“Putin was a very clever KGB agent, but that does not seem to be the case anymore. Having acquired a certain obsession, he seems to have lost touch with reality. “He certainly did not assess the situation in Ukraine correctly ,” Soros notes, among other things, in his article.
While writing on Project Syndicate, however, the businessman explains why the Russian president’s plans may fall on deaf ears.
“Russia may well lose the war,” he said.
The transcript of what Soros wrote
“Russia’s intervention in Ukraine on February 24 marks the beginning of a third world war that could destroy our culture.
February 4 – the start of the Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations and the Beijing Winter Olympics – a few days before the invasion, was preceded by a long meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.
At the end of this meeting, the two men published a document of 5,000 words, which they had drafted with great care and in which they announced the beginning of a close cooperation between the two countries. This document is stronger than any treaty and is considered to have been preceded by detailed negotiations.
He was surprised that Xi, most likely from the facts, gave Putin permission to invade Ukrainian territory and start a war against it. He must be very confident of being re-elected as China’s lifelong leader later this year. Having gathered all the power in his hands, Xi has carefully devised the scenario with which he will manage to look worthy of Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping.
With the support of Xi, Putin began to realize the dream of his life with incredible barbarity.
As he approaches the age of 70, Putin feels that the time to leave his mark on Russian history is either now or never.
However, his perception of Russia’s role in the world system can be described as perverted. He seems to believe that his people need a Tsar who can follow blindly.
This, however, is the opposite of a democratic society and is a vision that distorts the Russian “soul”, which is considered very emotional.
As a child, I had met Russian soldiers many times since their invasion of Hungary in 1945. If you asked them, they would share the last piece of their bread with you. Later, in the early 1980s, I started what I call “political charity.”
First, I set up an institution in my home country, Hungary, and then I took an active part in the dissolution of the Soviet empire. When Mikhail Gorbachev came to power in 1985, the dissolution of the Soviet Union had already begun.
I set up an institution in Russia and then I did the same in all the successor states. In Ukraine, in fact, it did so before it even became an independent country. I also visited China in 1984, and was the first foreigner to be allowed to set up an institution (which I closed in 1989, shortly before the Tiananmen Square massacre).
I do not know Putin personally, but I have watched very closely his rise to power, fully aware of his cruelty. He has destroyed the Chechen capital, Grozny, just as he is threatening to do at the moment with the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.
He was smart but…
Putin was a very clever KGB agent, but that does not seem to be the case anymore. Having acquired a certain obsession, he seems to have lost touch with reality. He certainly did not properly assess the situation in Ukraine. He expected Russian-speaking Ukrainians to welcome Russian soldiers with open arms. On the contrary, however, it turned out that they were no different from the rest of the Ukrainian-speaking population. The Ukrainians have put up incredibly brave resistance against their far more powerful forces.
In July 2021, Putin published an extensive report claiming that Russians and Ukrainians were truly one people and that Ukrainians had been deceived by neo-Nazi unrest. The first part of his argument has some historical basis, given that Kyiv was the original seat of the Russian Orthodox Church. In the second part, however, the one who has been deceived is Putin. He should have known better. Many Ukrainians fought bravely during the Euromaidan protests in 2014.
The events of 2014 infuriated Putin. However, the Russian army did not perform well when it was ordered to attack its Ukrainian brothers. Systemic corruption in how defense contracts are awarded has also played an important role in the poor performance of the military. However, instead of blaming himself, Putin seems to have literally gone crazy.
He decided to punish Ukraine because it resisted and seems to be acting without any obstacles. He throws the whole Russian army into battle and ignores all the rules of war, indiscriminately bombing, mainly, the civilian population. Many hospitals have been damaged and the power grid that supplies the Chernobyl nuclear power plant (which is currently occupied by Russian troops) has been damaged. In besieged Mariupol, 400,000 people have been left without water and food for almost a week.
Russia may well lose the war. The United States and the European Union are both sending defense weapons to Ukraine and are trying to buy Russian-made MIGs that Ukrainian pilots know how to use. These could make a difference.
“Regardless of the outcome, however, Putin has already done wonders in strengthening the EU’s resolve and unity.”
