to remember Japan's past history.Japan was surrounded by ABCDs.This is a siege of A=America (USA), B=Britain (UK), C=China (China), and D=Dutch (Netherlands).As a result, Japan was blocked from ironwork, oil, and food, which were essential for the continuation of the war.What was the result?The Great East Asian War and the Pacific War began.The economic blockade is threatening the survival of the country, and Japan had been trying to build an Asian economic bloc by further promoting the idea of a "Great East Asian Co-prosperity Zone."The idea of a great East Asian co-prosperity zone was to expel Western colonial rule in Asia, and economic sanctions would compensate for the loss caused by developing the development of the great East Asian co-prosperity zone.
When it comes to weapons, Russia is one of the world's leading military powers, and there are a lot of weapons already manufactured.In terms of fuel, Russia ranked seventh in the world in oil reserves and overtaken Saudi Arabia in 2010 as the world's largest oil producer.In terms of food, Russia's grain self-sufficiency rate is 124%.In other words, what is needed to continue the war is mainly available in Russia.
Mining is also active, producing 32% iron, 31% nickel, 27% tin, 21% cobalt, and 14% uranium of global production, as well as copper, lead, zinc, aluminum, titanium, gold, platinum, and diamond.Moreover, exports of fuel and energy products, mainly oil and natural gas, account for two-thirds of Russia's total exports, and European countries cannot engage in economic activities without purchasing natural gas from Russia.Therefore, this part is not subject to economic sanctions.So, will this stop the war?
Even in the past, the only way to stop the war was to defeat the enemy or to eliminate the cause of the war.Economic sanctions did not stop Japan's military it had little resources at that time.
Looking at the current situation in Russia, it seems that they have no intention of stopping the invasion of Ukraine.Attempts to persuade Putin should continue, but it seems impossible to stop the march unless the fundamental problem would be solved.
Is Ukraine a liberal country? Wait a minute. How was the North Korean nuclear missile made?
There are many questions about whether Ukraine is a democratic country. Ukrainian democracy is said to have been after the Orange Revolution. It was 2005. During the Cold War, it was the same country as the former Soviet Union, and corruption and corruption were widespread, and the content was almost unchanged. During the former Soviet Union, there were many nuclear and military facilities in Ukraine.
Chinese aircraft carriers, fighters, missiles, etc. were provided by Ukraine. North Korea's nuclear weapons and missile development is being carried out by nuclear researchers from Russia and Ukraine. In 2017, a total of nine Ukrainian researchers were listed on the list, which the North Korean defectors who served for the North Korean secret police and the Ministry of State Security revealed as "Ukrainian scientists working in North Korea." In 2007, North Korea disassembled one 2,800-ton class and one 3,000-ton class submarine from Sevastopol on the Crimean Peninsula and carried them to North Korea. In other words, it will be clear which country it is. The weapons of China and North Korea that threaten us and other Asian countries are brought by Ukraine. Currently, in Kyiv, a railway from Wuhan has been constructed as a key point north of the Belt and Road Initiative, and China is ranked first in terms of both imports and exports by trade.
There is no dispute that the Ukrainians who are currently invaded should be saved, but the media's tone of being a liberal camp against Ukraine makes me very uncomfortable. Most of them were indifferent to human rights issues during the Iraq War. There was controversy over the participation of the Self-Defense Forces as logistical support, but the murder of Iraqi citizens was dismissed as a false bomb as reported by the United States. In other words, the Iraqi people can't help being killed, and the Ukrainians are pitiful. And he criticizes every time North Korea launches a missile. This is the current public opinion in Japan.
Russia criticizes Romania for lending an airport as participating in the war.Romania is a member of NATO.
Democracy has weakened.Under the pressure of China's economy, liberal countries are only fighting defense.The world is trembling with China's expansion and with Russia's ongoing military aggression.This means that solidarity between democracies has weakened.At least there was strong unity during the Cold War in liberal countries, but after the collapse of the Soviet Union, liberal countries focused on their economic activities.The loss of the enemy means peace.With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Union of Eastern European Union collapsed.Russia and Belarus are now continuing to defend the former Soviet forces of the Soviet Union.Is Russia now the Soviet Union?No, not the Soviet Union, but Russia.So what is going on now?Is the world asking itself this question?
What is the significance of NATO's existence?The world had lived half a century under tension that even a single shell could lead to World War III, confronting a military alliance called Warsaw Treaty Organization had centered on the Soviet Union.Biden repeatedly said, "We will not wage war with Russia because World War III will come."Romania was criticized by Russia.In other words, if Rumania continues to lend airports to Ukraine. military, it will be considered as joining a war.Romania is a member of NATO.What would happen if Romania were bombarded by Russia?In this case, we would surprise if Biden says, "I won't participate in the war because World War III will come." And I wondered what the Cold War was.
There is no end to the Russian invasion.Putin said there would be a ceasefire only if Ukraine accepted all Russian demands.This can also be seen as an ultimatum to the negotiations.Economic sanctions have backfired in Ukraine's invasion.Russia wants to compensate for the loss of economic sanctions through aggression.
Putin said, "Economic sanctions in developed countries are like declaring war."Ironically, Russia doesn't seem to want to stop the invasion in the future.
Ukrainian army retakes strategic Liman in Donetsk region - will attack on annexed region push Russia into a state of war?
Ukraine regains eastern Liman
Will the division strategy become an enemy?
Will Russia declare war
If Russia is attacked
Putin's power at home
Ukraine has recaptured the strategic town of Liman in the eastern Donetsk region. It seems that they have advanced further since Kharkiv the other day. What is surprising is the operational capabilities of the Ukrainian military, as well as the weakness of the Russian military. Russian army is too weak. After the mobilization order for 300,000 people was issued, there is no end to the number of Russians fleeing near the border, and Russian soldiers who were captured from the beginning said, ``I want to see my mother, I want to go home.'' Cried.
From the beginning, Russia marched in an arc across the east, attempting to divide the Ukrainian army. However, the situation is now reversed, with the Ukrainian military now targeting areas where it is weak. It has been pointed out that this way of positioning is effective when going on the offensive, but it puts you at a disadvantage when going on the defensive.
What will be interesting to see in the retaking of Liman is whether Russia will declare a state of war. Currently, Russia is framing this as a special military operation aimed at peacekeeping operations. In other words, the people are not directly involved in this, it is a military operation and a policy of the Russian government. That is why the sudden partial mobilization order for 300,000 people caused so much unrest.
In the event of a state of war, martial law would be imposed and military conscription could be carried out at random. That is exactly the situation in Ukraine. Liman is in a region that was recently incorporated into Russia, so in theory it means that Russia was attacked. It is also said that Mr. Putin's decision to annex Russia was to raise the country to a state of war.
If Putin is unable to declare a state of war, it would mean that his power in domestic politics has weakened. If martial law were to be declared, the sons of politicians would also have to be sent to the battlefield.