Riots in Ukraine 2014 (3 Viewers)

[unclb]

You'll have to forgive me for not yet reading the aforementioned, foremost.
(Not to worry -I will go back & read) . Could it be Russians are keeping the piece/ stability among otherwise a very much restless crowd? IRS is not sending the right message simultaneously as being 'hypocrites' 'pleading the 5th !'

 

[unclb]

View attachment 153463

Sorry dude (for not replying promptly) these fucking rules are starting to look real. I need to beam up to the other planet right now scotty because this is not going to fly with me.

 

[MATAMUERTOS]

A long read but interesting take on it.

The clash in Crimea is the fruit of western expansion
The external struggle to dominate Ukraine has put fascists in power and brought the country to the brink of conflict

Troops under Russian command fire weapons into the air in Lubimovka, Ukraine. Photograph: Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Diplomatic pronouncements are renowned for hypocrisy and double standards. But western denunciations of Russian intervention in Crimea have reached new depths of self parody. The so far bloodless incursion is an "incredible act of aggression", US secretary of state John Kerry declared. In the 21st century you just don't invade countries on a "completely trumped-up pretext", he insisted, as US allies agreed that it had been an unacceptable breach of international law, for which there will be "costs".

That the states which launched the greatest act of unprovoked aggression in modern history on a trumped-up pretext – against Iraq, in an illegal war now estimated to have killed 500,000, along with the invasion of Afghanistan, bloody regime change in Libya, and the killing of thousands in drone attacks on Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia, all without UN authorisation – should make such claims is beyond absurdity.

It's not just that western aggression and lawless killing is on another scale entirely from anything Russia appears to have contemplated, let alone carried out – removing any credible basis for the US and its allies to rail against Russian transgressions. But the western powers have also played a central role in creating the Ukraine crisis in the first place.

The US and European powers openly sponsored the protests to oust the corrupt but elected Viktor Yanukovych government, which were triggered by controversy over an all-or-nothing EU agreement which would have excluded economic association with Russia.

In her notorious "fuck the EU" phone call leaked last month, the US official Victoria Nuland can be heard laying down the shape of a post-Yanukovych government – much of which was then turned into reality when he was overthrown after the escalation of violence a couple of weeks later.

The president had by then lost political authority, but his overnight impeachment was certainly constitutionally dubious. In his place agovernment of oligarchs, neoliberal Orange Revolution retreads and neofascists has been installed, one of whose first acts was to try and remove the official status of Russian, spoken by a majority in parts of the south and east, as moves were made to ban the Communist party, which won 13% of the vote at the last election.

It has been claimed that the role of fascists in the demonstrations has been exaggerated by Russian propaganda to justify Vladimir Putin's manoeuvres in Crimea. The reality is alarming enough to need no exaggeration. Activists report that the far right made up around a third of the protesters, but they were decisive in armed confrontations with the police.

Fascist gangs now patrol the streets. But they are also in Kiev's corridors of power. The far right Svoboda party, whose leader has denounced the "criminal activities" of "organised Jewry" and which was condemned by the European parliament for its "racist and antisemitic views", has five ministerial posts in the new government, including deputy prime minister and prosecutor general. The leader of the even more extreme Right Sector, at the heart of the street violence, is now Ukraine's deputy national security chief.

Neo-Nazis in office is a first in post-war Europe. But this is the unelected government now backed by the US and EU. And in a contemptuous rebuff to the ordinary Ukrainians who protested against corruption and hoped for real change, the new administration has appointed two billionaire oligarchs – one who runs his business from Switzerland – to be the new governors of the eastern cities of Donetsk and Dnepropetrovsk. Meanwhile, the IMF is preparing an eye-watering austerity plan for the tanking Ukrainian economy which can only swell poverty and unemployment.

From a longer-term perspective, the crisis in Ukraine is a product of the disastrous Versailles-style break-up of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s. As in Yugoslavia, people who were content to be a national minority in an internal administrative unit of a multinational state – Russians in Soviet Ukraine, South Ossetians in Soviet Georgia – felt very differently when those units became states for which they felt little loyalty.

In the case of Crimea, which was only transferred to Ukraine by Nikita Khrushchev in the 1950s, that is clearly true for the Russian majority. And contrary to undertakings given at the time, the US and its allies have since relentlessly expanded Nato up to Russia's borders, incorporating nine former Warsaw Pact states and three former Soviet republics into what is effectively an anti-Russian military alliance in Europe. The European association agreement which provoked the Ukrainian crisis also included clauses to integrate Ukraine into the EU defence structure.

That western military expansion was first brought to a halt in 2008 when the US client state of Georgia attacked Russian forces in the contested territory of South Ossetia and was driven out. The short but bloody conflict signalled the end of George Bush's unipolar world in which the US empire would enforce its will without challenge on every continent.

Given that background, it is hardly surprising that Russia has acted to stop the more strategically sensitive and neuralgic Ukraine falling decisively into the western camp, especially given that Russia's only major warm-water naval base is in Crimea.

Clearly, Putin's justifications for intervention – "humanitarian" protection for Russians and an appeal by the deposed president – are legally and politically flaky, even if nothing like on the scale of "weapons of mass destruction". Nor does Putin's conservative nationalism or oligarchic regime have much wider international appeal.
But Russia's role as a limited counterweight to unilateral western power certainly does. And in a world where the US, Britain, France and their allies have turned international lawlessness with a moral veneer into a permanent routine, others are bound to try the same game.

Fortunately, the only shots fired by Russian forces at this point have been into the air. But the dangers of escalating foreign intervention are obvious. What is needed instead is a negotiated settlement for Ukraine, including a broad-based government in Kiev shorn of fascists; a federal constitution that guarantees regional autonomy; economic support that doesn't pauperise the majority; and a chance for people in Crimea to choose their own future.

 

[mayhem]

14:31 GMT:
US Secretary of State John Kerry has threatened Russia with "very serious repercussions," saying it may face economic sanctions following its "incredible act of aggression."

"You just don't in the 21st century behave in 19th century fashion by invading another country on a completely trumped up pretext," Kerry told the CBS program "Face the Nation."
However, Kerry added that Russia still has "a right set of choices" that can be made to defuse the crisis.

Really? I mean REALLY? Then what the hell did USA in Southamerica during the second half of the XX century? Or in Irak? Don't say that kind of bullshit..
/I know this is old, but man it made my blood burn in veins/

 

[C_R]

Russia deploys its ultimate weapon: Gazprom.

For the first time since 2009 Gazprom threatened to cut off European gas supplies through Ukraine. Company head said that Ukraine stopped paying for gas meaning that the situation of January 2009 (when European countries experienced a shortage of Russian gas for three weeks) may repeat itself.

According to the head of Gazprom Ukraine hadn't paid for this February's gas supply and the total debt of Naftogas Ukraine to Gazprom now jumped up to 1,89 billion dollars. This was expected however as representatives on both sides stated before that Naftogas won't be able to pay for February before March 7th. The Ukrainian company recently stated that it paid for January (450 million dollars) and intends to pay for February in the nearest future. EU promised to help Kiev pay its gas bills however no financial transactions happened as of yet.

Nevertheless the head of Gazprom stated that the lack of February payment "de facto means that Ukraine stopped paying for gas" and "Gazprom can't supply gas free of charge. Either Ukraine pays its bills and for the currently provided supplies of gas or there will be a risk of the 2009 situation repeating itself".

 

[Wayne Kerr]

2 wrongs never make a right. bold faced lying political parasites are one in the same. what a circus this has turned into.

 

[ScHoLaR oF SMuT]

tartars and chechnyians are very close and they'll never accept russian rule.
*.russia muscling up anticipating chechny jihadists (and they will show up

 

[ScHoLaR oF SMuT]

want to raise my glass of arak and propose a toast... long live mother russian, putin and independent crimea.

 

[No.13]

March 16, 2014 9:05 PM
Ukraine Region Votes to Join Russia
Overwhelming Support for Breakaway in Crimea Raises East-West Tensions; U.S. Prepares Sanctions

More than 95% of Crimeans voted to break away from Ukraine and rejoin Russia, according to preliminary results, in a referendum that raises the stakes in the most acute East-West confrontation since the Cold War.

The U.S. and European Union quickly condemned the referendum as illegal. President Barack Obama, speaking by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin, told him Sunday that the Crimean vote took place "under duress of Russian military intervention" and wouldn't be recognized. The Russian leader responded that the vote fully complied with international norms, the Kremlin said, issuing a statement that showed no sign of diplomatic progress in the crisis.

Mr. Obama also told Mr. Putin that no diplomatic resolution was possible in the midst of "large-scale Russian military exercises on Ukraine's borders," after troops staged a rapid airborne operation to take control of a natural gas pumping station on Saturday, the White House said.

U.S. officials planned to begin instituting sanctions to retaliate for Russia's actions in Ukraine, saying that a first round would come as early as Monday. European officials meet Monday to decide on possible sanctions, which diplomats say could initially affect about 20 top Russian officials and be broadened if the Kremlin doesn't back down.

The focal points of the Ukraine crisis now shift to Moscow and eastern Ukraine. In the Russian capital, lawmakers and the Kremlin will consider whether to quickly annex Crimea, defying threats of sanctions from the U.S. and Europe and heightening international tensions even further. In eastern Ukraine, thousands of people have also staged pro-Russian protests, raising worries over another possible military incursion by Russia.

Local officials said that with half the ballots counted, 95.5% of Crimea residents had voted to break away from Ukraine.

Mr. Putin and Russian lawmakers could move swiftly and annex Crimea within weeks. Or, as Western diplomats hope, they could allow time for negotiations with Ukraine and other countries. Meanwhile, across Crimea, which was once part of Russia, many waved Russian flags, raised their glasses and honked their horns in celebration.

For the Kremlin and its allies, the potential annexation of Crimea represents a landmark in Mr. Putin's efforts to restore Soviet glory.

"We must acknowledge that since 1991, we have only lost territory and people," Sergei Naryshkn, chairman of the lower house of Russian parliament, said on state television. "And now finally, for the first time since 1945, we are gaining compatriots."

The referendum—held as armored personnel carriers guarded city streets and military convoys rumbled down rural roads—marked the latest escalation in Russia's standoff with the West over the future of Ukraine. But it also showed the surge in anti-Western sentiment in Crimea, as people across the region echoed the claims of Russian state television that Crimea was at risk of being overrun by "fascist" forces that overthrew the Russian-friendly government in Kiev last month.

"Crimea was always Russian," said Lyudmila Korol, a 47-year-old nurse in the town of Krasnogvardeyskoye, who said she was thankful for Russian troops protecting her from anti-Russian violence. "It is so wonderful that, without having to travel anywhere, we are going home."

In eastern mainland Ukraine, also home to large pro-Russian populations, thousands of people protested against the new Kiev government. Russian troops, however, appear to have partially pulled back from their incursion onto the mainland after taking control of the natural gas pumping station on Saturday, U.S. and Ukrainian officials said.

U.S. officials believe that if Mr. Putin ordered forces into Eastern Ukraine, the Ukrainian military would attempt to repel the attack, a senior official said, adding that Russian troops didn't appear to be massing on the border.

American officials realize that they misjudged Mr. Putin and are working to predict his next move, the senior official said. "We have misread Putin. He is not going to give up," the official said.

In Berlin, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he would call for a "graduated approach" when EU foreign ministers meet in Brussels on Monday to consider sanctions against Russia. His top priority, he said, wasn't to halt Russia's annexation of Crimea but to prevent a wider conflict.

"We should not raise too much hope that the developments in Crimea can be reversed quickly," Mr. Steinmeier said. "It is now our task…to make sure that this not insignificant conflict doesn't turn into something that will lead to a confrontation between Russian and Ukrainian forces."

In Crimea, the referendum results appeared a foregone conclusion as soon as plans for the vote were announced.

Crimea, a region that the Kremlin transferred from Russia to Ukraine in 1954, is home mostly to ethnic Russians. Since Russia's incursion into the Crimean peninsula in late February, pro-Ukrainian media have been largely silenced. Billboards agitating for secession—some comparing the new powers in Ukraine to Nazi Germany—line highways and city streets. The new de facto mayor of Sevastopol, which is home to Russia's Black Sea fleet, said in a video address Saturday that residents faced a choice between becoming honorable descendants of World War II martyrs or joining "a herd of sheep that need euro-shepherds to take us to a promised feed-box."

Sure enough, inside the dozens of transparent ballot boxes viewed by Wall Street Journal reporters across Crimea, not a single vote against joining Russia could be seen.

The festive air of the vote—and the lack of suspense over the outcome—recalled Soviet times. To some, who lament Crimea's economic travails since the Soviet Union's collapse, that felt like a good thing. In Sevastopol, a privileged place to live in the Soviet days, oldies of the era such as "Moscow Nights" played over speakers at a polling station.

"People are coming here as if for a celebration," precinct deputy chairwoman Elena Kondratyukhsaid in Gvardeyskoye. "It's like how our parents took us to vote."

Sergei Aksyonov, a pro-Russia politician who took over as regional prime minister as unidentified armed men seized control of Crimea's parliament in late February, said Sunday night the gears were already in motion for Crimea's quick annexation to Russia. Officials in Moscow haven't spelled out a time frame yet, however.

Mr. Aksyonov said that the Russian ruble would become an official currency in Crimea within days, and that a delegation of regional lawmakers would travel to Moscow on Monday to start sorting out the details of joining Russia, according to Russian news agency Interfax.

Many Crimeans who disagreed with the referendum appeared to have stayed home. They included thousands of Crimean Tatars, an ethnic minority that accounts for about 12% of the peninsula's population and remains skeptical of Kremlin rule after facing deportation to Central Asia under Joseph Stalin. The community's leader has called the referendum unlawful.

Many ethnic Russians and Ukrainians who don't want Crimea to leave Ukraine have stayed silent. They cite pressure from friends and relatives as well as the tense atmosphere on the streets, where militias have been patrolling with Russian flags.

"I didn't go. I boycotted," said Denis Matsola, a 26-year-old left-wing activist from Simferopol, who says he considers himself Russian but would rather Crimea remain part of Ukraine.

Though Ukraine's economy is worse, it is still freer than Russia, said Mr. Matsola, who worries that as an activist, he will end up getting beaten up or jailed once Crimea is part of Russia. "I understand that it will be hard for me to live in a Russian reality," he says, noting that many of his activist friends have left for mainland Ukraine.

Mr. Matsola said among those he knows who also want Crimea to stay within Ukraine, he knows only one person who actually went to vote. Most have remained quiet. "People are afraid to talk," he said. "Even just within families there's this national pressure on people."

http://m.us.wsj.com/article_email/S...4579441563920333966-lMyQjAxMTA0MDEwNjExNDYyWj

(Sorry for the weird link. Seems to work. *shrugs*)

 

[C_R]

About 95% of Crimeans in referendum voted to join Russia - preliminary results

People celebrate as they wait for the announcement of preliminary results of today's referendum on Lenin Square in the Crimean capital of Simferopol March 16, 2014 (Reuters / Thomas Peter)

Around 95 percent of voters in the Crimean referendum have answered ‘yes’ to the autonomous republic joining Russia and less than 5 percent of the vote participants want the region to remain part of Ukraine, according to preliminary results.
With around 50 percent of the votes already counted, preliminary result show that 95.5 percent of voters said 'yes' to the reunion of the republic with Russia as a constituent unit of the Russian Federation. In Sevastopol, the number of those who voted ‘yes’ stands at 93 percent, according to the head of the Sevastopol commission, Valery Medvedev.

The preliminary results of the popular vote were announced during a meeting in the center of Sevastopol, the city that hosts Russia's Black Sea fleet.

The overall voter turnout in the referendum on the status of Crimea is 81,37%, according to the head of the Crimean parliament’s commission on the referendum, Mikhail Malyshev.

Over a half of the Tatars living in the port city took part in the referendum, with the majority of them voting in favor of joining Russia, reports Itar-Tass citing a representative of the Tatar community Lenur Usmanov.

About 40% of Crimean Tatars went to polling stations on Sunday, the republic’s prime minister Sergey Aksyonov said.

In Simferopol, the capital of the republic, at least 15,000 have gathered to celebrate the referendum in central Lenin square and people reportedly keep arriving. Demonstrators, waving Russian and Crimean flags, were watching a live concert while waiting for the announcement of preliminary results of the voting.

International observers are planning to present their final declaration on the Crimean referendum on March 17, the head of the monitors’ commission, Polish MP Mateush Piskorski told journalists. He added that the voting was held in line with international norms and standards.

Next week, Crimea will officially introduce the ruble as a second official currency along with Ukrainian hryvna, Aksyonov told Interfax. In his words, the dual currency will be in place for about six months.

Overall, the republic’s integration into Russia will take up to a year, the Prime Minister said, adding that it could be done faster. However, they want to maintain relations with“economic entities, including Ukraine,” rather than burn bridges.

Moscow is closely monitoring the vote count in Crimea, said Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Georgy Karasin.

“The results of the referendum will be considered once they are drawn up,” he told Itar-Tass.

The decision to hold a referendum was made after the bloody uprising in Kiev which ousted President Vladimir Yanukovich from power. Crimea - which is home to an ethnic Russian majority population - refused to recognize the coup-appointed government as legitimate. Crimeans feared that the new leadership would not represent their interests and respect rights. Crimeans were particularly unhappy over parliament's decision to revoke the law allowing using minority languages – including Russian – as official along with the Ukrainian tongue. Crimeans staged mass anti-Maidan protests and asked Russia to protect them.

Officials count votes of today's referendum in the Crimean capital of Simferopol March 16, 2014 (Reuters / Vasily Fedosenko)

 

[KingFate]

New Prosecutor General in Crimea Natalia Polonskaya

 

[mrln]

New Prosecutor General in Crimea Natalia Polonskaya

http://www.mixedmartialarts.com/thread/2300261/New-Crimean-female-Attorney-General-pics/?pc=20

 

[holyblacksun]

 

[No.13]

2 killed in shooting near Crimea military research center, 'sniper detained'


Two people – a self-defense member and a Ukrainian soldier – were killed and two others wounded after snipers opened fire from a partially inhabited building near a military research center in Simferopol. One sniper was detained, another is on the run.

As RT producer Lida Vasilevskaya arrived at the scene, the perimeter of the Ukrainian military topography and navigation center was already surrounded by men in camouflage and the situation was "calm."

The local Interior Ministry said in a press release that shooting came from a house under construction opposite the center and targeted Crimean self-defense units as well the military center itself.

“Earlier today self-defense units were informed that a group of armed men had been discovered in a partially inhabited building,” the press release said. “As the self-defense were taking measures to check, they came under fire, presumably from a sniper rifle,” police said, adding that the shooting came “in two directions from one spot.”

One self-defense unit member was killed and another wounded, police said. One Ukrainian soldier from the military research center was also killed, and another was wounded.

Crimea police and Prosecutor's Office staff are investigating the attack.

According to RT information, the scene of the shooting is a small Ukrainian military topography research center, and the majority of the staff who work there are women. The center’s area is rather small, and servicemen have only six machine guns and three Makarov guns to provide security. The center reportedly decided to join up with Crimea and Russia and was preparing paperwork to go over.

Crimean Prime Minister Sergey Aksyonov told Russia’s Channel One that this attack is reminiscent of the Maidan sniper shootings.

“At the moment two people are dead as a result of a provocation, a sabotage. The situation allows me to conclude that the same techniques that were used at Maidan are being used now because most likely one assaulter fired at both sides – one Ukrainian serviceman and one man from self-defense forces of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea were killed.”

“The location of the sniper was identified,” he added.

Earlier, Ukrainian servicemen told RT that last night unknown groups tried to break into several military bases, but self-defense units managed to prevent them from entering.

“Guys from self-defense told me today that they were afraid of provocations," Lida Vasilevskaya tweeted.

The Crimean Interior Ministry did not rule out a provocation aimed at complicating the situation in the city after Crimea and Sevastopol were accepted into the Russian Federation.


Immediately after the attack, despite the initial confusion and lack of verified details of what exactly happened in Simferopol, as well as a stream of conflicting reports, Kiev claimed that “Russian soldiers started shooting at Ukrainian servicemen."

“This is a war crime without any statute of limitations,"coup-appointed Prime Minister Yatsenyuk told a meeting at the Ukrainian Defense Ministry.

In another immediate reaction to the accident, acting President Aleksandr Turchinov authorized Ukrainian troops stationed in Crimea to use firearms to “defend their lives."

http://rt.com/news/crimea-shooting-military-center-646/

 

[ScHoLaR oF SMuT]

i just love putin sticking it in everyone assies. hehe like a U.N. voorhees the jason :heart:

 

[No.13]

Russian forces seize two Ukrainian bases in Crimea

The United States warned Moscow it was on a "dark path" to isolation on Wednesday as Russian troops seized two Ukrainian naval bases, including a headquarters in the Crimean port of Sevastopol where they raised their flag.

The dramatic seizure came as Russia and the West dug in for a long confrontation over Moscow's annexation of Crimea, with the United States and Europe groping for ways to increase pressure on a defiant Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"As long as Russia continues on this dark path, they will face increasing political and economic isolation," said U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, referring to reports of armed attacks against Ukrainian military personnel in Crimea.

Biden was in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, as part of a quick trip to reassure Baltic allies worried about what an emboldened Russia might mean for their nations. Lithuania, along with Estonia and Latvia, are NATO members.

"There is an attempt, using brutal force, to redraw borders of the European states and to destroy the postwar architecture of Europe," Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite said.

The head of NATO warned that Putin may not stop with the annexation of Crimea and urged Europe to step up defense spending in response to the crisis.

"Crimea is one example. But I see Crimea as an element in a greater pattern, in a more long-term Russian, or at least Putin, strategy," Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen told a Washington think tank. "So of course our major concern now is whether he will go beyond Crimea.

U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon meets Putin in Moscow on Thursday and travels to Kiev on Friday. He will urge a peaceful end to a crisis that began when Ukraine's president abandoned a trade pact with the European Union and turned instead to Moscow, prompting violent street protests that led to his overthrow.

Russian lawmakers raced to ratify a treaty making Crimea part of Russia by the end of the week, despite threats of further sanctions from Washington and Brussels.

The Russian military moved swiftly to neutralize any threat of armed resistance in Crimea.

"This morning they stormed the compound. They cut the gates open, but I heard no shooting," said Oleksander Balanyuk, a captain in the navy, walking out of the compound in his uniform and carrying his belongings.

"This thing should have been solved politically. Now all I can do is stand here at the gate. There is nothing else I can do," he told Reuters, appearing ashamed and downcast.

Ukrainian military spokesman Vladislav Seleznyov said the commander of the Ukrainian navy, Admiral Serhiy Haiduk, was driven away by what appeared to be Russian special forces.

Russian troops seized another Ukrainian naval facility in Crimea late on Wednesday.

"Russian troops came and asked us to leave the base, which we did," Ukrainian navy Major Eduard Kusnarenko told Reuters outside the base in Bakhchisaray, about 30 km (20 miles) southwest of the regional capital, Simferopol.

In Washington, the White House condemned Russian moves to seize Ukrainian military installations, saying they were creating a dangerous situation.

U.S. President Barack Obama, who has imposed sanctions on 11 Russian and Ukrainian officials, said Washington would keep up its diplomatic push to bring pressure on Russia, but added in a television interview: "We are not going to be getting into a military excursion in Ukraine."

MIXED FEELINGS

Russia sent thousands of soldiers to Crimea in the buildup to a referendum last weekend in which the Russian-majority region voted overwhelmingly to leave Ukraine and join Moscow, reflecting national loyalties and hopes of higher wages.

But there is unease among pro-Ukrainian Crimeans who have complained about the heavy armed presence across the region.

"I was born here, my family is here, I have a job here and I am not going anywhere unless there is an all-out military conflict," said Viktor, a 23-year-old salesman. "It is my home but things will not be the same anymore."

A few hundred meters away, the local authorities attached new, Russian letters spelling "State Council of the Crimean Republic" on the building of the local assembly.

Ukrainian security chief Andriy Parubiy said the Kiev government would urge the United Nations to declare Crimea a demilitarized zone.

"The Ukrainian government will immediately appeal to the United Nations to recognize Crimea as a demilitarized zone and take necessary measures for Russian forces to leave Crimea and prepare conditions for redeployment of Ukrainian forces," Parubiy said.

Ukraine announced plans to introduce visas for Russians, and Russia said it might respond in kind.

Putin said his move to annex Crimea was justified by "fascists" in Kiev who overthrew pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovich last month.

Ukraine and Western governments have dismissed the referendum as a sham, and say there is no justification for Putin's actions.

GERMANY MAKES MOVE

Germany's Cabinet approved EU plans for closer political cooperation with Ukraine, a government source said, clearing the way for Chancellor Angela Merkel to sign part of a so-called association agreement at an EU summit later this week.

The 28-member bloc is expected to sign a more far-reaching trade accord with Ukraine later.

But maintaining aggressive rhetoric reminiscent of the Cold War, Russia accused Western states of violating a pledge to respect Ukraine's sovereignty and political independence under a 1994 security assurance agreement, saying they had "indulged a coup d'etat" that ousted Yanukovich.

Moscow, which has said it will retaliate for so far largely symbolic Western sanctions targeting Russian officials, announced on Wednesday it was closing its military facilities to a European security watchdog for the rest of the year.

The Russian Defense Ministry was quoted as saying the signatories of a 2011 Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe agreement had exhausted their quotas to inspect Russian military facilities and a planned inspection in the coming days would be the last.

FURTHER SANCTIONS?

Biden said in Warsaw on Tuesday the United States may run more ground and naval military exercises to help Baltic states near Russia beef up their capacity after what he called Putin's "land grab" in Ukraine.

The Truxtun, a U.S. guided-missile destroyer, started a one-day military exercise with the Bulgarian and Romanian navies in the Black Sea on Wednesday, a U.S. Naval Forces official said.

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel praised the restraint of Ukraine's armed forces in a phone call on Wednesday with his Ukrainian counterpart.

A brief Pentagon statement about Hagel's conversation with Ukraine's acting defense minister, Ihor Tenyukh, made no mention of any Ukrainian requests for assistance. Kiev has asked for lethal and non-lethal military support from the United States, which has so far only approved military rations.

Washington and Brussels said further sanctions would follow the visa bans and asset freezes imposed so far on a handful of Russian and Crimean officials, drawing derision from Moscow.

But Ukraine's foreign minister, Andriy Deshchytsya, told Reuters the steps taken by the West were "a very concrete step forward," and added: "I believe these countries will not stop at this level of support.

On a visit to Japan, which has joined the Western chorus of condemnation of Moscow's action, close Putin ally Igor Sechin, chief executive officer of Russian oil major Rosneft, said expanding sanctions would only aggravate the crisis.

European Union leaders will consider widening the number of people targeted by personal sanctions when they meet on Thursday and Friday, diplomats said, as well as signing the political part of an association agreement with Ukraine's interim government.

EU officials say they have identified more than 100 potential targets. Some media reports say Sechin and the head of Russian gas monopoly Gazprom are on the wider list.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSBREA2I0TR20140320?irpc=932

 

[No.13]

Ukraine: Putin signs Crimea
annexation

The speakers of Russia's two houses of parliament - both targeted by EU sanctions - were at Vladimir Putin's side as he signed the law annexing Crimea
President Vladimir Putin has signed a law formalising Russia's takeover of Crimea from Ukraine, despite fresh sanctions from the EU and the US.

The European Union's latest measures target 12 people involved in Russia's annexation of the peninsula.

Earlier on Friday Ukraine and the EU signed an accord forging closer political ties.

European leaders also said they would step up efforts to reduce energy dependency on Russia.

The EU's new sanctions add to an existing list of 21 officials affected by travel bans and asset freezes.

They include Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and two close aides of Vladimir Putin, Sergey Glazyev and Vladislav Surkov.

The speakers of Russia's two houses of parliament, Valentina Matviyenko and Sergei Naryshkin - both at Mr Putin's side as he signed the Crimea law - are also included.

While the list targets several figures close to the Russian president, it does not hit his inner circle as hard as the sanctions announced by the US on Thursday.

Downgrade

Shares fell sharply in Moscow on Friday as investors assessed the impact of Western sanctions on Russia's economy.

Two credit rating agencies have now downgraded Russia's outlook from stable to negative.

Visa and Mastercard have also stopped providing services to two Russian financial institutions, Bank Rossiya (hit by US sanctions) and SMP Bank.

The accord signed by the EU and Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk in Brussels on Friday contains the political part of the EU Association Agreement rejected in November by Viktor Yanukovych, who was then Ukraine's president.

That decision triggered violent protests, Mr Yanukovych's eventual overthrow and Russia's subsequent move into Crimea.

Ukraine's PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk met EU leaders including Angela Merkel and the Lithuanian president
The United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, visiting Kiev the day after meeting Mr Putin in Moscow, urged Ukraine and Russia to hold talks to prevent the crisis spreading.

Ukraine's interim President Olexander Turchynov, after meeting Mr Ban, said Ukraine would never accept "the seizure of its territory".

In a separate development on Friday, Ukrainian police detained the head of the Naftogaz state energy firm, Yevhen Bakulin.

He is accused of embezzling $4bn (£2.4bn) during Mr Yanukovych's time in power.

Officials investigating corruption at Ukraine's agriculture ministry are reported to have seized tens of thousands of dollars in cash.

Russian troops enter a Ukrainian military base near the Crimean city of Simferopol
In Crimea itself, forces allied to Russia have been seizing Ukrainian ships and taking over military bases.

The new authorities in Crimea have invited those serving in the Ukrainian forces on the peninsula to switch sides and join Russian forces.

Fireworks

Vladimir Putin has ordered fireworks displays for Moscow and Crimea on Friday night to celebrate the region becoming part of the Russian Federation.

Russia ordered travel bans and asset freezes for nine prominent US officials and lawmakers in response to Thursday's announcement of sanctions targeting Mr Putin's allies by President Barack Obama.

Senator John McCain, one of those targeted, joked in a tweet that he would have to cancel his spring break in Siberia.

Mr Putin said Moscow would not retaliate for the latest EU sanctions - although the Russian foreign ministry said there would be a response.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26686949

 

[No.13]

Nato warns of Russian army build-up on Ukraine border

Nato's military commander in Europe has issued a warning about the build-up of Russian forces on Ukraine's border.

Supreme Allied Commander Europe Gen Philip Breedlove said Nato was in particular concerned about the threat to Moldova's Trans-Dniester region.

Russia said its forces east of Ukraine complied with international agreements.

The build-up has been linked to Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, following the removal of Ukraine's pro-Moscow president.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsia warned that the risk of war with Russia was growing.

"The problem with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is that he doesn't want to talk to - not only to the Ukrainian government - but also to the Western leaders," Mr Deshchytsia told the BBC.

"And this is quite a danger for the decision-making process. We could only expect that he might invade."

Meanwhile, several parts of Crimea have been hit by power cuts blamed on technical problems in a transmission line from the Ukrainian mainland to the Black Sea peninsula.

Crimea's power provider Krymenergo said in a statement on its website that it was forced to implement partial power cuts after a line run by Ukraine's national electricity company, Ukrenergo, was hit by a technical fault and needed to be repaired.

Most of Crimea's electricity, as well as its water and food, comes from the Ukrainian mainland.

'Illegal'

In Washington US security official Tony Blinken told CNN that America was reviewing every request Ukraine was making for help.

But cautioned that even if assistance was forthcoming, it would be "very unlikely to change Russia's calculus or prevent any invasion".

President Barack Obama earlier ruled out sending US troops to Ukraine.

Moscow formally annexed Crimea after the predominantly ethnic Russian region held a referendum which backed joining Russia.

Kiev and the West condemned the vote as "illegal".

Ukrainian troops are stationed on the border with Russia, in smaller numbers

A war memorial in Tiraspol, Trans-Dniester. Nato fears Russian troops could move there quickly
Russian flags have now been hoisted at 189 Ukrainian military units and facilities in Crimea, the Interfax news agency reports.

Moscow's EU envoy told the BBC the "reunification" had not been planned, but was the end of an "abnormality" which had lasted for 60 years.

Vladimir Chizhov also said said Moscow did not have any "expansionist views" and that "nobody should fear Russia".

However, Ukrainian security chief Andriy Parubiy told a rally in Kiev: "The aim of Putin is not Crimea, but all of Ukraine. His troops massed at the border are ready to attack at any moment."

'Adversary'

The comments by Gen Breedlove came at an event held by the German Marshall Fund think-tank in Brussels.

He described the Russian forces at the Ukrainian border as "very, very sizeable and very, very ready".

"There is absolutely sufficient force postured on the eastern border of Ukraine to run to Trans-Dniester if the decision was made to do that, and that is very worrisome," he said.

"Russia is acting much more like an adversary than a partner."

Trans-Dniester is a narrow strip of land between the Dniester river and Ukraine's south-western border and it proclaimed independence from Moldova in 1990.

The international community has not recognised its self-declared statehood.

As Crimea was annexed, the Trans-Dniester Supreme Soviet sent a request asking to join the Russian Federation.

Bases stormed

Correspondents say Russian forces appear to be stepping up their efforts to secure full military control of Crimea.

The BBC's Ian Pannell, in Belbek, says the few remaining Ukrainian troops on the peninsula feel beleaguered and abandoned by their commanders.

He saw Russian troops use stun grenades and automatic weapons in a raid on the Belbek airbase, near Sevastopol, on Saturday.

Another BBC correspondent witnessed the takeover of the Novofedorivka naval base in western Crimea by Russian troops.

A big unity rally is being staged in Ukraine's capital Kiev

Pro-Russian men beat an unknown man during the takeover of the Belbek airbase on Saturday

Ukrainian soldiers in Belbek were given an ultimatum to leave the base on Saturday.
Russian soldiers and pro-Russian protesters stormed the base and forced Ukrainian troops to leave.

Russia annexed Crimea following a referendum on 16 March, which came after the overthrow of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych in February.

The Kremlin said it had acted to protect its "compatriots" in Crimea from "fascists" moving in from the mainland Ukraine.

The US and EU responded with a series of sanctions targeting individuals they say played roles in Crimea's annexation.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26704205

 

[holyblacksun]

Filthy Jew Media: “much of Ukraine’s present leadership, including Yatsenyuk are Jewish”

- The Marxist myth that Fascists are the violent footsoldiers of the Capitalists seems to have been proven at least partially true in the case of Ukraine. If the idea of the Ukrainian Nationalists was to engage in the fight in order to come out as leaders in the end, the objectives seems to unfortunately not have been reached. It appears at the moment as if enemy Jews have been awarded many of the highest positions in the government.


There has also been completely unfounded accusations that Ukraine’s interim government is “Neo-Nazi” and “Ultranationalist.” Timothy Snyder has done a wonderful job debunking these claims. The truth is that much of Ukraine’s present leadership, including Yatsenyuk are Jewish. Jewish community leaders in Ukraine have also refuted Russian accusations.


Only the most twisted mind could conceive of a Jewish led Nazi conspiracy. Are there Neo-Nazis in Ukraine? Sure, just as there are in Chicago and every other major American city. Are some politically active? Yes, as is David Duke in our own country. Do they have any power to shape policy or events? Categorically no.

check

 

[holyblacksun]

Swore to fight Jews until Death – Right Sector Leader Aleksandr Muzytjko Executed!

Militant fanatic Ukrainian Nationalist Aleksandr Muzytjko was shot to death. Murderer Jews are still at large.