“The demagogues across the ocean and in Europe are not going to die in a nuclear apocalypse.”Medvedev’s statement assumes a fundamental principle: the full sovereignty of a state depends on its citizens’ willingness to die for it. In this view, Western societies, consumed by commercialism and hedonism, have abandoned this principle. By contrast, Russian President Vladimir Putin has asserted that true sovereignty requires such a commitment:“In order to claim some kind of leadership — I am not even talking about global leadership. I mean leadership in any area — any country, any people, any ethnic group should ensure their sovereignty,” Putin said. “Because there is no in-between, no intermediate state: either a country is sovereign, or it is a colony, no matter what the colonies are called.