Fears of Ukraine escalation
September 3rd, 2014A Marxist philosopher believes that President Putin’s suggestion to federalize Ukraine could help solve the crisis, but it is unlikely that it will be accepted by Western powers. A right-wing columnist accuses the US of trying to plunder Russia. A conservative commentator calls for increased military spending.
The Ukraine crisis is unlikely to escalate into another world war, but it may easily lead to an economic, social and political meltdown in Eastern Europe, Gáspár Miklós Tamás writes in Heti Világgazdaság. The Marxist philosopher suggests that by “over-expanding” into the East, NATO has stirred up nationalist and imperial resentment in Russia. On the other hand, Ukrainians who deny ethnic Russians basic language and cultural rights are also motivated by nationalist sentiments, Tamás notes. He believes that President Putin’s suggestion to transform Ukraine into a federal state is a sound idea that could help end the crisis by granting autonomy to ethnic Russians while at the same time keeping Ukraine as a sovereign country. This option, however, is unlikely to be accepted by Western powers “dominated by the US”, concerned about its geopolitical standing, Tamás thinks. In conclusion, he warns that the further prolongation of the crisis may push West and East towards war.
In Magyar Hírlap, László Bogár accuses the US of imperialism disguised as spreading democracy. The economist, known for his articles which blame all ills on hidden “background powers”, speculates that the West wants to get hold of Ukraine and even Russia’s natural resources. “The US as a global power intends to raid Russia in a similar way to Napoleon and Hitler. Ukraine is only an unimportant instrument of this unfolding world war about global dominance and natural resources”, Bogár speculates. He adds that in order to plunder Russia, the US “provoked a civil war in Ukraine” with two aims in mind. First, the crisis cuts Russia off from Europe, and at the same time prepares the domination of Europe by the US, Bogár contends.
Mandiner’s Ákos Balogh finds it worrying that Hungary spends very little on its army. The conservative pundit points out that Hungary’s military expenditure has been on a steep decline since 2001. While the neighboring countries have realized that they need to speed up the modernization of their armed forces, the Orbán government which claims to put national sovereignty first, prefers spending money on renovating football stadiums, increasing pensions and cutting utility tariffs rather than equipping the military, he writes. Balogh suggests that this may later prove unwise and irresponsible, once “the long peace” is over.