Part 5 of 6 in the American Military-Industrial Complex Series
Okay, let’s sharpen the knives and dig deeper into the festering wound that is the Ukraine conflict, using Scott Horton and Darryl Cooper’s incendiary book, “Provoked: How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine,” as our scalpel. If you’re still buying the simplistic, neatly packaged narrative that this war was solely the result of one madman’s unprovoked aggression, then prepare for a brutal deconstruction. Horton and Cooper don’t just suggest U.S. culpability; they meticulously build a case, brick by bloody brick, demonstrating how decades of deliberate, calculated U.S. provocation towards Russia, driven by the insatiable greed of the Military-Industrial Complex (MIC) and the ideological fervor of neoconservatives, lit the fuse for this entirely avoidable catastrophe. This isn’t about absolving Putin; it’s about exposing the puppeteers in Washington who, for years, systematically dismantled every off-ramp to peace, ensuring that Ukraine would become the abattoir for their New Cold War ambitions.
We’re not talking about subtle diplomatic missteps. We’re talking about a relentless, aggressive campaign of NATO expansion right up to Russia’s doorstep, a series of U.S.-backed coups in Ukraine, the brazen shredding of arms control treaties, and the consistent dismissal of Russia’s clearly stated security concerns. As “Provoked” makes devastatingly clear, this war is the horrifying, yet entirely predictable, culmination of a bipartisan American foreign policy that prioritizes imperial dominance and MIC war profits over genuine global security. The authors paint a grim picture of how the American war machine, desperate for a new enemy after the Soviet Union’s collapse, systematically cultivated the conditions for conflict with Russia, with Ukraine tragically caught in the crossfire.
New Cold War, Old Tricks: The American Military-Industrial Complex Bleeds Ukraine Dry
Forget the fairy tales of a noble West rushing to defend a fledgling democracy. Scott Horton and Darryl Cooper, in their essential work “Provoked,” present a far more damning and accurate account: the Ukraine conflict is the direct, foreseeable consequence of a decades-long strategy by the American Military-Industrial Complex (MIC) and its political enablers to encircle, antagonize, and ultimately break Russia. The authors meticulously document how Washington, high on its “unipolar moment” delusions, systematically ignored Russian red lines, tore up treaties, and actively interfered in Ukrainian politics to install compliant, anti-Russian regimes. The goal? To perpetuate a New Cold War, ensuring a perpetual flow of taxpayer dollars into the MIC’s coffers and reasserting American hegemony, even if it meant sacrificing Ukraine on the altar of geopolitical ambition and risking a nuclear war with Russia.
[IMAGE SUGGESTION 1: A detailed map of Europe showing successive waves of NATO expansion from 1999 to the present, with arrows aggressively pointing towards Russia’s western border. Ukraine is highlighted in red, with a “Danger: U.S. Provocation Zone” label. The title “Provoked” is prominent.]
The Poisoned Chalice: NATO Expansion and the Betrayal of Russia’s Post-Cold War Hopes
Horton and Cooper begin their indictment by exposing the foundational lie of the post-Cold War era: the myth that NATO expansion was a benign, defensive process desired by sovereign nations. “Provoked” reminds us of the assurances given to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev by Western leaders, including U.S. Secretary of State James Baker, that NATO would not expand “one inch eastward” if Russia acquiesced to German reunification. As the authors detail, this promise was not just broken; it was contemptuously shattered.
- The “Not One Inch” Deception: Horton and Cooper cite declassified documents and historical accounts confirming these assurances. They argue that the decision to expand NATO, pushed by figures like Bill Clinton and his foreign policy team (many of whom, like Strobe Talbott, were disciples of Zbigniew Brzezinski, a notorious Russia hawk), was a deliberate act of bad faith. It signaled to Moscow that, far from being a partner, Russia was still viewed as a potential adversary to be contained. This NATO expansion betrayal set the stage for decades of mistrust.
- Waves of Encirclement: “Provoked” meticulously charts the waves of NATO expansion: 1999 (Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic), 2004 (Baltic states, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Slovenia), and subsequent pushes to include Georgia and Ukraine. Each expansion brought NATO military infrastructure closer to Russia’s borders, a move that, as the authors stress, any great power would perceive as a growing threat. They quote numerous Western strategists and diplomats, including George Kennan (the architect of Cold War containment) and even current CIA Director William Burns (in past writings), who warned that NATO expansion into Ukraine was the “brightest of all redlines” for Russia and would inevitably provoke a strong response. These warnings, as Horton and Cooper show, were arrogantly dismissed by the MIC foreign policy establishment.
- Missile Defense Systems as Offensive Threats: The authors highlight how the U.S. withdrawal from the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty in 2002 under George W. Bush, and the subsequent placement of “missile defense” systems in Romania and Poland, were seen by Moscow as deeply provocative. Russia argued, and Horton and Cooper concur, that these systems could be easily converted to launch offensive missiles (like Tomahawk cruise missiles) capable of striking deep within Russia with little warning time. This U.S. missile defense provocation further eroded strategic stability.
The Ukrainian Tinderbox: U.S. Meddling, Coups, and the Road to Civil War
“Provoked” dedicates significant attention to the long and sordid history of U.S. interference in Ukraine, arguing that Washington actively worked to pry Ukraine out of Russia’s orbit and turn it into an anti-Russian bulwark.
- Funding “Democracy” (aka Anti-Russian Agitation): Horton and Cooper detail how U.S. government-funded organizations like the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) – often described as a CIA front organization – poured millions into Ukrainian NGOs, media outlets, and political parties that promoted a pro-Western, anti-Russian agenda. This was a key component of the “Color Revolutions,” including Ukraine’s 2004 Orange Revolution, which, the authors argue, was heavily influenced by Western interference to overturn an election result unfavorable to Washington.
- The 2014 Maidan Coup – Washington’s Fingerprints All Over It: The authors provide a scathing analysis of the February 2014 Maidan coup, which overthrew Ukraine’s democratically elected (though deeply corrupt) President Viktor Yanukovych after he opted for an economic deal with Russia over an association agreement with the EU. “Provoked” highlights:
- Victoria Nuland’s Infamous Call: The leaked phone call between then-Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland and U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt, where Nuland is heard dictating the composition of the post-coup Ukrainian government (“Yats is the guy” – referring to Arseniy Yatsenyuk, who became Prime Minister), is presented as damning evidence of direct U.S. orchestration of the Ukraine coup. Nuland’s infamous “Fuck the EU” remark also revealed American unilateralism.
- Support for Far-Right Nationalists: Horton and Cooper discuss the uncomfortable role of far-right Ukrainian nationalist groups, including those with neo-Nazi sympathies (like Svoboda and Right Sector), in providing the street muscle for the Maidan protests and the subsequent violence. They argue that the U.S. was willing to overlook or even leverage these extremist elements to achieve its geopolitical goals. This U.S. support for Ukrainian extremists is a deeply troubling aspect often ignored by mainstream media.
- Ignoring the EU-Brokered Deal: The authors point out that on February 21, 2014, a deal brokered by European foreign ministers was signed by Yanukovych and opposition leaders, agreeing to early elections and constitutional reforms. This deal could have prevented further bloodshed, but it was immediately rejected by the Maidan protesters, and Yanukovych fled for his life shortly thereafter. Horton and Cooper imply that U.S. backing emboldened the hardliners to push for a complete overthrow.
- Fueling the Donbas War: The coup led directly to Russia’s annexation of Crimea (which has a majority ethnic Russian population and housed Russia’s vital Black Sea Fleet, a move supported by a referendum in Crimea, though its legitimacy is disputed) and the outbreak of war in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, where Russian-speaking populations resisted the new nationalist government in Kyiv. “Provoked” argues that the Kyiv government’s “Anti-Terrorist Operation” against the Donbas separatists, which involved shelling civilian areas, was a brutal civil war that the West largely ignored or downplayed, further alienating Russia and the people of Donbas. The authors suggest that the U.S. and its allies did little to push Kyiv towards implementing the Minsk II accords, which were designed to grant autonomy to Donbas and end the fighting. This failure to implement Minsk II peace for Ukraine is seen as a critical missed opportunity, or perhaps a deliberate strategy to keep the conflict simmering.
[IMAGE SUGGESTION 2: A split image: one side showing Victoria Nuland with a speech bubble “Yats is the guy!”; the other side showing armed Maidan protesters, some with far-right insignia, clashing with police. Text overlay: “Ukraine 2014: Revolution or U.S.-Engineered Coup?”]
“Provoked”: Horton and Cooper’s Unsparing Indictment of the MIC’s War Machine
Scott Horton and Darryl Cooper’s “Provoked” is not just a historical account; it’s a relentless prosecution of the American foreign policy establishment and the Military-Industrial Complex that it serves. Their core arguments are devastating:
- The Neoconservative Agenda for Russia: The authors clearly identify the neoconservative movement as a primary driver of the New Cold War with Russia. Figures like Robert Kagan (Victoria Nuland’s husband), Max Boot, and think tanks like the Project for a New American Century (PNAC) and the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) have long advocated for an aggressive U.S. policy aimed at weakening Russia, promoting regime change, and ensuring American global hegemony. “Provoked” shows how these ideologues gained significant influence within both Republican and Democratic administrations, pushing the MIC agenda for Russia relentlessly.
- Sabotaging Peace at Every Turn: Horton and Cooper provide compelling evidence that the U.S. and its allies, particularly the UK, actively worked to sabotage potential peace deals that could have ended or prevented the escalation of the Ukraine conflict.
- The Minsk II Failure: As mentioned, the authors argue that the West, particularly the U.S., did not exert sufficient pressure on Kyiv to implement the political provisions of Minsk II, which would have granted autonomy to the Donbas. This failure, they suggest, kept the conflict alive and provided a pretext for future escalation.
- The Spring 2022 Istanbul Talks: “Provoked” discusses reports (citing sources like former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Turkish officials) that a tentative peace agreement was close to being reached between Russia and Ukraine in March-April 2022. This deal reportedly involved Ukrainian neutrality and security guarantees. However, the authors argue that Western powers, notably then-UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson (allegedly carrying Washington’s message), intervened to persuade Ukrainian President Zelensky to walk away from the deal, promising unlimited military support to fight on. This alleged U.S. sabotage of Ukraine peace talks is a bombshell, suggesting a deliberate choice to prolong the war to “weaken Russia,” a stated goal of U.S. officials like Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
- The Propaganda War and Domestic Censorship: Horton and Cooper highlight the intense U.S. propaganda Ukraine war effort and the concurrent suppression of dissenting voices. They point to the almost uniform pro-war narrative in the mainstream media, the demonization of anyone questioning U.S. policy as a “Putin apologist,” and the evidence from the Twitter Files suggesting government collusion with social media companies to censor narratives deemed “Russian disinformation” or critical of NATO. This MIC censorship creates an echo chamber where rational debate about the war’s origins and potential off-ramps becomes impossible.
- Ukraine as Cannon Fodder for the MIC: The authors, while sympathetic to the suffering of Ukrainians, present a brutal assessment: Ukraine has been cynically used as a proxy, its people as cannon fodder, in the MIC’s war against Russia. The massive influx of MIC weapons to Ukraine, while framed as aid, serves primarily to enrich Western defense contractors and achieve Washington’s geopolitical goal of bleeding Russia, regardless of the cost in Ukrainian lives or the risk of escalation. The MIC Ukraine war profits are a central, if often unspoken, driver of the conflict.
[IMAGE SUGGESTION 3: A graphic depicting a chessboard. On one side, a hand labeled “U.S./NATO MIC” moves Ukrainian pawn pieces. On the other side, a Russian bear piece looks cornered. In the background, defense contractor logos (Raytheon, Lockheed Martin) are raking in money. Text: “The MIC’s Great Game: Ukraine Pays the Price.” ]
The Antiwar Connection: Exposing Ukraine as the MIC’s Most Brazen Blood Sacrifice
“Provoked” is a profoundly antiwar book because it systematically dismantles the official justifications for the Ukraine war, exposing it as a conflict deliberately engineered and perpetuated by the American Military-Industrial Complex and its ideological allies.
- The Nuclear Sword of Damocles: Horton and Cooper repeatedly emphasize the existential risk of nuclear war over Ukraine. By relentlessly pushing a nuclear-armed Russia into a corner and engaging in escalating brinkmanship, the U.S. foreign policy establishment is gambling with the fate of humanity. This reckless disregard for nuclear annihilation is a hallmark of the MIC’s hubris.
- Perpetuating the Cycle of Violence: The authors demonstrate how U.S. actions, far from promoting security, have created a more dangerous and unstable world. The U.S. provocation of Russia has solidified an anti-Western bloc (e.g., closer Russia-China ties) and ensured decades of animosity, guaranteeing future business for the MIC.
- The Human Cost of Imperial Ambition: “Provoked” forces readers to confront the horrific human cost of the MIC’s geopolitical games. Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians and Russians are dead or wounded, millions displaced, and a nation devastated – all, the authors argue, for the sake of American imperial ambition and MIC profiteering.
- Diplomacy as a Dirty Word: The book illustrates how, for the MIC and its proponents, diplomacy is often seen as appeasement. The consistent preference for military escalation over genuine negotiation is a defining feature of MIC influence on U.S. foreign policy.
The Devil’s Advocate: Defending Sovereignty and Resisting Tyranny? Or a Well-Marketed MIC War?
The apologists for U.S. policy will scream that Horton and Cooper are Kremlin stooges, ignoring Russia’s blatant violation of international law and its brutal invasion of a sovereign nation. They will argue that supporting Ukraine is a moral imperative to defend democracy against authoritarian aggression. Isn’t it the duty of the “free world,” led by the U.S., to help Ukraine resist Putin’s imperialism? They will claim that NATO expansion was a response to the genuine desires of Eastern European nations seeking protection from a historically aggressive Russia.
This narrative, however, conveniently ignores the entire history of provocation meticulously laid out in “Provoked.” It treats February 24, 2022, as Year Zero, disconnected from the decades of U.S. actions that Russia explicitly and repeatedly warned were intolerable. Horton and Cooper are not excusing the invasion; they are explaining it, providing the crucial context that the mainstream media, beholden to the MIC narrative, systematically omits. The “moral imperative” argument rings hollow when confronted with evidence of U.S. sabotage of peace deals and the cynical use of Ukraine as a battering ram against Russia. The claim that this is purely about “defending sovereignty” is undermined by the U.S.’s own long history of violating the sovereignty of other nations when it suited its interests, as detailed in previous articles in this series.
[IMAGE SUGGESTION 4: A split screen. One side: A poster with “Stand With Ukraine” and a Ukrainian flag. Other side: A shadowy MIC executive rubbing his hands with glee as stock prices for defense companies soar. Text: “Moral Crusade or MIC Windfall?”]
Stand-Alone Exposé, Current Catastrophe: The MIC’s Ukraine Masterpiece
Scott Horton and Darryl Cooper’s “Provoked” is an indispensable, stand-alone exposé of how the American Military-Industrial Complex engineered its most dangerous conflict to date. It is a vital counter-narrative that arms readers with the facts to challenge the relentless pro-war propaganda and understand the true origins of the Ukraine catastrophe.
In the broader arc of this series, the Ukraine war, as dissected by “Provoked,” represents the terrifying culmination of all the trends we’ve examined: the deep state machinations of Dulles, the dynastic war-profiteering of the Bushes, the post-9/11 imperial overreach, and now, the direct, reckless confrontation with a major nuclear power. The MIC’s New Cold War is not just a continuation of old policies; it’s an escalation that brings the entire world to the brink. The tactics are familiar – provocation, propaganda, proxy armies, and immense profits – but the stakes have never been higher.
National Security as a Euphemism for Global Domination: The MIC’s Deadly Endgame in Ukraine
The notion that U.S. actions in Ukraine are about “national security” is, as “Provoked” makes clear, a grotesque perversion of the term. The security of ordinary Americans is not enhanced by risking nuclear war with Russia or by pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into a proxy conflict while problems fester at home. Instead, “national security” has become a euphemism for the MIC’s pursuit of global domination, the crushing of any rival power, and the maintenance of an American empire, regardless of the cost in blood or treasure.
Horton and Cooper’s work is a desperate alarm bell, warning that the American MIC in Ukraine is playing a game of Russian roulette with the planet. They expose how the pursuit of U.S. hegemony through NATO and the relentless drive for MIC war profits have led to a conflict that serves no one but the architects of war themselves. The path to peace in Ukraine, and indeed global security, begins with understanding and rejecting the decades of provocation that led us here, a truth that “Provoked” delivers with chilling clarity.