Former President George W. Bush said Russian President Vladimir Putin underestimated Ukraine as he attempts to return his country to Soviet Union-era dominance.
Bush spoke Tuesday in Chicago at a benefit fundraiser for the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center, Politico reported.
During a question-and-answer session with museum CEO Susan Abrams, Bush discussed Putin and the invasion of Ukraine.
"In [Putin’s] view the demise of the Soviet Union is bad for the Russian people, so we're watching him try to reinstate Soviet hegemony," Bush said. "He picks weak people to do that. He thought Ukraine was weak, but it's not. Ukraine is showing a backbone and a spine that this world sorely needs to see."
The former president also touched on Germany's decision to abandon its long-held refusal to export weapons to conflict zones and send anti-tank weapons and surface-to-air missiles to Ukraine.
"The Germans' attitude has shifted completely from becoming guilt-ridden pacifists to people who understand that liberty is under attack and we have to do something about it," Bush said, according to Politico.
While many people have discussed Russia and China working together against the U.S., Bush wasn't so sure about that theory.
"I don’t think they want to be too cozy with Putin at this moment,” Bush said of the Chinese communists. "So, this may be an opportunity to conduct some diplomacy that [creates] an alliance of convenience. The president’s foreign policy team has an opportunity to deal with China in a way that will surprise the country.
"Putin loves the idea of isolating China against the United States. The idea of China needing Putin’s energy gives Putin a chance to say to the world, ‘The United States is no longer as significant as it used to be. It's now Russia and China.' And that’s just not going to hold given his actions in Ukraine."
Bush began his session by telling a story about once playing host to Putin.
"I introduced Vladimir Putin to Barney, our Scottish terrier, and [Putin] dissed him," Bush said. "A year later, Laura and I go visit Vladimir and his wife — this was before he decided to be with a gymnast 30 years younger — and he says, 'I want you to meet my dog.' I said, 'Yeah, sure.' And I’ll never forget, out runs a huge Russian hound. And Putin says 'Bigger, stronger, and faster than Barney.'
"By the way, I told that to the Canadian prime minister and he said, 'At least he only showed you his dog.'"
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