How to deal with Putin

Has anyone anywhere fathomed how to deal with Vladimir Putin? Being rude to him or insulting Mother Russia is definitely not going to help. So both Boris Johnson, the UK Foreign Secretary, and, especially, Gavin Williamson, the UK Defence Secretary, have failed that test. Ever since it became pretty clear that Russia was behind the nerve agent attack on Sergei Skripal, the Russian double agent, and his daughter, both Boris and Williamson have thrown down the gauntlet with Putin personally, unlike their boss, Theresa May who has voiced strong comments but in language carefully selected. Williamson in particular chose the downright rude path. Russia should shut up, he said. As a result, Moscow turned on its most sarcastic rhetoric at Britain's newest and youngest defence secretary. So what is best? Actually, I am afraid to say that I don't think Putin cares one bit what anyone in the UK says. He knows that even if he personally ordered the FSB to assassinate Skripal, it will never be proved. First, because no one inside Russia would dare to reveal such an order, and second, because even if the international chemical weapons organisation, now in the UK, confirms that the nerve agent could only have been made in a cetain laboratory in Russia, Putin can still say it has nothing to do with him. He is already calling the accusation, stupid, false, fantasy, rubbish. Or "lozhnyy musor" in Russian. He is definitely NOT going to change from that position whatever the British police and MI5 come up with over the next few weeks. He is an old KGB master, he was taught to lie under all circumstances. Like all great liars down the centuries, Putin believes in only one truth - that whatever he says or does is how it is. It's Moscow truth and if it doesn't fit in with Western truth, it matters not. The other important thing to remember about lies is that once the lie is uttered it is never going to be replaced by the truth. The lie becomes the truth. Trump understands this. Anything that doesn't go along with his version of events is either false or fake news. It's simple really. I think the only way to deal with Putin is to treat him the way he is treating the whole of the UK - with disdain. We don't want a new Cold War, that would be dangerous. But how about a Disdain War. Send Putin to Coventry as we Brits like to say. In Engish-speak that means cold-shoulder him. Don't insult him (Mr Williamson take not). Treat him with the disdain he deserves. In the British Empire days we Brits used to be good at that!