Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

The Strategic Issues & International Relations Forum is a venue to discuss issues pertaining to India's security environment, her strategic outlook on global affairs and as well as the effect of international relations in the Indian Subcontinent. We request members to kindly stay within the mandate of this forum and keep their exchanges of views, on a civilised level, however vehemently any disagreement may be felt. All feedback regarding forum usage may be sent to the moderators using the Feedback Form or by clicking the Report Post Icon in any objectionable post for proper action. Please note that the views expressed by the Members and Moderators on these discussion boards are that of the individuals only and do not reflect the official policy or view of the Bharat-Rakshak.com Website. Copyright Violation is strictly prohibited and may result in revocation of your posting rights - please read the FAQ for full details. Users must also abide by the Forum Guidelines at all times.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/09/u ... 58918.html
Ukraine: Russia backs 7-day unilateral ceasefire plan
Visiting Kiev, foreign ministers of Germany and France announce Russia's commitment on behalf of separatist leaders.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

http://uatoday.tv/opinion/eu-ambassador ... 34337.html
It is a fight between those, who wish to deliver the lowest minimum on certain commitments and those, who expect, and I suspect this is the most part of the Ukrainian population, that the system will be much fairer and much more trustful. The European Union is engaged in the system, because the assets declaration is part of visa liberalization action plan and this is the remaining last element in order to take decisions on visa-free regime for Ukraine.
Y. Kanan
BRFite
Posts: 926
Joined: 27 Mar 2003 12:31
Location: USA

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Y. Kanan »

Yagnasri wrote:Not their people. The will burn the world down to promote what their think as their interest. It is the idiots in Poland to Ukraine who are now believing that they can get great friends from NATO and Khan. Let them live in this dream for a decade of more and they will come to their senses.
It's not just the Ukies and Poles. Plenty of Indians and BRites feel the same way. They also believe we should hitch our fortunes to the US ship.
Yagnasri
BRF Oldie
Posts: 10390
Joined: 29 May 2007 18:03

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Yagnasri »

Anyone think that they have to hitch their ship to this nation or that nation do not deserve to have any independent nation. We were chamchas of USSR for long and have to learn from it. But as someone said "India is like an elephant. It is too big to be anyone's pet". So if it wants to be a pet then it has to die and become few dozen small munnas of some big power.
ramana
Forum Moderator
Posts: 59773
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by ramana »

Folks no posting blind links a short one liner or use the url tags.

Thanks,

ramana
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

http://www.euronews.com/2016/09/26/new- ... most-ready
NEW RUSSIAN MILITARY BASE 100KM FROM UKRAINE 'ALMOST READY'
Russia is completing the construction of a large military base in the southern Rostov region, some 100 kilometres from the border with Ukraine.
The base consisting of three military facilities is the latest in a chain of new military sites, part of what the Kremlin sees as an important counterpoint to NATO.
Up to 10,000 service personnel are expected to be deployed at the site which will reportedly house a motorised rifle division.
chanakyaa
BRFite
Posts: 1723
Joined: 18 Sep 2009 00:09
Location: Hiding in Karakoram

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by chanakyaa »

They are definitely going to need one because a law was just passed that makes it legal to share lethal weapons to Ukies. Winter is coming...

Lethal weapon deliveries to Ukraine now legal
habal
BRF Oldie
Posts: 6919
Joined: 24 Dec 2009 18:46

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by habal »

Sad news to what is now confirmed the death of "Motorola" a very popular DPR/Novorossiya commander, that always used the Syrian flag on his military gear. May the hero of Donetsk airport battle rest in piece.

http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/10/breaki ... orola.html
dnivas
BRFite
Posts: 494
Joined: 05 Dec 2008 05:54

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by dnivas »

Givi better unleash some hell soon.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

If the assassination of Motorola wont evoke a response from Putin, then dunno what should.
habal
BRF Oldie
Posts: 6919
Joined: 24 Dec 2009 18:46

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by habal »

https://twitter.com/StormBringer15/stat ... 4823898112

Identity of Motorola's killer was established> the IED was triggered by Latvian mercenary Marc Ozolins.
Philip
BRF Oldie
Posts: 21538
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30
Location: India

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Philip »

Ha!Ha! The treasure troves of the UKR oligarchs revealed.We now know who has really looted the country and with the West's help want to loot even more.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/ ... ade-public
Ukraine stunned as vast cash reserves of political elite are made public
New wealth declaration system shows officials owning Fabergé eggs, weapons collections and huge stashes of currency


The Ukrainian prime minister, Volodymyr Groysman, who declared $1.2m and €460,000 in cash, as well as a collection of luxury watches.
Shaun Walker in Moscow
Monday 31 October 2016
Two years after angry Ukrainians deposed Viktor Yanukovych and broke into his vast, opulent residential compound outside Kiev, revelations thrown up by a new system that requires government officials to declare their wealth and property online have led many to suspect the new elite are no better.

The declarations, which all officials were required to file by Sunday evening, have made public many curiosities, including politicians who own multiple luxury watches, Fabergé eggs and large collections of weapons. One politician declared that he owned a personal church. :lol:

Ukraine peace process: leaders agree roadmap to revive talks

By far the biggest shock, however, has been just how much money Ukraine’s politicians seem to stash away in hard cash.

The prime minister, Volodymyr Groysman, declared $1.2m (£980,000) and €460,000 (£410,000) in cash, as well as a collection of luxury watches. Many other officials declared hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of cash.


“Everyone is amazed that there is so much cash in our country,” said Kristina Berdynskykh, an investigative journalist who has written extensively on corruption among the elite.

Mikhail Dobkin, an opposition MP, declared 1,780 bottles of wine, while Roman Nasirov, the head of the state fiscal service, declared that together, he and his wife owned Swiss watches, diamonds, fur coats and held more than $2m in cash.

Observers have pointed out that when the head of the national bank keeps his savings in dollars, it can hardly fill the population with confidence about the prospects for the hryvnia, Ukraine’s national currency.

Other curiosities found among the declarations included a Nazi SS dagger and medieval religious icons. Anatoly Matviyenko, the deputy leader of the presidential faction in parliament, declared ownership of a church.

Petro Poroshenko called the declarations ‘a truly historic event of openness and transparency’. Photograph: Sergei Chuzavkov/AP
“The other thing that is amazing is the excess. Even if someone is well-off, it’s not clear why a state official requires 10 luxury watches, 30 plots of land or his own personal chapel,” Berdynskykh said.

One of the key demands of the Maidan revolution of 2014 was an end to the rampant corruption that plagued the country. When protesters stormed Yanukovych’s compound they found gold-plated golf clubs, a petting zoo and a replica of a Spanish galleon moored in a manmade lake.

The current president, Petro Poroshenko, is a billionaire tycoon, but promised a new, more transparent kind of politics. Critics say reform efforts have stalled and that despite impressive rhetoric, the government has done little to transform the fundamental nature of Ukrainian business and politics.

When rebels toured the palace: how does Ukraine's presidential compound measure up?

Setting up the electronic declaration system was one of a number of conditions laid down by the EU as requirements to ensure a visa liberalisation deal for Ukrainians. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the former secretary general of Nato, who is an adviser to Poroshenko, said: “Ukraine has taken a crucial step to break with corruption and ensure a clean and efficient public administration. The e-declaration is of paramount importance and all of Europe should take notice and applaud this important step.”

Poroshenko called the declarations “a truly historic event of openness and transparency”.

However, inside the country, the response was far from enthusiastic. One columnist referred to Ukrainian officials as “moral degenerates”. In a society where the average wage is under £200 per month, the lavish wealth on the declarations only underscored the vast gulf between the political elite and average Ukrainians who are largely impoverished.

There was also anger at such vast displays of wealth while thousands of Ukrainians in the army receive low salaries to risk their lives on the frontline of a war with Russia-backed separatists in the east of the country.

The key indicator of whether the declarations serve their purpose in the fight against corruption will be what action is taken by the country’s authorities to investigate them.

Berdynskykh said: “It’s amazing how much information we have now, as a journalist I couldn’t have dreamed of this before. Some MPs have released the names of offshore companies they are linked to, and it will be interesting if the anti-corruption bureau will actually follow up with real questions now.

“Also, some MPs have said nothing, claiming they have no bank accounts, no cash, and live only on their official salary. And we all know this isn’t true. Will they be checked as well?”
Philip
BRF Oldie
Posts: 21538
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30
Location: India

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Philip »

Even more shocking revelations! UKR's secret payoffs to US entities.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/ ... politician
Larry King got $225,000 to interview Ukraine PM, says politician
Details emerge from ‘black ledger’ detailing alleged secret payments from former ruling party to US, including to Trump strategist Paul Manafort
Larry King, on the set of his show on Russia Today.
Photograph: Graham Turner for the Guardian
Luke Harding
Friday 19 August 2016
The TV host Larry King accepted $225,000 (£173,000) to interview Ukraine’s pro-Russian prime minister, according to a politician investigating a “black ledger” detailing alleged secret payments to the US from Ukraine’s former ruling party.

King flew to Kiev in November 2011 to interview Ukraine’s then prime minister Mykola Azarov. Azarov was a key figure in the government of President Viktor Yanukovych, whom Ukrainian prosecutors accuse of massive corruption.

Weeks before the interview Yanukovych had jailed his main political opponent Yulia Tymoshenko. After the interview King lavished praise on Azarov, describing him in flattering terms as a “straightforward and honest person with a deep knowledge of world affairs”.

Paul Manafort resigns as chairman of Donald Trump campaign

Speaking to journalists in Kiev at the time, King said: “After the interview I told my wife that he [Azarov] would have been a successful US politician. As for who he reminded me, he’s a bit like Jimmy Carter. He looks good, and it’s easy to meet with him.”

During the encounter King asked Azarov a series of softball questions, including: “What do you like most about your job?”, “Why are you interested in politics?” and “How’s your health?” He mentioned Tymoshenko just once, asking Azarov: “Do you have any sympathy for her?” The latter replied: “Of course.”

On Friday Serhiy Leshchenko, a Ukrainian MP and investigative journalist, presented fresh details from a “black ledger” belonging to Yanukovych’s Party of Regions. It includes records of $12.7m in payments allegedly designated for Paul Manafort, then Yanukovych’s chief consultant and election strategist and who on Friday resigned as Donald Trump’s campaign manager.

Leshchenko said the records documented a $225,000 payment earmarked for King in return for the Azarov interview, which was broadcast by Ukraine’s pro-government national TV station. “Money from the Party of Regions’ shadow assets was paid to Larry King. He received $225,000 from the party’s shadow coffer,” the MP said, adding that the party had not paid taxes on its undercover slush fund.

King, who left CNN in 2010 and has gone on to work for Russia Today, was not immediately available for comment. Manafort has dismissed claims he received “black ledger” cash payments as “unfounded, silly and nonsensical”.

Sources close to Manafort said he was not involved in flying King to Kiev. Rather, it was Azarov’s own press team that came up with the “stupid idea” and arranged the trip, they suggested.

But the alleged Larry King payment appears part of a wider strategy by the then ruling Party of Regions to influence US opinion and to deflect criticism of Yanukovych’s increasingly authoritarian behaviour.


The Associated Press reported on Thursday that Manafort’s firm had run a covert Washington lobbying operation. Its goal was to win positive press coverage in the New York Times and Wall Street Journal, and to undercut public sympathy for the jailed Tymoshenko. At the time the EU and Obama administration were calling for her to be freed.

Between 2012 and 2014 Manafort’s colleague Rick Gates directed two Washington lobbying firms, Mercury LLC and the Podesta Group, to set up meetings between senators and Ukrainian government officials, the AP said. The firms were paid $2.2m via a Brussels-based “thinktank”, the European Centre for a Modern Ukraine.

The “black ledger” was found in the Party of Regions office in 2014, shortly after Yanukovych and Azarov escaped to Russia following mass anti-government protests. Ukrainian prosecutors accuse Yanukovych of being behind the shooting of 100 demonstrators and stealing $100bn. An international arrest warrant is outstanding against Azarov.

On Friday, Leshchenko, a member of President Petro Poroshenko’s parliamentary faction, said interrogating Manafort may shed light on the alleged secret payments.

“Manafort didn’t work for free in Ukraine. He served the Party of Regions for over 10 years. It’s clear that his work was paid,” Leshchenko said. “The money was transferred in cash and it is impossible to trace the transactions, but I have no doubt as to the authenticity of these documents,” he said.

This week Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption bureau published 19 pages from the ledger. They showed 22 items designated for Manafort, with payments ranging from $3,468,693 for “Paul Manafort contract” to $6,000 for “Manafort expenses”. Other entries were for exit polls, research, and computers.

In an article for the Guardian Leshchenko writes: “So-called ‘shadow accounting’ documents I have seen show $400,000 in cash payments were made to him, which were intended to be spent on conducting exit polls. The documents show a further $812,000 to be paid to him for engaging international observers.”

“Ukrainians are concerned about the theft of public money. We want the chain of corruption to end. That is why many are troubled that Manafort’s name has emerged in this probe.”

He adds: “Manafort worked with Yanukovych – one of the most notorious European politicians – for nearly 10 years. This is not a casual relationship between the client and the performer. Such long-term cooperation incorporates a general worldview and values. Now voters in America will have to ask themselves: are these values they want in their country?”

The ledgers also suggest that Yanukovych’s Party of Regions was giving clandestine funding to the far-right ultra-nationalist Ukrainian party Svoboda, Leshchenko said on Friday. The payments were allegedly routed via one of Yanukovych’s MPs, Vitaly Kalyuzhny.
chanakyaa
BRFite
Posts: 1723
Joined: 18 Sep 2009 00:09
Location: Hiding in Karakoram

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by chanakyaa »

Ukraine's Georgian Kejriwal working hard, governing less and creating anarchy

Saakashvili resigns as Odessa governor, declares war on Poroshenko
Former Georgian politician and wanted criminal Mikhail Saakashvili has announced his resignation from the post of governor of Ukraine’s Odessa region. Saakashvili accused Ukrainian Petro Poroshenko of covering up corruption and failing to fulfill promises...

“I wanted there to be the same tempo of development here as in Batumi. But Batumi started to develop only after Tbilisi was liberated from the corrupt. And Odessa will start to develop only after Kiev is liberated from the corrupt who are patronizing banditry and lawlessness, including in the Odessa region. Therefore, in this situation, I’ve decided to resign and begin a new stage of struggle. I will not give up…I am a soldier who will do as much as I can and as much as is necessary to rid Ukraine of this filth that has betrayed the idea of the Ukrainian Revolution and who have only one motivation - lining their own pockets,” Saakashvili stated.
....
(and more)
And, the laying the foundation of new crisis hotspot

Ukraine ready to give ‘green corridor' for Russian troops to withdraw from Moldova

Image
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

Written by Saakashvili. Read for a good laugh.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/17/opini ... .html?_r=0

He has invented a new party. Name is `New Force`. Something is seriously wrong in Ukraine with funny party names.
http://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-saakashv ... 10449.html
Pratyush
BRF Oldie
Posts: 12195
Joined: 05 Mar 2010 15:13

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Pratyush »

Bhurishravas wrote:Written by Saakashvili. Read for a good laugh.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/17/opini ... .html?_r=0

He has invented a new party. Name is `New Force`. Something is seriously wrong in Ukraine with funny party names.
http://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-saakashv ... 10449.html
Isn't he Georgian, who got kicked by Putin in 2008. What is he doing in Ukraine.?
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

Pratyush wrote:
Bhurishravas wrote:Written by Saakashvili. Read for a good laugh.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/17/opini ... .html?_r=0

He has invented a new party. Name is `New Force`. Something is seriously wrong in Ukraine with funny party names.
http://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-saakashv ... 10449.html
Isn't he Georgian, who got kicked by Putin in 2008. What is he doing in Ukraine.?
Oh God. No. Ghor Kaliyug on BR.
Austin
BRF Oldie
Posts: 23387
Joined: 23 Jul 2000 11:31

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Austin »

Final Handshake between Putin and Obama at APEC Summit

Image

Image
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

No breakthrough in latest 'difficult' foreign minister talks on Ukraine
http://www.dw.com/en/no-breakthrough-in ... a-36580720

Russia has warned Ukraine against testing missiles near Crimea but Kiev is going ahead with it.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-ukrai ... SKBN13P1QR
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2 ... he-senate/
Dutch get their EU deal on Ukraine referendum; now it’s up to the senate
Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte has won the support of the 27 other European leaders for a supplementary to the Ukraine treaty which makes it clear what the agreement actually entails. This, he hopes, will enable the Dutch parliament to ratify the treaty, despite the April referendum in which 61% voted against ratification. Even though the referendum was advisory, MPs have said justice must be done to the outcome.
Read more at DutchNews.nl: Dutch get their EU deal on Ukraine referendum; now it’s up to the senate http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2 ... he-senate/
It will be difficult for Dutch PM to get this passed in the parliament.
IMHO, EU should grant visa free travel to Ukraine. This will lead to an exodus from Ukraine. More likely from western Ukraine. And this will leave ethnic russians in majority in Ukraine which can only be good for Ukraine and Russia.
Its better for EU to get Ukrainian migrants than muslims from Syria.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/ukraine-says- ... 51453.html
Ukraine said five of its troops were killed Sunday by pro-Russian insurgents in the bloodiest clash in the war-scarred ex-Soviet republic in months.
Kiev military spokesman Leonid Matyukhin told AFP that another six soldiers were wounded in the battle for control of the strategic city of Debaltseve.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-u ... SKBN14A26D
U.S.-supplied drones disappoint Ukraine at the front lines.
The Air Force command of Ukraine's armed forces acknowledged to Reuters that the Ravens supplied by the United States had a fundamental drawback: Russia and the separatist forces it supports can intercept and jam their video feeds and data.
"The complex is analog, therefore command channels and data are not protected from interception and suppression by modern means of electronic warfare," it said.
U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, acknowledged that Russia's electronic warfare capabilities were far more sophisticated than thought when the conflict began and that both the U.S. and Ukrainian militaries were adapting.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/12/22 ... ence-surge
OSCE monitor warns of unprecedented surge in Ukraine violence
Alexander Hug, a top monitor of the OSCE, said in a statement that the organization had recorded a 75-percent increase in the number of ceasefire violations in recent weeks, adding that Ukrainian forces have lost at least eight soldiers since Sunday.
chanakyaa
BRFite
Posts: 1723
Joined: 18 Sep 2009 00:09
Location: Hiding in Karakoram

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by chanakyaa »

Looks like winter time again in Ukraine...

ABOUT 100 PRO-KIEV FIGHTERS WERE KILLED IN CLASHES IN EASTERN UKRAINE
About 100 servicemembers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces have been killed in clashes with local militias in eastern Ukraine since December 21, according to media activists.

Ukrainian and Russian sources report that the Ukrainian Gegeral Staff has dramatically understated the casualties of pro-Kiev forces in the clashes that took place in the area of Logvinovo, northwest of Debaltsevo in the recent days.

Only according to video and photo evidence the Kiev side has lost about 40 fighters. Reports from local sources and pro-Kiev media activists allow to estimate the real number of casualties as about 100 fighters.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces suffered high casualties because it attempted to advance against LPR and DPR forces in a fortified area without air support and artillery superiority.

Some reports say that initially the decision to advance in the area of Logvinovo was made by the commander of the 54th Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces under the influence of alcohol. After the initial success of the operation (Kiev forces seized 3 points in the area), the Ukrainian General Staff decided to not panish the commander for his initiative.

Now, the situation at the frontline remains stable with no side attempts to advance. However, both Kiev forces and local militia continue to shell each other with various kinds of artillery systems, excluding multiple rocket launchers.
Image
Philip
BRF Oldie
Posts: 21538
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30
Location: India

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Philip »

Henry K's advice to Trump.Accept Russia's Crimea takeover. Wise advice,its soul has always been Russian and was stupidly handed over to the UKR after the USSR imploded.
Henry Kissinger has 'advised Donald Trump to accept' Crimea as part of Russia
The 93-year-old veteran envoy has made several visits to Trump Tower

Andrew Buncombe New York @AndrewBuncombe 14 hours ago

The Nobel laureate has made a series of visits to Trump Tower AP
Is the veteran US diplomat Henry Kissinger working to secure a rapprochement between the US and Moscow by pushing for an end to sanctions in exchange for the removal of Russian troops from eastern Ukraine?

A flurry of reports suggest the 93-year-old diplomat is positioning himself as a intermediary between Vladimir Putin and President-elect Donald Trump. He has publicly praised Mr Trump, and traveled to Trump Tower in New York to offer his counsel built on decades of lobbying and diplomacy.

A report in the German tabloid Der Bild headlined ‘Kissinger to prevent new Cold War’, claimed the former envoy was working towards a new relationship with Russia.

The US leader reportedly told Mr Putin to 'cut it out' (AP)
This would involve the US accepting that Crimea, a Ukrainian territory that Russia seized in March 2014, now belongs to Moscow. In exchange, Russia would remove troops and military supplies to rebels in eastern Ukraine which have fighting a war against the Ukrainian government.

The report did not provide details, but claimed that “sources” said that Mr Kissinger was drawing up a “master plan” for Ukraine.

Last week, Politico said Mr Kissinger was one of the few Americans to meet frequently with Mr Putin, along with movie star Steven Seagal and ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson, Mr Trump’s pick for the next secretary of state.

Former ambassador to Russia: Putin wanted 'revenge' against Clinton
“The 93-year-old Kissinger is positioning himself as a potential intermediary - meeting with the president-elect in private and flattering him in public,” it said.

“Like Trump, Kissinger has also cast doubt on intelligence agencies’ conclusion that Russia sought to sway the election in Trump's favor, telling a recent interviewer ‘They were hacking, but the use they allegedly made of this hacking eludes me’.”

Mr Trump’s views on Russia’s annexation of Crimea appeared to change during the course of the election campaign - reportedly as a result of the influence of former campaign manager Paul Manafort, who has worked for Ukraine’s deposed pro-Russian president. Inquiries to Mr Kissinger's lobbying firm in New York were not immediately answered on Tueday.

After Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, Mr Trump voiced opposition and said it “should never have happened.”
However, in August he told one US interviewer: “The people of Crimea, from what I’ve heard, would rather be with Russia than where they were.”

Politico said that Mr Kissinger, who levied as secretary of state to presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, has long argued that promoting a greater balance of power between the US and Russia would improve global stability.

Yet skeptics fear Mr Kissinger, who was behind the massive, secret US bombing campaigns in Indo-China in the late 1960s and 1970s, risks rewarding Russia despite its controversial role in events such as the Syrian civil war, where Mr Putin has sided with Syrian dictator Bashar Assad.

“He’s a realist. The most important thing for him is international equilibrium, and there’s no talk of human rights or democracy.”
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

https://www.rt.com/op-edge/371934-ukrai ... ovich-nyt/
New York Times admits Ukraine’s Yanukovich was right not to sign EU deal
“According to statistics the benefits of acceding to the Free Trade regime amount to €490 million per annum. However, if President Putin decided to pull the plug on Ukrainian access to his market (which, ironically, Poroshenko partially later did in a sort of petulant suicide), the loss of the Russian and Belarusian outlets would amount to €16 billion annually.” Hence, the idea that Yanukovich worked in concert with the Kremlin was always preposterous. On the contrary, many Russian officials disliked him because they felt he played them off against Brussels for too long.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

The drama at Naftogaz.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/mayakachroo ... 7e93742ce4

Procuring gas was always going to be problematic for Ukraine. The primary reason why it would have been better for Ukraine to stay in Russian sphere and get discounted gas. I doubt if the western countries have got an appetite for bankrolling Ukraine`s gas bills for years and decades.
The Ukbapzis have got themselves in a soup. Patience has and will serve Putin well in Ukraine.
Austin
BRF Oldie
Posts: 23387
Joined: 23 Jul 2000 11:31

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Austin »

Ukraine buys gas via reverse flow , the Russians fill the gas in europe and then they sell it throught the same pipeline via reverseflow and europe charges a premium over it , in the end Ukraine buys expensive gas but thats whats works them well and Russian dont complain as long as Europe pays them for the gas which they do.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

Austin wrote:Ukraine buys gas via reverse flow , the Russians fill the gas in europe and then they sell it throught the same pipeline via reverseflow and europe charges a premium over it , in the end Ukraine buys expensive gas but thats whats works them well and Russian dont complain as long as Europe pays them for the gas which they do.
It is cutting your nose to spite the face thing. Russians have protested against this stupidity but then they are getting their money anyway so no big deal.
Austin
BRF Oldie
Posts: 23387
Joined: 23 Jul 2000 11:31

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Austin »

Bhurishravas wrote:
Austin wrote:Ukraine buys gas via reverse flow , the Russians fill the gas in europe and then they sell it throught the same pipeline via reverseflow and europe charges a premium over it , in the end Ukraine buys expensive gas but thats whats works them well and Russian dont complain as long as Europe pays them for the gas which they do.
It is cutting your nose to spite the face thing. Russians have protested against this stupidity but then they are getting their money anyway so no big deal.
Exactly my point , Russian complain was Ukraine does not pay money for gas used and it steals the gas

Now Russia gets money from Europe and Ukraine pay to Europe to get gas , what ever makes them happy
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-ukrai ... SKBN14O1G2
Ukraine moves to blacklist Le Pen over Crimea comments
"In this regard, we remind that such statements and actions in violation of the Ukrainian legislation will necessarily have consequences, as it was in the case of certain French politicians, who are denied entry to Ukraine," it said.
Le Pen was quoted by French television as saying Russia's annexation of Crimea was not illegal because the Crimean people had chosen to join Russia in a referendum, a position Kiev vehemently disputes. The referendum was also declared illegal by the United Nations General Assembly.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/featur ... 48659.html
Dam leaves Crimea population in chronic water shortage
The North Crimean Canal, once provided 85 percent of Crimea's drinking and irrigation water.
In 2013, the North Crimean Canal drew 1.5 million cubic meters of water. But shortly after the annexation, Ukrainian authorities shut the canal with a hastily-built dam.
"Nobody is going to save Crimea," Garnachuk said. "Ukraine understands that water supply is a critical problem for Crimea, and they will maximally complicate irrigation, nobody is going to resume [the water flow to the North Crimean Canal]."
V interesting. Sooner than later ukbapzis are gonna get whacked for their crude stupidity.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

https://www.neweurope.eu/article/former ... in-moscow/
Former Ukrainian prime minister Mykola Azarov has announced he would gather a Ukrainian “government-in-exile” in Moscow.
The move comes after in December a Moscow court ruling held that the collapse of his government in early 2014 was the result of an illegal coup.
Speaking in Moscow on January 9, Azarov said it would be necessary to form a government-in-exile if the Ukrainian people “demand an alternative.”
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-vice-pres ... 35958.html
[quote]"I wanted to come here one more time in my last trip as vice president to honour how much progress the people of Ukraine have achieved," Biden told journalists at a briefing alongside Poroshenko, saying Americans and Ukrainians were united by deep bonds. /quote]
:rotfl:
Austin
BRF Oldie
Posts: 23387
Joined: 23 Jul 2000 11:31

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Austin »

^^ Biden recently got Medal of Freedom from Barak Obama not sure what did he exactly do as VPeee to get this honour
Philip
BRF Oldie
Posts: 21538
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30
Location: India

,"what was his legacy?"

Post by Philip »

Biden Jr. was the US's point man for the UKR oligarchs,and was given a top job in the UKR.backscratching is all that O'Bomber can do in his final days,rewarding toadies who stood by him in his flawed presidency.In fact people are asking the same Q,"what was his legacy?" He was neither hawk nor dove.Just a turkey! :rotfl:
Yagnasri
BRF Oldie
Posts: 10390
Joined: 29 May 2007 18:03

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Yagnasri »

Now many Dems without jobs can find out if they have any Uke blood ties to become President to what not. :mrgreen: I remember the super idiot from Georgia becoming Uke leader earlier.
Bhurishravas
BRFite
Posts: 680
Joined: 02 Sep 2016 18:25

Re: Eastern Europe/Ukraine [Feb 6th 2015]

Post by Bhurishravas »

It is a real pity that Obama is derided all over the place.
Perhaps some fellas would love to have GWB-2 back.
Bomb the hell out of Assad, arm the ukbapzis and give NATO membership to one and all.
A saner person like Obama who despite being surrounded by neo cons refused to get drawn into Syria war or into arming the Ukbapzis doesnt deserve respect. Yeah. Correct. :roll:
Post Reply