How the situation in Ukraine may appear if viewed through the Russian leader’s eyes European leaders meet on Thursday to discuss their response to Russia’s effective invasion of Crimea . Vladimir Putin ’s closest allies were last night looking for a face-saving gesture that would allow Europe to end its preoccupation with Ukraine before the situation descends into violent gesture politics. The Russian leader is said to be deeply concerned at the sluggish and divided response of EU leaders and is now looking for ways to “de-escalate” the tension and allow them to back down while looking less hideously impotent than they currently do. Emissaries of the president are understood to be carrying a secret memo from him to Angela Merkel, David Cameron and François Hollande setting out some initiatives Mr Putin could accept in retaliation for his action: “First, I wish to apologise for any difficulty caused to […]