Exclusive: Official Washington draws the Ukraine crisis in black-and-white colors with Russian President Putin the bad guy and the U.S.-backed leaders in Kiev the good guys. But the reality is much more nuanced, with the American people consistently misled on key facts, writes Robert Parry.
By Robert Parry
If you wonder how the world could stumble into World War III much as it did into World War I a century ago all you need to do is look at the madness that has enveloped virtually the entire U.S. political/media structure over Ukraine where a false narrative of white hats vs. black hats took hold early and has proved impervious to facts or reason.
The original lie behind Official Washington’s latest “group think” was that Russian President Vladimir Putin instigated the crisis in Ukraine as part of some diabolical scheme to reclaim the territory of the defunct Soviet Union, including Estonia and other Baltic states. Though not a shred of U.S. intelligence supported this scenario, all the “smart people” of Washington just “knew” it to be true.
Russian President Vladimir Putin addresses a crowd on May 9, 2014, celebrating the 69th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany and the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Crimean port city of Sevastopol from the Nazis. (Russian government photo)
Yet, the once-acknowledged though soon forgotten reality was that the crisis was provoked last year by the European Union proposing an association agreement with Ukraine while U.S. neocons and other hawkish politicos and pundits envisioned using the Ukraine gambit as a way to undermine Putin inside Russia.
The plan was even announced by U.S. neocons such as National Endowment for Democracy President Carl Gershman who took to the op-ed page of the Washington Post nearly a year ago to call Ukraine “the biggest prize” and an important interim step toward eventually toppling Putin in Russia.
Gershman, whose NED is funded by the U.S. Congress, wrote: “Ukraine’s choice to join Europe will accelerate the demise of the ideology of Russian imperialism that Putin represents. Russians, too, face a choice, and Putin may find himself on the losing end not just in the near abroad but within Russia itself.”
In other words, from the start, Putin was the target of the Ukraine initiative, not the instigator. But even if you choose to ignore Gershman’s clear intent, you would have to concoct a bizarre conspiracy theory to support the conventional wisdom about Putin’s grand plan.
To believe that Putin was indeed the mastermind of the crisis, you would have to think that he somehow arranged to have the EU offer the association agreement last year, then got the International Monetary Fund to attach such draconian “reforms” that Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych backed away from the deal.
Then, Putin had to organize mass demonstrations at Kiev’s Maidan square against Yanukovych while readying neo-Nazi militias to act as the muscle to finally overthrow the elected president and replace him with a regime dominated by far-right Ukrainian nationalists and U.S.-favored technocrats. Next, Putin had to get the new government to take provocative actions against ethnic Russians in the east, including threatening to outlaw Russian as an official language.
And throw into this storyline that Putin all the while was acting like he was trying to help Yanukovych defuse the crisis and even acquiesced to Yanukovych agreeing on Feb. 21 to accept an agreement brokered by three European countries calling for early Ukrainian elections that could vote him out of office. Instead, Putin was supposedly ordering neo-Nazi militias to oust Yanukovych in a Feb. 22 putsch, all the better to create the current crisis.
While such a fanciful scenario would make the most extreme conspiracy theorist blush, this narrative was embraced by prominent U.S. politicians, including ex-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and “journalists” from the New York Times to CNN. They all agreed that Putin was a madman on a mission of unchecked aggression against his neighbors with the goal of reconstituting the Russian Empire. Clinton even compared him to Adolf Hitler.
This founding false narrative was then embroidered by a consistent pattern of distorted U.S. reporting as the crisis unfolded. Indeed, for the past eight months, we have seen arguably the most one-sided coverage of a major international crisis in memory, although there were other crazed MSM stampedes, such as Iraq’s non-existent WMD in 2002-03, Iran’s supposed nuclear bomb project for most of the past decade, Libya’s “humanitarian crisis” of 2011, and Syria’s sarin gas attack in 2013.
But the hysteria over Ukraine with U.S. officials and editorialists now trying to rally a NATO military response to Russia’s alleged “invasion” of Ukraine raises the prospect of a nuclear confrontation that could end all life on the planet.
The ‘Big Lie’ of the ‘Big Lie’
This madness reached new heights with a Sept. 1 editorial in the neoconservative Washington Post, which led many of the earlier misguided stampedes and was famously wrong in asserting that Iraq’s concealment of WMD was a “flat fact.” In its new editorial, the Post reprised many of the key elements of the false Ukraine narrative in the Orwellian context of accusing Russia of deceiving its own people.
The “through-the-looking-glass” quality of the Post’s editorial was to tell the “Big Lie” while accusing Putin of telling the “Big Lie.” The editorial began with the original myth about the aggression waged by Putin whose “bitter resentment at the Soviet empire’s collapse metastasized into seething Russian nationalism.
“In prosecuting his widening war in Ukraine, he has also resurrected the tyranny of the Big Lie, using state-controlled media to twist the truth so grotesquely that most Russians are in the dark, or profoundly misinformed, about events in their neighbor to the west.
“In support of those Russian-sponsored militias in eastern Ukraine, now backed by growing ranks of Russian troops and weapons, Moscow has created a fantasy that plays on Russian victimization. By this rendering, the forces backing Ukraine’s government in Kiev are fascists and neo-Nazis, a portrayal that Mr. Putin personally advanced on Friday, when he likened the Ukrainian army’s attempts to regain its own territory to the Nazi siege of Leningrad in World War II, an appeal meant to inflame Russians’ already overheated nationalist emotions.”
The Post continued: “Against the extensive propaganda instruments available to Mr. Putin’s authoritarian regime, the West can promote a fair and factual version of events, but there’s little it can do to make ordinary Russians believe it. Even in a country with relatively unfettered access to the Internet, the monopolistic power of state-controlled media is a potent weapon in the hands of a tyrant.
“Mr. Putin’s Big Lie shows why it is important to support a free press where it still exists and outlets like Radio Free Europe that bring the truth to people who need it.”
Yet the truth is that the U.S. mainstream news media’s distortion of the Ukraine crisis is something that a real totalitarian could only dream about. Virtually absent from major U.S. news outlets across the political spectrum has been any significant effort to tell the other side of the story or to point out the many times when the West’s “fair and factual version of events” has been false or deceptive, starting with the issue of who started this crisis.
Blinded to Neo-Nazis
In another example, the Post and other mainstream U.S. outlets have ridiculed the idea that neo-Nazis played any significant role in the putsch that ousted Yanukovych on Feb. 22 or in the Kiev regime’s brutal offensive against the ethnic Russians of eastern Ukraine.
However, occasionally, the inconvenient truth has slipped through. For instance, shortly after the February coup, the BBC described how the neo-Nazis spearheaded the violent seizure of government buildings to drive Yanukovych from power and were then rewarded with four ministries in the regime that was cobbled together in the coup’s aftermath.
When ethnic Russians in the south and east resisted the edicts from the new powers in Kiev, some neo-Nazi militias were incorporated into the National Guard and dispatched to the front lines as storm troopers eager to fight and kill people whom some considered “Untermenschen” or sub-human.
Even the New York Times, which has been among the most egregious violators of journalistic ethics in covering the Ukraine crisis, took note of Kiev’s neo-Nazi militias carrying Nazi banners while leading attacks on eastern cities albeit with this embarrassing reality consigned to the last three paragraphs of a long Times story on a different topic. [See Consortiumnews.com’s “NYT Discovers Ukraine’s Neo-Nazis at War.”]
Later, the conservative London Telegraph wrote a much more detailed story about how the Kiev regime had consciously recruited these dedicated storm troopers, who carried the Wolfsangel symbol favored by Hitler’s SS, to lead street fighting in eastern cities that were first softened up by army artillery. [See Consortiumnews.com’s “Ignoring Ukraine’s Neo-Nazi Storm Troopers.”]
You might think that unleashing Nazi storm troopers on a European population for the first time since World War II would be a big story given how much coverage is given to far less significant eruptions of neo-Nazi sentiment in Europe but this ugly reality in Ukraine disappeared quickly into the U.S. media’s memory hole. It didn’t fit the preferred good guy/bad guy narrative, with the Kiev regime the good guys and Putin the bad guy.
Now, the Washington Post has gone a step further dismissing Putin’s reference to the nasty violence inflicted by Kiev’s neo-Nazi battalions as part of Putin’s “Big Lie.” The Post is telling its readers that any reference to these neo-Nazis is just a “fantasy.”
Even more disturbing, the mainstream U.S. news media and Washington’s entire political class continue to ignore the Kiev government’s killing of thousands of ethnic Russians, including children and other non-combatants. The “responsibility to protect” crowd has suddenly lost its voice. Or, all the deaths are somehow blamed on Putin for supposedly having provoked the Ukraine crisis in the first place.
A Mysterious ‘Invasion’
And now there’s the curious case of Russia’s alleged “invasion” of Ukraine, another alarmist claim trumpeted by the Kiev regime and echoed by NATO hardliners and the MSM.
While I’m told that Russia did provide some light weapons to the rebels early in the struggle so they could defend themselves and their territory and a number of Russian nationalists have crossed the border to join the fight the claims of an overt “invasion” with tanks, artillery and truck convoys have been backed up by scant intelligence.
One former U.S. intelligence official who has examined the evidence said the intelligence to support the claims of a significant Russian invasion amounted to “virtually nothing.” Instead, it appears that the ethnic Russian rebels may have evolved into a more effective fighting force than many in the West thought. They are, after all, fighting on their home turf for their futures.
Concerned about the latest rush to judgment about the “invasion,” the Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, a group of former U.S. intelligence officials and analysts, took the unusual step of sending a memo to German Chancellor Angela Merkel warning her of a possible replay of the false claims that led to the Iraq War.
“You need to know,” the group wrote, “that accusations of a major Russian ‘invasion’ of Ukraine appear not to be supported by reliable intelligence. Rather, the ‘intelligence’ seems to be of the same dubious, politically ‘fixed’ kind used 12 years ago to ‘justify’ the U.S.-led attack on Iraq.”
But these doubts and concerns are not reflected in the Post’s editorial or other MSM accounts of the dangerous Ukraine crisis. Indeed, Americans who rely on these powerful news outlets for their information are as sheltered from reality as anyone living in a totalitarian society.
Investigative reporter Robert Parry broke many of the Iran-Contra stories for The Associated Press and Newsweek in the 1980s. You can buy his new book, America’s Stolen Narrative, either in print here or as an e-book (from Amazon and barnesandnoble.com). For a limited time, you also can order Robert Parry’s trilogy on the Bush Family and its connections to various right-wing operatives for only $34. The trilogy includes America’s Stolen Narrative. For details on this offer, click here.
Thanks Robert!
Well written. I’m amazed that the US government didn’t shut your site down yet – I’m sure they’re able to do so.
We, the Western Slavs thought highly of US in the 80’s and 90’s, but now as we read the same lies about Russia even in our own media, we begun to dislike the US.
If the US would engage in the military conflict with our Eastern Brothers, many of us would join the Russian military – without much thinking. Just remember, we would not fight you “The People”, but your corrupt government and those that support it.
СлавÑни, ÑоединитеÑÑŒ !!!
Чехи и Словаки, мы льюбим РоÑÑию !
Russia Negotiates Ceasefire In Ukraine:
NATO Responds With Troops, Warships, and Sanctions
http://www.activistpost.com/2014/09/russia-negotiates-ceasefire-in-ukraine.html
Putin’s seven point peace plan outline is as follows:
First, end active offensive operations by armed forces, armed units and militia groups in southeast Ukraine in the Donetsk and Lugansk areas.
Second, withdraw Ukrainian armed forces units to a distance that would make it impossible to fire on populated areas using artillery and all types of multiple launch rocket systems.
Third, allow for full and objective international monitoring of compliance with the ceasefire and monitoring of the situation in the safe zone created by the ceasefire.
Fourth, exclude all use of military aircraft against civilians and populated areas in the conflict zone.
Fifth, organise the exchange of individuals detained by force on an ‘all for all’ basis without any preconditions.
Sixth, open humanitarian corridors for refugees and for delivering humanitarian cargoes to towns and populated areas in Donbass – Donetsk and Lugansk Regions.
Seventh, make it possible for repair brigades to come to damaged settlements in the Donbass region in order to repair and rebuild social facilities and life-supporting infrastructure and help the region to prepare for the winter.
In response to the Russian-brokered peace deal, NATO has responded in a typical confrontational fashion. Only hours after the ceasefire was announced, NATO and the United States announced that dynamic duo of destabilization was going ahead with planned military exercises in Western Ukraine that will see approximately 1,000 troops posted on Ukrainian soil.
Now I am really confused! At first Uncle Vlad told me these T-72BM’s and BMP’s were just Russian soldiers passing through Ukraine on their way to vacation in Crimea. Now, my right honorable friend Abe says this armor belong to the Donetsk People’s Republic. Is that the same Donetsk People’s Republic, that until very recently was run by Prime Minister Aleksandr Borodai and Deputy PM Vladimir Antyufeev? Also would their militia commanders be Igor Girkin, Igor Bezler, Aleksander Mozhaev, Valeryi Motorola? So these are just local boys fighting for a free Donetsk right? Wait a minute, none of these guys are Ukrainian. Aside from Bezler, none even lived in Ukraine. That is odd, you would think a grassroots rebellion in Ukraine would be lead by Ukrainian citizens. So what country are they citizens of? Yep you guessed it, Russia! I know recently a couple of these have been called back to mother Russia. I also know another has fallen out of favor for shooting down a civilian airliner. You might have heard about that one, it was in the news.
So bring on the chorus of denials and tales of how these brave lads believe so much in the cause, that they left Russia behind to fight the fascists in Ukraine. Oh wait, some of them are Fascists? Certainly it can’t be true, can it? Well, lets just call them Nationalists and anti-modernists. An uprising lead by foreigners, with a majority of fighters from other countries, probably can’t be called a rebellion, it is an invasion. Deny all you want. You are only lying to yourself.
And all these names are enough to kill women, elders, children on cities streets.
Oh, it’s so small stuff you can just ignore it…
Comrade Shannon, you are a glutton for punishment. Langley ain’t payin’ you enough.
Ukraine purchased T-72 from Hungary in early August http://aanirfan.blogspot.com/2014/08/lies-about-tanks-in-ukraine.html then railed ’em in for photo ops.
Not very clever.
Seems the only Russian armored columns the Ukrainians are capable of photographing are the ones they buy.
Now we know what happened with that first $3.16 billion tranche of IMF money.
Let me break it down for you and your sister-in-law: Ukrainians whose primary language is Russian are defending themselves from attack by other Ukrainians whose primary language is not Russian. The Ukrainians whose primary language is Russian are defending themselves with assistance from Russians whose primary language also is Russian.
Not so odd when you think about it. But you, comrade, obviously are not paid for thinking.
An article appeared on 01 September in Novaya Gazeta, a staunchly anti-Putin Russian tabloid, alleging that Russian soldiers had invaded Ukraine and suffered serious casualties. The article was translated into English and appeared online on 02 September in the Kyiv Post, a staunchly anti-Russian and pro-Western English language newspaper.
The article claimed that on 13 August, a “column” of 1,200 Russian soldiers was attacked with Grad rockets in Snizhne, resulting in 120 Russian dead and 450 wounded.
Such a military exploit surely would have been celebrated by the Ukrainian forces, and the bodies of dead Russian soldiers would have been photographed and placed on display before the eyes of the world.
Alas, as has happened so frequently in the conflict in Eastern Ukraine, Russian invasions “seen” by the Ukrainians never quite manage to physically materialize.
In fact, Ukrainian military Anti-Terrorist Operation reports merely noted that Ukrainian aircraft attacked a “convoy” of over 100 units of “Russian military equipment” in Snizhne on 13 August, destroying one armored personnel carrier and two trucks. No Russian or Donetsk militia casualties were reported and no Ukrainian Grad rockets were mentioned in the account.
There is no question that there have been casualties among the many Russian volunteers that have been fighting together with the Donetsk and Luhansk defense forces. However, despite the numerous instances of the Ukrainians “crying wolf,” thus far there has been no conclusive evidence a significant Russian invasion force.
Denial
It’s not just a river in Egypt anymore! Is it Abe? I have not seen this many impudent denials since I watched the Jerry Springer show on Paternity test week. Keep living in fantasy land and Uncle Vlad will take good care of you. Abe if I send you a picture of a Russian BMP on the road next to my sister in-laws house in Козлівка, would you say it was a fake too? Just curious.
Comrade Shannon, by all means, bring it on. Please post a photo of your Donetsk People’s Republic Militia BMP on the interwebs. Kiev will have no difficulty spinning it into an invading Russian armored column. Denial is a river flooding over Western Ukraine these days.
Estimates of 2014 Ukraine ground forces equipment (mostly in storage prior to the armed conflict in Eastern Ukraine): 994 BMP-1 and 1434 BMP-2 http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/ukraine/groundforces-equipment.htm
Um, that’s a lot.
Is it worth the price? A mother without her son, a future bride no more, a young life snuffed out for one man’s ambition
http://www.kyivpost.com/content/russia-and-former-soviet-union/russian-soldier-dies-in-ukraine-because-there-was-no-other-job-363238.html
Comrade Shannon, you are a veritable fountain of ‘Big Lie’ information. Thanks so much. See next comment for the response.
I am convinced that no matter what is said in this discussion or evidence offered to the contrary, Mother Russia will always be the benevolent protector of the poor Ukrainian people. Russia has done so much for the Ukrainians throughout history. I especially like how Papa Joe was nice enough to морити голодом 2.5 to 5 million of us. I am sure Putin will be even more benevolent of his Novorossiyan protectorate . Oh wait much like Russian troops violating the sovereignty of Ukraine the Holodomor never happened either. With this I bid you all a fond adieu. Try not to burst a blood vessel in your heads when Ukraine becomes a full NATO member within the next 2 years. So long, and remember the true fascist is the one who suspends individual freedoms for for law and order. Kinda sounds like Vlad doesn’t it.
Comrade Shannon, прощаннÑ! Please remember all your friends here and don’t hesitate to check back in with more juicy coup-regime propaganda. It’s so much fun. Хай живе Україна!
Shannon, I love all my Slavic Brothers & Sisters, but the People of “Ukraine” puzzle me, now. Why so much hatred?
You state the гoлодомор. It didn’t happen just in Ukraine, it was experienced in the Russian and Belorussian regions as well. I’m sure the Soviet government was to blame for it due to bad management, but I don’t believe it was done intentionally.
Look, I have observed that since the Moscovian Rus became more powerful than the Kievian Rus, it set in motion this jealousy and hatred towards the, well “Russians”. It’s so dumb – you are Russians too – you didn’t come out of “Kievian Ukraine”, you are the children of “Kievian Rus”!
Now, most of you go to church and listen to your priests. Did you miss the Sunday when the priest said that it’s a “sin” to kill or hate your own brother ???
What is wrong with you? Your Kings and Rulers have about 800 year, ongoing conflict with the “Moscovian Rus” – don’t you think it’s about time to put an end to it ?
We come from “One Slavic Mother”, we must live in PEACE !!!
БратÑтво СлавиÑнÑкое
About this long running, lying crowd in Washington and at the Post: these childish troublemakers are deadly and ruthless and definitely trying to rule the world. They are a sold-out generation of warmongers and they are ruling America. They take up too much of my time trying to keep up with their lies, and I’m sick of it. To them, it is all so necessary and wise. The lies they tell are hideously blatant, yet the duping of the masses succeeds anyway. Wise guys say things like “flat fact”, though there is a 1% chance a real threat will materialize. They steer America to war anyway, though it is self-destructive. There is sort of a worthwhile cost-benefit analysis they present to the American people, that is later proven to have been all along fixed around the policy. Still, only the enlightened observe and learn. The underlying motive is world domination, and it is sport.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine must be real if the President is sure about it. He doesn’t need to explain his proof:
“the Russian forces that have now moved into Ukraine are not on a humanitarian or peacekeeping mission. They are Russian combat forces with Russian weapons in Russian tanks. Now, these are the facts. They are provable. They’re not subject to dispute.”
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/09/03/remarks-president-obama-people-estonia
Not that anyone could provide enough proof of Russian troops in Ukraine for you. Here are some obviously “photoshopped” pictures for you to summarily dismiss.
http://euromaidanpress.com/2014/09/02/the-smoking-gun-russian-column-confirmed-in-krasnodon/
This is obviously fake as well. You can’t trust the Australians.
http://news.sky.com/story/1329691/sky-films-troops-in-russian-gear-in-ukraine
Are you kidding?
(Even if this covert “Russian invasion” would be the reality, how it can justify shelling cities, ruining housing, hospitals, schools etc – all this is documented perfectly. Oh, yea, that’s all done by Russians themselves…)
Comrade Shannon, my old friend…
Firstly, the 02 September video from Euromidan PR is a rather obvious fake. Krasnodon is only 9 miles (15 kilometers) along the M04-E40 roadway from the Donetsk Border Crossing Point where the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe has its Observer Mission (OM) operating at full capacity. To date no Russian armored column has been observed http://www.osce.org/om/123151 This “smoking gun” is firing blanks.
Secondly, the 03 September video from Rupert Murdoch’s Sky News Australia shows a few uniformed troops in a “convoy” consisting of one wheeled personnel carrier and one off road vehicle. After failing to spin a Russian invasion out of the image of a single tank parked beside a hill, the broadcast cuts to a trench where a “patriotic” Ukrainian National Guard volunteer who wants to defend against “fascist and separatists who just want to ruin our country”. Pretty standard Sky News fare.
Sorry comrade, the answer is nyet, again and again.
The false narrative will always be there Its been successful in all wars and most powers have made an art form out of it! Thanks to people like Robert who attempt to cut through this dangerous narrative.
“War is a racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives.” I put in this quote by Smedley Butler Marine General who won two medals of honor. I wonder how many Americans have heard of him. I love a clear narrative, an honest one; he certainly gave it!!
Michael thanks, more people should know about Smedley Butler. J.T.
Here is a 3:53 minute video where you may listen to the real Smedley Butler…enjoy;
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oMEI8bnbw1o
I have to say that I am enjoying the “Ukraine Crisis” more than I should be. Not so much for the obvious laughs being provided by the likes of the Washington Post editorial writers, as in the opening line quoted, that Putin’s “…bitter resentment at the Soviet empire’s collapse metastasized into seething Russian nationalism…”, which has “metastasized” meaning “reduced”, or “shrank”, instead of “grew” or “spread”, as for the quiet and low key way the Russians, not only, but including Putin, have been letting the NATO nitwits fumble and stumble themselves.
Those reading Consortium News may be missing a lot of the nuances, though, since the Consortium News writers are concentrating on the Donbass Defense activities in the east and appear to be overloking what has been going on in the west, and the effects of that. It was what went down in the west that drove the Ukrainian army into encirclement and to sudden massive losses, and it is that also that drove Ukraine’s Parliament into disorder and the Chocolate President to disolve the parliament and float a plan for snap elections, and that is, in fact, the impetus behind both the propaganda eruption against Russia and the NATO plans to field a “threat force” on the border of, if not in Western Ukraine.
What went down was the parliamentary ‘reading’ paving the way for 49% of the national Ukrainian owned gas-pipeline to be sold to “Western Investors”. The other 51%, supposed to be a “controlling interest”, will, of course, be divided between billionaire oligarchs, who will, of course, be dividable and so controllable (and a predictable number of whom will soon enough sell, or have to sell, to, of course, who has money to buy, which will be western invstors), and so the Ukrainian national resource will be stolen from the Ukrainian people and gone “west”, leaving them with nothing.
The Ukrainian people, supposed stupid by their oligarchs, and those who own NATO, are not stupid and see what is going on, and where they will be when the resource the oligarches and investors have what they want., which is where naive maidens find themselves when they give in to flattering lovers, who only want one thing, and lose interest when they have got it. For this there has been an eruption in Ukraine since the vote to sell. Politicians are feeling heat from the populace, the populace has been protesting, and the army in the east, realizing they are fighting not for Ukraine, but for western investors and oligarchs, has been “deserting”, or, surrndering, or being captured, or changing sides, turning their weapons around… For some reason very little of this, which is recognizable from close scrutiny of bits of news, and should have been predictable, is being covered by reporters on the ground (except by Russian ones).
Not that it matters that it is unreported. The results are the same and going to be the same: The sane advisors to the Eastern Ukrainians have been and are advising the deserting/captured Ukrainians be treated humanely, as allies, not enemies, and demands for ceasefire and settlements be modified from separationand autonomy to restoration of a commonly respectful single country. This one country idea is likely to spread, being taken up by the Ukrainian people, making the Donbass “rebels” “freedom-fighters” against the sell-out oligarchs’ forces, which will be the death-knell for the Ukrainian coup government, and the NATO vision of an EU-owned Ukraine. And the stationing of a NATO threat force on the western border, or in Kiev, intended by NATO to subdue the anti pipeline sale urising, is likely to have the opposite effect.
What is particularly interesting about the present Ukrainian situation is that this situation, the people as a whole coming together to keep their national pipe-line resource, is about the only thing that could re-unite Ukraine after the divisive shelling and driving out and killing of ethnically other civilians. A common enemy the previously attacked people become the heroes for having stood against and fought to a standstill. It is that that can erase the resentment that would otherwise lead to counter-hatred, counter-counter-hatred and on with that cycle.
It is for this it is peculiar that the events leading to here have been overlooked by all media.
NATO attacks!
By Pepe Escobar
http://atimes.com/atimes/World/WOR-02-030914.html
Ukraine, it must be stressed, is not a NATO member. Technically, every NATO bureaucrat in Brussels admits that a candidate country must request membership. And countries with regions mired in an international dispute are not accepted. So Ukraine would only be considered if Kiev gave up Crimea. It’s not going to happen.
Still, Washington’s obsessive play to annex Ukraine to NATO will keep marching on (in the matter of accession, by the way, the European Union would issue a firm “no”). Outgoing Prime Minister Arseniy “Yats†Yatsenyuk as well as President Poroshenko, are desperate for a NATO intervention, or at least Ukraine being accepted as some form of privileged ally. Yats expects “monumental decisions from our Western partners at the summit”. In vain.
NATO somehow is already in Ukraine. A NATO cyber center group has been in Kiev since March, operating in the building of the Council of National Security and Defense. So it is a bunch of NATO bureaucrats who actually determine the news agenda in Ukraine – and the non-stop demonization of all things Russia.
…
The Ukraine battleground at least has the merit of showing the alliance is naked. For the Full Spectrum Dominance Pentagon, what really matters above all is something that’s been actually happening since the fall of the Soviet Union; unlimited NATO expansion to the westernmost borders of Russia.
The real deal this September is not NATO. It’s the SCO’s summit. Expect the proverbial tectonic shifts of geopolitical plaques in the upcoming meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization – a shift as far-reaching as when the Ottoman empire failed at the gates of Vienna in 1683. On the initiative of Russia and China, at the SCO summit, India, Pakistan, Iran and Mongolia will be invited to become permanent members. Once again, the battle lines are drawn. NATO vs SCO. NATO vs BRICS. NATO vs Global South. Therefore, NATO attacks!
WHY Are They Telling the ‘Big Lie’ on Ukraine?
Is there still hope for peace in Ukraine?
By Patrick Boylan
http://www.pressenza.com/2014/09/is-there-still-hope-for-peace-in-ukraine/
Internationally, neocons (and their influential and well-heeled sponsors) have not been happy with the gradual rapprochement taking place between Europe and Russia these past few years, as seen by the increasing number of oil and gas pipelines “sewing†the two land masses together, by the increasing number of Euro-Russian trade and financial agreements stipulated, by the increasing number of joint research projects for developing new technologies, and so on. Because all this can only lead to genuine multipolarity in the world, i.e., a world in which a future Euro-Russian block will have the same weight and punch as China or as… the United States of America. Goodbye U.S. primacy.
But by engineering the coup in Ukraine to undermine Russia on its western border, the neocons (and their sponsors) managed to provoke Putin’s counterattack and thus a fight. This permitted them, in turn, to denounce Russian “aggression†and to call for measures to castigate Russia – measures having the end effect of crippling Euro-Russian rapprochement, the neocons’ real goal. The beauty of this strategy is that it got Europeans to punish themselves , as well as the Russians, thus permitting the U.S. to rake in a profit off the sanctions. Specifically, EU countries were induced to:
• freeze part of their joint economic and technological exchanges with Russia, thus making it necessary to compensate by increasing their trans-Atlantic exchanges with the U.S. under the conditions spelled out in the forthcoming TTIP agreement. (The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, still top secret, is a free trade agreement that will give U.S.-based multinational corporations a stranglehold on European industries; it is due to be approved this year);
• throw a wrench in their joint oil/gas pipeline projects with Russia (or multiple wrenches as in the case of the South Stream project), thus making it necessary to compensate their energy losses by importing liquified gas from the U.S. – which, it is claimed, is now produced sufficiently in excess, thanks to fracking, to pick up the EU slack. In other words, besides economic and military dependence, Europe will now be dependent on the U.S. for much of its energy and thus, more than ever, a vassal.
All this is a textbook lesson in how to create empire without firing a shot.
The neocon international strategy therefore rejects multipolarity and redivides the world into two blocks, and the dividing line goes right along the eastern border of Ukraine. One block consists of Russia, Iran and China, the backbone of the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization) which seems destined to become the new “Axis of Evilâ€. The other block, called “the Westâ€, consists of all the other countries in the world, aligned behind the United States of America which shields them from Evil, that is, from the SCO.
Abe & anyone else who is interested. When you have time….listen to this guy Jim WIllie then tell me what you think.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tgOUazLGdhc&list=UUx-BKQDYIzUveyfi9nd6ZlQ
“…they’re trying to create a series of fascist states run by satanists and nazis”
Ganz bestimmt, J.T.
Aha! And more than 800.000 “war refugees” from Ukraine to Russia are really Putin’s agents spreading Big Lie for naive Russian people. And what a virtuoso training of small children talking about shelling, bombing and killing citizens in Eastern Ukraine. What a diabolic masterpiece of propaganda!
The first ‘Big Lie’ on Ukraine involved 18-20 February 2014 shootings at Independence Square (Maidan) in Kiev, which left more than a hundred people killed and at least 900 injured, and resulted in then President Viktor Yanukovich leaving the capitol. The US, the EU and NATO lay full responsibility for these deaths on the Ukrainian government.
——
On 5 March, officers of Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) loyal to the ousted President Viktor Yanukovich leaked the recording of a 25 February conversation between Catherine Ashton, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and Urmas Paet, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia. Paet had spoken to Olga Bogomolets, the Kiev physician who had observed that the sniper victims were shot in the head, the neck or the heart:
PAET: …all the evidence shows the people who were killed by snipers from both sides, among policemen and people from the streets, that they were the same snipers, killing people from both sides.
ASHTON: Well that’s… Yeah, that’s…
PAET: And then she also showed me some photos, she said that as a medical doctor she can, you know, say that it is the same handwriting, same type of bullets, and it’s really disturbing that now the new coalition don’t want to investigate what exactly happened, so there is now stronger and stronger understanding that behind the snipers it was not Yanukovitch but it was somebody from the new coalition.
ASHTON: … I think they do want to investigate, I mean I didn’t pick that up. That’s interesting. Gosh.
PAET: Yeah. So this is disturbing that if it starts now to live its own life very powerfully that it already discreditates (sic) from the very beginning also this new coalition.
——
On 12 March, Aleksandr Yakimenko, the former head of Ukraine’s security service, told the Russia-1 TV channel, that mercenary snipers were responsible for the shootings:
YAKIMENKO: First shots were fired from the Philharmonic building. Maidan Commandant Parubiy was in charge of the building. On February 20, this building was used as a base by the snipers and people with automatic weapons. They basically covered those who were attacking the demoralized policemen running in panic, hunted down like animals. They were followed by armed people with different kinds of weapons. At that point, somebody opened fire at those who attacked the police, and some of them were killed. All this fire was coming from the Philharmonic building. After this first round of fire, about 20 people came out of this building – this was witnessed by many. These people wore special combat clothes and carried sniper rifle cases, as well as AKMs with scopes. There were witnesses, and not just our operatives, but also Maidan activists from Svoboda, Right Sector, Batkivshchyna, and UDAR.
The snipers split into two groups – 10 men each. The Security Service lost track of one of the groups. The other group took a position at the Ukraine hotel. Killings continued. In the beginning, when the shots were scattered, I was asked by Right Sector and Svoboda to mobilize a Special Forces unit and remove the snipers from the buildings.
R-1 TV: They asked you?
YAKIMENKO: Yes, Right Sector and Svoboda. I was ready to do that, but I needed Parubiy’s [he is now now the Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine in the Turchinov-Yatsenyuk government] permission to enter Maidan. Otherwise our officers would’ve been attacked by the self-defense forces in the back. Parubiy didn’t give such permission. No weapons could be brought to Maidan without Parubiy’s permission. Hand guns, rifles, scopes – he had to agree to all of that. We had some intel about discharged Ukrainian army special forces participating in those activities. Some reports claimed that these were fighters from former Yugoslavia, as well as mercenaries from other countries.
R-1 TV: So you think they were mercenaries?
YAKIMENKO: No doubt. Parubiy removed himself from the picture. This affected the events of the last week. He joined Poroshenko. Gvozd, Malamuzh, and Gritsenko. These forces did what they were told by their bosses – the US. They basically lived in the embassy. They were there every day.
R-1 TV: Is it true that Nalivaichenko allowed the CIA agents to work in the Security Service building?
YAKIMENKO: Yes, that’s true. He also handed personal files of his own employees over to the CIA agents to study. But their mission was interrupted by an armed coup. The Maidan do not appoint these people; rather, it’s the US that does it. It’s enough to look at the newly appointed officials: Parubiy, Gvozd, Nalyvaichenko are all people who followed somebody else’s orders, the orders of the US, not even Europe. They are directly linked to the American intelligence. They sought to delay the negotiations and prevent the incumbent president from striking a deal with Russia and Russia from helping to prop up the social and economic order in Ukraine. After that they were planning to depose the president and integrate Ukraine into Europe, using Russian money. Who was troubled by the victory of the EU and the pro-integration forces? Only the US. It was the only country concerned over a possible alliance of Europe, Russia and Ukraine. The Customs Union and the connection between Russia and Ukraine did not sit well with their plans, either.
They’d been doing it ever since Yushchenko was president, and we couldn’t get rid of them. Once we started to put pressure, they relocated to Poland, Latvia and Lithuania. The most interesting part is that many regional governments spent budget money to pay for the so-called vyshkoli, i.e. training camps for militants to fight with various types of weapons.
All the orders were given either by the US embassy or by Jan Tombinski, a Polish representative who worked in the EU mission in Kiev. Poland played an invaluable role in the coup. It has always dreamt of restoring its former power and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Ever since the Maidan kicked off, our security service registered a dramatic increase in diplomatic correspondence coming in to various Western embassies in Kiev. There is one more mystery. Straight after this influx of correspondence we saw some foreign money at the Maidan and in Kiev exchange bureaus: the new, re-designed US dollar bank notes.
——
On 3 April, Ukraine’s interim interior minister, Arsen Avakov, released a report claiming that ousted President Viktor Yanukovych and Russian security agents had been involved in the planning that resulted in the deadly use of force. But it presented no proof.
——
On 10 April, an investigative report by Monitor, a television magazine of the German public broadcaster ARD, presents evidence for their having been snipers from among the ranks of the opposition: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDPJ-ucnyPU
Abe I am glad your on our side…your reporting is great! J.T.
Abe you need to update your sources. Dr. Bogomolets emphatically stated on several occassions that she had made no such claims to Minister Paet, and furthermore she had not treated any military personnel.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/ukraine/10677370/Ukraine-Russia-crisis-live.html
So who did say there was a 3rd party shooter? Dr. Oleh Musiy! So why not quote him? “I think it wasn’t just a part of the old regime that (plotted the provocation), but it was also the work of Russian special forces who served and maintained the ideology of the (old) regime,” Maybe because it did not match with your retort?
Quite right, comrade Shannon. The “White Angel,” Dr. Olga Bogomolets, did indeed sing a different tune after considering her political future.
Unfortunately, since she received only 1.91% of the vote in the 2014 presidential election, Ukraine’s “Mother Teresa of the Maidan” had to lower her aspirations a bit.
On 1 September 2014, Bogomolets was appointed as adviser to President Petro Poroshenko.
The Monitor broadcast on German television contains direct testimony from Dr. Oleksandr Lisowoi, a Kiev physician who did not lose his moral courage.
Here’s the Monitor transcript (7:40-8:20):
One thing is certain, they were shooting not only at demonstrators, but also at the militias of the government. Maybe it was the same people shooting both? We meet one of the few doctors. who has tended to the wounded of both sides.
Oleksandr Lisowoi, Hospital No. 6, Kiev (MONITOR translation): “The wounded we treated had the same type of bullet wounds, I am now speaking of the type of bullets that we have surgically removed from the bodies – they were identical . More I cannot say.”
Reporter (MONITOR translation): “But you have … ”
Oleksandr Lisowoi, Hospital No. 6, Kiev (MONITOR translation): “Found the same bullets both in militia and opposition.”
Why does the district attorney not ask the same questions?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDPJ-ucnyPU
Urmas Paet, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia, confirmed the recording of his 25 February conversation with Catherine Ashton was authentic, and told reporters in Tallinn that he was merely repeating what Olga Bogomolets had told him.
Oleg Musiy, a Ukrainian medic who spent more than two months organizing medical units on Maidan, acknowledged that civilians, protesters and three police officers had identical fatal bullet wounds.
Musiy insisted that the sniper attacks were the work of Russian special forces. This position no doubt aided his appointment as Minister of Healthcare of Ukraine in Yatsenyuk Government on 27 February 2014.
Musiy’s high government appointment obviously demonstrated to Bogomolets the correct way to answer questions.
On 18-20 February 2014, provocateur snipers in Kiev were shooting at both militsiya (police) and protesters.
In addition to the “Heavenly Hundred” protesters who perished, 18 police officers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine were killed while on duty during the Euromaidan conflict. The fatalities included both Vnutrishni Viys’ka (Interior Troops) and Berkut (Special Police) assigned to deal with internal armed disturbances, terrorism, and anti-riot operations.
One of the Berkut, Nikolay Semchuk, was killed on 20 February by two snipers, who shot at the same time. One shot hit his leg and the other, his head.
On 12 March, Aleksandr Yakimenko, former head of Sluzhba Bezpeky Ukrayiny (Security Service of Ukraine), alleged that Western backed mercenary snipers were responsible for the shootings. SBU was Ukraine’s special purpose law enforcement agency and main government security agency in a sphere of counterintelligence activity and combatting terrorism.
On 30 March, apparently in response to Yakimenko’s highly detailed allegations of Western involvement in the shootings, American news website The Daily Beast published photos which it alleged were taken on 20 February 2014, showing uniformed and armed Alpha Group anti-terrorist team members in the courtyard of SBU headquarters in Kiev. The accompanying article by Jamie Dettmer asserted that these troops may have been trained by members of Russian special forces.
On 03 April, a new article by Dettmer appeared in The Daily Beast with photos and video of the Alpha Group in the SBU courtyard. The article reported that Valentyn Nalivaichenk, the Kiev interim government’s new head of the SBU, had claimed that his predecessor Yakimenko oversaw the carnage in the Maidan on the orders of ex-president Yanukovych.
Of course, the articles and images presented by The Daily Beast, and the assertions of the Yatsenyuk government attempt to obscure the fact that the precision lethal sniper fire was coming from a building occupied by the opposition forces. Neither the SBU anti-terrorist troops nor the police had access to this location.
“Russia has many internal problems. Corruption on daily all-level basis, problems in health and social care, mess in educational system, poor regional development, economics, demography, etc”
Zerge, you sound honest. What you described in regard to Russia’s shortcomings are the very same shortfalls we have here in the US. What Putin does seem to be different on is his reluctance to go to war over Ukraine. I can tell you this, if Mexico were having the same problems as Ukraine, America would be sending in our Army’s Big Red 1, and more.
I hope someday us people of the world will be allowed to just be that, “people”. In my travels in life I have always tried to meet the locals. What I always seem to find is, people are people. We all are attempting to try and live our lives peacefully, or at least most people are. Good neighbors raising families. Citizens working, and paying taxes. Should I go on? I think you get what I am saying.
I think if Russia, and the US were to team up on curing the ills of the world, that would be a win, win situation. We in America need to quite blaming and imposing sanctions on Russia. In fact, our country’s sanctions are not only hurting Russia, but our European Allies as well. Also, with the unemployment here in the US, we should be looking to increase outputs, not depress them with all these sanctions.
Good luck to you and all your fellow Russians. Let’s hope and pray for a better tomorrow. Best regards….Joe Tedesky
Outstanding comments so far, outstanding especially because they match my prejudices!!
A point I would like to make: the MSM and many others go on about Russia’s imperialist intentions, what about America’s and NATO’s far, far greater imperialist intentions to secure stratagic positions, energy and corporate advantage (Iraq, Afgh., Syria, Libya, Ukraine, many ex-Soviet-bloc countries (after promising not to do so)). It seems that to fool everyone, accuse the enemy of the crime you are committing.
kuhn2244 The answer to your questioning in Neo-Talk is America is exceptional!
Great hearing what you had to say. Keep posting….J.T.
Joe,today i saw that ISIS threatened to remove Putin.The skewed narrative of ISIS by our traitor MSM,and their ignoring our support and funding of such,still should open eyes as to the common enemy of the fundamentalists,US and Russia.
But the historical hatred of the true monsters,the Zionists(who are obviously in total collusion with this anti Russian crap) ,preclude our alliance,and we twist in the Ziowind. that would help stabilize this world.
dacoit, imagine the US assisting Iraq, and Russia arming up with Syria, to defeat this Saudi/Massoud/CIA Frankenstein monster IS!
IS going after Putin…yeah, how smart is it it disturb a giant sleeping bear? Go figure!
Take care J.T.
I just love to read about Putin’s diabolic imperialistic plans. It’s look like Russia going to invade Europe almost tomorrow. Baltic countries, Poland, and don’t forget Finland, once upon a time it was part of Russian Empire too. By the way, remember Alaska? In social net’s joke it was called “Ice-Crimea”. Without a doubt White House should take it as a “proof” of evil plan of russkies. Social media always right, everybody knows that.
Sorry for my attempt to be sarcastic, but this nonsense really piss me off.
What I want to say about “Russian imperialismâ€.
I’m Russian and I can say – nobody will go anywhere. Even if Putin has such napoleonic dreams (key word “even if”, I’m not his fan, but still believe in his sanity and adequacy), there no chance people go fight the war except it would be direct intervention of Russia. I don’t believe in revolution – we’re been there, it’s never works. But if government will send troops to fight in some crazy war, personally I will go to protest. And I’m sure I will not be alone.
And sending troops in Eastern Ukraine is not so popular idea in Russia despite many like to think. Just minority support this.
The problem that mostly people have no idea what’s life in Russia really is. According West media Russia is totalitarian state with tyrant Putin at the head who no better than Stalin or Hitler.
First, about totalitarianism. This is nonsense. Yes, regime is authoritarian. But there is difference. You can do everything except politics. But nobody is taken in the nights because of saying not like Putin or government. Yes, we have no free press, no honest election, and no democracy. But look at the rest of the world – who really has?
Second, about Putin. He is not a dictator and not a czar. Despite of exploitation of old “faith in good czar†inside a country and his obvious personal power, he is still a representative of the system what really in control. Security forces, military, top-bureaucracy and loyal oligarchy. People vote for him because there is no alternative. Everyone still remember chaos of “wild 90’s†and don’t want go back there.
Russia has many internal problems. Corruption on daily all-level basis, problems in health and social care, mess in educational system, poor regional development, economics, demography, etc. Protecting national interests on the own borders – it’s all Russia can afford.
So, wars of conquest? Thanks but no thanks, maybe in the next century. Or millenium. Or probably never.
Hilarious,the MSM is the most unfree press in history,and I see RT as ten times as open,even though I recognize its governmental influences,but our media is the most closed to any idea other that Mammon and Israel forever.
It’s a giant scam,with Americans victims just like our so called enemies,the Muslims,and freakin Israel uber alles.Those brutal bastards,whose atrocities are given short shrift while ISIS’s are nationwide.
Anyone who can’t see the obvious reality is either lobotomized or a member of the lobotomizers.
A fool glad to be fooled. Our own ignorence and laziness allow this brainwashing. Freedom of thought is one ultimate right human has. Tthink, analyze, doubt and search the truth between the lines – it’s all what we have. Must be pathos, but it’s true.
So they want to topple Putin in Russia. Whom do they want him to replace with? There is “the ideology of Russian imperialism that Putin represents”. How do we know there is such an ideology in Russia? Russia has the intent to restore the Soviet Union, invade the Baltic countries etc. Suppose we got Russia rid of this imperialistic ideology. How would we know that Russia no longer has the intent to restore the Soviet Union and invade the Baltic countries?
You are either brainwashed,or a member of the tribe of brainwashers,those serial liars with a trail of blood unmatched in modern times(Post ww2),whose fruits are as poison as cyanide.
Yankee Come Home,don’t let the Ziomonsters destroy our nation further with their divide and conquer,which has our populace confused and helpless.
http://www.truth-teller.com/facts/133-ukraine-crisis-1-need-to
Havoc not advocate…
Sorry not paying attention.
This doesn’t make sense, since my original comment got scrubbed…sorry maybe it was something I said. Not going to press the issue. But I thought my comment was good. Oh well, I will just read all of the other great comments. Oh well….
My comment is posted…sorry for all the spelling errors.
Read this;
http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2014/09/02/warning-world-washington-nato-eu-vassals-insane-paul-craig-roberts-2/
Recusing should be rescuing …
Sorry, I am really not paying attention I just hope you all get the main theme here!
Shannon you mention Putin’s motives, fine, but explain the motives of Victoria Nuland, John McCain, US CIA, Blackwater (or name their using this year), NATO, and the 5 billion spend to create advocate in the Ukraine.
I realize that Ukraine had a corrupted government, but I also recall Putin insisting on staying out of recusing the Yanukovich government. Putin’s only offense has been that he is Russian.
This war is over. Germany is flipping sides soon. Germany need Russia and China more than it needs America. Russia and China offer a return to a gold standard. America offers a reserve currency that isn’t worth much any longer. Germany wants to keep their pensions unlike America who is basing it’s FIAT exchange on everything and anything of some debt or worth…pensions are on the top of that list. Soon auto loans, and student debt.
Where is the proof of pro- Russian rebels taking down flight MH17? What happened to those black boxes? The bringing down of that poor plane I believe was the beginning of the end for the Nazi Kiev regime. The pro- Russian rebel volunteer militia are pouring in from all over Europe, not just Russian volunteers…but European ones as well. Germany’s America kiss ass government is losing out to German business’s demands to do what is good for Germany.
Shannon soon the very same Ukraine drafted militia will be coming to take down the Nazi installed government of Kiev. I only hope that your fellow Ukrainians get what they deserve….a good government.
Listen to this;
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tgOUazLGdhc&list=UUx-BKQDYIzUveyfi9nd6ZlQ
Read this;
http://www.moonofalabama.org
don’t believe the Russian brainwashing.
Keep believing the West are the bad guys while fascist Russia are the good guys. Big surprise coming.
The West brought the possibility of a new beginning and democracy to Ukraine. Shame on the West
Russia brings annexation, war, death, kidnappings, lies, etc. They’re the good guys.
Slava Ukraini!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Making claims like that requires some references.
I suppose this column of tanks and armour was stolen from the UA?
http://ukraineatwar.blogspot.nl/2014/09/russian-moves-huge-convoy-of-armor-into.html
I suppose that Putin just HAD to attack Ukraine in order to defend his country? That’s some preemptive strike… why not just jail all the agitators in Russia while he’s at it, terrorize all who dare to speak against you and finally cut all links with the rest of the world? At least that’s what comes naturally for a tyrant.
It’s just a war of ideologies – and the side whose ideology is weaker usually has to use violence to impose it. If it were any good, it would just survive naturally, wouldn’t it?
@ Shannon, I doubt that you are really an old man. And these aren’t ramblings. They are a very carefully constructed disinformation product, and if I’m not mistaken, you have made these same comments before. The strategy in your comments is known in the propaganda trade as, “flipping the script”. A point by point tedious narrative contains small reversals of the truth which seem innocuous, but the cumulative effect is the intent to create the semblance of factual integrity. The coup was paid for by NGOs who invested $5 billion dollars to bring it about. Yanukovich never “abdicated”. The snipers fired from a building controlled by Pravy Sektor and Svoboda and killed people from both sides. Yanukovich had nothing to do with it. A deal was concluded for new elections on February 21, and the deal was broken on February 22. The Parliament conducted a vote in which opposition members were not allowed to participate. It was unconstitutional. We all heard the phone call stating, “Yats is the guy”. You are apparently a Ukrainian expat heavily influenced by UCCA and OUN-B. There are thousands of them in USA and Canada, and their motives have little to do with historical accuracy. Ukrainian Nationalism is a vile, Nazi inspired hate machine which reveres as its hero a psychopathic mass murderer named Stepan Bandera. Pretending that isn’t true actually is historical revisionism. ‘Nuff said?
Vote to impeach Yanukovich on February 22nd was 328-0. On the 21st, 28 Members left The Party of Regions and another 15 on the morning of the 22nd, so their total would have been 134 members. There were 447 members of Parliament at the time, so if the opposition was excluded from the voting , the vote could not have been 328 to 0. Either the vote totals are wrong or maybe the opposition was able to vote, and at least 15 Party of Regions members did. I could look up the exact member votes if you like, but it is irrelevant since there were 100 more votes than needed to impeach him.
Again, you’re telling Ukrainian Nazi lies. The Constitution required 338 votes to impeach; they only got 328. The reason it was 328 to zero is because the only opposition members present were threatened with death. Why not confront the truth – it is obvious you are a Bandera sympathizer!
Who’s Telling the ‘Big Lie’ on Ukraine?
The seventeenth richest man in the world owns the Washington Post. If a person wants to remain employed at that paper, presumably they’ll write what their multi-billionaire owner tells them to write. A new editorial at the WP has this title:
Ukraine deserves support from NATO countries even if it’s not part of the alliance
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/ukraine-deserves-support-from-nato-countries/2014/09/02/94f3f2d8-32c0-11e4-8f02-03c644b2d7d0_story.html
Why does this American Billionaire want a war in central Europe? He must have a reason, but nobody has told me yet what that reason might be.
I never expected to live in a world where a handful of filthy rich guys openly pulled the strings. The Ukraine’s Junta leader is a itty bitty billionaire – only $1.3 gigadollars. But he’s another one angling for a major war in central Europe.
Paul Singer – the Vulture Fund guy; he’s around $2 billion. But even at that he’s managing to mangle an entire country – Argentina.
What a mess.
Mr. Parry,
The root of the situation in Ukraine is neither Putin’s diabolical scheme or the European Union courting Ukraine. In order to understand what has caused this situation, you must first look at the rampant corruption under the various governments which have held power since Ukrainian Independence. Each has left their mark on the population. It is not left or right, or east or west. Granted the last 2 leaders were particularly adept at stealing from the citizens. It was so bad under Yanukovich, you would have to build graft into your business plan. This is why so many Ukrainians were so hopeful for integration in the EU.
When Yanukovich rejected the EU, frustration at a corrupt government lead to at first peaceful protests on Maidan. Many right wing groups certainly saw this as an opportunity to advance their agenda, but most on the Maidan were hardly extremists and definitely not Fascists. After several provocations from the Berkut, it really turned ugly culminating with the crackdowns of February 18the and 19th and the sniper attacks of the 20th.
After the snipers fired on the protesters, Yanukovich knew he had to flee. He had gone too far and knew the public would soon call for his head. He decided to save himself and abdicated his post. When Yanukovich fled the country, it was not a coup.
I believe had the Olympics not been in Russia at this time, Putin would have marched in to prop up Yanukovich at that time. However, Maidan was troubling for Putin on two fronts. First he feared the protests would spread to Russia in a way he could not control as he did before. Second, he feared the economic collapse of his trade Union. Luckily Putin found a way to prevent both of these, or so he hoped.
He believed annexing Crimea would spur Russian nationalism and solidify his position. Clearly he was correct as it made him more popular than ever and hardly a a word of protest has been uttered. He also was surprised by the response (or lack thereof) from Ukraine and the international community. If it worked in Crimea, why not Donbas?
You say the media reports have been one sided. If this is true, how come there has been barely a mention that the leaders of the “Separatists” are not Ukrainian, but Russian nationals? Seven of 10 leadership positions of the Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republics were held by Russian Nationals. Vladimir Antyufeev, Igor Girkin, Igor Bezler, Aleksander Mozhaev, Valeryi Motorola, Marat Bashirov , Aleksej Karyakin, and Alexandr Borodai were all leaders of the “separatists” and all Russian citizens. Are they there at the direction of Putin? Most reasonable people would say yes.
I could continue writing all night, so I will cut it off here. Take it for what it is, the ramblings of an old man who has spent too much time in Ukraine to let this revisionist view of history pass without at least a comment.
After the snipers fired on the protesters, Yanukovich knew he had to flee. He had gone too far and knew the public would soon call for his head.
You make the assumption here – or invite the reader to do so – that the former ELECTED leader authorized the snipers.
This is quite a stretch.
And looking on down through your post, I see no mention of the much more extensive murders by the UNELECTED junta leaders. Or how that might explain the resistance by the Russian-speakers to the nazi militias used by the UNELECTED junta.
Zachary- I made no assumption. It is a fact that Yanukovich fled Ukraine because of the sniper attacks and the resulting backlash from the public. I did not say he ordered the the sniper attacks, although I believe he did. It was the perception in Kyiv that he did and he would be held accountable.
After Yanukovich abdicated his position there was a provisional government or “junta” in place. However there were elections on May 25th and the current government can hardly be called “unelected”.
Please stop with the Nazi militia bit. There are fascists fighting on both sides. Quite frankly most of the separatists and the pro government militias are little more than thugs who are being paid to do what they are doing. I have spent more than 13 years in Ukraine from Kyiv to Luhansk and Kharkiv. The problem is corruption and politicians who just use and take from these noble people both Ukrainian and Russian speakers. Putin is an opportunist who is next to put his hand in the till.
However there were elections on May 25th and the current government can hardly be called “unelectedâ€.
Good one! Why don’t you now tell me that George “codpiece commander” Bush
was “elected” in 2000.
And the Russians now love Fascists enough to enlist them? To fight along side them? Amazing!
Last one Zachary- What is truly amazing is the cold war mentality shown in your response. Surely, Fascists do not exist in Russia and certainly not enlisted to fight on behalf of the “separatists”. Well surely you would be wrong! Rather than going back and forth with you I will just provide you with a link where you can actually read for yourself. The page is unfiltered and certainly not propaganda from the government in Kyiv, it is the page of Alexander Barkashov, chairman of Russian National Unity (Neo-Nazis). If you can’t read Russian maybe I can translate for you.
http://vk.com/ap_barkashov
Shannon, you can see – Barkashov’s site is also anti-Kremlin.
And one Nazis don’t justify other Nazis. Big Lie is Big Lie.
Shannon, thanks for your thorough recitation of Washington/EU talking points.
In fact, there was a coup d’état, largely thanks to the ‘Big Lie’ that Yanukovich was responsible for the sniper attacks.
On 15 April, fake flyers were distributed in Donetsk calling on Jews to register with authorities or face deportation. These were exposed as crude forgeries designed to discredit the eastern Ukrainians and derail the four-way talks in Geneva. Nonetheless, John Kerry and his EU counterparts were predictably apoplectic, and another ‘Big Lie’ was propagated by the mainstream media.
Yanukovych flees not after sniper attack on 20, but on 22, on 21 he signed, WITH THE WEST LEADERS as warrants a treaty where he put Yatsenyuk as prime-minister and new president elections after 6 months.
But the radical leaders of Svoboda and Right Sector decided not to go with this treaty and assaulted President Palace when Yanukovych was out of Kiev.
So once again the radicals did the dirty job.
So, please tell me how is the BIG LIAR? Putin or the west who signet with Yanukovich a treaty and didn’t tried to follow it but accepted the new “unelected but democratic” power.
Kiev Coup is Collapsing
http://journal-neo.org/2014/09/02/kiev-coup-is-collapsing/
During the entire slaughter of the civilians in the New Republics, not a word of reproach was heard from the US or EU to reign Kiev in… eternal shame on them. When Kiev troops found the self-defense forces more of a match than they expected, they pulled back to shell and punish the civilian areas in return — the tactics of cowards.
The EU only began to finally show some flexibility, not through any real moral concern of the innocent being killed for their poor leadership, but solely due to the blow-back in Europe from the food sanctions. The business community is on the war path, and new concern has been shown for getting the energy Gordian Knot addressed before winter comes.
But the catch there is that Kiev has no intention of paying, as it will be broke when it shells out the $1.5 billion to get the gas pipelines flowing. Gazprom has been working feverishly to increase supply capacity to Europe around Ukraine, which once done, might be a permanent cut off for Ukraine and maybe Poland for their sending fighting units to East Ukraine. And the Poles holding up the Russian Defense Minister’s plane going through their airspace on Friday was beyond stupid. You just can’t make this stuff up!
Kiev is walking the tightrope now. With their economy destroyed, they are hemorrhaging what money is left. They have not provoked the Soviet invasion that the US really wanted, in order to crank up the sanctions wars. And the EU people have now figured out that they were duped by the US — something their leaders should all resign for, because it was an astounding betrayal of their own people. This scenario reminds me of how Israel has subverted the United States through our Congress.
Poroshenko needs both massive Western military intervention and the billions that would come with that. The US would need a “crisis†to pull that off, despite Obama saying that the US has no military option in Ukraine. But desperation can trigger wild gambles.
In actual fact, the Kiev military forces are being systematically defeated by the Eastern Ukrainian Federalists. The Nazi militia elements are by no means insignificant, and they serve two purposes. The regular army and national guard have demonstrated a profound unwillingness to murder their fellow countrymen resulting in massive desertions and defections. Kiev has resorted to forced conscription of unwilling old men and young boys with no significant combat training to replenish these losses. The battle strategy employed thus far by Kiev is shelling and firebombing villages. The national guard and army are then sent to confront the resistance, which has been formidable, for very good reasons. The regulars are often unwilling to attack, so the purpose of the Nazi militias is (1) to provide a rear formation which is ordered to shoot the regular soldiers and national guard should they attempt to retreat or show reluctance to fight. When the resistance is sufficiently softened, the Nazi elements commence their real work: (2) murdering the survivors, including women and children. The methods they use do not always involve a quick death from a fatal gunshot. Much sport is involved in the infliction of gruesome deaths upon these victims. These activities have inspired fierce resistance, as the alternative is a certain horrible death. Lack of professionalism among these death squads has been at the heart of dramatic defeats and the loss of thousands by death and desertion. NATO is hysterical because victory in the east is no longer a realistic possibility. Soon, the pretext of “Russian aggression” based on the shoot-down of MH-17 will evaporate; critical details will be withheld adding to erosion of NATO credibility. NATO’s ragtag blowhards and braggarts cannot assemble a force capable of confronting Russia’s conventional forces. If they intervene on behalf of the Nazis, the only viable strategy would be U.S. air strikes. Reuters reports that a “Spearhead Force” that could “respond within two days” is under construction by NATO. This should be regarded as desperate propaganda…or outright fantasy. They’re talking about a force of 10,000. Hitler sent millions into the maw of the Russian bear, and only a few hundred thousand came back. A rational strategy would be an independent Eastern Ukraine and an alliance between Germany and Russia to de-Nazify Western Ukraine. War crimes trials should follow. Given the desperation with which NATO opposes any such outcome, one must assume the motivation is rational but immoral…or frankly insane. The current agenda represents rejection of civilization and an invitation to nuclear holocaust. NATO cannot prevail in a conventional war against Russia.
The now much despised neo-Nazi militia units have conducted hit-and-run terror attacks, then abandoned the front to the Ukrainian regular army and national guard troops, leaving them to absorb the counterattacks from Donetsk and Luhansk independence forces. From the get go, Kiev’s “anti-terrorist operation” has appeared to be designed to create a counter-insurgency clusterfuck of such magnitude that direct NATO intervention would be welcomed.
… Poroshenko and Yatsenyuk are desperately calling to join NATO and have also sent unofficial feelers to Washington about the viability of formal (non-mercenary) ground troops.
If NATO allows the Junta Regime to join that organization, I’m going to start worrying a bit more than I am now.
If Nato tries to include Ukraine,I think Russia will invade and end Ukraine as an independent nation.What else could Russia do,with the existential threat from the monsters from hell.
Actually if there is a comparison to be made to Hitler…it would be Hillary Clinton, not Putin.
That is very unkind to Hitler.
Hilaryous does resemble Hitler in the insanity of opening a multi front war,which ended up destroying his regime,but Hilaryous thinks we should be fronting everywhere,except against our most lethal and vicious enemy,Zionism.
Shadow NATO Comes Out of the Closet
http://orientalreview.org/2014/09/01/shadow-nato-comes-out-of-the-closet/
Understanding that their regime is in peril and could even be brought down by the same nationalist forces that they unleashed, Poroshenko and Yatsenyuk are desperately calling to join NATO and have also sent unofficial feelers to Washington about the viability of formal (non-mercenary) ground troops.
The upcoming NATO summit on 4 September is expected to further institutionalize the bloc’s relationship with Ukraine, and it cannot be precluded that some surprises may also be in store. One such example could be Poroshenko pulling a temporary ploy and disowning Crimea in order to get around NATO’s formal territorial dispute prohibition. Regardless of how it turns out, the fact is that the Kiev coup-plotters have finally played their NATO hand and have shown the world that they are dead-set on joining the military bloc. Poroshenko and Yatsenyuk would do well, however, to second-guess the wisdom of working with Washington and instead heed Putin’s advice, remembering that “whatever Americans touch they always end up with Libya or Iraq.â€
Maybe Gershman and the Washington Post pundits should be shipped to Luhansk or Donetsk and made to suffer through the aerial bombing that the brave people in Novorussiya have been enduring on a daily basis, or arrested and beaten up, if not disappeared, for articulating in public a position different than the line of their friends in Kiev or their Right Sector allies, or be trapped in a building against an angry extremist crowd before being incinerated or shot- and then mocked on social media as Colorado beetles (not unlike the appellation of ‘cockroach’ many extremist Israelis have applied to Palestinians)- or booked on a flight that is secretly intended to be shot down so that it might be blamed on the wrong party for geopolitical purposes.
I’m not suggesting it happen in fact to these bastards, but they have been engaged in a seamy business for too long, and they need to understand the meaning and consequences of what they have advocated, and they need to understand in their gut. Hopefully, then they would have an epiphany.
Maybe Gershman and the Washington Post pundits should be shipped to Luhansk or Donetsk and made to suffer through the aerial bombing that the brave people in Novorussiya have been enduring on a daily basis, or arrested and beaten up, if not disappeared, for articulating in public a position different than the line of their friends in Kiev or their Right Sector allies, or be trapped in a building against an angry extremist crowd before being incinerated or shot- and then mocked on social media as Colorado beetles (not unlike the appellation of ‘cockroach’ many extremist Israelis have applied to Palestinians)- or booked on a flight that is secretly intended to be shot down so that it might be blamed on the wrong party for geopolitical purposes.
I’m not suggesting it happen in fact to these bastards, but they have been engaged in a seamy business for too long, and they need to understand the meaning and consequences of what they have advocated, and they need to understand in their gut. Hopefully, then they would have an epiphany.
That would be a great idea. In addition, suppose we send them all over there dressed in Ukrainian Army uniforms, but unarmed. I suspect they’d change their tune in a flash, knowing that the rebel militias, along with many civilians, would treat them in the same way the Kiev-backed battalions had treated four Russian journalists dressed in civilian clothes.
It would seem that I am not the only one whom has had a lot of questions from the very beginning of this crisis and, to me, I see a narrative being shaped by our media (I still remember the narrative before the Iraq invasion) – which scares me. I do believe that we are getting propaganda from all sides so it is very hard to know what to believe so I think it is very important to question. My questions are as follows:
1) Why did much of the MSM, along with western governments, hide the involvement of neo-fascists/neo-nazis in the initial protests in Kiev? It is well documented the existence of these groups in Western Ukraine going all the way back to Stepan Bandera who aided the Nazis in killing 70,000 Poles and a number of Jews, not too mention statues erected to Stepan Bandera in Western Ukraine, and Stepan Bandera being named the “Hero of Ukraine” by the outgoing President in 2010. The BBC did stories about the rise of Svoboda in 2012 and even the EU Parliament proclaimed the dangers of Svoboda in a December 2012 meeting. Only a small amount of western stories actually speak about the Neo-Nazi influence in Kiev (BBC Newsnight, Salon etc.).
2) Why did the United States warn Yanukovych NOT to use the military against the protesters in Kiev but then went onto support military aggression against the people in Eastern Ukraine? Most of the protesters were peaceful on the Maidan but there were factions of Svoboda and Right Sector that were throwing Molotov Cocktails, taking over government buildings and using live ammunition – the same could be said about the protests in Eastern Ukraine before it erupted into full blown fighting.
3) Why were western governments so quick to acknowledge the legitimacy of a government that overthrew the previous one? I believe in the US it is actually illegal to support a coup regime. Yanukovych was “democratically elected” and yet had to flee after Svoboda and Right Sector stormed Presidential buildings. Subsequently the Ukrainian Government, the Verkhovna Rada, had a vote to “impeach” Yanukovych but failed to get the required 3/4 vote to legally impeach him according to the Ukrainian Constitution, Article 111. So technically Yanukovych, bad guy or not, was still the President.
4) What part did the $5 Billion US Dollars, Victoria Nuland, and the National Endowment have to play in overthrowing the government in Ukraine? The US has been funnelling $5 Billion into Ukraine since 1991. Other countries that the US government has funnelled money into through institutions like the National Endowment for Democracy and USAID are countries like Venezuela where there was an attempted coup in 2002, Egypt where there was a coup last year, as well as operations in Cuba such as creating a Cuban Twitter to try and stir unrest.
5) If Russia is so guilty of everything, then why do we see the US State Department constantly resort to “social media” and evidence from Kiev (which has been debunked a few times over) as proof of Russian involvement in Ukraine? Matt Lee of AP pointed out the US State Department “in-lieu” of information and poked fun by asking if they could point him to a “YouTube video”. Even former US intelligence officials have written a letter to Obama asking him to release any information on Ukraine and to stop resorting to “social media” because it is flimsy.
6) If Russia and the “rebels” are guilty of shooting down MH-17 then why haven’t the US released satellite “exact” photos showing the BUK missile being fired and the downing of the airplane? I mean, the US has the largest spy apparatus on the planet watching Eastern Ukraine like a hawk with a spy satellite directly overhead when it was downed, then why don’t they present those photos – they would show who, what and where? Actually I have been reading some articles on Consortium News by Robert Parry, a Pulitzer Prize Finalist and George Polk Award Winning Journalist that broke the Iran Contra Scandal for AP, which according to Robert’s sources point the finger at the Ukrainian Army and not the “rebels”. Also, it was also curious that Russia and the rebels were blamed for the downing of MH-17 even before any investigation had even begun – that gets my Spidey Sense going.
7) What are the financial interests in Ukraine? I have seen that the IMF has put conditionality on loans based on the inclusion of Eastern Ukraine. Also we have seen the US Vice President’s son take a position on the board of Ukraine’s largest natural gas company along with John Kerry’s family friend. Not too mention the interests of companies such as Monsanto, Chevron, and Shell among others.
8) Could the demonization, and attempted isolation, of Russia be about world economics? Russia has made it no secret that they want the world to replace the US Dollar as the world’s reserve currency and remove the US’s competitive advantage (not too mention all of the trade agreements being made without the US Dollar). In 2009, President Medvedev even went as far as creating a prototype of a proposed new reserve currency. Also, along with the other members of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) they have created a new Development Bank which will open in Shanghai in 2015 and start to lend in 2016. This would put the BRICS Development Bank in direct competition with the IMF, WorldBank, and SWIFT (these institutions ensure western hegemony over the entire world). A BRICS Development Bank would significantly reduce the power of sanctions on any given country because it would be an alternative to the Western Banking model. Also, if the terms for lending are more appealing then IMF austerity and privatization of a countries resources then it would greatly diminish western influence over the world.
I do actually believe that the US/EU pulled off a coup in Ukraine and that is why so much of the narrative is missing in our media. This may not be what you believe but we should at least question what we are seeing especially after the illegal invasion of Iraq where 1/2 Million to 1 Million people were killed based on lies from our governments and the MSM.