The Situation in the Ukraine. #18

Neutrality wrote:Churkin raises a very important question. I really think the Ukrainians increased and even provoked the chances of downing of a civilian aircraft above a warzone. I'd call it a tactic of desperation on their part. Who shot it down I dare not speculate but if the Russians did intercept communication between military air trafficers then I bet they have captured something juicy.

ExBeobachter1987 wrote:Maybe it is time for a coup against the Minsk traitors.

PapaDragon wrote:

ExBeobachter1987 wrote:Maybe it is time for a coup against the Minsk traitors.

I didn't know it was Porky's birthday already...

not that I support that tribunal, but as an innocent party Russia shouldn't vetoe it.

By Jan Engelgard

Mysl Polska [Polish Thought] is a political weekly.

Translated from Polish by J.Hawk

We are witnessing the end of a certain very popular in Poland myth, according to which "independent" Ukraine means Russia will never again be a Great Power, and its "imperial idea" will perish. The adherents of Jerzy Giedroyc and his theory appear to sincerely believe in that myth even today.

Yes, that myth was also believed by the opponents of the Polish policy of using Ukraine against Russia. Roman Dmowski said so and was right at the time. Pilsudski played the Ukrainian card in 1920, arousing tremendous forces by uniting the Whites with the Reds who then came very close to destroying the barely independent Polish state.

And today we can say with certainty that the thesis positing Russia cannot be strong and powerful without Ukraine is a myth. Ukraine has not been "Russian" since February 2014, it is now "American." And what is happening? Has Russia lost its international importance? Has it collapsed politically and economically? No, rather the opposite--Russia, defending itself against Washington's geopolitical maneuvers, has gained new allies, new markets, and strengthened itself internally, politically, and morally. It does not need Ukraine, or rather the bankruptcy estate that remains of the Ukrainian state.

Russia quickly realized that the main goal of the Kiev coup is not overthrowing Yanukovych, that was only the first move before ending its influence over Crimea, including expelling its Black Sea Fleet from Sevastopol. Kazimierz Woycicki, a representative of the Giedroyc sect, was yelling in a radio broadcast in early 2014 that tearing Crimea from under Russia's influence would be a "geopolitical Copernican revolution". Which is why Moscow decided to act quickly, accomplishing its main goal--the painless inclusion of Crimea within its own borders. Thus America's whole sophisticated plan crashed like a house of cards. Russia does not want to annex other territories, including the Donbass--it needs the Donbass to act as a stake through Ukraine's heart, in other words, what Crimea was supposed to be except in the opposite sense

JohninMK wrote:Looks to be still on schedule.

KIEV (Sputnik) – The final results into the investigation of the Malaysian Airlines flight downed in eastern Ukraine last year will be announced at the end of August, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Hennadiy Zubko said Thursday.

On Wednesday, Russia vetoed the UN Security Council resolution to create an international tribunal to investigate MH17 plane crash, having repeatedly stressed the importance of waiting for a final report from the Dutch Safety Board.

“According to the Ukrainian official, there are currently two investigations underway, one technical, the other criminal, which the Dutch investigators are conducting. The final results of the first investigation should establish the reason for the plane’s downing. According to the results of the second, the perpetrators in the murder of 298 people. The results of the technical investigations will be announced at the end of August,” Zubko’s press service quoted him as saying.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150730/1025204446.html#ixzz3hN2SrJTc

par far wrote:If Russia has any evidence, then they should release it now.

JohninMK wrote:Don't you love news like this?

A few days ago, a group of American soldiers caused a security alert at Vienna’s Schwechat airport. The men were stopped while trying to travel with army weapons to Ukraine without any necessary permits, the newspaper wrote. The Austrian police had to intervene and remove the weapons. An investigation into the case was launched.

The nine US soldiers were on their way from Washington to Ukraine, where they were to be deployed. "However, since there were problems with their connecting flight after a stopover in Schwechat, they had to rebook their flight and, therefore, leave the transit area," Colonel Michael Bauer, Defense Ministry spokesman said.

M16 assault rifles and pistols were discovered in the luggage of the American soldiers at a security checkpoint. The incident caused huge shock, because the weapons were not declared and registered and, thus, carried illegally. The soldiers had not obtained the required transit approval by Austria. In special cases, the stay or transit of foreign military forces may be officially allowed after completing the application procedure, but the US soldiers did not send any required requests.

The attempt by the American embassy to obtain the approval after the incident was rejected for legal reasons. Instead of going to Ukraine, the soldiers had to fly back home to Washington and were allowed to take the weapons with them, the newspaper reported.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150730/1025209858.html#ixzz3hNVHjjmM

JohninMK wrote:Fat chance. If they won't pay 'market price' which the Russians say is similar (varies due to different transit charges, advance payment etc) to what everyone else in EE is paying, rather than 'mates rates', they ain't gonna get the taps open again.

KYIV, July 29 /Ukrinform/. EU-Ukraine-Russia trilateral talks on price of Russian gas deliveries will take place in the first half of September. Head of the European Integration Department of the Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry Mykhailo Bno-Airiian said this at a briefing, Ukrinform reports.

"We still hope to reach a compromise. On August 27-28, the bilateral talks between the Ukrainian energy minister and Sefcovic [Vice-President of the European Commission] on this issue [the Russian gas price] are likely to be held in Vienna in order to hold the trilateral talks with Russians in the first half of September and to reach a compromise," he said. He reminded that Ukraine expected to receive a document that stipulates a format of gas relations till the end of the heating season.

sepheronx wrote:The MH-17 situation wont look good for Moscow. While they are right in saying that the investigation must be completed first, the Ukrainians were the ones whom also pushed for the Tribunal and thus were probably guaranteed that they wont be found guilty regardless. Add in, with comments from Churkin that there was no tribunal for the Russian plane shot down over Ukraine back in 2001 mixed with this is making everyone state Russia is guilty. At this point, they should release their evidence because if they do it afterwards, people will just assume it is doctored. The preliminary reports are out and was handed to each party. So my guess is that they blamed Russia entirely due to the equipment used by rebels and thus why Ukraine and US is pushing it. If Ukraine was going to be viewed as guilty, they wouldn't be pushing this.

par far wrote:If Russia has any evidence, then they should release it now.

Neutrality wrote:The whole blame game on Russia is heavily influenced by the fact that the BUK is a Russian system.