Nothing "could please Russia more than the global howling about heat and corruption in Qatar," according to a column by Paul Hayward of the London TELEGRAPH. But "forget 2022 for now." The way global politics are "lurching back" toward Cold War, the 2018 World Cup "could make the one that follows it look like an oasis." Russia Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said that "everything is going according to plan." According to "just about every foreign affairs analyst, the conflict in Donetsk and other Ukrainian towns is the polar opposite of a private skirmish." It marks the "likely start of another highly dangerous period of instability between Russia and the Nato countries." Wherever "you stand" on int'l relations, "the political reality is that Russia is careering towards isolation and probably pariah status." An "even bigger flashing red light is that America -- the coming force in world football -- has just passed the 'Ukraine Freedom Support Act' in Congress, which permits the supply of military equipment to the beleaguered government in Kiev." If -- "or when -- that kicks in," the U.S. "will be at war with Russia by proxy." Talk of "demilitarised zones" and western Ukraine resembling West Germany during the first Cold War "ought to tell us how serious this is." So "nobody could look at 2018 and imagine all conflicts resolved, Putinism tamed or Ukraine still intact." Yet the "next World Cup is already looming" (TELEGRAPH, 2/17).
