Welcome to The Cold War Two

Is this the start of the second Cold War? This is a question that has been bandied about in the media of late, fuelled by events that have played out on the international stage, such as the internationally unpopular Russian anti-gay policies, the annexation of Crimea, an ever increasing wealth of Human Rights concerns, the Edward Snowden fiasco, and the tragic story of the plane shot down over Ukraine. In recent months, Russian international relations have been subject to a continued string of crises. This fact certainly begs the question – are the crises in Russia going to lead to another Cold War?