Greetings, joG. :2wave:
I posted earlier this week that I thought Putin might make a deal with the Ukraine to provide their oil and gas at a low price in return for using part of their country as a "land bridge" to get to the Crimea and the seaport he has there.
He took a slightly different approach than I had considered, though, by reminding them that they owe Russia billions for the oil and gas they have already used, and unless they pay up, they will do without any further deliveries from Russia, and it's Winter over there. The Ukrainian government doesn't have the money, or they would not have been buying on credit in the first place, so one of two things will probably happen, IMO, but who knows.
A "land bridge" deal may yet be made, or the Ukraine may ask other countries, including us, for monetary assistance to pay their debt to Russia, and continue to stay warm. Either choice benefits Russia, who has apparently decided to use capitalism as a means to get what he wants. I agree with others on here that he won't use a nuke - he doesn't have to. He is legally justified in asking for payment for gas and oil already delivered, and most people could not fault him for that. Unfortunately we have an $18 trillion dollar debt, so we'll probably have to borrow money from China to help the Ukrainian government pay Russia - you can't make this s*** up! - or run the printing presses full speed ahead, putting us even farther in debt! *shaking head in disbelief*