Comment by dehrmann
Comment by dehrmann 2 months ago
It's a lot harder to go to war when countries depend on each other economically.
Comment by dehrmann 2 months ago
It's a lot harder to go to war when countries depend on each other economically.
Putin is surrounded and supported by people who are probably losing a ton of money right now. When he finally learns his lesson, it's probably going to be a harsh one.
This was famously the argument made in the book The Great Illusion, 5 years before the outbreak of the First World War.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Illusion
Wars are often irrational.
It wasn't wrong, just too early.
At the time international trade was still fairly minor, so although a war would be deeply unprofitable it'd still be possible. Today's economy looks quite different, with even basic consumer goods coming from overseas. If international trade were to suddenly cease, most major countries would be in serious trouble really quickly.
The most extreme example of this is the European Union. Its economies are so deeply interwoven that they act as a single entity. Separating them to the point that one of its members can independently support a war economy would take decades, so it does indeed make intra-European wars virtually impossible.
Tell that to Russia, its economy is - military production aside - in shambles due to Western sanctions and especially the brain drain.
The idea of economically enforced peace only works for democratic countries where the government has to show at least a bare minimum of respect towards its citizens, but not in countries that follow the whims of their respective Dear Leader.