PUTIN PEACE PLAN OR SILLY PUTTY?

OP-ED

Monday, December 1, 2025

Remember Silly Putty? It was a stretchy clay-like material for kids. One fun thing was how silly putty could be flattened against a newspaper and it would pick up of the image of the page. You could stretch and twist the image however you wanted. Welcome to the latest “Peace Plan” for the Ukraine-Russia conflict. It has now been stretched and twisted beyond recognition. They are not done.

What is the take home message? This “peace plan” is a waste of time. That’s the message.

Normal expectations would callfor convergence towards some compromise. Well, that is not happening. Instead, the image is one of children fighting over the silly putty and twisting the “peace plan” into ever worse shapes. None of this suggests resolution of anything.

Instead, dear audience, we need to refer to the basis for power politics and self-survival. Putin fears peace. His power will ultimately be lost if he ever settles for peace with Ukraine. That is the point we all need to see clearly. It is a point reinforced by the latest Russian Federal budget. The way the budget is being allocated, there is a clear shift to sustaining a war economy (which cannot be sustained) that will cover at least the next 2-3 years.

That spells a military build up greater than that which has gone on in the last two yeasrs. There will be a return to large scale mechanized warfare across the European plains. That is why an ambitious Germany plan for an army of over 800,000 men was leaked as a way to fight a Russian invasion. Remember, Putin fears peace.

While Russia critics make a big deal out of a huge draw down in their gold supply, they have to be reminded that Russia is the second largest producer of gold in the world. Their production over the last few years has averaged 310 million tons of gold. That more than replaces the drawdown. Also, raising taxes is a bad sign, but it shows Putin is determined to keep fighting for the next few years. So, forget about the “peace plan.”