The recent movement of Russian troops into the Crimea got me thinking about how history repeats itself. It reminded me not only of how the Russians moved into the Georgian providences of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in 2008, but also of how the Germans effortlessly occupied Austria and Czechoslovakia in 1938 and 1939. During each of these “actions,” the aggressor country’s reasoning have been the same—to protect their borders and their native people in the region. And during each of these expansions, the rest of the world stood by doing little or nothing. This ineptitude of world leaders to react to obvious warnings has only encouraged egomaniacs like Hitler and Putin to continue their aggression and expansions. When Poland refused to return Danzig and the Polish Corridor in 1939, Germany staged a fake Polish incident and attacked Poland, starting World War II. Does anyone really believe Putin will stop in Crimea? What’s going to happen when Russia uses force to take over Ukraine?

            And is Putin’s way of thinking so different than Hitler’s? The 1919 Treaty of Versailles not only officially ended World War I, it humiliated Germany and ruined its economy. Hitler used this national humiliation, and the restoration of German pride, to come to power. Corruption and the cost of the Cold War helped lead to the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Many Russians now express national humiliation over this downfall, particularly in the way Americans boast of being the greatest country. Some are even looking back at Stalin’s reign of terror with favor. Now Putin is striving to return Russian pride—to show the world they’re the best. Spending fifty-billion dollars on the Olympics is an example of this. Wasn’t this one of Hitler’s primary goals while holding the 1936 Olympics in Berlin? And while Putin can hardly be compared to Hitler when it comes to human atrocities, his position on civil rights isn’t exactly liberal. Political and gay activists are jailed. Even Hitler’s position on social enemies of the state, while published in Mein Kampf, wasn’t truly realized by even the Germans in his early years in power. What will happen to the “rebels” that stand against Putin in Crimea and Ukraine?

            But Putin’s actions, similar to Hitler’s prior to the onset of WWII, are only part of the problem. Too terrified to antagonize Hitler, world leaders did little to deter him. They were pacified, blinded, by Hitler’s lies that he had no interests in world domination. What have world leaders done to stop Putin? Obama has made vague and idle threats. He’s made it very public that he’s negotiating with Putin on the phone—something that appears more to save his political skin than an effective tactic. The U. S. and the European Union have threatened economic sanctions against Russia. This tactic might seriously undermine the Russian economy, but so far, these threats haven’t been carried out. What’s more, economic sanctions could backfire. History gives us another lesson.

            In 1937, the Japanese invaded China, saying they lacked the material wealth to support their economic growth. Their invasion continued despite attempts by the British and the United States to arrive at a diplomatic solution. As a result, the Roosevelt administration cooperated with the British to impose increasingly stringent economic sanctions on Japan. The strategy backfired. Not only did the Japanese continue their expansion efforts, they attacked Pearl Harbor, throwing the United State into WWII. In one of his biggest mistakes, Hitler declared war on the United States just four days later. The result was the most devastating war in world history.

            So can we trust Obama and Putin to arrive at a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine crisis? Vladimir Putin has proven himself to be a man of tremendous ego—willing to do anything to restore Russian pride and regain former Soviet territories. That’s the kind of mentality that doesn’t back down when threatened into a corner. Barack Obama has a long history of weak foreign policy—some say worse than Jimmy Carter’s. From Egypt and Syria to North Korea, the United States has done little or nothing to resolve world threats. Other world leaders recognize this weakness in leadership. Obviously, Putin does as well. One commentator wrote: “Putin is playing chess, while Obama is playing marbles.” In more simple terms. Obama is outmatched. Russia is not going to back down in the Ukraine.

            So what if Russia uses force in Ukraine? At best, we’re looking at a new Cold War. That means renewed tensions and military buildups in a world that’s already facing enough problems. At worse, we could be facing armed conflicts that could lead to all-out war. Can the human race survive another world war—one that results in a nuclear holocaust?