Putin 2 - Obama 0, which means it is time to go back to the one place where it all started last year, and where Putin had his most resounding victory over the US foreign policy apparatus (at least until the Ukraine, where we trampled not only over Obama's red line... again... but where nobody quite explained the "costs" to the ex-KGB leader): Syria. Sure enough, with the US unable to respond in Crimea, has decided to take its fight back to where Europe's natgas reliance on Gazprom product was first truly exposed.
BREAKING: US freezes diplomatic, consular relations with Syria; Orders non-US personnel to leave country.
— The Associated Press (@AP) March 18, 2014 [5]
The US can order non-US personnel around? More from Reuters:
- U.S.
IMMEDIATELY SUSPENDS OPERATIONS OF SYRIAN EMBASSY IN WASHINGTON, AS
WELL AS HONORARY CONSULATES IN MICHIGAN AND TEXAS - STATE DEPARTMENT - U.S.
SPECIAL ENVOY FOR SYRIA SAYS 'UNACCEPTABLE' FOR INDIVIDUALS APPOINTED
BY ASSAD REGIME TO CONDUCT DIPLOMATIC, CONSULAR OPERATIONS IN U.S.
Regardless, if the bloodless Russian annexation of Crimea wasn't enough to push the S&P to new all time highs, this surely will.