Russia Not A Red-Herring To Sanders. Rapproachment With Russia Is Necessary. So Is Using Smart Power To Sanction Putin

https://feelthebern.org/bernie-sanders-on-russia/
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Historically, Russia has been, and will continue to be, a significant player in the international economic and diplomatic sphere. Bernie Sanders supports a strong, consistent stance with Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin. Bernie supports enforcing economic sanctions and international pressure as an alternative to any direct military confrontation when dealing with Russia.

Economic and Diplomatic Pressure: To temper Russian aggression, we must freeze Russian government assets all over the world, and encourage international corporations with huge investments in Russia to divest from that nation’s increasingly hostile political aims.
https://feelthebern.org/bernie-sanders-on-russia/#economic-and-diplomatic-pressure

Work with the International Community: The United States must collaborate to create a unified stance with our international allies in order to effectively address Russian aggression.
https://feelthebern.org/bernie-sanders-on-russia/#work-with-the-international-community
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Bernie believes the United States should isolate Putin politically and economically. In March 2014, Bernie commended President Obama on sanctions levied against Russian leaders after voters in the Crimea region supported a Russian-backed referendum to secede from Ukraine. At the time, Bernie said:

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanctions-on-russia
http://news.yahoo.com/us-rejects-crimea-vote-cites-russian-intimidation-182209667--politics.html

“The entire world has got to stand up to Putin. We’ve got to deal with sanctions. There are a number of things that you could do. But this is what you don’t do: You don’t go to war. You don’t sacrifice lives of young people in this country as we did in Iraq and Afghanistan.”
What else has Bernie said about the use of military force against Russia?

For Bernie, the situation with Russia is a complex one, “as is often the case with foreign policy.” In an interview with Ed Schultz, he stated that Republicans are blind to any solution to geo-political problems other than the use of military force, adding that the United States has to be tough with Russia, but there is no reason, as of yet, to resort to war. Bernie summarized his position by stating:

https://youtu.be/z9YDgoOYj6Q?t=4m11s
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/54574433/ns/msnbc-the_ed_show/t/ed-show-monday-march/#.VbmbfflVhBc

“I would prefer to deal with a complicated issue in a measured way: serious international discussions about how we proceed, but force, force should be the last option we use.”

Instead of rushing in and making the same mistakes we’ve made in Iraq and Afghanistan, Bernie recommends making informed decisions and working with ally nations to isolate Russia economically and politically. He believes that only after all peaceful and diplomatic efforts have been exhausted should we consider war.
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Bernie believes that in order to stand strong against Russian aggression, we must cooperate with our international allies. We must have the support of the United Nations and the European Union when it comes to our adversaries, especially with Russia. Bernie also believes that by cooperating with ally nations, we reduce military spending and casualties.
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