For having openly ordered his secret service to hunt down and punish the murderers of Russian diplomats in Iraq, Putin deserves the moral support of all states, organizations and individuals involved in fighting terrorism.
It was indeed one of the rare instances where a statesman unapologetically announces he has given such an order.
Inevitably, fake moralists are attempting to degrade the significance of the move, arguing that states should not be seen as condoning killings. Implied in this line of thought is that Putin should have covertly given his order. Also implied is the supposition that the rest of us are morons who thought states and their snoops were perfect angels.
The fact is that Putin’s overt hit order is an expression of the new form of statecraft needed to get rogue regimes and groups to either toe the line or face annihilation.
Hail tsar Vlad for setting an example.
