> administration exercising soft power to help a favoured politician in another country – even if they sometimes turn out to be dictators
You know. It would be fine if it was a few times thing. But US has a long history of putting dictators into power, calling them allies, then turning against them and invading/killing them. Which only seems to benefit the military and cause chaos everywhere else.
> That the United States "put [Putin into power]" assuming you're referring to the United States' inaction after the FSB apartment bombings?
Ah, so you mean the United States' inaction in providing aid to Russia after Yeltsin and the IMF began to aggressively reform Russia's economy?
Your logic is that the United States installed Putin by not interfering more?
> You know. It would be fine if it was a few times thing. But US has a long history of putting dictators into power, calling them allies, then turning against them and invading/killing them. Which only seems to benefit the military and cause chaos everywhere else.
It's notable that your own cartoonish straw man bears no resemblance whatsoever to the specific case you're trying to illustrate, unless I'm missing the part where the US installed Putin, allied with him, and then invaded/killed him.
How many dictators has the United States installed, allied with, and then invaded or killed in your lifetime?
> US is largest contributor to IMF it would be a joke to suggest their opinion has no sway.
Russia was pursuing this strategy prior to IMF involvement. The membership of the IMF was supportive of the strategy. The United States' Treasury Department did not intervene. Tell me again how this had anything to do with Putin? You make it sound as if the US was providing weapons to Putin or something.
> Saddam in Iraq
I think you have some reading to do if you believe the United States "installed" Saddam. It was the Ba’athists.
> Russia was pursuing this strategy prior to IMF involvement.
> Yeltsin turned to the Russian economists Yegor Gaidar and Anatoly Chubais, who, with the aid of Western advisers, hammered out the details.
Jeez, wonder who gave them that idea.
> I think you have some reading to do if you believe the United States "installed" Saddam. It was the Ba’athists.
Think you are placing too much weight on installed. Installed in as in supported materially, financially, or militarily. Helped get into power or remain there.
Whilst I'm impressed with the speed of your climbdown, you have now broadened your definition of "installed" to the point where it is utterly meaningless.
You know. It would be fine if it was a few times thing. But US has a long history of putting dictators into power, calling them allies, then turning against them and invading/killing them. Which only seems to benefit the military and cause chaos everywhere else.
> That the United States "put [Putin into power]" assuming you're referring to the United States' inaction after the FSB apartment bombings?
No. The economic shock therapy.