Henry Kissinger — on the Ukraine crisis

Public discussion on Ukraine is all about confrontation. But do we know where we are going? In my life, I have seen four wars begun with great enthusiasm and public support, all of which we did not know how to end and from three of which we withdrew unilaterally. The test of policy is how it ends, not how it begins.

Far too often the Ukrainian issue is posed as a showdown: whether Ukraine joins the East or the West. But if Ukraine is to survive and thrive, it must not be either side’s outpost against the other — it should function as a bridge between them.

Russia must accept that to try to force Ukraine into a satellite status, and thereby move Russia’s borders again, would doom Moscow to repeat its history of self-fulfilling cycles of reciprocal pressures with Europe and the United States.

The West must understand that, to Russia, Ukraine can never be just a foreign country. Russian history began in what was called Kievan-Rus. The Russian religion spread from there. Ukraine has been part of Russia for centuries, and their histories were intertwined before then. Some of the most important battles for Russian freedom, starting with the Battle of Poltava in 1709 , were fought on Ukrainian soil. The Black Sea Fleet — Russia’s means of projecting power in the Mediterranean — is based by long-term lease in Sevastopol, in Crimea. Even such famed dissidents as Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and Joseph Brodsky insisted that Ukraine was an integral part of Russian history and, indeed, of Russia.

The European Union must recognize that its bureaucratic dilatoriness and subordination of the strategic element to domestic politics in negotiating Ukraine’s relationship to Europe contributed to turning a negotiation into a crisis. Foreign policy is the art of establishing priorities.

The Ukrainians are the decisive element. They live in a country with a complex history and a polyglot composition. The Western part was incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1939 , when Stalin and Hitler divided up the spoils. Crimea, 60 percent of whose population is Russian , became part of Ukraine only in 1954 , when Nikita Khrushchev, a Ukrainian by birth, awarded it as part of the 300th-year celebration of a Russian agreement with the Cossacks. The west is largely Catholic; the east largely Russian Orthodox. The west speaks Ukrainian; the east speaks mostly Russian. Any attempt by one wing of Ukraine to dominate the other — as has been the pattern — would lead eventually to civil war or break up. To treat Ukraine as part of an East-West confrontation would scuttle for decades any prospect to bring Russia and the West — especially Russia and Europe — into a cooperative international system…

A wise U.S. policy toward Ukraine would seek a way for the two parts of the country to cooperate with each other. We should seek reconciliation, not the domination of a faction…Russia and the West, and least of all the various factions in Ukraine, have not acted on this principle. Each has made the situation worse. Russia would not be able to impose a military solution without isolating itself at a time when many of its borders are already precarious. For the West, the demonization of Vladimir Putin is not a policy; it is an alibi for the absence of one…

Leaders of all sides should return to examining outcomes, not compete in posturing. The test is not absolute satisfaction but balanced dissatisfaction. If some solution based on these or comparable elements is not achieved, the drift toward confrontation will accelerate. The time for that will come soon enough.

Of course, Kissinger may as well be describing Congress under the misleadership of what passes for a Republican Party, today. He speaks from memories of days when Republicans and Democrats had principled, educated, knowledgeable leaders. Days long gone.

Kissinger is not a diplomat I have a whole boatload of respect for. He rarely challenged the Cold War status quo in his years of service. What positive results attended his efforts resulted from a simple understanding that politics should trump war, trade brings more long-lasting change than imperial bullying.

Frankly, I doubt if anyone in the Confederate Club in Congress will even read his suggested principles. However, they are worth reading at least as a base for your understanding.

116 thoughts on “Henry Kissinger — on the Ukraine crisis”

  1. Otrazhenie says:
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    For the start, it would be more helpful to see Ukraine as one unified country, rather than position it as ‘Western Ukraine vs. Eastern Ukraine’. After all, when we are talking about Canada, we do not depict it as “Quebec vs. the rest of Canada”, when we are talking about Germany, we do not position its various lands against each other, when we are talking about New Zealand, we don’t depict it as ‘North Island vs. South Island’.

    • moss says:
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      Unfortunately, inside Ukraine, east v west is exactly what is presumed by everyone other than old guard apparatchiks. Followed closely by Catholic v Orthodox.

      • Otrazhenie says:
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        Not entirely true. Half of my family is Ukrainian – they are still living there. Most people in Ukraine never saw Ukraine as “East vs West” in the past. It is a very recent development, promoted a lot in recent weeks with a map of perceived ‘linguistic divide’ used by numerous media channels in the coverage of the situation in Ukraine. In reality, both Ukrainian and Russian languages were always taught at schools across the whole country, so people on all parts of Ukraine a fluent in both languages. See an interesting article on that at http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2014/02/28/dont_expect_ukraine_to_end_up_divided.html

        With regard to religion, all main religions, including Islam, were represented in the city I grew up in as well as represented in many other cities I lived in. Identity is a multidimensional construct and religious identity does not necessarily corresponds with the national identity. Check out a very interesting book on that called ‘Identity and Violence” – see overview of that book at http://www.journeywithjesus.net/BookNotes/Amartya_Sen_Identity_And_Violence.shtml

        • moss says:
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          That’s the trouble with subjective memories. Eid and I both have friends in academia and public service in Ukraine and…[EDIT: Eideard comments for himself when he wishes to]

          Most of the Russian-speakers I know – who are mostly in Kiev or the east – have no problem with a unified country. Speaking as subjectively as you have, I have to say that’s not the case with those from the Catholic west.

          I think it likely the Crimean vote will easily go for secession. The US and EU will blame the military; but, Crimea tried to leave in 1992 – which is why Ukraine changed the constitution in 1994.

          • Otrazhenie says:

            I would not blame ‘subjective memories’. I think we are simply talking about different identities. I’m talking about national identity, while you are talking more about ethnical and religious identities, which are very different. As an example, Canadian is a national identity. At the same time Canadians can have different ethnical and religious identity (e.g. there are a lot of Canadians of French ethnicity in Quebec therefore in that part of Canada there are two official languages: French and English).

            People in all parts of Ukraine have a very strong national identity. They consider Ukraine as their homeland. They love Ukraine and are prepared to fight and die for it if any third party would try to invade their homeland. They care about the well-being of their native land. That strong national identity is the basis of Ukraine as a country and we should be focusing on that instead of trying to create ethnic, linguistic or other divides. There are ethnic, linguistic and other variations within lots of countries, e.g. USA, New Zealand, Australia, Germany etc.. However when we are talking about those countries, we see them as a unified whole rather than a combination of opposing parts. Why do we talk differently about Ukraine? That does not make much sense and brings more harm than good to Ukraine as a country.

            Crimea is a different story and should not be confused with East Ukraine.

          • moss says:

            You should talk to the leftovers from the US Confederacy. 🙂 Their refusal to accept a union of these United States predated the writing of the Constitution. That hasn’t changed. They’re ready and willing to vote most of the old Confederate states out of the union given half a chance.

            As noted in other posts, Scotland is ready to devolve from the UK. Maybe you know a fair number of mellow Quebecois. I do, as well. I also know that given a few small changes in circumstances separation from Canada is possible. The same is true of La Raza here in the American Southwest.

            Good sense, sure, means the political economy of Ukraine is best united. Means nothing to the Ukrainians I know whose soldiers joined with the Nazis because they hated Russians. And lied about it when they came to Canada and the US as DPs after the war.

            Please understand. I, too, hope the nation of Ukarine stays united. I think at least half that country wishes to do so. I don’t think kidding ourselves about the divisions that exist historically – and still do – can be resolved by uprisings that refute elections. As true of Ukraine as Thailand.

          • Otrazhenie says:

            I know what you mean. Like in any other country, there are all sorts of people there 😦 and of course like in other countries with ethnically-complex population, there are groups, that might want to separate.

            With regard to Ukrainians, my grandparents (on my father’s side) were born in Ukraine and lived there all their lives. Granddad was fighting Hitler in the Second World War as all his Ukrainian neighbours, relatives and friends. Let’s not forget that only some Ukrainians joined Hitler. Lots more Ukrainians were fighting against Nazis, together with Russians and lots of other ethnic groups.

            My mother’s side of the family, by the way, was Russian. 🙂

          • Footnote says:

            (NYT Feb 25, 2015) “MOSCOW — The Russian government laid plans to annex Crimea and invade southeastern Ukraine weeks before the government fell in Kiev, a Russian newspaper reported on Wednesday, citing a Kremlin memo.
            Russia has long contended that it acted without premeditation in Crimea, seeking to protect Russian speakers who were under threat of attack and to stave off what it suspected was an attempt by NATO to move its forces into the region.
            A report in Novaya Gazeta, one of the few independent voices still publishing in Russia, said that the Kremlin had concluded by Feb. 4, 2014, long before President Viktor F. Yanukovych of Ukraine resigned, that he would fall, and that Russia would have an opportunity to annex Crimea.”

    • Побачимо says:
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      “Ukrainian Hackers Release Emails Tying Top Russian Official to Uprising” (NYT 10/27/16)
      “A group of Ukrainian hackers has released what it says are the emails of a senior Kremlin official that show a direct Russian role in creating and directing the rebel uprising in eastern Ukraine in 2014.
      The group claimed to have hacked the account of Vladislav Y. Surkov, for years President Vladimir V. Putin’s chief domestic political adviser and now the top official overseeing Russia’s Ukraine policy.
      The group released what it says are thousands of letters to and from Mr. Surkov’s office email account, adding a fat dossier to this year’s vast spill of emails around the world and showing high-level Kremlin meddling in Ukraine.
      While the authenticity of the documents has yet to be fully established, several of the people who corresponded with Mr. Surkov confirmed that the messages of theirs released by the hackers were the ones they sent.” http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/28/world/europe/ukraine-russia-emails.html

  3. List of X says:
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    To Russia, Ukraine is not just not a foreign country. It was largely a part of the same Russian empire, then Soviet Union, for nearly 300 years straight – and parts of it, at certain periods, all the way back to year 800-900. Ukrainians don’t necessary want to go back to that arrangement, though. 🙂

  4. inavukic says:
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    I like your commentary and to boot, it all seems as big egos locking horns – the newest stage for Western political leaders to play on while neglecting economic disasters at home

  8. Edvard says:
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    The Crimean Parliament released the Ballot Questions for the 16 March referendum. The referendum questions are:

    (1) “Do you support joining Crimea with the Russian Federation as a subject of Russian Federation?”
    (2) “Do you support restoration of 1992 Crimean constitution and Crimea’s status as a part of Ukraine?”

    There is no option on the 16 March ballot to maintain the status quo. Ukrainian outlets considered the questions as equivalent to “join Russia immediately or declare independence and then join Russia.” The current Crimean constitution came into effect in 1999 and Article 135 of the Ukrainian constitution provides that the Crimean Constitution must be approved by the Ukrainian parliament.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimea#2014_Crimean_crisis_and_Russian_military_intervention
    See also NYT 3/14/14 “2 Choices in Crimea Referendum, but Neither Is ‘No’ ” @ http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/15/world/europe/crimea-vote-does-not-offer-choice-of-status-quo.html?_r=0

    • keaneo says:
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      The question of the 1992 Constitution restores the option of a yes or no. The 1999 Constitution was promulgated in 1994 specifically to stop Crimeans from voting to return to Russia. A moot point because of yesterday’s vote – and if you read or watched news sources insulated from the US version of Cold War managed news, it was clear the overwhelming mass of the Crimean citizenry want that return.

      It’s Uncle Sugar still stuck into contradicting the decision we pressed for in the UN, NATO, elsewhere to recognize the same sort of decision re Kosovo.

    • moss says:
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      I watched the celebrations live in Crimea on SKY-TV world service. Crowds were a lot larger than the tiny number of those who dissented or boycotted the referendum – and sought out for interviews by NBC, FOX, Voice of America.

      Right or wrong, it’s self-deluding to try to bullshit folks into thinking the Crimeans don’t want to return to being Russians.

  11. Realpolitik says:
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    12/15/14: “Ukraine says Chevron plans to pull out of $10 bln shale gas deal” http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/12/15/ukraine-crisis-gas-idINL6N0TZ29A20141215 “Ukraine signed a shale gas production-sharing agreement with Chevron amid great fanfare in November 2013, just months before mass protests in Kiev ousted former president Viktor Yanukovich, plunging the country into a major crisis with Russia. …The deal to develop the Olesska field in western Ukraine followed a similar shale gas agreement with Royal Dutch Shell — both keystone projects for Ukraine’s bid to lessen its energy dependence on Russia with whom it is embroiled in a dispute over gas prices and unpaid debts. The Shell deal could also be under threat as the gas deposit intended for development is close to the eastern territories now controlled by pro-Russian separatists.”

  14. Stay Tuned says:
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    (April 30th, 2015) Russia’s military may be taking advantage of a recent lull in fighting in eastern Ukraine to lay the groundwork for a new military offensive, NATO’s top commander told the U.S. Congress on Thursday.
    U.S. Air Force General Philip Breedlove, the NATO supreme allied commander, said Russian forces had been seeking to “reset and reposition” while protecting battlefield gains, despite a fragile ceasefire agreed in February.
    “Many of their actions are consistent with preparations for another offensive,” Breedlove said.
    Pressed during the hearing, Breedlove acknowledged he could not predict Moscow’s next move but characterized its ongoing actions as “preparing, training and equipping to have the capacity to again take an offensive.”
    “In the past they have not wasted their effort,” Breedlove told the Senate Armed Services Committee. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/30/us-usa-defense-europe-idUSKBN0NL2ED20150430

  15. Manchukuo says:
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    (Sept 22, 2015) Reportedly “Ukrainians are furious after Putin was offered, and served, a 240-year-old bottle of wine while touring the Crimean peninsula’s Massandra winery this past weekend. Prior to Russia’s annexation of the area in March 2014, the winery was owned and operated by the Ukrainian government, and houses a number of rare, centuries-old bottles of wine and sherry.
    According to the Associated Press, winery director Yanina Pavlenko popped a bottle of wine for Putin and his friend—Italian media kingpin and politician Silvio Berlusconi—that was from 1775 and considered historically significant. Similar bottles were auctioned in London in 2001 for prices of up to £32,000 (US $49,700) each.
    “This is one of the five bottles that constitute not only Massandra’s or Crimea’s heritage, but the heritage of all Ukrainian people,” Nazar Kholodnytsky, first deputy prosecutor for Crimea argued to the Associated Press. “The funds went to the state coffers and supported the development of Massandra and wine-making in Crimea.”
    Ukrainian prosecutors plan to charge Pavlenko with embezzlement for the gesture. She is already wanted for treason after voting for Russia’s annexation of Crimea last year.” http://munchies.vice.com/articles/putin-drank-a-240-year-old-bottle-of-crimean-wine-and-ukrainians-are-pissed

  17. Cassandra says:
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    “If confirmed, cyber-attack against Ukrainian power distribution would indicate increasing threat of Russia disabling critical infrastructure abroad” (Jane’s, Jan 7th) http://www.janes.com/article/57060/if-confirmed-cyber-attack-against-ukrainian-power-distribution-would-indicate-increasing-threat-of-russia-disabling-critical-infrastructure-abroad “BlackEnergy and the Ukrainian power outage: What we really know” (Jan 11th) Includes ink to “BlackEnergy by the SSHBearDoor: attacks against Ukrainian news media and electric industry” http://www.welivesecurity.com/2016/01/11/blackenergy-and-the-ukrainian-power-outage-what-we-really-know/ See also “‘Lights Out: A Cyberattack, a Nation Unprepared, Surviving the Aftermath” by Ted Koppel http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/22/books/review/lights-out-by-ted-koppel.html

  20. Samizdat says:
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    “In any war, certain weapons come symbolize one side in the fighting, specific tactics or political factors. In that spirit, a specific tank has become the icon of Russia’s secret war in Ukraine.
    On June 3, 2016, Ukrainian blogger “sled_vzayt” posted a batch of evidence showing advanced T-72B3 tanks — as well as other armored vehicles and heavy weapons — and their Russian crews in eastern Ukraine’s Donbass region and right across the border in Russia.
    While the post uses numerous photographs to identify specific tanks, the vehicles themselves offer some of the clearest proof that the Kremlin’s troops are actively supporting rebel forces in Ukraine. https://warisboring.com/this-tank-has-become-an-icon-of-russias-secret-war-in-ukraine-19711a6b7bae#.qfw20k18z Includes link to the May 2015 Atlantic Council report “Hiding in Plain Sight: Putin’s War in Ukraine” http://www.atlanticcouncil.org/publications/reports/hiding-in-plain-sight-putin-s-war-in-ukraine-and-boris-nemtsov-s-putin-war

  21. Мобилизация says:
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    “Russia announces war games after accusing Ukraine of terrorist plot” http://www.reuters.com/article/us-ukraine-crisis-russia-idUSKCN10M1LN “Ukraine has called the accusations false and says they look like a pretext for Russia to escalate hostilities. Such an escalation could be used by Putin to demand better terms in the Ukraine peace process, or to inflame nationalist passions at home ahead of Russian parliamentary elections next month. In an editorial, the Russian newspaper Vedomosti said escalation was a proven Kremlin tactic ahead of negotiations. Putin was trying either to alter or to tear up the Minsk peace process, named for the Belarus capital where truces were hammered out for the war in eastern Ukraine’s Donbass region. https://www.vedomosti.ru/opinion/articles/2016/08/10/652548-novii-starii-vrag

  22. Update says:
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    Welcome to Ukrainian-Americans, the Latest Constituency Alienated By Trump http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nikolas-kozloff/welcome-to-ukrainian-amer_b_11614454.html
    Feds investigate Manafort firm as part of Ukraine probe http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/19/politics/paul-manafort-donald-trump-ukraine/
    Putin Visits Crimea After Ukraine Warns of ‘Full-Scale Russian Invasion’ http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/08/19/putin-visits-crimea-as-ukraine-warns-of-full-scale-russian-invasion-kiev-caucasus-2016/
    Playing With Fire in Ukraine (NYT Editorial) http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/20/opinion/playing-with-fire-in-ukraine.html
    After Crimea ‘Incursions,’ Russia and Ukraine Step Back From All-Out War http://dailysignal.com/2016/08/17/after-crimea-incursions-russia-and-ukraine-step-back-from-all-out-war/

  23. Попался! says:
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    “Leaked Memo Proves Soros Ruled Ukraine In 2014: Minutes From “Breakfast With US Ambassador Pyatt” http://theduran.com/leaked-memo-proves-george-soros-ruled-ukraine-in-2014-minutes-from-breakfast-with-us-ambassador-geoffrey-pyatt/ “…Plans to subvert and undermine Russian influence and cultural ties to Ukraine are a central focus of every conversation. US hard power, and EU soft power, is central towards bringing Ukraine into the neo-liberal model that Soros champions, while bringing Russia to its economic knees. Soros NGO, International Renaissance Foundation (IRF) plays a key role in the formation of the “New Ukraine”…the term Soros frequently uses when referring to his Ukraine project.”

  24. с новым годом says:
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    “Agricultural land reform in Ukraine, if adopted, likely to cause legal disputes and large-scale protests by farmers” http://www.janes.com/article/66508/agricultural-land-reform-in-ukraine-if-adopted-likely-to-cause-legal-disputes-and-large-scale-protests-by-farmers
    “The Ukrainian government is obliged to push for agricultural land reform as part of the IMF-mandated structural reforms.
    The reform aims to lift the current moratorium on the sale of agricultural land and introduce market principles to the agricultural land market, with the aim of improving efficiency in the sector.
    The move is likely to decrease the vested interest of local officials and business groups benefiting from the current system, raising the possibility of a reduction in corruption in the agricultural sector. However, concerns over raiding and ‘landlordisation’ are likely to lead to protests by farmers across Ukraine.”

  25. HAR says:
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    Donald J. Trump Verified account @realDonaldTrump
    Crimea was TAKEN by Russia during the Obama Administration. Was Obama too soft on Russia?
    4:42 AM – 15 Feb 2017

  29. Update says:
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    Breaking: Special counsel accuses Paul Manafort of secretly paying former European politicians to lobby on behalf of Ukraine. (A/P 1:30 PM – 23 Feb 2018)
    On Thursday a federal grand jury operating under Special Counsel Robert Mueller delivered a 32-count indictment against Manafort and his former Trump campaign and private business deputy Rick Gates. On Friday Gates pleaded guilty not to 32 counts, not to 16 counts, but to two smaller charges. And clearly he’s now working as a cooperating witness for the prosecution.
    In case there were any questions, a federal judge responding to a Mueller request just unsealed a superseding indictment against Mananfort, and it’s a doozie.
    Mueller’s indictment “accuses Paul Manafort of secretly paying former European politicians to lobby on behalf of Ukraine,” the Associated Press just reported.
    Manafort is now accused of paying millions of dollars to these politicians, which MSNBC pondered might be bribery (see link). This is clearly information given to Mueller by Gates. http://www.thenewcivilrightsmovement.com/davidbadash/a_federal_judge_just_unsealed_a_mueller_indictment_against_paul_manafort_and_it_s_a_doozie

  30. разбо́рка says:
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    (March 29, 2018): Investigators probing whether Donald Trump’s presidential campaign colluded with Russia have been questioning witnesses about events at the 2016 Republican National Convention https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-russia-convention/mueller-probing-russia-contacts-at-republican-convention-sources-idUSKBN1H52VT Mueller’s team has been asking about a convention-related event attended by both Russia’s U.S. ambassador and Jeff Sessions, the first U.S. senator to support Trump and now his attorney general, said one source, who requested anonymity due to the ongoing investigation. Another issue Mueller’s team has been asking about is how and why Republican Party platform language hostile to Russia was deleted from a section of the document related to Ukraine, said another source who also requested anonymity. The special counsel’s investigators have also interviewed attendees of the committee meetings that drafted the Republican Party platform in Cleveland.
    The Trump campaign has denied playing any role in the weakening of the party’s position regarding Ukraine.
    See also https://www.kyivpost.com/ukraine-politics/mueller-finds-crimes-ukraine-gusenbauer-prodi-azarov-manafort-enforcers.html

  32. Kuzma's mother says:
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    “Moscow: Crimea is Russian, UN: It is occupied territory” (Polygraph.info 5/11/18) https://www.polygraph.info/a/crimean-annexation-baltic-state-independence/29221929.html
    A former aide to President Trump’s campaign and transition team is helping a Russian company owned by a sanctioned oligarch strike a deal to lift penalties against the firm, CNN reports.
    The aide, Bryan Lanza, is reportedly lobbying on behalf of former British energy minister Lord Gregory Barker, the chairman of EN+ Group, an energy and aluminum firm controlled by Oleg Deripaska. Deripaska, a billionaire close to Russian President Vladimir Putin, was among 13 Russian nationals hit with U.S. sanctions in April in response to what the Trump administration said were Moscow’s broad “destabilizing activities.” Deripaska currently owns a majority stake in EN+. But according to CNN, Lanza is lobbying on behalf of the firm as it seeks to reduce Deripaska’s ownership enough to shed the U.S. sanctions. https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/12/politics/washington-lobbying-trump-era/index.html

  33. Прокинься і живи says:
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    “Ukraine secured approval on Thursday to establish an independent church in what Kiev says is a vital step against Russian meddling in its affairs, but the Russian clergy fiercely opposes as the biggest split in Christianity for a thousand years.” (Reuters 10/11/18) https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ukraine-church/ukraine-wins-approval-for-historic-split-from-russian-church-idUSKCN1ML2J6
    See also “Russia Wages a Religious War Against Ukraine” (WSJ 9/30/18) https://www.wsj.com/articles/russia-wages-a-religious-war-against-ukraine-1538329125

  34. болтовня says:
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    Russia’s seizure of three Ukrainian naval vessels near Crimea is an “outrageous violation of sovereign Ukrainian territory,” says U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley, calling it “another reckless Russian escalation” in a deadly and years-long conflict. https://www.npr.org/2018/11/26/670746252/ukraine-considers-martial-law-after-russia-seizes-its-ships-near-crimea
    Haley spoke one day after Russian warships fired upon the Ukrainian navy ships Berdyansk and Nikopol and the tug boat Yana Kapu — ramming at least one vessel and wounding several crew members on Sunday, Ukraine says.
    The military confrontation ramped up already bitter tensions between the two countries, coming nearly five years after Russia forcibly annexed Crimea from Ukraine.

  35. Пу́тін - хуйло́ says:
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    💀Russia ‘paved way for Ukraine ship seizures with fake news drive’ : EU’s security commissioner says Moscow spread false claims for at least a year before last month’s seizures (Guardian UK) https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/dec/10/russia-paved-way-for-ukraine-ship-seizures-with-fake-news-drive
    💀Putin’s latest Ukraine stunt may blow up in his face (The Hill) https://thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/420537-putins-latest-ukraine-stunt-may-blow-up-in-his-face
    💀”Ukraine reports 12 enemy attacks in Donbas in past 24 hours” (UNIAN/Ukrainian Independent Information Agency) https://www.unian.info/war/10371447-ukraine-reports-12-enemy-attacks-in-donbas-in-past-24-hours.html
    💀Expert warns Russian army may set up another “Ilovaisk pocket” to destabilize the situation in Ukraine (UNIAN) https://www.unian.info/politics/10371963-russian-army-may-set-up-another-ilovaisk-pocket-in-ukraine-expert-warns.html (see Battle of Ilovaisk https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Ilovaisk).

  36. Omar's Coming Yo! says:
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    Special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign has zeroed in on at least a dozen Ukrainian officials in politics and business who may have used Trump’s 2017 inauguration to advocate for pro-Russia policies and business deals, The New York Times reported Thursday. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/10/us/politics/ukraine-donald-trump-inauguration.html
    The list of questions special counsel Robert Mueller submitted to President Donald Trump last November included a query about a controversial change to the Republican party’s convention platform in July 2016 regarding the U.S. providing arms to Ukraine, according to sources familiar with the president’s responses. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/mueller-asked-trump-2016-rnc-platform-change-ukraine/story?id=59476035

  37. Update says:
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    “Ukraine election: A unique village laments its historical divide : Milove village is a good visualisation of Ukraine’s current situation – torn into two pieces by the weight of its past.” https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/03/ukraine-election-unique-village-laments-historical-divide-190328053610254.html See also “Ukraine presidential election: All you need to know” https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/03/ukraine-presidential-election-190320053242067.html

  38. Warbucks says:
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    “Pompeo wants NATO to take ‘actions’ to help Ukraine” (Stars and Stripes 3/28/19) “Next week I am hopeful, when our NATO colleagues are in town, we will be able to announce another series of actions that we will jointly take together to push back against what Russia is doing there in Crimea and the Sea of Azov and the region,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said during a congressional hearing.
    Pompeo will host NATO foreign ministers at a meeting this week in Washington, where allies also will mark the alliance’s 70th anniversary.

  39. Stranger than Fiction says:
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    Ukraine’s New PreZE!dent http://duckofminerva.com/2019/04/ukraines-new-prezedent.html
    “…One of the most important accomplishments of the Ukrainian election is the fact that it took place and ensured a democratic vote. Moreover, it showed that the “neo-fascist” image of Ukrainians created on mainstream Russian TV was a complete fabrication. Zelensky gained support all over the country even in the Western parts that are traditionally much more nationalist, becoming the first Jewish President in a country supposedly anti-Semitic to its core. Ukrainians have given Zelensky an opportunity to radically change the system and become a true “Servant of the People” – an honest, dedicated President for all.
    Time will tell whether life imitates art.”
    “Servant of the People” (Ukrainian: Слуга народу) is a Ukrainian political satire comedy television series that premiered on 16 October 2015. The show tells the story of Vasyl Petrovych Holoborodko (Volodymyr Zelensky), a thirty-something high school history teacher who unexpectedly wins election to the presidency of Ukraine after a viral video shows him ranting against government corruption in Ukraine. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Servant_of_the_People

  40. Joe says:
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    The U.S. will deliver more sniper rifles, grenade launchers, counter-artillery radars and other gear to the Ukrainian military as part of an ongoing effort to bolster its defenses on land and at sea, the Pentagon announced. https://www.stripes.com/news/pentagon-to-send-more-arms-and-equipment-to-ukraine-1.586644
    The Defense Department said in a statement Tuesday it will provide $250 million in military aid that also will include training for Ukrainian forces and equipment for Ukraine’s navy, which has struggled to counter Russia in the increasingly tense Black Sea area.
    …The new funds bring total U.S. security assistance to Ukraine up to $1.4 billion since 2014, following Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and its support for armed separatists in the country’s breakaway eastern region. However, it has only been in the past year that the U.S. has begun shipping lethal military aid to the country, where sporadic clashes continue between government security forces and the militants.”

  41. Полезный идиот says:
    Reply

    On June 30, American film director Oliver Stone presented his documentary, “Revealing Ukraine,” at the Taormina Film Festival in Italy.
    [“Vladimir Putin Speaks with Oliver Stone: New Interview – Old False Claims” https://www.polygraph.info/a/putin-oliver-stone-film/30052745.html * ]
    “The film, which focuses on the events leading up to the 2014 Ukrainian revolution and its aftermath, prominently features Viktor Medvedchuk, a close Putin associate sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department for his role in threatening “the peace, security, stability, sovereignty, or territorial integrity of Ukraine.”
    It also features Stone’s interview of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is godfather to Medvedchuk’s daughter Darina.”
    (July 6, 2019): “Oliver Stone’s “Revealing Ukraine” documentary wins Grand Prix at Film Festival in Taormina : In his documentary, Stone aimed to track the history of Ukraine since the Soviet Union’s collapse and acquiring independence until now” https://112.international/society/oliver-stones-revealing-ukraine-documentary-awarded-with-a-golden-tauro-in-taormina-41436.html
    “112 Ukraine is private Ukrainian TV channel owned by Taras Kozak, a member of parliament of the Opposition Bloc and political organization “Ukrainskiy vybor” led by Viktor Medvedchuk. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/112_Ukraine and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taras_Kozak
    * “Polygraph.info is a fact-checking website produced by Voice of America (VOA)​ and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. The website serves as a resource for verifying the increasing volume of disinformation and misinformation being distributed and shared globally. A similar website in the Russian language can be found at factograph.info.”

  42. Вибачте says:
    Reply

    “A whistleblower complaint about President Trump made by an intelligence official centers on Ukraine, according to two people familiar with the matter, which has set off a struggle between Congress and the executive branch. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/09/20/why-trumps-alleged-promise-involving-ukraine-is-particularly-ominous/
    The complaint involved communications with a foreign leader and a “promise” that Trump made, which was so alarming that a U.S. intelligence official who had worked at the White House went to the inspector general of the intelligence community, two former U.S. officials said.
    Two and a half weeks before the complaint was filed, Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, a comedian and political newcomer who was elected in a landslide in May.

    May 10: Trump’s personal attorney, Rudolph W. Giuliani, canceled a controversial trip to Ukraine that he had admitted was intended to apply pressure on its government to investigate Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden’s son. Giuliani acknowledged before the planned trip that it was intended to help Trump and that Giuliani was “meddling” in foreign affairs to that end. A Ukrainian member of parliament and a prominent Zelensky backer, said Ukraine was being drawn into a “dangerous game.”
    July 25: Trump holds a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
    July 28: Trump announces Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats will resign in August.
    July 31: Trump holds a phone call with Putin. The call is first reported by the Russians. The White House doesn’t confirm it till late that evening, saying Trump “expressed concern over the vast wildfires afflicting Siberia” and, “The leaders also discussed trade between the two countries.” The Russians, in a much more substantial readout, claim Trump and Putin also spoke about restoring full relations one day.
    Aug. 2: The United States officially withdraws from the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty with Russia.
    Aug. 8: After Trump’s pick of Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-Tex.) to replace DNI Coats falls through after Republican senators raised concerns about him, Trump announces Joseph Maguire would take on the role in an acting capacity. In doing so, he bypassed Sue Gordon, who had been Coats’s No. 2 at DNI and was a career intelligence official with bipartisan support. Gordon also resigns.
    Aug 28: Trump administration holds up $250 million in military assistance to Ukraine approved by Congress.
    Sept 12: Trump’s administration releases military aid for Ukraine after intense bipartisan backlash from lawmakers and Democrats announced an investigation into whether the holdup was connected to efforts by Trump and Giuliani to coerce the Ukrainian government into pursuing two politically-motivated investigations under the guise of anti-corruption activity.
    Sept. 13: House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.) subpoenas acting Director of National Intelligence Maguire to compel him to disclose the whistleblower complaint. Schiff says the complaint was determined to be “credible” by Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson, but doesn’t say much more.
    Sept. 17: Maguire says he will not testify or hand over the whistleblower complaint. Schiff said Maguire told him he couldn’t “because he is being instructed not to, that this involved a higher authority, someone above.”
    Sept. 18: The Post reports the complaint involves Trump’s communications with a foreign leader and some kind of “promise” that was made.
    Sept. 19: Atkinson briefed members of the House Intelligence Committee in a closed-door session. Trump responded to the report in a series of tweets. One source said that Inspector General Michael Atkinson referenced “a sequence of events” and “alleged actions” that took place. However, another source disputed that the IG provided substantive details regarding the whistleblower claim. The whistleblower’s complaint deals at least in part with Ukraine, The New York Times and Washington Post reported Thursday night. https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/19/politics/intel-inspector-general-not-sharing-details/index.html
    Giuliani appeared on CNN Thursday night and defended Trump as if there was some kind of a quid pro quo involving investigating the Bidens. “The reality is the president of the United States has every right to say to another leader of a foreign country, ‘you got to straighten up before we give you a lot of money,’” Giuliani said. “It is perfectly appropriate for [Trump] to ask a foreign government to investigate this massive crime that was made by a former vice president.”

  44. Footnote says:
    Reply

    “The Global War on Truth” By Richard Stengel TIME magazine Oct 7, 2019 issue https://time.com/5686843/global-information-war/
    “…At the same time, we observed a wave of social media in the Russian periphery supporting the Russian line on Ukraine, accusing the West of being the source of instability, claiming Ukraine was a part of Russia. Who knew that the Russians were so good at this? We didn’t realize or even suspect it at the time, but this tsunami of Russian propaganda and disinformation became a kind of test run for what they did here in the 2016 election.
    In many ways, these were also the first salvos in the global information war we are living in now. Today, we are all actors in a global information war that is ubiquitous, difficult to comprehend and taking place at the speed of light.”

    Richard Stengel is the longest serving Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs in American history (2013-16). While at the State Department, he helped modernize State’s communications and led the department’s counter-disinformation efforts.

  45. OK then... says:
    Reply

    MH17 investigators say phone calls show Ukraine rebels’ ties to Russia : Intercepts suggest separatists sought guidance from Russia before jet was shot down https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/14/mh17-investigators-say-phone-calls-show-ukraine-rebels-ties-to-russia
    Dutch-led investigators have released new recordings of intercepted telephone calls that show separatist leaders in Ukraine requesting military support and political guidance from Russian political figures in the period before the shooting down of a Malaysian airliner that killed all 298 people on board.
    Those caught on tape allegedly include Vladislav Surkov, a political aide to Vladimir Putin, whom separatist leaders have called “our man in the Kremlin”. Security officials in the audiotapes also refer to “a mandate” from the Russian defence minister, Sergey Shoigu, to change east Ukraine’s military hierarchy and coordination with the FSB director, Alexander Bortnikov, to deliver military aid, apparently including night-vision equipment and ammunition.
    The recordings show how Russian political and military officials exerted control over day-to-day policy in separatist-held Ukraine. “Recent analysis of witness statements and other information revealed that Russian influence on the DPR [the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic] went beyond military support and that the ties between Russian officials and DPR leaders appear closer,” the Dutch-led joint investigative team (JIT) said.
    In one of the recordings, Alexander Borodai, the former separatist leader, is heard saying: “I’m carrying out orders and protecting the interests of one and only state, the Russian Federation. That’s the bottom line.”
    A phone used by Borodai was switched off on Thursday afternoon. He has previously said he was in touch with Surkov while he was the top separatist official in east Ukraine, but has denied any role in the shooting down of MH17 in 2014. Russia has also denied it played any role in the tragedy.

  47. sɐʍ ɹǝʌǝ ʇı sɐ ǝɯɐs 'sɐʍ ɹǝʌǝ ʇı sɐ ǝɯɐs says:
    Reply

    Senior Trump administration officials in recent days threatened a presidential veto that could have led to a government shutdown if House Democrats refused to drop language requiring prompt release of future military aid for Ukraine, according to five administration and congressional officials.
    The language was ultimately left out of mammoth year-end spending legislation that passed the House and Senate this week ahead of a Saturday shutdown deadline. The White House said President Trump signed the $1.4 trillion package Friday night. https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2019/12/20/trump-administration-demanded-democrats-strip-ukraine-aid-language-spending-package/ The impeachment inquiry focused in part on a Pentagon program called the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative and how it was handled for the 2019 fiscal year. Trump ultimately allowed the money in the program to be released in September after a whistleblower complaint about his July 25 phone call with Zelensky made its way to Capitol Hill. The Ukraine provision that was kept out of this week’s spending bill involved the same program and the same amount of money, but for the 2020 fiscal year, which ends next September. The language would have given the Pentagon a green light to spend Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative money for 2020 within 45 days of enactment of the spending package, by forcing OMB to release it.

    Meanwhile, as Ukrainians who were promised U.S. military aid continue to be killed and wounded, their country still has not received $20.2 million of that aid [ https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/474430-ukraine-still-has-not-received-20-million-in-aid-from-us-report ], “Trump Administration Officials Worried Halt to Ukraine Aid Violated Spending Law” https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-administration-officials-worried-halt-to-ukraine-aid-violated-spending-law and

  48. Update says:
    Reply

    NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg voiced concern about recent Russian military activity in and around Ukraine as well as ceasefire violations in a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy. https://warisboring.com/nato-chief-sounds-alarm-over-russian-activity-in-eastern-ukraine/
    “NATO firmly supports Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the military alliance chief tweeted on Tuesday after the conversation, in a warning to Moscow.
    Amid reports of Russian troop deployments, concern is growing that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine could escalate again.
    Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula seven years ago after a controversial referendum. Parts of Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions along the Russian border are controlled by rebels supported by Moscow.
    As a result of the fighting with government troops, more than 13,000 people have been killed, according to UN estimates.
    Despite an agreed ceasefire, there have been repeated deadly clashes in eastern Ukraine in the past few weeks.

  49. Nightmare fuel says:
    Reply

    Ukraine was convinced to disarm itself of nuclear weapons in 1994, now Russia postures to invade https://warisboring.com/ukraine-was-convinced-to-disarm-itself-of-nuclear-weapons-in-1994-now-russia-postures-to-invade/
    Ukraine has warned it is considering acquiring nuclear weapons to buttress its military position in its confrontation with Russia if NATO does not accede to its demand to be granted membership of the Western alliance.
    “Either we are part of an alliance like NATO and also make our contribution to strengthen this Europe, or we have only one option; to rearm ourselves,” the Ukrainian ambassador to Germany, Andriy Melnik, said.
    Speaking to national public radio Deutschlandfunk on Thursday, Melnik raised the possibility that the former Soviet republic would seek to acquire nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them that it gave up after the Soviet Union broke up in 1991.
    “How else could we guarantee our defence?” Melnik queried.
    Ukraine was once in possession of the third-largest nuclear arsenal in the world, but disarmed in 1994 after receiving security guarantees from the United States, Russia and Britain.

  50. Update says:
    Reply

    “Leaked Ukraine memo reveals scope of Russia’s aggression” https://www.axios.com/ukraine-russia-black-sea-crimea-8e54d92a-1f3b-4953-b10e-15a2d9cfeac3.html
    “Photos show Russia’s military buildup near Ukraine as Putin claims dominion over more of the region’s sea and air” https://www.cbsnews.com/news/russia-ukraine-war-photos-military-buildup-crimea-putin-black-sea-airspace/
    “The Russian troop presence is now greater than in 2014, when Moscow annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, the Pentagon says : On Monday, the European Union said there were now over 100,000 in border regions.” https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/steady-increase-russian-troops-crimea-ukraine-border-says-pentagon-n1264546
    “Russia bans flights over parts of Crimea, Black Sea : Some areas over Crimea, Black Sea announced ‘dangerous for flights’ on April 20-24” https://www.aa.com.tr/en/world/russia-bans-flights-over-parts-of-crimea-black-sea/2214854

    • p/s says:
      Reply

      (Bloomberg 11/21/21): The U.S. has shared intelligence including maps with European allies that shows a buildup of Russian troops and artillery to prepare for a rapid, large-scale push into Ukraine from multiple locations if President Vladimir Putin decided to invade, according to people familiar with the conversations.
      That intelligence has been conveyed to some NATO members over the past week to back up U.S. concerns about Putin’s possible intentions and an increasingly frantic diplomatic effort to deter him from any incursion, with European leaders engaging directly with the Russian president. The diplomacy is informed by an American assessment that Putin could be weighing an invasion early next year as his troops again mass near the border. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-21/u-s-intel-shows-russian-plans-for-potential-ukraine-invasion

      • Кузькина мать says:
        Reply

        Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday warned NATO against crossing a “red line” in Ukraine, underscoring that Moscow would have no choice but to respond while boasting about Russia’s hypersonic missile development.
        Putin said that the deployment of NATO troops or advanced missile systems on Ukrainian soil that could strike Moscow within minutes would be a step too far for Russia. NATO has not taken any steps along these lines. https://www.businessinsider.com/putin-boasts-of-russias-hypersonic-missiles-in-warning-to-nato-over-ukraine-2021-11

      • Cassandra says:
        Reply

        The U.S. is “deeply concerned by evidence that Russia has made plans for significant aggressive moves against Ukraine,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.
        In the most urgent warning yet, Blinken said the U.S. and its NATO allies would impose a steep cost on Moscow if it attacked its neighbor. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/russia-planning-significant-aggressive-moves-ukraine-blinken-warns/story?id=81490273

        Why the CIA is so worried about Russia and Ukraine https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/11/30/why-cia-worried-russia-ukraine/
        “The CIA discovered something scary in October: Russia was moving troops toward the Ukrainian border — and, unlike in previous border thrusts, was making secret plans about how to use them.
        The agency also worried that the potential conflict zone didn’t appear to be just the eastern sliver of Ukraine occupied by Russian-backed separatists, which Russian troops had approached the previous April, but a much broader swath of the country. Alarm bells rang at the agency, and then across the U.S. government.
        …Russia isn’t backing down. It has nearly 100,000 troops close to the border, and administration officials expect that number could increase soon. As NATO plans for contingencies, Russia is boasting of its “unbreakable” military alliance with Beijing. Putin speaks of Moscow’s eternal bond with Kyiv in nearly the same way that Chinese leaders demand reunification with Taiwan. He offered a rationale for war in an emotional essay in July arguing that Ukraine and Russia were inseparable.

    • p/s says:
      Reply

      A number of Ukrainian government websites were targeted in a cyberattack with threatening text warning Ukrainians to “be afraid and wait for the worst” and alleging their personal information has been hacked.
      “As a result of a massive cyberattack, the websites of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a number of other government agencies are temporarily down,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said on his official Twitter account on Friday.
      “According to an investigation by the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security, the first data suggests that the attack was carried out by the Russian Federation,” the Ukrainian Information Ministry said in a statement.
      “This is not the first time or even the second time that Ukrainian Internet resources have been attacked since the beginning of the Russian military aggression,” it added. https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/14/europe/ukraine-cyber-attack-government-intl/index.html

  53. Realpolitik says:
    Reply

    “Ukraine Needs Help Surviving Airstrikes, Not Just Killing Tanks : A Russian invasion would likely start with a punishing bombardment intended to induce quick capitulation.” https://www.defenseone.com/ideas/2022/01/ukraine-needs-help-surviving-airstrikes-not-just-killing-tanks/360898/
    “China Is Watching Ukraine With a Lot of Interest : Biden’s handling of Putin may tell Xi Jinping how resolutely the U.S. would defend Taiwan.” https://www.defenseone.com/ideas/2022/01/china-watching-ukraine-lot-interest/360774/

  55. Генерал Мороз says:
    Reply

    Top US general says Russia has enough troops and weapons in place to invade Ukraine with ‘very little warning’ https://www.businessinsider.com/milley-russian-troops-could-invade-ukraine-with-little-warning-2022-1
    US Army Gen. Mark Milley, who serves as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters that the presence and posture of the Russian forces near the Ukrainian border “feels different” and “larger in scale and scope” than anything seen in recent memory.
    “I think you’d have to go back quite a while into the Cold War days to see something of this magnitude,” he said.
    Milley said Russia “has amassed upwards at this time of over 100,000 ground forces, air forces, naval forces, special forces, cyber, electronic warfare, command and control, logistics, engineers, and other capabilities along the Ukraine border.”

  56. Bait & Switch says:
    Reply

    French President Emmanuel Macron has told reporters that President Vladimir Putin assured him that Russian forces would not ramp up the crisis near Ukraine’s borders.
    “I secured an assurance there would be no deterioration or escalation,” he said before meeting Ukraine’s leader.
    However, Russia said any suggestion of a guarantee was “not right”. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60299790

  58. Clubhouse turn says:
    Reply

    “West warns Russia is moving troops towards, not away from, Ukraine” https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russian-pullout-meets-uk-scepticism-ukraine-defence-website-still-hacked-2022-02-16/
    “Russia claims it has no immediate plans to attack Ukraine: ‘Wars in Europe rarely start on a Wednesday'” https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-claims-no-plans-attack-ukraine-in-coming-days-weeks-2022-2
    “A high-volume cyberattack that temporarily blocked access to the websites of Ukrainian defense agencies and banks on Tuesday was “the largest [such attack] in the history of Ukraine,” according to a government minister.” https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/16/europe/ukraine-cyber-attack-denial-service-intl/index.html

  60. Scorecard says:
    Reply

    “West braces for false-flag operations by Kremlin as fighting in eastern Ukraine escalates” (Washington Post) updates https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/02/19/russia-ukraine-updates/
    “RT Chief Spouts Ukraine Disinfo, Extermination Camp Lie” https://www.polygraph.info/a/fact-check-margarita-simonyan-concentration-camps/31705120.html Polygraph.info is a fact-checking website produced by Voice of America (VOA)​.
    RT (formerly Russia Today) is a Russian state-controlled international television network funded by the Russian government. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RT_(TV_network)

  61. Footnote says:
    Reply

    “Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks”, a roughly 7 by 12 foot painting by the Ukrainian artist Ilya Repin, depicts a supposedly historical tableau, set in 1676, and based on the legend of Cossacks sending an insulting reply to an ultimatum from the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, Mehmed IV.
    According to the story, the Zaporozhian Cossacks (from “beyond the rapids”, Ukrainian: za porohamy), inhabiting the lands around the lower Dnieper River in Ukraine, had defeated Ottoman Empire forces in battle. However, Mehmed demanded that the Cossacks submit to Ottoman rule. The Cossacks, led by Ivan Sirko, replied in a characteristic manner; they wrote a letter, replete with insults and profanities. The painting exhibits the Cossacks’ pleasure at striving to come up with ever more base vulgarities. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reply_of_the_Zaporozhian_Cossacks (includes an English translation of the reply)

  63. Déjà vu says:
    Reply

    ‘Kissinger still lives in the 20th century’: Ukraine hits back at suggestion it should cede land to Russia
    Speaking on a panel at the World Economic Forum on Monday, Henry Kissinger said, “Ideally, the dividing line should return to the status quo ante,” meaning a return to the existing state of affairs before the war, suggesting that he thought that Russia should be allowed to retain Crimea, which it annexed in 2014. https://www.cnbc.com/2022/05/25/ukraine-rejects-kissinger-suggestion-it-should-cede-land-to-russia.html
    Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky slammed the suggestion in remarks translated into English by his office on Wednesday.
    “No matter what the Russian state does, there is always someone who says: let’s take its interests into account. This year in Davos it was heard again,” Zelensky said. “Still in Davos, for example, Mr. Kissinger emerges from the deep past and says that a piece of Ukraine should be given to Russia so that there is no alienation of Russia from Europe.”
    Zelensky added: “It seems that Mr. Kissinger’s calendar is not 2022, but 1938, and he thought he was talking to an audience not in Davos, but in Munich of that time.”
    The 1938 reference alludes to the agreement in Munich that year by western European powers to allow Adolf Hitler to claim parts of Czechoslovakia, in the hopes of containing his ambitions. Hitler then invaded Poland the next year, launching World War II.

  64. Holy war says:
    Reply

    Russia waging “war” against Ecumenical Patriarchate on U.S. soil https://orthodoxtimes.com/the-war-between-russia-and-the-phanar-over-the-slavophones-of-the-us/

    “He is one of Vladimir Putin’s most prominent supporters — a man of the cloth who offers spiritual cover for the autocrat’s invasion of Ukraine, all while suspected of profiting from that connection and ties to Russia’s security services.
    But Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, has yet to be sanctioned by the United States, despite appeals by Ukrainian activists and others who see him as a destructive force in an already brutal war. The British and Ukrainians recently imposed sanctions on Kirill, while a European Union effort in early June was blocked by one country.
    … There are 15 self-governing Orthodox churches led by nine patriarchs who operate as a leadership council within the Orthodox Church, a Christian denomination with an estimated 260 million followers worldwide. But Kirill’s influence outweighs other patriarchs, as he represents a membership of around 100 million faithful within Russia — making it the largest jurisdiction in Orthodoxy.” https://www.politico.com/news/2022/06/22/patriarch-kirill-putin-russia-ukraine-00041388

  65. Alternative facts says:
    Reply

    “What war can there be with Ukraine? Within the logic of empire, it can in no way have a status equal to imperial Russia’s; it is but a colony and so it only deserves a “special military operation.” Unlike war, a “special military operation” does not imply equality of status. In fact, this term utilizes the logic of inequality, as when state authorities conduct a police or anti-terrorist operation thus exercising their monopoly on the use of force. The narrative of a “special military operation” is imperialistic precisely because it assumes that Russia is using force within its own domain, of which Ukraine is but a part. This involves an element of doublespeak. On the one hand, Ukraine is technically a separate independent state with its own government. On the other hand, Russian authorities consider it to be a fake country invented by some destructive forces, and so it is actually part of Russia, as Putin argued in his infamous article. This is why there is really nothing puzzling about Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s statement that Russia never attacked Ukraine. How can you attack and invade a territory that is yours to begin with?” http://opiniojuris.org/2022/05/24/russian-special-military-operation-and-the-language-of-empire/

  66. Update says:
    Reply

    “Putin mobilizes 300,000 troops for war in Ukraine and warns he’s not bluffing with nuclear threat” https://www.cnbc.com/2022/09/21/russia-ukraine-war-putin-announces-partial-military-mobilization.html
    “Putin propagandists: We’re not losing to Ukraine, but to NATO forces, including African-Americans” https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/9/17/2123421/-Putin-propagandists-We-re-not-losing-to-Ukraine-but-to-NATO-forces-including-African-Americans
    “A Russian mercenary boss has defended the idea of sending prisoners to fight in the Ukraine war after a video showed him recruiting at a prison.” https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62922152
    “A war with recurring themes: Russian blunders, Ukrainian ingenuity” https://www.npr.org/2022/09/19/1123748472/a-war-with-recurring-themes-russian-blunders-ukrainian-ingenuity

  68. Kuzma's mother says:
    Reply

    Russian President Vladimir Putin will formally move Friday to seize four Ukrainian regions by signing what the Kremlin is calling “accession treaties,” in defiance of international law and widespread condemnation from world leaders. The move potentially slams the door on diplomacy for years to come and almost certainly assures further escalation of the war in Ukraine. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/09/29/kremlin-says-putin-will-sign-treaties-annex-ukrainian-territory/

    • 4theRecord says:
      Reply

      Russia, one of five permanent members of the UN Security Council, is mandated to uphold the UN Charter, which prohibits the threat or use of force and champions the principle of sovereignty and territorial integrity.

      On Thursday, April 18, 1946, in Geneva, Switzerland, Viscount Robert Cecil, one of the original architects behind the League of Nations, delivered this final eulogy to the organization and looked towards the future:

      “Let us boldly state that aggression wherever it occurs and however it may be defended, is an international crime, that it is the duty of every peace-loving state to resent it and employ whatever force is necessary to crush it, that the machinery of the Charter, no less than the machinery of the Covenant, is sufficient for this purpose if properly used, and that every well-disposed citizen of every state should be ready to undergo any sacrifice in order to maintain peace…I venture to impress upon my hearers that the great work of peace is resting not only on the narrow interests of our own nations, but even more on those great principles of right and wrong which nations, like individuals, depend.

      The League is dead. Long live the United Nations.”

  69. 4theRecord says:
    Reply

    During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, national parliaments including those of Poland, Ukraine, Canada, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Republic of Ireland declared that genocide was taking place. Scholars of genocide, including Eugene Finkel,Timothy D. Snyder and Gregory Stanton; legal experts Otto Luchterhandt; Zakhar Tropin; and a comprehensive report by the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights claimed that along with the acts required by the definition of genocide, there was genocidal intent, together establishing genocide.

  72. 4therecord says:
    Reply

    September 1960. New York. “Demonstration to free Ukraine from Soviet rule outside the United Nations building during Nikita Khrushchev’s visit for opening session of the Fifteenth General Assembly.” [35mm acetate negative by Fred Stein].

  74. Degüello says:
    Reply

    Russia’s top diplomat on Monday said the invasion of Ukraine no longer represents a hybrid conflict but rather a “real” war between Russia and the West – a troubling escalation in rhetoric that aligns with growing concerns that Moscow is preparing to lash out at new NATO support for Kyiv. https://www.usnews.com/news/world-report/articles/2023-01-23/russia-now-engaged-in-a-real-war-with-the-west-over-ukraine-lavrov
    “When we talk about what is happening in Ukraine, we are talking about the fact that this is no longer a hybrid war but a real one, which the West has been preparing for a long time against Russia,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said during a visit to South Africa, historically an ally of the Soviet Union and a contemporary Russian economic partner.
    The West is “trying to destroy everything Russian, from language to culture, which has been in Ukraine for centuries, and forbidding people to speak their native languages,” Lavrov said, according to a translation, repeating well-trod Kremlin talking points attempting to frame Russia’s unprovoked and brutal invasion of Ukraine as an act of self-defense.
    The combative assertion serves as the latest escalation in Russia’s public statements about its war in Ukraine – and the consequences for its recent string of embarrassing battlefield failures and blunders. A top Putin ally said two weeks ago that Russia had extended its war in Ukraine to NATO as well, not just forces loyal to the government in Kyiv.

  75. Alexander Kerensky says:
    Reply

    “How Western scholars overlooked Russian imperialism : For far too long, Western academia has ignored the legacies of the Russian Empire and colonization.” Botakoz Kassymbekova, Assistant Professor of Modern History at the University of Basel https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2023/1/24/how-western-scholars-overlooked-russian-imperialism
    “When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February, discussions emerged about the imperial nature of the war. Scholars who spoke up about it were quickly dismissed in certain Western academic and political circles.
    Some, especially the self-professed “anti-imperialists”, claimed Russia was “provoked” and portrayed Ukraine’s resistance as a “Western imperial” plot. Others considered analyses of Russian imperialism as having a pro-war, hawkish agenda or being a reflection of narrow ethno-nationalist sentiments.
    But for scholars from the post-Soviet space – from places that have suffered from Russian aggression and imperialism – these reactions were hardly a surprise. They had been ignored and dismissed before.
    Discussions of Russian imperialism have long been overlooked while American, British and French imperialisms have been studied closely and thoroughly. This has much to do with how Western academia and to a certain extent political elites have chosen to approach the Soviet Union and its eventual dissolution.”

  76. Anton Korobkov-Zemlyansky says:
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    “Kremlin-Linked Group Arranged Payments to European Politicians to Support Russia’s Annexation of Crimea” https://www.occrp.org/en/investigations/kremlin-linked-group-arranged-payments-to-european-politicians-to-support-russias-annexation-of-crimea The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) is a global network of investigative journalists with staff on six continents. See https://www.occrp.org/en/about-us
    “Beijing Boosts Kremlin Disinformation That US Caused War in Ukraine” https://www.polygraph.info/a/fact-check-beijing-boosts-kremlin-disinfo-us-caused-war-in-ukraine/6946791.html

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