Will the annexation of Crimea become simply another fait accompli as part of Russia's expansion to include its former satellites, similar to its 2008 takeover of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in the Republic of Georgia? Or does Russian President Vladimir Putin have something more in mind? Crimea marks a clear return to Cold War style politics, but the near-term prospects are much worse. With its abundant supplies of coal, electric power, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, machinery and transport manufacturers, Ukraine was once the most important economic component of the former Soviet Union. Its diversified heavy industry continues to supply unique equipment and raw materials to industrial and mining sites throughout Russia.Thirty percent of the former Soviet Union's defense industrial base resides in Ukraine.
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