• CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org
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    1 year ago

    Is it though? “Directly in a fight with the West that they will lose”, and which would still probably be politically existential, seems like exactly the moment to push the big red button.

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        1 year ago

        Commit suicide, kill your family and everything you’ve ever known because your political career is over?

        In Russia that’s an implied outcome of your career being over, see Prigozhin. Actually, since your family is related to a political leader they may have better chances during a nuclear exchange, being in whatever bunker.

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            1 year ago

            I think you have your wires crossed - Yeltsin died in office left in terrible health. You could use Gorbachev, but then you’re going back to the Soviet era that was completely different, if also not democratic. It’s also not unique to Russia. Autocrats everywhere make enemies while at the top, and retiring in peace is rare.

            I guess it’s possible they could opt to ignore a direct attack and just take one for the team, as could the US if China invaded, but in both cases I think it’s more likely the threat is credible. Heck, by that logic, they could launch a limited nuclear strike on the US using the logic that the US wouldn’t escalate next, and win that way.