Leslie H. Gelb: Obama must show he’ll use military means to deter Russia in Ukraine
To deter Putin and other aggressors, diplomatic and economic slaps are not enough; the U.S. needs a military dimension. Don’t pop the champagne corks just yet because Vladimir Putin phoned Barack Obama to pursue diplomacy on Ukraine and environs. It may be just a ploy, like Moscow’s proposal to denude Syria of chemical weapons to head off a potent U.S. air strike against President Assad’s forces.