LETTER: Putin placed himself in checkmate

Russians are known to be good chess players, but Vladimir Putin has totally overplayed his hand. His bluff about a nuclear war was exposed early on. By underestimating the will of the so-called Free World to defend their freedom and democracy, he placed himself in checkmate.

Not only did he have to relinquish his goal of getting control over Ukraine, but even those areas that he conquered are now slipping out of his grip. At the start of the war, I said Putin may win the battle but had already lost the war. It now seems he is losing both the battle and the war.

His biggest losses are in respect of Russia’s economy and international standing. Putin has already obtained skunk status and the Russian economy has been set back decades. In the medium to longer term, the rest of the world will end its reliance on Russian energy, because it is an unreliable and risky source.

Putin has single-handedly brought pain and suffering across many parts of the world, but it is ordinary Russians who are going to pay over the long term for his misplaced power hunger. The positive amid all the pain is that alternative energy sources have become essential.

Putin’s lifelong ambition to weaken Western democracy and restore the former Soviet Union in all its glory has finally been stopped. It will be a cold and uncomfortable winter for Europe, and consumers globally will still pay a price, but when summer arrives again it will be to a better world.

Dawie Jacobs

Sterrewag

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