via jpost:
The powerful Old Testament image of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse has been repeatedly brought back into discussion when humanity has faced peril and war. Ezekiel and Zachariah have often been interpreted as describing the four horsemen as plague, war, famine and finally death.
When I woke up this past week on the morning of 120 days of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine, it struck me that we were nearing death: Death of the old geopolitical system and of the world order that has kept repeating itself from the medieval ages.
Despite much that has happened, Europe and Russia have risen as powers and then crumbled repeatedly. It seems,finally, that this cycle of plague, war and famine will be the last of Western hegemony and the birth of a new world order, a new world order which will probably bring back the balance of power to Asia and Africa, which were the centers of global wealth and power long before the industrial revolution.
Putin’s puzzle
CNN and other news outlets recently condensed Putin’s endgame in Ukraine as the re-establishment of Russia’s imperial, nationalistic identity. However, the Ukraine war seems to be a step in Putin’s plan of global dominance. Western intelligence agencies have often stated that Putin is terminally ill and has nothing to lose.
While war in Ukraine can be explained as a dying man’s desperate bid at carving out a legacy, the actual actions do not really marry this desperation. Despite losing men, weapons, generals and being under extreme sanctions, Putin continues to soldier on.
The question must be asked, what if Ukraine was not the endgame, what if Ukraine was a long game toward weakening the West? When we analyze biblical predictions, we should also analyze a lot of what-if’s.
Usually, what-iffery is a dangerous sport and leads you down paths that are slippery and often without fundamental logic. However, reading tarot cards or tea leaves is easier than reading the intentions of a man such as Vladimir Putin’s. This man is a veteran spy, former head of one of the world’s most determined and resourceful spy agencies, who has not only brought Russia back to power from its days under Yeltsin, but also been a field operative during the Soviet era.
Before Russia’s Ukraine invasion, Putin’s Russia had filled the gaps in conflicts worldwide and almost become a global arbiter in key geopolitical theatres where the US had lost control.
Afghanistan, Syria, Iran, Mali, Chad and Libya: Putin’s Russia was counted as a voice heard on every major decision. Russia had also become the big brother and tried to play peacemaker in South Asia, between India-Pakistan and China. Weeks before the Ukraine invasion, Russia had intervened in a bizarre coup attempt in Kazakhstan and assisted the Kazakh government in pacifying a revolt.
So, what has happened in the past weeks and months that suddenly made Putin risk all that capital built up over the past 20 years to take on Ukraine. Is it national pride or is it a longer-term strategy against the West?
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