(4 of 4)
What Americans don't understand is that while they have been secretly trying to achieve the collapse and disintegration of Russia -- though they take pains to deny it -- they have only increased the possibility that the tired, exhausted and embittered Russian armed forces may one day explode, with dire consequences -- not only for the U.S. but also for the world. American and NATO military bases still encircle Russia, despite declarations about the end of the cold war. The U.S. military budget keeps growing, along with Washington's combat strength. We monitor this closely. Only naive people who do not know Russia might believe that our military will accept the position of second best in the world. We seek to be equal to the strongest. Yeltsin has denied us our most precious professional feeling: a sense of pride in our own might. The military will never forgive him for that.