As part of its efforts to help the West contain “Russian aggression”, the Harper government announced this week that 200 Canadian troops will soon join a U.S.-led mission to train Ukrainian troops fighting Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine. But what, exactly, drives this “Russian aggression”? Is it Soviet-style imperialism or, as some have suggested, a Christian “Orthodox Jihad” against western secularism? Neither, writes Paul Robinson: it is pure Russian nationalism, asserting its bedrock belief in cultural independence.

When Franklin D. Roosevelt said in 1932 that “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself,” he was trying to buck up America’s spirits during the depths of the Great Depression. It’s hard to imagine Prime Minister Stephen Harper saying anything quite like that in the context of today’s fears about terrorism, Russian aggression, and other national and international security threats. If anything, the PM seems to think we’re not fearful enough. But he, and all of us, should relax, writes Paul Robinson, because we’re actually living in a time of unprecedented peace, stability and security.