Does Russian President Vladimir Putin really want to go to war with the West? If you believe Russian state propaganda, then the answer is a deafening "yes". Putin leads a very aggressive foreign policy, and as soon as he encounters resistance, he immediately takes offense.

The Kremlin threw all its efforts into killing people with nerve agents and stirring up chaos wherever possible - in Syria, Ukraine or Facebook. If they catch on hot, the Kremlin immediately complains about the "witch hunt" and expounds its ridiculous counter-theories of what actually happened. For example, it says that the father, who was once a Russian spy and his daughter, who nearly died from the action of a nerve agent made in Russia, were in fact poisoned by the hands of the vile British who introduced the same substance to them, when the victims were hospitalized.

And the Kremlin does not become a loser in this game: when the free world yells at Russia, the win for it to resort to a new attack. When the West quickly unites against the Russian provocation, it feeds on the Kremlin's internal propaganda, they say, here is the proof of "double standards" and natural hostility towards Russia.

Today, the Russian dream of abandoning the military challenge to the world has become the main theme of state propaganda. In May, when Russia celebrated the anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, the most popular slogan was "We can do it again". In other words, "one day we can once again take Berlin by storm".

And think about it. Can Russia really take Berlin by storm again? And she even tries? Or does Putin really believe that he can win a short and glorious war? Or is he just bluffing? Consider closer.

On February 8, in the city of Deir al-Tzur Syria, it was reported that a certain number of Russians who are considered mercenaries - it could be dozens, or maybe two hundred - were killed as a result of American air strikes. The Kremlin has always seen resentment where it was not foreseen. Therefore, it was quite obvious that they would get pretty angry there. But they were silent there, if we did not take into account the objections that there were no Russian soldiers in Deir al-Chur.

Two months later, President Trump ordered an air strike at places where Syria could manufacture chemical weapons, and this time the Kremlin conceived a big show. Their ambassador to Lebanon, Alexander Zasypkin, commented to Al-Manar television channel that, under the control of Hezbollah, warned that any US missiles launched in the direction of Syria would be shot down and their launch sites would be targeted.

The topic of the American attack in Russia was actively covered on television, and then the Russian General Staff pushed a ridiculous statement there that their anti-missile defense had knocked down 71 of 103 US missiles. ) All this became an excellent illustration of Russian military power prepared for viewers.

Well, all this was a lie. Already at the very beginning, the Pentagon stated that 58 of the 59 US missiles had reached the target. ) In fact, Russia has been watching to not shoot down an American missile, let alone sink some of their vessel. ) On May 10, a month after that attack, according to Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, their forces destroyed only "one or more of the Iranian infrastructure in Syria with just one air strike". Among the destroyed objects were five Iranian air defense systems with far from Persian names-that's how the Dvina and Buk-that is, those systems that, according to General Rudsky, so well repelled American missiles.

It was a humiliating defeat, so the Kremlin absolutely did not react to it.

And this is eloquent. The Israelis recently stated that they would not allow Iran to turn Syria into an "advanced military base" directed against Israel. In other words, this country has never been tolerant of the presence of the Iranian Islamic Guards Corps.

Unfortunately for the Kremlin, the presence of these corps in Syria is all that keeps the regime of Bashar Assad afloat. If this regime falls, it will mean the end of the Kremlin game and Putin's personal humiliation.

So why does the Kremlin not protest?.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was the only Western leader who arrived in Moscow on May 9. The Kremlin propaganda machine very much untwisted this event: on this day each TV channel shouted "we can do it again", while the families were walking in the column of the Russian parade with photos of the ancestors who fought in the Second World War - they were nicknamed Immortal Regiment.

And Netanyahu not only visited Moscow, but also marched alongside Putin's Red Square, waving a portrait of a Russian Jew who fought heroically in the war.

It was just one day before the military fiasco in Syria, when the protective systems of Russian origin could not distract the Israeli attack. Now Israel is that rare pro-Western country that still maintains friendly relations with Russia. Therefore, we can conclude that Netanyahu used the May 9th walk to inform Putin of the impending confrontation with the Iranians. And thus gave Putin the opportunity to choose: to remain friends or to enter hell. Whatever you say, he chose the first. ) All these three events show that, despite the anger, Putin seeks to avoid any direct military confrontation with the West. He does not want a war, which, very likely, would not become either short or easy. What he wants is a television war - computer simulation - with all its advantages in the field of public relations.

This is a fatal flaw in any strategy that involves pushing Russia toward confrontation with the West. You can not go to war without being really ready for it.

When Hitler demilitarized Rhineland, he pursued business benefits. At that moment, he did not want war, and then he prepared well for the battle, only had to challenge him. And in the case of Hitler, it was not a bluff. And Putin's bluffing. Perhaps he could survive another Deir al-Zur and another, but he can not survive a hundred Deir al-Tsurov. His image of a strong leader would scatter to pieces.

Therefore, in fact, the West should not be afraid of the traditional military confrontation with the Kremlin. All just the opposite.

Source: HB.