obligation to defend it. is there a sense that if president putin isn t bluffing, european countries acknowledged that they really are powerless to stop it? in acknowledged that they really are powerless to stop it? acknowledged that they really are powerless to stop it? in very simple terms, powerless to stop it? in very simple terms. what powerless to stop it? in very simple terms, what lies powerless to stop it? in very simple terms, what lies behind powerless to stop it? in very simple terms, what lies behind this - terms, what lies behind this potential is the insurgence of a sovereign potential is the insurgence of a sovereign nation by a massive military sovereign nation by a massive military machine. thrasher is clearly military machine. thrasher is clearly on military machine. thrasher is clearly on a war footing and this is driven clearly on a war footing and this is driven by clearly on a war footing and this is driven by intense nationalism within the kremlin
on today s programme, we will try to puncture the propaganda of arms and the theatre of diplomacy. what lies behind the threatened conflict over ukraine? the minsk agreements, what are they? could they be a way out of the crisis? and why, for some, have they the whiff of munich about them? how is china affecting the decisions being taken both by vladimir putin and joe biden? joining us this week, ned temko, a former moscow correspondent, who writes for the christian science monitor, nabila ramdani, a french algerian journalist and broadcaster, vincent ni is china affairs correpondent with the guardian. he is here in the studio with me. welcome to all of you. good to have your company today on dateline. let s begin if we may, ned, with this question of the sort of phony war stage we seem to be at at the moment with ukraine. the west appears to be playing russia at its own game in the last few weeks. propaganda strikes.
if ukraine does become a member of nato, then ukraine will become massively stronger militarily. as you quite rightly said, the principle of collective responsibility is what effectively underpins nato and if a nato backed ukraine is threatened by russia, that means everybody is at war and this means all 30 nato states, including the united kingdom, will be going to war on the side of the ukraine. but, as we know, this is by no means a new geopolitical crisis, but one that has remained unresolved for far too long. labour russia has already annexed to the crimean remember, russia has already annexed the crimean peninsula in ukraine, back in 2014, claiming to respond to anti russian agitation in ukraine. there was one of the biggest land grabs in europe since world war ii.
china effecting the decisions taken by vladimir putin and joe biden? joining us a former moscow correspondent, a french nigerian journalist and broadcaster, and the china affairs correspondent with the guardian. he is in the studio with me. good to have your company today on dateline london. let s begin with this question of the sort of phony war stage we seem to be out at the moment with ukraine. the best appears to be playing russia at its own game in the last few weeks. propaganda strikes. mobilising troops from the united states and other parts of europe. in a sense calling president putin s laugh. do you think he is bluffing? the calling president putin s laugh. do you think he is bluffing? you think he is bluffing? the only erson you think he is bluffing? the only person who you think he is bluffing? the only person who knows you think he is bluffing? the only person who knows the you think he is bluffing? the only person who knows the answer - you think he is bluffing? th
they expresssed willingness to stand shoulder to shoulder. they released a long and cooperation between the two countries is limitless. when it comes to actually backing russia, if russia are being sanctioned by the international community, the west, russia will have to weight it up very carefully. trade between russia and china was $140 billion. its trade with the european union last year was four, five times higher. china has much more to lose. in the worst case scenario, if russia is excluded from the us dollar dominated swift international payment system, china will also suffer because much of the trade payment settlement between the two countries are also in us dollars. china will have to weigh this up very, very carefully. it is one thing to say something that is so nice to each other, and quite another to behave in such a way to show you are real friends.