eeeff1 No.2260[Last 50 Posts]
NEW UKRAINE THREAD
>24/02/2015
Latest events, I'll try to be brief
>UK sends non-lethal aid and advisors to the Kiev gov'
>Riot/False-flag atempts by Right-Sektor in Crimea thwarted
>Ukraine retreats from small villages near Mariopol, and trades aggression accusations with the rebels.
>Unrest in Kharkov also of note (possible false-flag)
Sorry if I missed anything.
Make necessary corrections at will.
We needed a new thread and now we have it
>Archive the old one, and enjoy.
eeeff1 No.2277
>>2273As far as I know, Russia already has their own SWIFT ready to go.
7ef0a4 No.2278
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/24/us-ukraine-crisis-idUSKBN0LS0RI20150224It looks like things may cool down if Kiev allows it. Article says that heavy weapons are moving away from the front lines and back into rebel held territory to protect their gains.
Rebels said it was only in the places they were during the cease fire to cover their movements back from the front, which shows sincerity to me as they haven't made any more advances and are not likely to without the cover of heavy artillery.
Reporters are saying that some were headed towards the Russian border, but stopped short of saying they crossed.
Now Rebels are saying that they want to take control of the other rebelling areas but want to do it with diplomacy. Again, there are no weapons currently aimed at these areas so it is up to both sides to sit down and talk.
I think things will heat up again because Kiev has already lost a lot, but has no power to challenge the rebels. Kiev will probably bide their time to build and train their forces and acquire money to pay salaries and mercenaries.
http://news.yahoo.com/lithuania-reinstate-conscription-amid-russia-fears-133241019.htmlNATO members are becoming very defensive and building up their armies in anticipation to Russian hostilities. Some like Poland are becoming hawkish like the USA.
>>2273http://rt.com/business/211291-swift-banking-russia-vtb/http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-02-18/de-dollarization-accelerates-russia-launches-swift-alternative-linking-91-entitiesRussian bankers said to exclude them from SWIFT would be tantamount to a declaration of war. And I tend to agree with them. Their version isn't tested 'battle tested' yet and was released earlier than scheduled. Cutting them out from one end that is heavily connected and leaving them with their own that just connects to under 100 entities would be bad news for Russia.
Some neocons want this:
https://archive.today/GVVNA a688a9 No.2285
>>2278>it is also a mistake to think that Russia can, in the foreseeable future, but a trusted member of the international communitywelp, I'm mad, and knowing my gov't they're stupid enough to do it and expect no consequences either
e5eac2 No.2286
The official hryvnia-dollar exchange rate is bullshit, this is what is being charged right now.
0c8a77 No.2288
d88e13 No.2319
Hrm, it would seem that I had been posting in the old thread as it was being archived. My bad.
In response to a request for more information as to the oligarchs in Ukraine, there is this video entitled Oligarchical Topography of Ukraine:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXLUJpqaQpYIt gives a good introduction to many of the important oligarchs in Ukraine, as well as their business and political interests. It is in Russian, with English subtitles.
The youtube channel New Insight (from which this video comes) is a wealth of information from the hypernationalist Russian perspective. It covers all sorts of information missing from the western narratives, from Gene Sharp style coup technology to who runs the Russian Central Bank (ohai IMF) to how bureaucracy and regulations are used in a full-spectrum conflict. Evgenny Fedorov, for whom this channel apparently exists, is a bit of a nutter but the information is good.
Nikolai Starikov, who appeared in the previous thread as a guest post on the Saker's blog, has some videos there as well.
eeeff1 No.2320
Some "old" news caught my eye. From September 2014.
Washington Post>U.S. military vehicles paraded 300 yards from the Russian borderhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2015/02/24/u-s-military-vehicles-paraded-300-yards-from-the-russian-border/
>MOSCOW – U.S. military combat vehicles paraded Wednesday through an Estonian city that juts into Russia, a symbolic act that highlighted the stakes for both sides amid the worst tensions between the West and Russia since the Cold War.
>The armored personnel carriers and other U.S. Army vehicles that rolled through the streets of Narva, a border city separated by a narrow frontier from Russia, were a dramatic reminder of the new military confrontation in eastern Europe.
>The soldiers from the U.S. Army’s Second Cavalry Regiment were taking part in a military parade to mark Estonia’s Independence Day. Narva is a vulnerable border city separated by a river from Russia. It has often been cited as a potential target for the Kremlin if it wanted to escalate its conflict with the West onto NATO territory.[Estonia’s president: Russia is threatening ‘the entire post-World War II order’]
>Russia has long complained bitterly about NATO expansion, saying that the Cold War defense alliance was a major security threat as it drew closer to Russia’s borders. The anger grew especially passionate after the Baltic states joined in 2004, and Russian President Vladimir Putin cited fears that Ukraine would join NATO when he annexed the Crimean Peninsula in March last year.
>Russia’s Baltic neighbors, meanwhile, have said that what happened in Ukraine demonstrates exactly why they wanted to join NATO in the first place.
>U.S. tanks rolled through the streets of Riga, Latvia in November for that nation’s Independence Day parade, another powerful reminder of U.S. boots on the ground in the region. The United States has sent hundreds of military personnel to joint NATO exercises in the Baltics. NATO nations committed in September to forming a rapid reaction force that could deploy quickly to eastern Europe if they are invaded.[In Latvia, fresh fears of aggression as Kremlin warns about Russian minorities]
Oh EstoniaI thought you were different…
Your sound fiscal policies…
Your sexy tax laws…
Your easy company creation…
I even had the feel you were the most neutral of baltic states…
That you made statements that a Russian invasion wasn't on the table…
But apparently…
Seriously?Expecting that some IFV's are going to help at all against the Russians…
As far as I know Estonia doesn't even have tanks…
Eastern European countries like this should be try to be smart and neutralBut they prefer to be be grudgeful and say that Russia is the devil, as if they are still the USSR, and to rush againt Russia. To their own detriment.
a688a9 No.2323
>>2320>the entire post-World War II orderSo give all of eastern europe back to Russia then?
eeeff1 No.2327
>>2323It doesn't make sense… I'll assume it was a typo or something.
Maybe he meant cold war?
a688a9 No.2329
>>2327I can only assume he means the idea of "muh sovereign never changing borders"
unless they're evil serbs
0c8a77 No.2345
"A day after Ukraine announced it is joining the information war by creating an 'online army,' the Information Policy Ministry entered into its first controversy. It has reportedly called on bloggers to create accounts to spread information useful to Kiev.":
http://rt.com/news/235251-kiev-war-online-bloggers/ eb151a No.2352
>>2345Fuck I think the shilling in here may get incredibly worse at some point…
Just would like to pass thanks to the anon in the previous thread whom posted the YT video on the freaks of Kiev.
Again thank-you.
If anyone missed them and is interested be sure to check them out at the end of the thread.
c6eaba No.2353
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
Here's a lecture by Stephen Cohen on the historical background on the conflict. A lot of time is spent on providing a counter-narrative to the image presented by the western media, going into detail on western involvement in the coup, the many broken treaties and promises, the overturning of democracy in Ukraine during Maidan and beyond, the mistreatment of civilians, the echo chamber of western media and policy making, and so on.
This isn't a news story or anything obviously, but I'm providing it as a potential redpill to be given to others since this guy has a lot of views that are very similar to those dominant in these Ukraine threads and he has several decades of credentials as a writer and scholar on Russian and Soviet history. I've had some success myself having people that had bought into the western narrative of this all being an unprovoked Russian anti-democratic invasion and that the NAF were all a private Putin army switch sides with this guy's works before, so I think this deserves a mention since it's a more recent work.
>>2277I read that too and that a few of the SCO members are in on it. Can someone provide more on this? An alternative to SWIFT would be a hit to the dollar.
>>2345Not surprised. Given Kiev's track record for success and competence, I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of their work starts and stops at paying people in moldy potatoes to post "LOL JEWTIN XDDD" on /pol/ over and over again.
>>2320This is the typical symbolism I've come to expect from NATO & Friends. A few AFVs here that would be exterminated in hours after the outbreak on even a limited war with Russia, a minuscule advisers over there that are supposed to improve the capabilities of an army that barely even exists on paper, and so on and so forth.
>Estonia doesn't even have tankshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estonian_Land_Forces#Armoured_vehiclesAssuming that this list is up to date, and it seems to correlate with everything I've heard and read for several years, Estonia doesn't have any tanks. It has a few hundreds AFVs, troop transports and support vehicles. Look up further. They barely have any mortars, missile launchers, modern AA and so forth to speak of. The same pattern goes for the other Baltic states. In an event of war, there's no serious person in the world that can argue that these people would survive for more than a few days at most before, if even that. And how are their NATO allies going to help them? If war started tomorrow every ship and plane trying to enter the region would be subject to Russian interceptor aircraft, bombers, and ballistic missiles.
I'm bringing all of this up to underscore the abject lunacy of the Baltic states to take the very hawkish line that they do on this. They've diplomatically all been with the war camp since the early days of this. I can understand why their historical grievances with Russia exist, but the position they're taking is an affront to reality.
>They should be smart and neutralExactly! In the best of worlds, the Baltics and Ukraine would've become new Finlands and Austrias, taking a neutral stance, trading with both sides of the divide, and prospering from good relationships with two powerful blocs. Unfortunately, that ship has sailed and we may not even see the silhouette of it in the stormy horizon for another generation.
a688a9 No.2357
>>2353>The same pattern goes for the other Baltic statesThere's I think only 2 tanks between the baltic nations, since in the event of war they're supposed to be "mine sweeper" forces for NATO, and speedbumps for the Russians
similar to how the Germans have what is more or less a defunct army right now as well(slightly better off though)
It does make sense if you look at the goals of NATO though: Keeping Europe down, and the Americans in
a weak Europe cannot forge independent policies, forcing them to toe the American line and submit to American authority/power
c6eaba No.2358
>>2357Spot on. I believe the original purpose was to keep Germany down, Russia out and America in. Nowadays when you look at this collection of boutique armies fielded by countries that often hardly even qualify as sovereign states on foreign policy matters one can only conclude that the policy of keeping Germany down has expanded to the whole continent to a greater extent than it'd ever been during the Cold War.
>SpeedbumpsOnly if the Russians decided to conquer all of Europe, and this is where I have to question their sanity more than usual. What's more likely: Russia trying to conquer all of Europe, or Russia trying to seize the former Soviet Republics to keep NATO:s bases from its border? In which case you don't gain a speed bump as much as you get:
☑ The sole strategic enemy objective in a campaign which will likely be completely overrun in a day is impossible to defend, and will be extremely difficult to retake after it's linked up with Kaliningrad that's easily defended with aircraft, missiles and artillery, right next to Russia's logistical centers.
☑ Three states that no one except for Poland and a handful of Neocons would want to go to war to protect.
☑ Three more-or-less demilitarized states that you're encouraging to take a hawkish attitude.
It's almost like they opted for expansion for expansion's sake without paying a single thought to long-term consequences, or considering even for a minute that influence can be measured in other ways than how many people are allowed in your special friends club.
88f397 No.2359
>>2277>>2353>I read that too and that a few of the SCO members are in on it. Can someone provide more on this? An alternative to SWIFT would be a hit to the dollar.http://rt.com/business/204459-russia-swift-payment-alternative/
>Russia intends to have its own international inter-bank system up and running by May 2015. The Central of Russia says it needs to speed up preparations for its version of SWIFT in case of possible ”challenges” from the West.Yep, russia is doing its preparations to be kicked out. They are making sure that it will backfire.
a688a9 No.2360
>>2358>It's almost like they opted for expansion for expansion's sake without paying a single thought to long-term consequencesThe US started to believe in their ideological mandate to spread Democracy after the fall of Soviet Union, hence why we have so many fingers in so many pies
The US policy world wide is arguably to prevent any power from threatening the current world order, similar to how the UK's used to be prevent any one power from dominating Europe
for the US this isn't a feasible goal, we don't have the military power to do so, nor can we keep our commitments to various countries
We could barely keep up logistical support in Afghanistan and Iraq due to distances+troop numbers needed.
Add in the general apathy of the American public since say '05, and you're on a crash course for disaster should war break out
We're in a very similar position to the UK prior to WW2, where we've thrown our commitment around based on ideological goals rather than on realpolitik
For example, instead of engaging and supporting the Russians to build a potential ally to the Chinese, we drove the two nations straight into each others arms
>>2359Getting kicked out will still hurt the Russians, but not as much as it would if they didn't have their own system to fall back on
c6eaba No.2361
File: 1424872304321.png (1.43 MB, 1112x1060, 278:265, thank you for this excelle….png)
>>2359Thanks, image related. It's hard to tell how much damage it'll do if that'd happen, but it's likely to decrease over time the more they can more their operations eastwards.
>>2360Not inaccurate. A lot of this goes back to that Mearsheimer article on the west's post-Soviet follies.
http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/141769/john-j-mearsheimer/why-the-ukraine-crisis-is-the-wests-faultIt's been posted before, but it bears repeating especially since it pits blind ideologues against what the author calls realists opposing that expansion, and they're called realists for a good reason.
eeeff1 No.2366
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
>Southfront report from yesterday
When I heard that Ukraine promisses to take back Crimea, whatever it takes, I laughed so hard I almost passed out.
eeeff1 No.2367
More from Southfront
>Minimum Wage in Ukraine Now Lower than in Zambia and Ghana
After yet another fall in the Ukrainian currency, the Hryvnia, the minimum wage in Ukraine has reached an all-time low: 1218 Hryvnia is now worth less than 43 US dollars.
>Even in the impoverished countries of Bangladesh, Ghana and Zambia, people receive around 4 dollars more. Significantly wealthier are those in the African countries of Lesotho, Gambia and Chad, where the minimum wage is as high as 51 dollars.
>By comparison, the highest global minimum wage can be found in Australia, where workers are paid no less than 2700 dollars (a month).
>It is a sobering thought that the next national wage increase is not due in Ukraine till December 2015.
c6eaba No.2368
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play. To the delight of at least ten people that think this would have any impact in the case of war, the aforementioned token NATO force has arrived near the Russian border. I see absolutely no way this could end up making things worse on either side of the boundary.
>>2367Great, keep these coming. Few things are more powerful than hard proof of the economic hardships brought on by the war, the mismanagement and the austerity. Coupled with the crashing currency and GDP from the last post, this place is going to look like Zimbabwe before long at this rate.
Of no surprise to anyone, western outlets aren't exactly as keen to report on this as they are on reporting the "collapse" of the "isolated" Russian economy.
>>2366If you're laughing now, try to imagine them making an attempt to roll into the bottleneck of Crimea. Watch as they lose in an hour what Novorossiya destroyed over the past ten months.
0c8a77 No.2370
First day with no troops killed under Ukraine truce:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/25/us-ukraine-crisis-idUSKBN0LT0YJ20150225
>In rebel-held eastern Ukraine, rebels were withdrawing heavy guns from the front. Kiev said it was too early to do likewise, but its acknowledgement that most of the front was quiet suggests it too could implement a truce that had appeared stillborn when the rebels launched a major offensive last week.
>Kiev says it fears the rebels, backed by Russian troops, may be planning a further advance to capture Mariupol, a port of 500,000 people.Putin: Gas supplies to Europe could suffer in 3-4 days if Kiev doesn't pay:
http://rt.com/news/235459-putin-gas-ukraine-europe/
>Russia will cut off gas supplies to Ukraine if Kiev fails to pay in “three or four days,” President Vladimir Putin said, adding that this "will create a problem" for gas transit to Europe.
>"As for the damage to the gas pipeline, I don't know for certain, but I know that these regions are home to about 4.5 million people. Just imagine that these people may be left without gas supply during the winter period. In addition to the hunger, there as is already stated by the OSCE and the humanitarian disaster, just imagine these people may also be left without gas supply," Putin said. This all coupled with the imminent bankruptcy of Ukraine/decline of the Hryvnia appears to be a strategy on Russia's part, I'd wager. Of course, the argument can be made that Russia is just trying to deal with sanctions by leveraging their gas supplies against Ukraine. Either way, Ukraine is in a stranglehold.
>>2367More info on Ukraine currency issue:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-02-25/ukraine-enters-hyperinflation-currency-trading-halted-soon-we-will-wwalk-around-suit
>"A construction worker exchanging dollars at a kiosk in a grocery shop in return for a bag filled with thousands of hryvnia, laughed and told shoppers: "Soon we will have to walk around with suitcases for cash, like in the 1990s.""Ukraine’s Central Bank Temporarily Bans Foreign Currency Purchases:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/ukraines-central-bank-bans-foreign-currency-purchases-1424865469
>In a fresh attempt to halt the currency’s free fall, the National Bank introduced a three-day ban on foreign-exchange purchases by companies through banks, and limited the banks’ purchases to 0.5% of their capital.Hours after the measure was announced, Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk called for an emergency session of parliament to pass economic and financial measures designed to secure much-needed financing from the International Monetary Fund.
>>2366Assuming that Ukraine and Russia both don't back off on their claims over Crimea, doesn't that set them on a collision course for war?
c6eaba No.2371
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
>>2368Copy-paste fail, my bad.
b892a7 No.2375
>>2277SWIFT won't be denied Russia for decades, if not centuries.
>SWIFT regrets the pressure, as well as the surrounding media speculation, both of which risk undermining the systemic character of the services that SWIFT provides its customers around the world.The only country SWIFT has denied is Iran, and that is only because of Irans banking practices were incompatible with SWIFT banking regulations. Specifically claims that Irans black sector (crime) was controlled by Iranian government and using SWIFT to promote crime in foreign countries.
And even so, the only way to do it was to sanction SWIFT itself and pressure it to choose between USA or Iran. Choosing between UK or Russia might give a different result than UK is prepared to accept, especially given the vast resource wealth of Russia and the literal fact that they haven't done anything illegal according to international law.
>>2320>I even had the feel you were the most neutral of baltic states…lol how wrong you were. Also judging by force disposition, Estonia can be conquered by Russian troops in three hours, the problem of occupation is more vexing.
>>2360>The US started to believe in their ideological mandate to spread Democracy after the fall of Soviet Union, hence why we have so many fingers in so many piesI wouldn't even be against that if they were spreading democracy, or western values. But they're not doing that, NATO is spreading totalitarianism.
It has become the evil empire. d5cfc3 No.2378
>>2375>I wouldn't even be against that if they were spreading democracy, or western values. But they're not doing that, NATO is spreading totalitarianism. It has become the evil empire.Right now we look like one of the countries in 1984 - we are always saying how we are the good guys, how our ideology is the best one, while other countries are evil and are trying to destroy our heaven.
We are always at war with someone - be it Soviet Union, some other far-away communist country, some islamic organisation no one's heard of. The war is always very far away from us, but we are constantly reminded by it by false attacks like 9/11.
The resemblence between us and 1984's superstates is scary.
eeeff1 No.2395
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
Southfront
25.02.2015 Ukrainian crisis news
>1) Poroshenko Buys UAE Weapons, Talks about Peace
>2) Cameron "Commits Troops" to Ukraine, NATO Scared by "Russian agression"
>3) Facebook frontline: Kiev calls up 'online army' amid information war
>4) Chicago PD Blacksite Is Domestic Guantanamo
eeeff1 No.2397
More from Southfront
"90% of Ukrainian soldiers after their return from Donbass has symphtoms of mental illness. This information was announced at the time of video-conference between Lvov and Doneck (including Kramatorsk) by Oksana Nakonechnaya - coordinator of Psychiatric Services in the city of Lvov. Averagely 60% of soldiers has experienced basical symphtoms of mental illness in a first month of their duty. After that period, approximately 25-30% man of arms succumb to Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. She also said that man, who are returning from the battlefield cannot be at once, properly diagnosed, if their has mental disorder:
"They are likely to have posttraumatic ilnesses ,or high stress. We are able to recognize Posttraumatic Stress Disorder only after a month."
d5cfc3 No.2400
>>239790% seems a bit far too high. I mean people fought wars for thousand years, and you only hear about people starting to go crazy from the 1st world war onward, mainly because of the sound of artillery and similar large shocking noices , and even then the % was barely 10% or so.
eeeff1 No.2403
>>2400To be fair she said "90% HAD SYMPHTOMS".
But only 25-30% actually succumbed to PTSD.
eeeff1 No.2404
>>2400You only hear about since then for many reasons.
If you think PTSD is just shell-shock… Then you must not grasp what war, in whatever time in human history, can or could do to a man's mind.
It was already disproved to be just shell-shock.
d5cfc3 No.2409
File: 1424892336615.gif (49.67 KB, 624x620, 156:155, _81135261_ukraine_ceasefir….gif)
>>2395Also wouldn't it make more sence for them to use the money to boast their economy or something? The debt won't go away just like that, and buying weapons which will probably go in the hand of the rebels anyway won't help him much.
>>2403Ok, that sounds more plausable
>>2404Yep just googled it, I guess I had the wrong idea. I though it was specifically because of shell-shock.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-31620385There are no deaths, there is a truce!
http://news.yahoo.com/us-furious-over-russias-lies-ukraine-115033803.htmlThe rebels aren't doing their part, there isn't any truce!
In a few statements they contradict each other.
>"Imagine these people finding themselves without gas supplies in the winter period," he said. "What do you call that? This already smacks of genocide."I really hate it when they do this. During the conflict, there were MONTHS in which Russia supplied them with gas for free, because Ukraine wasn't paying. Now they are finally fed up with this crap, and because of this they are commiting a genocide? Do they realise how stupid this sound?
>Guy walks into a store every day>Steals stuff, without the owner doing anything>Finally the owner tells him to fuck of>MUH GENOCIDE!This is how silly this whole statement sounds. If Ukraine wasn't buying weapons from UAE and instead used the money from the loans to pay for this there won't be any "genocide".
>The Ukrainian government, Western leaders and Nato say there is clear evidence that Russia is helping the rebels with heavy weapons and soldiers.If there was clear evidence, they would've shown it. By the way does anyone remember the black box from the plane? It was recovered and all the info in it was decoded long time ago. Why isn't the information inside it shown???
Also seeing the picture, its a bit of a bummer for the rebels. Pulling all their heavy stuff would mean that they'll be too far away from Donetsk and Lugansk. While for Ukraine to do the same, would mean that they will be just behind Maripol and if needed will be quick to act.
fa01f6 No.2425
>>2260>>2320Hey guys, OP from last thread in here, just wanted to say I'm very glad to see people still interested and discussing the Ukraine conflict, does a lot of good to see people caring. About that second linked post, look at the similar thread on >>>/pol/1318527 it is pretty pathetic, I honestly can't believe they are getting shilled that hard and not noticing it (also, unlike our anon, their OP didn't mention the date, effectively baiting everyone, including me, into thinking this was news).
There's a whole lot of good info on here, I can't post (nor read) most of it as I'm currently busy Irl, but keep the good work going, had lost hope with Ukraine since my failures to initiate good discussions on /pol/ and the very few comments received on previous thread, but glad to see there are many people still caring! Really proud of you guys, proves I was wrong to think the /pol/ ideology was gone and lost forever, only needed some boost, people were actually craving the opportunity to start anew :')
For what I've read yet (sorry if already answered), and to which I think I should give some insights :
>>2273SWIFT has said it was autonomous and not politically-related nor will be influenced by such, as some anon stated. Although, I seem to see through-out the thread that you guys didn't see that (unlike USA/Canada) even though they announced it for May, they were ahead of planned time, and it already is up and running for 1-2 weeks now.
>Back in 2013, The NSA was first exposed for secretly 'monitoring' the SWIFT payments flows. This appears to have been among the last straws for Russia (and others) as far as both NSA spying and dollar domination. For those that forgot. RT is all about every single fraud/surveillance shit that now occurs in the central banking, further pushing the idea they should make their own, and it's scary, every week there's a new lawsuit for forging information or falsifying datas for political/financial reasons at the biggest rating firms.
>Last year, following threats to remove Russia from SWIFT by the UK, (which SWIFT rapidly distanced its 'independent-self' from), Russia (and China) announced plans to create its own de-dollarized version. In November, Russia detailed the SWIFT-alternative's launch date around May 2015, and just last month, Medvedev warned of "unlimited reaction" if Russia was cut off from the SWIFT payments system.
>So the news this week that Russia has launched its own 'SWIFT'-alternative, linking 91 credit institutions initially, suggests de-dollarization is considerably further along than many expected (especially as Russia dumps US Treasuries at a record pace).
>The new service, will allow Russian banks to communicate seamlessly through the Central Bank of Russia. It should be noted that Russia's Central Bank initiated the development of the country's own messaging system in response to repeated threats voiced by Moscow's Western partners to disconnect Russia from SWIFT.
>Joining the global interbank system in 1989, Russia has become one of the most active users of SWIFT globally, sending hundreds of thousands of messages per day. In general, SWIFT provides a secure communication network for more than ten thousands of financial institutions around the world, approving transactions of trillions of US dollars. This strenghtens the position of whatever Anon said that SWIFT probably would tell UK to go fuck itself and choose Russia over most countries if it was told it had to choose.
>Russian experts point to the fact that Western businesses would face severe losses if they expelled Russia from the international SWIFT system. On the other hand, the alternative system launched by Russia might reduce the negative impacts caused by measures imposed by the West, including possible disconnection from SWIFT, and diminish Western financial dominance over Russia. And over the rest of the world, this is major, most Eastern partners are jumping on that shit to make sure they are off USA's sphere of influencehttp://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-02-18/de-dollarization-accelerates-russia-launches-swift-alternative-linking-91-entitieshttp://sputniknews.com/business/20150213/1018240631.html fa01f6 No.2426
Actually, fuck this, can't really keep out of this subject for too long, I'll screw my midterms over this conflict but it won't matter if we actually get a WWIII going I guess lol
fa01f6 No.2429
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
>>2273>Kerry claiming Russia has lied about aiding pro-Russian rebelsOnce again, this seems to be the oldest trick in the book, shouting "propaganda" is the equivalent of "xIDF" we have on /pol/, in their head it disproves anything, including facts, that the opposition brings to the table, and means their narrative is the only plausible one, while we witness blatant lies and propaganda from the West about the Ukraine conflict currently.
SWIFT prob not happening, but as the Russian alternative strengthens, it won't even be an issue anyways, but it is discussed down there.
Who would be surprised lol, UAE wanting a war! Also, very bold move of him saying "Arabs aren't afraid of WWIII" considering that they (in the majority) would be the first to join Russia and fight a globalized unipolar world pushed by the USA as they end up at the bottom of it, while under Russia's dominance, they would be left to themselves to auto-dictate their shits and would have better conditions of life. Also friendly reminder that in a case of WWIII, UAE and Saudi Arabia will be the first to fall without USA's support, as all their neighbours hate them to death for being what they called "sold-out". Most of the Arab world don't even consider them muslim at all.
Also, apologizes for not providing it, I'm looking for it, but liveuamap is strongly Ukraine-sided, at the point where they denied the existence of a video-proven cauldron and encirclement around Debaltseve until they got completely wiped, and were still pointing out Donetsk Airport occupation days after Rebels wiped them away, once again because Porko claimed otherwise, even if everyone knew it was lies. It is whatever map the images with clear lines showing the troops were from, I'll find one later on, as I said, I think this one was pretty fair assessment of the situation on the ground.
>>2278Ya, especially with Lithuania and Poland military help to Ukraine, seems like they will be the first one to be directly involved in the russian conflict (read : first to die from russian fire).
Also, sorry for the SWIFT post, just realized you posted it, but looks like following posts didn't see it.
>>2288"Medical training" ;^) Reminds me of Israel's "Medical help" to ISIS lol, but sincerely, it doesn't matter, Ukraine will lose as long as it's UAF fighting, people don't want to fight anymore (all the people who were eager to fight are in nationalist autonomous battalions, or dead, or both).
>>2319Will listen when I have time, seems interesting.
>>2320That is really foolish of them, and was completely absent of Western news, while the whole of NATO made a big fuss about the bombers that didn't even cross Britain's airspace but flew over international waters, hypocrisy at its finest from the West, as usual.
>saying that the Cold War defense alliance was a major security threat as it drew closer to Russia’s bordersHe was totally right, vid related, good thing he doesn't bite the West's bullshit.
That's also probably why they want him deadYes, neutrality seems to be the best card for them, honestly, crazy to see how they bit hard into the USA's hand, but in their defence, they probably didn't see the heavy economical, military and political comeback of Russia at Putin's hand, it is pretty amazing how fast they rose. I predict 1 coup from Ukraine nationalists to go harder on the war, then another from the population to adopt a neutral stance, watch it.
fa01f6 No.2431
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play. >>2345>Ukraine’s Information Policy Ministry was created in late 2014 to pursue information security in the country. Journalists dubbed the new institution the ‘Ministry of Truth’ after the propaganda ministry in George Orwell's novel '1984.'Lol, and people called me "Jutin shill" when I was answering that they should Google "Ukraine Ministry of Truth" back on /pol/…
>Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told TASS on Saturday that Moscow will not respond to Kiev’s actions by limiting the work of Ukrainian media. “Russia is a country where media activity is regulated by law, and where Russian and foreign journalists have equal rights to obtain information,” he said.Once again Russia proves to be the better man in the story.
>>2353NATO is a paper-joke used to disarm most countries joining it by telling them they would stand by their side in case of conflict, in order to instate a very centralized and limited international military power, which
strangely sides perfectly with what the US is trying to push worldwide with their vision of an international unipolar world where they're at the top, even though they very well know they do not have the influence nor power (economic or other, military is arguable compared to Russia, especially compared to a Russia-Chine alliance) to keep it afloat. As zerohedge reported, this is a desperate attempt to save their position, but they are doomed and drowning to anyone that's looking closely, we are watching the fall of the American Empire.
Everyone with a brain knows that NATO won't risk its power over the important part of Europe to counter an offensive on some useless (for them) Eastern European states. Especially fucking Poland, when the fuck are they going to learn, sincerely?
>Vid related, seeing Putin laughs at this makes me laugh eeeff1 No.2432
Latest Southfront update
>Kiev is contcentrating artillery and military equipment in Artemovsk - Fill Kiev's style of following Minsk Agreements
fa01f6 No.2435
>>2360>The US started to believe in their ideological mandate to spread Democracy after the fall of Soviet Union, hence why we have so many fingers in so many piesOldest propaganda trick in the book. First of all, very related webm, democracy is amongst the most effective nation-destroyer that can act from the inside, I have another one much more one-sided basically paraphrasing what Hitler says in a more modern context. People always freak out about Huxley or Orwell being that predictive, but forget that Hitler's books are just as incredibly accurate and on-the-spot, but effectively identifies the problem, the source, and the solution to it, and acts upon the allegations. The webm isn't too much about the democracy part, but next will follow, the rest of the anti-democracy ideology speaks through Hitler's books as well as his ideology/actions as a leader.
>>2361Very good article, I think I read that a little while ago.
>>2366These newsflashes are the best, thanks anon. Also, they did try to make false-flag revolution attempts in Crimea, the goal obviously being to pretend in the international scene that Crimeans didn't really want to be part of Russia (96.77% isn't enough democracy for the US, it seems), therefore pushing their invasion/poll rigging narrative, and legitimizing a more direct approach. Funny thing they got caught, and not even mentioned once on Western media. Classic.
Will provide source if asked, but I believe I posted it in last thread>>2367Was pretty predictable, I think we all agree the economical annihilation of Ukraine is one of the most underrated direct consequence of the conflict, which suits many people (didn't Monsanto get granted billions of dollars worth of lands since the beginning of the conflict?), including but not limited to the IMF, which seems to be sponsoring every catastrophe world-wide. The next big political shitstorm to wait, though, will be the imposition of Martial Law, I think that it will happen when the ceasefire will officially be thrown to trash by both sides.
Also, the Novorossiyan economy also is trash, but I think that in time of warfare, it is all relative. Surely the economy will naturally be self-centered, and people tend to forget the huge losses of people, the huge destruction and the annihilation of professions create the need for an economic reconstruction to take place (even though modern-time restructuration tries to be pushed by international agencies such as IMF to enslave the countries to their West-centered policies), and can very easily push up such economical nationalism that is pretty much equivalent to national socialism that we previously saw.
Also, having an internal economy running makes the people work for themselves, and is likely to occur in the case of people actually taking the power, which seems to be happening even more often in modern-era democracies (look at Greece, economy restructuration pushed by IMF, people's revolt stronger than jewish MSM propaganda, hard-left party rises and defies the West), so it is not ruled out of the question.
Also, whoever says massive destruction says massive reconstruction, meaning that
coupled to the loss of conscript soldiers, aka people from every field there will be virtually no unemployment for decade(s) after the war, and economy will get a big boom (if they don't join the slavery pushed by IMF and the West, called austerity).
Even if that doesn't happen, people will be so focused on the internal economy and relationships that they won't have the power nor time to look internationally, and internal economy will mean that everything about the currency will be relative. Look at Russia, the only thing really affecting them in the sanctions and fall of the rubles (besides oligarchy problems) is the price of computers and computer parts, and a slight rise of the Food products (source : some Russian anons, I know it isn't very valuable, but it is consistent with what people seem to say/show by encouraging Putin). Most people tend to think that international sanctions or value of currency is such a big deal, but it is only if you keep it that way while remaining in the Western sphere of influence. The moment you leave it, it doesn't matter anymore, really. Look at 1933 Germany.
0c8a77 No.2436
Moscow Was Urged to Annex Crimea Before Ukraine President’s Fall, Report Says:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/26/world/europe/russia-ukraine-crimea-annexation.html
>The memo lays out what it says is the inevitable disintegration of Ukraine and suggests a series of logistical steps that Russia should take to make sure it remains in control of the situation, steps not far off from what actually occurred.
>As early as Feb. 4, 2014, well before President Viktor F. Yanukovych resigned, on Feb. 21, the memo predicted his overthrow and suggested that Russia use the European Union’s own rules on autonomous areas to try to bind both Crimea and eastern Ukraine to Russia.
>Dimtry S. Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, suggested that the memo was a hoax. “It seems like a fake,” he said.
>“I don’t know whether this document exists at all, I don’t know who might be the author, but for sure the document has nothing to do with the Kremlin,” Mr. Peskov said. The authenticity of the document could not be independently verified.Ukraine central bank abruptly reverses currency trading ban:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/25/ukraine-crisis-hryvnia-idUSL5N0VZ2VC20150225
>Ukraine's central bank unexpectedly banned most currency trading on Wednesday, only to abruptly reverse the decision overnight, causing havoc in the market for the plunging hryvnia.
>The ban had been imposed in the morning, drawing a rebuke from Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk, and had been due to stay in place until the end of the week. But hours later, without giving any explanation, the bank did a sudden U-turn.NATO Commander: US Lethal Aid to Ukraine Won’t Stop Russia:
http://www.defenseone.com/threats/2015/02/nato-commander-lethal-aid-ukraine-stop-russia/106119/
>“In the current configuration I do not think that Ukrainian forces can stop a Russian advance in Eastern Ukraine,” NATO Commander Gen. Philip Breedlove said during a House Armed Services hearing Wednesday on the Pentagon’s response to Russian aggression on NATO’s eastern flank. “And to the degree that we can supply help, I’m not sure that they could stop a Russian advance in Eastern Ukraine even if we supply aid … [because] what we’re doing now is not changing the results on the ground.”Russia's Lavrov Says Many in Kiev Want Ukraine Peace Deal to Fail:
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/russia-s-lavrov-says-many-in-kiev-want-ukraine-peace-deal-to-fail/516508.html
>"A lot now depends on an honest, objective, unbiased approach by the observers who must record what is happening on the ground, so that we can all resist the attempts to present the Minsk agreements as having already failed." Lavrov said at talks with Gerard Larcher, chairman of France's senate.
>"There are many people outside Ukraine and in Kiev who want them derailed," he said. US poll finds more Americans support arming Ukraine government:
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/u-s-poll-finds-more-americans-support-arming-ukraine-government/516421.html
>U.S. public support for arming Ukraine has grown from 30 percent to 41 percent over the past 10 months, though the majority of Americans still oppose sending lethal military aid to Kiev, a poll has shown. fa01f6 No.2438
>>2368Crimea is both physically and materially impossible to take now that it is Russian. Anyone telling you otherwise is incredibly deluded, ground assault is impossible because of the said bottleneck, naval warfare is total suicide now that Russia has full control over its naval base over there, and with the naval power of Russia + best AA in the world, any air attack would be better spent sending them directly into a volcano during its eruption, more chances of survival.
>>2370>Kiev said it was too early to do likewise, but its acknowledgement that most of the front was quiet suggests it too could implement a truce that had appeared stillborn when the rebels launched a major offensive last week.I hate that they purposely keep on spewing that bullshit to western media, that takes care of repeating it over and over again. According to the Minsk agreement, that purposely said nothing about Debaltseve, this city was under rebel control, and therefore subject to rebel's regulation and internal policy. They legally had the right to do whatever they wanted with it. They decided to allow UAF troops to retreat if they laid down weapons (don't get it wrong, even UAF admits that they were allowed to retreat) instead of slaughtering them all, making both a political statement and realizing they would have nothing to do with so many POWs anyways.
>into territory the Kremlin calls "New Russia"Please, the Novorossiyans call themselves that way, jesus christ, way to twist people's words. But overall good news that no one died, further shows the incoherences in Kiev's behaviour, and how THEY are the ones not wanting to keep the peace alive.
I had also read the Gazprom issue in my free time, it is pretty ironical that EU paints this as totally unacceptable, while literally everything Gazprom did was specifically predicted as consequences in the contract (Idk which lawyers made it, but it must've been incredibly extensive and they deserve big props to actually predict an anti-GDP freefall clause to ask pre-payment, that's truly genius and a very careful move, especially in peace times, no one uses these kind of clauses anymore in international trade), it was allowed to ask for full payment and front payments in case of default. The funniest, I think, is Kiev's irrational support for its company which keeps on saying "We dindu nuffin wrong!", while Gazprom agrees, but say it is only respecting the specific terms of the contract, and pointing out that it asks for a payment they didn't make yet.
Also, interesting to point out that Putin asks for a payment for Eastern gas to Kiev, a place that Kiev, while on one hand stating is legally theirs and orders military strikes on, denies responsibility to account for their national spending with the other hand, further causing dismay and hatred in the East, which has already been denied any pension previously allocated to them, as well as basically any vital governmental public service
yes, even though it was supposed to be reinstated from Minsk agreement, they still didn't (and can't) do shit. But it will be interesting to check what, in case a cutoff is required, Putin will do about the Novorossiyan gas, which already gets reduced pricing on their gas compared to Western Ukraine (pretty funny move, I love Putin more everyday, he really doesn't give a fuck).
Also, damages wouldn't be that bad, some news assessed, as it currently is a soft winter, whether is good these times, and will only get better as Summer approaches, surely it is an overstated "catastrophe", especially when you consider the fact that they wanted to cut off all of Europe mid-winter when temps were the lowest of the winter, a couple months ago.
>This all coupled with the imminent bankruptcy of Ukraine/decline of the Hryvnia appears to be a strategy on Russia's part, I'd wager.Ya, I think it's more of a "we don't give a fuck" statement, saying that if the West wants to play by the book (which they don't, they have no proof of anything they accused Russia of, and still applied arbitrary sanctions), they can be bitches about it as well and not be tolerant towards shitty attitude, it really means they are willing to go far. Shows their strength as a nationalist patriotic nation, more of a statement, like the increased war flights above international waters.
>webm I talked about in last post. fa01f6 No.2440
>>2370>Behold hyperinflation: "Food prices among producers rose 57.1 percent, with the price for grains and vegetables rising 91 percent from January 2014 to January 2015, while the official inflation rate over the period totaled 28.5 percent. Meanwhile, Ukrainian consumers responded to economic difficulties by cutting their spending in hryvnias by 22.6 percent, which amounts to an almost 40 percent decrease in real consumption."Now compare it to Russia. They literally aren't facing any economic problem compared to Ukraine, lol. And if they set up their economy good, they could literally set up a parallel economic world with the Eastern allies in which what the US value the Ruble at has no importance whatsoever (which is already happening), and it would cause the very thing the US has been fighting against to wage this war (killing the petrodollar in the process).
Ya, the block was a bold move, not backed by the PM, pretty stupid, as it will only cause further hysteria and devaluation on the international markets…
They won't fight for Crimea, causing a war for such a stupid thing would probably make an already hesitant EU definitely back off and tell Ukraine to fuck itself and deal with its shits alone, Merkel and Hollande already are shitting their pants over the possibility of being caught in the middle of a US-Russia war.
>>2375>I wouldn't even be against that if they were spreading democracy, or western values. But they're not doing that, NATO is spreading totalitarianism. It has become the evil empire.To get back on my last posts concerning that, anyone believing that USA actually fights for democracy is a fool, they fight for whatever regime they can control. Notice that in Ukraine they fought for the coup, while condemning a similar coup (mostly unnoticed in the Western world except for /pol/) in Yemen, which replaced an UAE/Saudi Arabia ally, allowing its population to get enslaved by the aforementioned countries without lifting a finger, and replacing that asshole with a Shiite rebel government.
>>2378And we all know what is the answer to 1984 :3
>>2395Refer to my previous comment about Arab world, that is the stupidest move they did, also "anti-ISIS coalition" rofl, implying Saudi Arabia didn't help hide important ISIS figures.
>25% of military pocketHoly shit, not the first time I hear the number, but it is always just as impressive every time…
We already had news of the Ministry of Truth, but first big bold public move.
>We thank our information partners for help with spreading this video news.>TheSakerMotherfuck, that is fucking amazing, wow.
>>2400>>2403>>2404Do not forget that most UAF conscripts don't even want to fight, nor fight at all, and only try to fill their hours, are lied to about being medical support when in fact they're the front, are lied to about shooting empty buildings or military positions when in fact they are shooting heavily populated civilian areas, and generally feel so bad about killing their own people they often over/undershoot the coordinates given, and drop bombs on empty hills to not kill anyone. Please watch embed video, really moving, and shows a hidden face of the civil war.
All this could drastically increase the quantity of mental illnesses, we see a lot of mental breakdowns from Ukrainian POWs on youtube, check Kazzura's vids.
fa01f6 No.2441
>>2440>>2409IMF's money is to be used to serve specific purposes only, this is also why they can't use it to pay off their Gazprom debt (can anyone confirm it still is about 2 billion US?), and risk having their gas cut off.
>Guy walks into a store every day>Steals stuff, without the owner doing anything>Finally the owner tells him to fuck of>MUH GENOCIDE!This literally is UK logic, lol.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1075809/No-barbed-wire--hurt-thieves-allotment-holders-told.htmlhttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1217360/Homeowner-puts-electric-fence-house-coming-siege-yobs.htmlNever underestimate NATO's stupidity.
>The Ukrainian government, Western leaders and Nato say there is clear evidence that Russia is helping the rebels with heavy weapons and soldiers.There isn't, and NATO/Ukraine officials have said it a couple times as well, but it reinforces their narrative. The thing is that nobody cares about verifying sources except a couple of pariahs on an anonymous japanese-inspired anime imageboard, which understandably isn't a big threat to them. They understood decades ago that they are considered official sources, and therefore their statements are considered proofs by their own and unique existence, they learned that they could write history however they wanted, and are learning they can do the same with the present and with facts, as long as they repeat them often enough (here's to you, 1984 guy in the thread).
Also, do not worry about the rebels, they have proven to be master strategists, and Zakharchenko has said at the beginning of the Truce that when they would respect it, they weren't fools and would always be ready for a Ukrainian offensive nevertheless. After the Debaltseve massacre, I trust their judgement lol.
>>2429>>2431Gee, posted twice the same video, sorry!
>>2432That's a really bad move considering Donetsk and Mariupol are Rebel's current objectives, but maybe they want to strike back Debaltseve while Novorossiyans are busy fighting in the south? Even though that seems smart on paper, it would just recreate the cauldron situation and lead to another massacre…
>Moscow Was Urged to Annex Crimea Before Ukraine President’s Fall, Report SaysSurely, Jew York Times seems like a credible source, why post such blatant lies? Let's check where they got that from.
Real source links to :
http://www.unian.info/politics/1048525-novaya-gazetas-kremlin-papers-article-full-text-in-english.htmlHmm, I wonder why they would post some unverifiable facts that seems falsified.
>The address of the main office of UNIAN:>01001, Kyiv-1, № 4 Khreshchatyk street And this report from last year comes a day after Ukraine asks its people to lie and wage an information war (
>>2345 ), probably just a coincidence, not like Ukraine already falsified documents to get international community to support them, right? R-right..?
http://rt.com/news/232067-fake-photos-russian-army/Well fuck…
There is also no picture nor scan of the said memo, they didn't even bother falsifying one. Kiev is known to be lying to their people, but come on, that is pretty weak.
>Ukraine's central bank unexpectedly banned most currency trading on Wednesday, only to abruptly reverse the decision overnight, causing havoc in the market for the plunging hryvnia.Hahaha that is actually hilarious, and pretty predictable since the govt wasn't even aware of that ban, rofl, they try to look organized but truth is that Ukraine is in total chaos currently, administration isn't even coherent with itself.
>Implying there actually is a Russian invasionThey just know that if they openly supply arms to Western Ukraine, Putin will do the same to Eastern Ukraine, and they will just lose everything they send, as the people using it are completely incompetent, and the weapons will most likely end up in Rebel's possession, just like these neat 114k/piece radar Rebels seized in Debaltseve, along with 1/4th of all UAF ammunitions.
>"There are many people outside Ukraine and in Kiev who want them derailed," he said. The very Minsk agreement was built in order to fail with the Debaltseve conflict…
>US poll finds more Americans support arming Ukraine governmentOfc, and that is worrying, but understandable given the huge propaganda campaign active in the West, even Canada feels it.
fa01f6 No.2444
RUSSIA GIVING FINANCIAL SUPPORT TO CYPRUS - AKA ALREADY SECURING ITS POSITION CONTROLLING THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN SEA, IN CASE THEY DON'T GET GREECE
>"Russia will continue to provide assistance to Cyprus in liquidating the aftermath of the debt crisis,” Vladimir Putin said. Russia has already given Cyprus a €2.5 billion stabilization loan on favorable terms, the president added.
>Cyprus plunged into economic crisis in 2012 as the financial downturn in Greece spread to Cypriot banks and forced large account holders to accept reductions in the value of their deposits.
>Russia has invested $33 billion in Cyprus, which is more than 80 percent of all foreign investment in the country, the Russian President said. Cyprus has invested $65 billion in the Russian economy.http://rt.com/business/235467-russiacypruscooperationtrade/This is a very good move, because on top of ensuring Cyprus' loyalty towards them in case of a conflict, they also show Greece that there are alternatives to the EU. I would like to see a Greece shift as soon as their extension of the EU bailout comes to an end, I think it could trigger WWIII just as well as another Ukraine coup.
Meanwhile, mere hours after this announcementRUSSIA AND CYPRUS SIGN DEAL ON USE OF MEDITERRANEAN PORTS FOR RUSSIAN NAVYActually lol'd at this one guys, this is so perfect.
>"We signed a number of documents regarding our military cooperation. For example regarding the entrance of our ships to Cypriot ports," Putin told journalists.
>Ties between Russia and the West have plummeted in the wake of the Ukraine crisis, but Putin said the ships allowed to dock at Cypriot ports would mostly be used in international anti-terrorism and piracy efforts.
>"I don't think this should worry anyone," he said.Le ebin anti-terrorism maymay xDD, funny to see Putin uses the same irony Obama does haha, this guy has balls of fucking diamond, and the comment he made reminds me so much of vid posted here
>>2431
>Cyprus, which is heavily dependent on Russian investment, played down Wednesday's deal, saying Russian ships had always had access to its ports. A government source said it was simply the first time access had been spelled out in a separate accord.
>Russia has sought to forge stronger ties with individual members of the European Union, including Cyprus, Hungary and Greece, after the 28-nation bloc, along with the United States, imposed cumulative sanctions on Moscow for its role in Ukraine. Officials in Brussels fear this policy is aimed at weakening EU resolve and preventing a further tightening of sanctions.No, really?
fa01f6 No.2446
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
>>2444Sorry, forgot source for Navy :
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/25/us-russia-cyprus-military-idUSKBN0LT24820150225KIEV INTRODUCES RATIONING AS CURRENCY FREE-FALLS, SEEMS LIKE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS + MARTIAL LAW INCOMING!
>Ukrainian supermarkets have imposed rationing of basic products after the drastic fall in the value of the hryvnia. Restrictions apply for goods such as cooking oil, flour and sugar, Ukraine’s news agency UNN reports Wednesday. Retailers may sell no more than two bottles of sunflower oil, and two packs of buckwheat per customer and, depending on the store, from 3 to 5 kilograms of flour and sugar.
>Stores have also see higher demand for household appliances, as people consider consumer electronics an investment as prices increase on a daily basis, RIA reports. Inflation in Ukraine is expected to reach 27 percent by the end of 2015.Rest of the article isn't news
for us, we already know all that. No other (major western) news source currently report this food rationing.
http://rt.com/business/235375-ukraine-hryvnia-currency-crisis/IRAN BOMBARDS MOCK US AIRCRAFT CARRIER IN NAVAL DRILLS, WEST PISSES THEMSELVESReminder this happens only days after Russia agreed to provide top-notch S-300 AA missiles to Iran (http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/23/us-iran-nuclear-russia-missiles-idUSKBN0LR0MZ20150223)
>Iran has staged naval war games in an important sea channel, including an attack on a mock US warship. Missiles were also fired from the coast around the Strait of Hormuz, which sees a quarter of all sea-transported oil pass through it.
>The exercises saw dozens of gunboats making a beeline towards a built-to-scale American aircraft carrier, before bombarding it with cruise missiles and ballistic missiles. Iranian helicopters also joined in the action, firing two cruise missiles at the 202-meter aircraft carrier.
>The Guard's chief commander, General Mohammad Ali Jafari added that the aircraft carrier had been specially-built last April in order to be destroyed. "The Americans, and the entire world, know that the American Navy is one of our targets, and it will take us 50 seconds to destroy every US warship," Jafari added, the Jerusalem Post reported.LOL HOLY SHIT HAHAHA.
>Iranian gunboats also carried out other exercises during the drills, such as laying sea mines and shooting down a drone. Reports also stated that Tehran fired surface-to-sea missiles, which can travel more than 5km and can avoid radar detection. Iran regularly carries out naval war games in the region, though this is the first time that a mock US aircraft carrier has been used.
>At one point, a camera from state TV panned across a banner which read: "If the Americans are ready to be buried at the bottom of the waters of the Persian Gulf - so be it," a quote from Iran's first Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Reuters reported.
>Iran is keen to assert its influence within the Persian Gulf given the latter’s economic and political importance. Tehran has often said that it is prepared to block the Strait of Hormuz if it ever came under military attack.http://rt.com/news/235391-iran-navy-war-games/Very nice, a declaration of war in answer to economic warfare (such as SWIFT kick) from the USA would be 2-ways, as Iran would immediately but a quarter of the world's oil. Russia is massively self-sustainable, but how long would the EU/NA last without its precious black gold?
Seems like everyone is getting ready over the Earthly chessboard and setting its cards in their place and making sure to have solid alliances where they are needed.
fa01f6 No.2447
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
I read in some article above (or in some other) that OSCE wasn't noticing withdrawal of weapons on either side, or were being denied access to rebel areas (I believe in the Unian link).
Here is to explain a bit how politicised the so-called "international organizations" actually are, hence their total inefficiency in real humanitarian problems to do anything else than provide tons of food and help (aka as a police/regulator). This also probably is why they were denied access to Debaltseve, and is a recurring problem denounced by many international lawyers, the fact that they are completely useless practically even if they look good on paper.
MOSCOW CHARGES - OSCE NOT FULFILLING ITS MANDATE, NEGLECTS UKRAINE!
>In its latest report, the mission of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), said its monitors are unable to verify the withdrawal until both Kiev and the rebels provide comprehensive “inventories, withdrawal routes and concentration points” for their respective arsenals.
>The rebels say they have sent an inventory to the OSCE and that the observers are rejecting invitations to witness the actual movements of the weapons. “Every day they have new conditions to put forward. For instance, [on Thursday] they demanded a concrete route for the artillery. Well, that heavy hardware doesn't travel on the roads, but OSCE monitors wouldn't care to go into the fields,” complained Eduard Basurin, a rebel spokesman.
To be fair, I understand this bit, considering that they have strict safety rules to follow, a conflict is pretty damn fragile and you can't really fuck around in unknown places. On the other hand, they are the OSCE, and neither part wants to make them mad as they have huge political influence internationally, and refusing everything is pretty dumb of their part as well ; I don't doubt they are pretty politicised, either to push for peace at all costs, even if the bad side wins, either from EU pressure, or because of video related argument. Never saw that video before, it's a pretty good video editing of most of the things I wanted to point out in modern journalism, The Newsroom is a great show btw, only saw first season but it was amazing.
>Meanwhile, the OSCE is concerned with the fact that Kiev is not withdrawing weaponry from the demarcation line in Donbass, the Russian Ambassador to the organization, Andrey Kelin, said, RIA Novosti reported. “Ukrainian military forces keep silent for the moment being. They don’t pull out their heavy weaponry and say that a pause is needed. That is what really triggers certain concern of the OSCE as this pause may last indefinitely.” According to Kelin, Donbass self-defense forces said over two days ago that they were ready "to grant access for the mission to the locations where guarded weapons would be stored.”
But you don't see anything in the Western media about it. Instead, everytime Rebels are blamed, its printed in 72pts characters in every newspaper.
>French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius warned on Wednesday that an attack on Mariupol would derail the entire peace process and demanded that Moscow prevent it. "We've told the Russians clearly that if there was a separatist attack in the direction of Mariupol things would be drastically altered, including in terms of sanctions," Fabius said in an interview with France Info radio station.
Read : Mariupol falling to the hands of Novorossiya = WWIII
>He also commented on UK's plan to send military instructors to train Ukrainian troops, a step that’s escalating tension between Russia and the West over Ukraine. “The Britons, who are not part of the discussions, have taken a hardline stance on the situation,” Fabius said in reference to British PM David Cameron's Tuesday announcement. “We have also taken a firm position, but are pushing for the de-escalation of the conflict."
Internal EU incoherences increasing, they are splitting apart. First the EU doesn't agree with US' NATO, now even internally they can't keep a steady position.
>Britain's decision to send troops to Ukraine was hailed on Wednesday by Polish President Bronisław Komorowski, who said it was a step in the right direction and that Poland is keeping its own options open to help Kiev.
Poland can't fucking keep their nose out of any world conflict, can they?
>5:05 in vid related is the biggest point I wanted to make, the fakely two-sided stories, but I strongly recommend watching the whole thing.
fa01f6 No.2448
>>2447Gee, forgot sauce again :
http://rt.com/news/235399-ukraine-osce-weapons-withdrawal/RUSSIA IS ALREADY CONSIDERING A BIPOLAR WORLD, STARTS WORKING ON THEIR AUTONOMOUS SPACE STATIONThis being big news is quite relative, it isn't such a big political/military move in itself, but still is very relevant in the process of sending messages to the world that they are autonomous, and don't rely on them.
>Based on the concept of development of Russian space exploration is based on two key areas:
>- Modernization and increasing the range of domestic space facilities in the framework of the International Space Station (ISS);>- The creation of advanced space facilities for the operation of the national space station and implement programs of deep space exploration.
>The concept involves the use of the ISS until 2024, and then planned to create a Russian space base on the basis separated from the ISS modules. Configuration multipurpose laboratory module (MLM), nodal module (UM) and scientific power module (NEM) to create a promising Russian space station to meet the challenges of providing secure access to the Russian space.Notice the use of the words "secure access" and "Russian space", they are already considering a state division of space, and space warfare.
>The proposed Russian space station would give the country’s space agency a platform to further its goals to explore the Moon, which is a priority for Roscosmos. The agency will look to study the Moon, using robotic equipment over the next decade with the goal of sending manned missions to the moon by 2030, Tass news agency reported the Science and Technology board for Roscosmos as stating. It will be partly built from segments from the old station, as well as adding new ones.
>“Piloting cosmonauts is part of our general space strategy and today with have decided upon our main trajectory,” said Yury Koptev, a representative of the Science and Technology board, Tass reported. “This is through the International Space Station and working towards a lunar program in the Earth’s orbit and in deep space.”Also important, colonization of the Moon, they want to claim it before the US does. The space war took a pause, and the US doesn't care anymore about prestige and big accomplishments because of the liberal spirit + modern "values" of money, immediate pleasure and only aiming towards productivity rather than greatness. Russia starting back the race is a further proof of their rising nationalism/patriotism, wanting to be the best worldwide, achieving great things along useful things. Further reasons to wish for Russia winning the next world war.
>He added that a national space station would be “a step forward” for Russia and may serve “a number of different purposes,” for instance as a transfer point for the Russian lunar exploration program.
>Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who supervises defense-related policies, has said Moscow could discontinue its segment of the International Space Station (ISS) after 2020. He added that “the Russian segment [of the ISS] can exist independently from the American one, but the American segment cannot exist without the Russian.”
>Russia’s decision to continue its cooperation with the International Space Station will come as a relief to the other partners involved in the program. There had been uncertainty whether Russia would continue following western sanctions introduced against the country. Russia is currently the only nation capable of getting astronauts to and from the ISS, following the disbanding of NASA’s space shuttle program.Further proving that in certain fields, such as space travel, rockets, AA, and nuclear amongst others, Russia has never lost its place as number 1 worldwide, which has been increasingly easy considering US shift in the importance/focus of their spendings, more on capitalism and production, and useless purchases to further improve the defence market and private companies, rather than usability and actual effectiveness/scientific research. Great differences between both Empires.
http://rt.com/news/235299-russia-space-station-2024/?utm_source=browser&utm_medium=aplication_chrome&utm_campaign=chromehttps://translate.google.ca/translate?hl=en&sl=ru&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.federalspace.ru%2F21321%2F eeeff1 No.2449
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>And so it begins…
I know it's hard no to laugh at those silly banderists… But bear with me.
eeeff1 No.2452
Oops, same vid
>>2451Ignore that please.
fa01f6 No.2453
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Conflict report announcing invasion of Mariupol already commencingWill not make a big fuss out of this, it's the same dude that shills all over the place against Syria and Novorossiya, incredible biased, and bites in any Western lie, even though they are proven false, like the Russian Tanks invasion pictures, he never admitted they were faked. Anyway, for the sake of what I was ironically condoning in here
>>2448 I'll still give the link to his analysis.
http://conflictreport.info/2015/02/25/silent-advances-the-russian-offensive-towards-mariupol-already-began/Please note that his "confirmed by multiple analysts" links to his own twitter (rofl) saying this :
>#BreakingNews Exactly as I predicted!!30 units incl. 12 tanks arrived in #Yasynuvata. 64 units incl. 5 tanks between #Stepne and #Hranitne.
No sources or anything, we're supposed to believe him. Whatever he must be paid, he's been shilling for a long time, but when he traces back army movement from pictures he's usually correct, so still worthy to be monitored/given the benefit of doubt about these informations, that has been reported all over Eastern Ukraine as well.
https://twitter.com/Conflict_Report/status/569751357231661056Other news.
ESTONIAN PROPAGANDA : ONLY TOURISTS SHOULD SPEAK RUSSIANhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HK_G1MeSLEFunny they do that after saying that Russia is threatening "the entire post-WWII order", and after the US military parade in 2014, they are stirring shit up.
UNCONFIRMED S300 MOVEMENTS REPORTED IN ODESSAhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSaZaZfIHwYBut to be fair, we see Novorossiya movement as well.
LINE OF TANKS MOVING FROM SOMEWHERE TO SOMEWHERE, REPORTED RETREATING, BUT TO TAMPON ZONE, OR TOWARDS ANOTHER FRONT?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-7njYLeWxkWell I don't know what to say about this video, Ukraine claims it moves towards other front, Novorossiya claims it retreats (backed by OSCE), so ya, make of it what you will.
FOLLOWING THE STINKY KHARKOV BOMBING, THE SO-CALLED "TERRORIST GROUP" BY KIEV'S AUTHORITIES, AFTER BEING BLAMED FOR THE ATTACK, DENIES ANY RESPONSIBILITY. EVER SAW A TERRORIST GROUP NOT TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR A TERRORIST ATTACK WHEN THE GOAL IS TO INFLICT TERROR? ME NEITHER!Embed video
>Urgent statement of the Kharkiv Partisans, 22.02.2015 Here is an urgent statement of the Kharkiv Partisans. We, the Kharkiv Partisans, waging guerilla warfare in Kharkiv and the Kharkiv region against the Kiev junta, have nothing to do with the explosion on 22 February 2015 during the march of ATO supporters.
>We, the Kharkiv Partisans, have never planned and are not planning our actions at places of mass gatherings of civilians, irrespective of their political views. We believe that many ordinary Ukrainians are fooled by the mass media of the Kiev junta. As we have stated before, we will not put their lives in danger. Besides, we have reliable information that the bombing of the peaceful march on 22 February 2015 was carried out on Avakov’s order, to impose a state of Anti-Terrorist Operation in the Kharkiv Region.
>Dear people of Kharkiv, a year ago the power in Ukraine was taken by moral morons, sadists and killers who sacrifice ordinary Ukrainians to achieve their goals. And we are all but pawns in their dreadful game. We will win! This has been a statement of the Kharkiv Partisans.We all remember that bombing, pretty senseless for anyone following the events in Kharkov as well, that occurred during a peaceful pro-government march, on feb 22, and the following retardation of the SSU, posting pictures of an arrest related to the bombing on the same day, mid-day, when you could clearly see the arrests being made at night-time, therefore disproving their validity.
Anyways, taken from here, take the rest of the article with a grain of salt, I only transcribed the video as it is legit, the rest is mere speculation, but there are good points, such as who benefits from it, the fact that it is classic Kiev's tactical operation (remember the coup), and the event itself was fishy, as the Kharkov anti-govt movement is actually organized, unlike most "terrorist" organization who just want to spread "terror".
fa01f6 No.2454
>>2453Gee, forgot link again, I'm tired...
http://www.thicktoast.com/kharkiv-bombing-5-reasons-to-suspect-kiev/Maybe you remember me asking for help from /k/ and the initial failure, but we still got some productive answers, even though they have a very dark image of what we are and support.Feel free to redpill/answer them at will, friendly reminder that /k/ommandos are basically one small step from being /pol/acks, and surely the closest thing to us amongst all other boards.
>>>/k/71636
>That weapon in the last vid (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxzJkbg-nqY - Arrest in Crimea on possible terror attack, discussed above and in last thread) is an early AK-74, back when they still made them with laminate wood furniture, before the modernization in the 1990's. It isn't really identifying. Ukraine would probably still have plenty of them left over from when they were a Soviet state. Probably be easy enough to find for the rebels. It isn't Russian military issue, though, I can say that much. They use the AK-74M, the modernized one with the polymer furniture, and they're just moving to use a pair of new rifles now.
>The launcher…that's out of my field of knowledge. Never seen anything like it before. Totally new to me.
>To be fair, Russia also has loads of weapons stocked away (like the heavy machinery the rebels are using), so those AK-74s could be from anywhere really.
>RSHH 1>Wat? No such weapon.
>From the vid (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RT8a0o9JscE) it looks like RShG-1. Russian origin but WIDELY exported 15 year old weapon (entered late 1990s), it's been seen in places like Misrata during the heaviest fighting.
>Do you think this weapon was used to cause the explosion?>The one handled by the soldier in the 3rd embedded vid hasn't been fired, it hasn't even been unfolded.
>People talking about shrapnel as well, which the thermobaric round doesn't have. >It's meant to destroy bunkers and buildings by causing overpressure inside. Completely useless out in the open.Even though we had negative comments, I'd like to thank /k/ommandos for their help nevertheless! Disproves a bit more the official Kiev's narrative towards both the Kharkov bombing, and the use of the rocket launcher, useless outside.
eeeff1 No.2459
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>Testimonies from captured UAF seem to confirm they are completly lied to and neglected.
In this video there is also proof, and exibition of captured NATO equipment. Besides testimonies from POW
eeeff1 No.2460
>>2459And don't be decieved by the thumbnail.
fa01f6 No.2461
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23/02/2015 - ZAKHARCHENKO SUMMARIZES THE CURRENT SITUATION AFTER THE DEBALTSEVE CAULDRONOnly taking important bits of the video, feel free to watch by yourself.Jesus Christ, wrote the whole thing, then closed the tab by mistake, have to restart from scratch. FML.
>DPR mobilization : We are getting 80 to 200 voluntary applications per day, which is going according to plan [they wanted 100k draft to counter the same call from Kiev].
>Heroic behaviour on the battlefield? There was this man and his tank battalion, Alexei Dikiy, covering the retreat of his injured crew members with his burning tank, he destroyed several armored vehicles from the enemy. After he ran out of ammunition, he drove his burning tank towards the enemy trenches, and squashed infantry hiding there. While being under fire from 5 tanks and encircled, not a single of these soldiers fled. Not one.
>AGSman, with one AGS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AGS-17), successfully repelled, alone, 3 infantry attacks. L!FENEWS were filming it, you can see it (can't find a link, video probably isn't out for the public yet).P.S., I previously talked about liveuamap being pro-ukraine, I found the pro-rebel (or just less one-sided, tbh) one, http://militarymaps.info
>With about 30 men loss from the DPR-LPR coordinated forces, Poroshenko is said to be Novorossiya's greatest ally, leaving 130 tanks operational or that can be fixed, 50 artillery guns and countless mortars.
>About 3 thousand Ukrainian soldiers died during the attack, family members are urged to come get their "MIA" or "prisoner" bodies soon, before the dogs gnaw them. We wanted to send them back in coffins, but we figured we could never make enough. About 300 men remain fleeing around the city. Entire trucks full of ammunitions were left behind.
>Poroshenko asking for foreign military aid, as weapons and people, just like if it was done by any other President of any other country, is de facto capitulation. He just admitted not having neither the people nor the arms to be able to wage a war.Basically, some talks about Kharkov being totally illogical for Novorossiya to be a part of, and SSU's weird rapid response, possibly because of their involvement. Not a single point of the Minsk agreement is being respected, gas supplies have been cut, social pensions have not been restored, the autonomy of the East is supposed to come after constitutional change, which isn't coming. They could've just not signed it if they knew they wouldn't respect a single point listed.
>You know, about 2.5 to 3 thousand men were holding the actual fortifications of Debaltseve. We stormed it with less than a thousand men, and it took 2 days to take it. We are still sweeping the city, we keep on finding packs of soldiers hiding like sardines in basements, the sweeping should be done in about a week.And the interview closes with a very moving scene, where a woman, on behalf of the children of the Donetsk rehabilitation center, offers Zakharchenko a painting of him in warfare, opening a door leading to Novorossiya's bright future, as well as an inspiring speech from this leader.
>>2449Holy shit haha, Right Sektor not only having anarcho-communist colours, they also waive around White Pride flag, and are literally represented by skinheads and fatties. This will be priceless when they overthrow Porko.
>>2451I think we should be expecting more and more of these kind of news, I wouldn't be surprised to hear sometime soon that Putin is eating live babies' hearts to strengthens his courage while preparing to invade and conquer all of Europe, remember that Ukraine's ministry of Truth is going full-strength.
>>2459As a Canadian I'm ashamed of our role in this civil massacre. I had seen some parts of the footage in individual videos, didn't know they made a complete report with it, thanks for that anon.
Look at them, ffs, no wonder that voluntary rebels can fight them 1-3 and take 1% of their casualties.
fa01f6 No.2462
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COMMANDER FROM 25th UAF BATTALION EXPLAINS THE TRUTH ABOUT DEBALTSEVE'S CAULDRON : THEY NEVER RECEIVED THE ORDER TO RETREAT
>There was no plan. They only said it was "planned action" because they needed something to say.
>The decision to fall back was a coordinated decision from officers on the field. Neither the General Staff nor sector commander knew anything about it. If they knew, they would've never let them out of there.
>A convoy of [injured] was retreating. When leaving, our soldiers saw they almost all turned into [KIA, Killed In Action]. They saw 4 trucks burnt, full of dead people. They couldn't do anything about it.
Basically, Sector commands are lying pieces of shit, the less HQ knows, the better operations are, people back at commanding offices are total incompetent throwing people to their deaths fighting a useless war.
He then proceeds to map the cauldron, showing how impossible their situation was, and telling that they were basically preparing to surrender, there was no possible defence in such a position. A city captured at about 3 the 9th of February still was seeing people trying to pass through it for half a day, being under heavy separatist fire. HQs and troops lived in different realities.
>The 25th battalion didn't surrender a single one of their position without an order. If they stood their position until the morning, then… These 2.5 thousand soldiers, we would be considering them MIA by now, because we couldn't take the corpses out.
More incoherent shit from Generals, completely messed up backwards retreat on foot, false reports of controlled areas while they didn't control shit, and the list goes on. Feels bad to be UAF man…
fa01f6 No.2464
>>2463Nah, I doubt it, as CloudFlare only is the DDOS protection which probably is what answered to the whois, also the servers location doesn't mean much imho, look at novorossia.today, being hosted/registered in Ontario, and I doubt they are Canada's proxy in this war lol
fa01f6 No.2465
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NOT NEWS-WORTHY, BUT STILL INSPIRING, GIVI BEING CHEERED, GIVING A SPEECH ON FATHERLAND DAY WHILE TAKING CARE OF DONETSK'S RALLY SECURITY
Pretty short video, self-explanatory. People like the silence (aka no more shelling on the city), and Givi says that three [tank?] battalions are moving north of Donetsk.
eeeff1 No.2466
>>2464Yeah. Didn't read much into it.
It's late and I should be sleeping, sorry.
fa01f6 No.2468
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MINISTER OF DEFENCE'S APC ATTACKED WHILE VISITING THE DONETSK AIRPORT - ALIVE AND FINE
>He was attacked by an AA cannon while leaving there, after an inspection. No one was injured, but this attack did in fact take place.
>Heavy weapons are being withdrawn from their current positions to inner regions of DPR and LPR, a good number are already off the front.
>We are ready to provide the OSCE any occasion to record this fact by themselves. We think that in these times of disinformation, their role of monitoring of withdrawal of heavy artillery is extremely important.
>This is why we ask of the OSCE representative to be present during the withdrawal, providing all necessary safety guarantees. We think, in fact, that their control on heavy artillery withdrawal by both sides is necessary.
>If you do find out why OSCE mission do not want to record withdrawal, do tell, because we do not know. They say they need more information, but we have provided all that they ask, and they still aren't retreating.Other related "important" video, Givi and Defence Minister at the airportHe got attacked on the way back from there, after this video :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A60i3yVhgVA
>Vostok surrendered, Givi says he didn't do shit nor attack/conquer it, but they just surrendered
>Proceeds to say hi to the cameraman's dad (lol)>>2466Lol no worries, I try to double-check most of the info coming out, because both sides are pretty fast on conclusions, even when they are right, based on false premises. Like the American support, it is true, as there clearly are videos and pictures of seized American equipment, with english instructions, that cannot possibly have been there before the civil war, but the whois thing is quite silly, even if it pushes towards the right conclusion, the link between cause-effect is missing.
It's also late here, lol, should be sleeping to not fail my midterms over this :/ Almost done anyways.
fa01f6 No.2469
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MOTOROLA, ZAKHARCHENKO AND GIVI AWARDED GOLDEN STARS OF HEROES OF DPRFalls off chair, this was totally unpredictableNo point in transcribing the few things said in the video, worth the short watch, though, it was a big ceremony, on the 23th I believe, which is mentioned in Zakharchenko's speech, here
>>2461 fa01f6 No.2471
File: 1424923861732.png (154.24 KB, 1049x623, 1049:623, what the fuck, translation.png)
>>2469Funny side note, trying to translate a "report" seen on twitter that Ukraine's ex-minister of defence bought a house worth 23 millions, pic related happened to pop up, refusing to close itself. Had to "reload page" while self-restraining internet access to make it longer to load, and while it reloaded, closed the translation window (didn't want to lose my opened tabs :3).
Please note that both the IP and browser are wrong (who uses Jewgle recording literally anything you do anymore, anyways?), if you wish to try it on your own, here is the link, use Google translate (I used .ca), detect language to English, tell me if same happens, very curious.
http://www.tpp-inform.ru/news/19311.htmlAnyhow, for anyone curious, here is what the article said, (couldn't find anything on the story of the 23m house).
Here are some of the events of recent days.
>Psak leaves. "The beauty of what a fool" - regrets and condescending touched by the Russian audience.
>Ukraine pays for Russian gas. Disables supplies Donbass.
>Gazprom supplies gas to New Russia and Ukraine threatens to turn it off.
>Hryvnia dies. Ukrainian supermarkets impose restrictions on holiday goods in one hand.
>Yatsenyuk goes into attack on Poroshenko.
>Ukrainian ex-minister of defense Geletii buys an estate in England for 23 million euros.
>Truce observed. Guns waste. OSCE refuses to fix the LC troops retreat and DNR.
>The Ukrainian side has announced that for the first day did not die no soldier.
>Britain and Poland declare that send military instructors in Kiev, Germany did not send.
>Agency Moody's lowers ratings of Russia to "junk."
>British Prime Minister David Cameron said that the EU sanctions against Russia in any case, should be extended.
>Polish Foreign Minister Grzegorz Shetina readily picks: the project following sanctions "should already be ready and on the table." "Russia should understand that if it allow an attack on Mariupol, these sanctions will be automatically entered", - stressed the Minister.
>He recalls that Russia would have to be disconnected from the SWIFT.
>The head of the European Council, Donald Tusk confirms additional sanctions remain on the table. We are ready for any event, good or bad, he says.
>US Secretary of State Kerry advocates in Congress and said something like this:
>Russia has been the most candid and comprehensive propaganda, which we have not seen since the height of the Cold War. They are very consistent in their distortion of reality lies - no matter how it was called - about their actions in Ukraine. They lied to me several times and other people in the face.
>And then informs that the United States can impose additional sanctions against Russia in the coming days, and the supply of arms Kiev are under active consideration in connection with the aggressive violation of Minsk arrangements.
>Shoigu said about protecting the interests of Russia in the Arctic means of warfare, and the Defense Ministry will build up forces in the Chukotka Peninsula, bordering the United States.
>Russia and Putin is credited with spontaneity and action in response, rather than proactive, no plan. But still, it seems, in the past year, we realized that our opponents are consistent and ruthless. They always stick to their agreements and long-term plans, managing troll "Russian Ivanov" "American Psak." Win against this enemy can only be the same weapon. Any move by Russia is regarded today as hostile. Therefore, ahead of a tough defense of their interests. Now, according to our plan. And there is no trust and underestimation of the opposing party should not be. " eeeff1 No.2472
>>2471I didn't quite understand that image…
fa01f6 No.2474
>>2470Fucking hell Poland, not again… They will never learn.
Meanwhile, in same article
>Russia has been fiercely critical of the US for contemplating sending weapons to Kiev. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov says if Washington was to send lethal aid, it would “explode the whole situation” in eastern Ukraine and Russia would be forced to respond “appropriately.”As predicted, this is the main reason no external force can do anything in the open to help Ukraine, because it will backfire at double the help's strength with Russia's support on the other side. And we all know very damn well there isn't enough help that can go to such a bad military, especially from so far away, when it is on Russia's doorstep…
>However, the head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, Aleksandr Zakharchenko, says that the US has already been arming the Ukrainian armed forces. He told reporters on Monday that the US is already supplying Kiev with ammunition and weapons on a “large-scale basis,” noting that pro-government forces are not looking for peace.>>2472It's a common scam/virus, I believe it was popular in the 2007-2009, a derivative from ZEUS I think, the principle is to lock your computer, encrypt all your data, then ask for ransom delivered to a special bank account in exchange for the unlocking of your things. Also, saying that you did something illegal was supposed to be some kind of moral pressure to do it (the actual initial virus actually downloaded CP and showed the pictures on your screen, so that you really freaked out if you didn't know about it).
This seems to be a very primitive version of it, as it only had a locked pop-up, and was only browser-based. The pretty amazing thing is that it actually occurred on Google Translate, which is very surprising honestly, maybe the initial website is the one infiltrated, but still, pretty good thing, props to whoever made that
even though they will catch basically no-one, as you just have to close the browser and you're okay.
In other news!
SAKER HAS A NEW OFFICIAL BLOG!There are some new articles, pretty interesting, but that I won't bother transcribing, as they are long and it's getting late for me. If someone wishes to do it, they can be easily found on the older blog (I think the layout is more intuitive than the new, maybe I'm just used to it) :
http://vineyardsaker.blogspot.comNevertheless, his new blog is at :
http://thesaker.isBy the way, I did not (and do not) browse CP lol, please to note that this
>>2471 is a scam and a total lie, lol, please do not call the cops on me.
fa01f6 No.2475
File: 1424924958440.png (89.23 KB, 1056x149, 1056:149, pol is the end of the worl….png)
>>2474ANYHOW!
Very tired, and still gotta handle a sleepless night of studying, keep up the good work following these events, anons, really glad to see people caring and at work to discuss this
unlike /pol/.
Glad to have this place to rely on for news now that pol is gone.
0c8a77 No.2489
Kiev trying to invalidate weapons withdraw plan, undermine Minsk deal – militia officials:
http://rt.com/news/235563-kiev-weapon-withdrawal-plan/
>The Organization of Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which has a monitoring mission in the conflict area, said Kiev has so far failed to begin moving its weapons from the demarcation line.“Ukrainian military forces keep silent for the moment being. They don’t pull out their heavy weaponry and say that a pause is needed. That is what really triggers certain concern of the OSCE, as this pause may last indefinitely,” said the Russian ambassador to the organization, Andrey Kelin.
Canada set to wade deeper into Ukrainian crisis as Jason Kenney floats military training mission:
http://news.nationalpost.com/2015/02/25/ivison-ukraine-military-training-mission/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:%20NP_Top_Stories%20%28National%20Post%20-%20Top%20Stories%29
>Canada’s involvement in the struggle for Ukraine is set to deepen, with the revelation by Jason Kenney, the defence minister, that the government is talking to Kiev about a training mission.
>“We’re exploring options actively about assisting Ukrainians with military training … I would say, stay tuned,” he told reporters Wednesday.Ukraine says to start weapon withdrawal if ceasefire holds two days:
http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/180786/ukraine-says-to-start-weapon-withdrawal-if-ceasefire-holds-two-days.html
>"As soon as the insurgents observe the ceasefire for two days, it would be the signal to start the withdrawal," Andriy Lysenko told reporters during a media briefing.
>He accused the pro-independence insurgents of violating the truce regime, saying that in the past 24 hours one government soldier was killed and seven others were wounded in rebel attacks. eeeff1 No.2535
>>2489They are trying to be smart-asses
This couldn't possible go wrong
eeeff1 No.2536
China outpaces America in sub numbers – US admiralhttp://rt.com/news/235651-china-us-submarine-fleet/
>The Chinese Navy now has more diesel and nuclear attack submarines than America does, a US Navy admiral told lawmakers. Some of them are “fairly amazing” and Beijing is exploring new ways of projecting its power on the seas. b892a7 No.2550
>>2447>"We've told the Russians clearly that if there was a separatist attack in the direction of Mariupol things would be drastically altered, including in terms of sanctions," Gee it's almost as if Russia doesn't control the rebels.
eeeff1 No.2558
More from Southfront
Kiev is deploying military equipment in Odessa. Seems it will be next field of so-called "Anti-Terrorist Operation" of Kiev regime.
7a1ceb No.2569
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IN-DEPTH LOOK AT WESTERN MERCS IN UKRAINE1 OUT OF 2 POSTSNEXT POST IS IDENTIFIED MERCENARYHundreds of US mercenaries have been deployed in Ukraine was reported by the German press a long time ago.
http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/ukraine-krise-400-us-soeldner-von-academi-kaempfen-gegen-separatisten-a-968745.htmlDuring a lecture on the Secret Wars of the CIA, given in October 1987, John Stockwell – the highest ranking agent ever to leave the CIA and go public, said:
It is the function, I suggest, of the CIA, with its 50 de-stabilization programs going around the world today, to keep the world unstable, and to propagandize the American people to hate, so we will let the establishment spend any amount of money on arms…John Stockwell spent 13 years in the agency, working directly for then Director of the CIA – George Bush. He seemed to have dropped off the face of the earth around 1991 or so… he has not been heard from, and there has been no clarification of what happened to him since.
The roughly two minutes video below depicts some of the destruction caused by the Ukraine’s shelling of the town of Mariupol. The video was filmed by members of The Azov Battalion – the fake Ukraine nationalist movement that sports National Socialism symbols, but is openly loyal to Israel and is financed by Jewish oligarch Igor Kolomoisky.
7a1ceb No.2570
>>25692 OUT OF 2 POSTSThe foreign mercenary filmed on Azov Battalion video has been identified as Instagram user swampychris30, and more recently identified as Chris Garrett. He’s from the Isle of Man. The rent-a-murderer quickly responded to being identified by deleting the account, but one can still look him up through various other means.
You can for example go to google.com, search for swampychris30 and then switch to images –> it should lead you to this page.
http://www.google.com/search?q=swampychris30&source=lnms&tbm=isch#imgdii=_If you look at the pictures of him in Google cache, and compare them to the guy in the video, you’ll be certain it’s the same guy.
There used ot be a cache of his recent post on Instagram, in which he complains about the food he gets while fighting, and in a comment he expresses a wish for an English breakfast. In another comment, he tags @bbwarehouse, which appears to be a British online shop for body builders. These hints suggested that he was British.
eeeff1 No.2572
>>2569>>2570Thank you for self moderating!
And thank you for your great contribution to this thread. Keep it up.
7a1ceb No.2573
File: 1424965579013.jpg (33.57 KB, 604x395, 604:395, convoy-attacked-lugansk-uk….jpg)
Batman was the code name of one Alexander Bednov, commander of a militia of the Lugansk People’s Republic. Oftentimes his entire unit was referred to as the Batman unit. He was killed on January 1, 2015, when he and his convoy were attacked by Ukrainian forces attempting to arrest him. Being In Lugansk People’s Republic he and his crew are seen as terrorists by Ukraine army. Other bodies found were identified as members “Golden”, “Cat”, “Razor’, “Knight”.
From another individual this was stated:
''Batman wasn’t taken out by Ukrainian forces, but by his own people. Look into it. Members of his battalion believe that Igor Plotnitsky had him whacked out. There is a video out there showing an interview with members of his battalion. They say that LNR forces ambushed him, and didn’t even try to take him prisoner.
The reason given for this in the media is that the LNR forces were going to arrest Bednov for torturing prisoners, but he attacked them, so they had no choice but to take him out. I don’t believe that for a second. Neither that he attacked them, or that they wanted to arrest him for torturing prisoners. No, this was something else, but what? It had to have been one of two things: either he wasn’t going to go along with the program anymore for whatever reason, or there was a rivalry going on, and his rivals convinced others that he was a traitor.
I know that Strelkov is very upset about all this. He thinks that Russian operatives should pull out because they got sold out.''
7a1ceb No.2574
>>2572No problem, check it
>>2573 eeeff1 No.2575
>>2573As far as I know Batman fucked up big time.
They also made statements saying they were independent, after LNR wanted to question them about their activities. They were acused of improper conduct.
Their reaction kinda seems to help prove the accusations.
If some anon has more info on that please post it. If I have the time I might do it myself.
eeeff1 No.2599
India to negotiate free trade zone with Russia-led Customs Unionhttp://rt.com/business/235731-india-russia-customs-union/
>India is to start negotiating a free trade agreement with the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan within the next six months, Indian Deputy Minister of Commerce and Industry Rajeev Kher has said. 0c8a77 No.2623
Sanctions Having a Mixed Effect on Russia, Officials Say:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/russia/2015/russia-150225-afps01.htm
>Regarding the sanctions, the Russian oligarchs "are concerned about the impact it is having on their businesses, on their own financial holdings, but it has not changed so far what Russia has been doing on the ground, and that is the great concern," Wormuth said during her testimony.
>In addition to ongoing military exercises and a stepped-up NATO presence in Eastern Europe, the Obama administration has committed $118 million in nonlethal aid and training to the Ukrainian government in Kiev and a similar amount for fiscal year 2015.
>Wormuth said pressure should continue on all fronts and that stepped-up economic and financial isolation of Russia could prove more effective than providing lethal aid to the Ukrainian government, a move that she said could lead Russia to "double down" on its support for Ukrainian separatists and thereby escalate the conflict.
>Ultimately, Breedlove said, he does not think the Ukrainian military is capable of stopping further Russian advances and that the best resolution to the year-old conflict remains a diplomatic one. Even so, neither he nor Wormuth expressed confidence that a cease-fire agreement reached earlier this month in Belarus – the second such agreement in five months – would hold.Kiev Begins Withdrawal of Heavy Weaponry – Ukrainian Military:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150226/1018785877.html
>"Today Ukraine begins to withdraw its 100-millimeter artillery from the demarcation line," the statement reads. "This first step towards the withdrawal of heavy artillery will take place only under OSCE monitoring and verification."
>The General Staff stressed, however, that the schedule for withdrawal of heavy artillery can be corrected in case of offensive activities from the other side.
>Meanwhile Donetsk and Luhansk forces have been pulling back their heavy weapons for days, in line with the Minsk accords, and have voiced their concern over Kiev's failure to do the same.Situation growing more dire for detained Ukrainian pilot:
http://www.conflictmap.org/r?a=11833740&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.usatoday.com%2Fstory%2Fnews%2Fworld%2F2015%2F02%2F26%2Frussia-ukraine-pilot%2F24050599%2F%3Futm_source%3Dfeedblitz%26utm_medium%3DFeedBlitzRss%26utm_campaign%3Dusatodaycomworld-topstories
>Moscow's City Court turned down an appeal Wednesday to release 1st Lt. Nadiya Savchenko, 33, the Associated Press reported. She is charged in the June deaths of two Russian journalists during a mortar attack on a checkpoint manned by pro-Russian separatists outside Luhansk in eastern Ukraine. She was captured the next day by the separatists.
>She has denied the accusations and began a hunger strike in mid-December to protest her detention.
>"The United States deplores her continued ill-treatment and is deeply concerned by reports of her deteriorating health," State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki said in a statement that called on Russia to honor a deal signed earlier this month that included the immediate release of Savchenko and other Ukrainian hostages.Russia Slams West Over Ukraine Sanction Threats:
http://www.voanews.com/content/russia-slams-western-threats-of-fresh-sanctions-over-ukraine/2659824.html
>Both the United States and some leaders in Europe have threatened to impose tougher sanctions against Moscow if it does not stop supporting pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
>Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Thursday called those threats an attempt to "deflect attention" from the need to follow through on the terms of a cease-fire, which has only recently begun to take hold.
>"Behind these calls are hidden the lack of desire of these actors – the corresponding countries, organizations, the United States, the European Union – to achieve what was laid out in the Minsk agreements," Lavrov said at a news conference. eeeff1 No.2624
I highly recommend reading the full article. I'll post the main points below though.
http://sputniknews.com/analysis/20150225/1018729193.htmlThe Ukrainian military's recruitment efforts are grinding to a halt. Sputnik offers insight into some of the reasons why.
>Reason #1: Pseudo-Patriotism in the West Doesn't Translate to Warm Bodies on the Battlefield in the East
>Reason #2: Anti-War Voices in Ukrainian Society Are Growing Increasingly Louder
>Reason #3: Ukrainians Recognize the War’s True, Terrible Costs
>Reason #4: Russia Remains Unwilling to Close the Door on Ukrainian Refugees
>The Results: Kiev’s Attempts at Using the Carrot Are Being Replaced by the Stick 0c8a77 No.2625
This time around, Russia-Ukraine gas feud is mostly hot air:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/26/us-ukraine-crisis-gas-threat-analysis-idUSKBN0LU1V820150226?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>After months in which Kiev has been faithfully paying for gas and Moscow reliably supplying it under a deal brokered by the European Union, this week has seen the quarrel erupt anew.
>Russia, which has cut off the gas three times in the past decade, including for six months last year, has once again threatened to switch off supplies unless Ukraine sends more money within days.
>But for all the noise from both sides, the natural gas feud which has divided the two neighbors since long before Russian-backed separatists went to war against Ukraine last year is no longer the make-or-break crisis it once was.
>The EU shrugged off Miller's and Putin's threats that cutting off Kiev could cause supply problems for European customers further downstream. Nothing of the sort happened during the six-month shut-down last year.
>Brussels has summoned Russian and Ukrainian officials for talks next week, including over payment for rebel regions. Moscow raised the possibility on Thursday of supplying the rebel areas for free.NATO chief tells Russia to get arms out of Ukraine :
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/foreign/26-Feb-2015/nato-chief-tells-russia-to-get-arms-out-of-ukraine
>NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg warned on Wednesday that any attempt to expand territory held by separatists in Ukraine would be unacceptable and told Russia to withdraw 1,000 items of military equipment from its neighbour's territory.
>“It is important that all parties fully respect the ceasefire and withdraw heavy weapons. “Russia has transferred in recent months over 1,000 pieces of equipment - tanks, artillery and advanced air defence systems. “They have to withdraw this equipment and they have to stop supporting separatists.” 0c8a77 No.2631
Putin’s push into Ukraine is rational:
http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2015/02/25/putin-reaction-ukraine-about-russian-security/uM3Ipc7lWPgWbpiIWBJSxI/story.html
>A hyper-aggressive Russia, in the view of some Americans, is setting off a new and dangerous Cold War. Loud voices in Washington depict the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, as a richly empowered thug who is using his vast resources to lash out against his neighbors, Europe, the United States and the world. In fact Putin is a dangerously weak thug who is desperately trying to prevent the consummation of a Washington-based plan to surround his country with unfriendly forces.
>The immediate reason for American outrage at Russia is its intervention in Ukraine. Washington’s goal is to turn Ukraine and other countries bordering on Russia into political partners. That would bring Western power directly to Russia’s borders. American weaponry already stares into Russia from Latvia and Estonia. If Ukraine can be brought into NATO, as some in Washington openly hope, that would be another step toward the encirclement of Russia.
>All countries try to prevent the emergence of enemies on or near their borders. They seek what geo-politicians call “strategic depth.” It means the seizure, overtly or covertly, of control over enough adjacent territory to protect their homeland.
>Russia knows the value of “strategic depth” as well as any country on earth. It was invaded by Napoleon’s army in the 19th century and by Nazi Germany in the 20th century. The reason it brutally subjugated nations in Eastern Europe after World War II was that it wanted a buffer to prevent history from repeating itself. http://rt.com/usa/235903-clapper-stewart-intel-hearing/: http://rt.com/usa/235903-clapper-stewart-intel-hearing/
>Both intelligence directors brought up Russia and China as the most significant state sources of concern, referring to new weapons systems, cyber commands, and increased confrontation over Ukraine and the South China Sea. Both committee chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) and senior member James Inhofe (R-Okla.) raised questions about arming the government in Kiev against what they termed “Russian aggression.”
>Clapper said the delivery of weapons might prompt a Russian reaction that could “further remove the very thin fig leaf of their position” that Russia was not involved in Ukraine. Prompted by McCain, he stressed he was personally in favor of sending weapons, but stressed that would be a policy decision, not an intelligence one. 0c8a77 No.2632
>>2631Shit, that second one should be:
US intel chiefs see threats, danger everywhere:
http://rt.com/usa/235903-clapper-stewart-intel-hearing/ eeeff1 No.2633
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
South Front
26.02.2015 Ukrainian crisis news
>1) Hryvnia free fall, NBU Limited Access to Foreign Currency
>2) Minimum Wage in Ukraine Lower than in Zambia
>3) 50 Shades of Trolls
>4) The Ordinary Official Gontareva
0c8a77 No.2634
>>2633What’s the Catch? Poland Gets ‘Free’ US Armored Military Vehicles:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150226/1018813507.html
>The Polish Army has received 45 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles, all donated by the US government. The vehicles are barely used. Each has driven less than 3,000 kilometers, and in total, the MRAP’s are estimated to be worth over $7.5 million.
>“In the short term, the equipment will be used in exercises, military training, and when necessary, in combat,” General Lech Majewski, General Commander of the Armed Forces and Types of Special Forces, said at a press conference on Wednesday.Saakashvili, Nuland Discuss Ukraine Crisis In Washington:
http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-saakashvili-nuland-us-crisis-russia/26871674.html(small article)
>A U.S. State Department official says former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili met with Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland in Washington this week to discuss the Ukraine crisis.
>Saakashvili, an adviser on reforms to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, said this week he is meeting with dozens of officials in Washington to advocate for U.S. arms supplies to Ukraine in its standoff with pro-Russian separatists.
>In the February 24 meeting, Nuland "expressed our continued commitment to supporting the Ukrainian government’s efforts to root out corruption and promote economic development," the official told RFE/RL in emailed comments on February 26.
>U.S. Senator Benjamin Cardin (Democrat-Maryland), who met with Saakashvili on February 25, told RFE/RL that he believes the former Georgian president’s visit to Washington has helped "underscore the importance of Ukraine in having the capacity to defend its borders."Kerry To Meet Russia, Iran FMs Next Week:
http://www.rferl.org/content/article/26871632.html
>U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will meet with his Russian and Iranian counterparts in Switzerland on March 2.
>Kerry will hold talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the Ukraine crisis, less than a week after Kerry accused Russian officials of "lying…to my face" about Moscow's support for pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.Ceasefire holds in eastern Ukraine except for Mariupol region:
http://www.euronews.com/2015/02/26/ceasefire-holds-in-eastern-ukraine-except-for-mariupol-region/
>“We noticed almost no shelling In the directions of Luhansk, Debaltseve and Donetsk, but in Mariupol and in particular in Shyrokino, 20 kilometres from the city we observed frequent shooting at our positions. There were attempts to storm ATO forces’ positions, and in the village of Shyrokino itself,” said the Ukrainian Army spokesman Aleksander Motuzianyk.
>The Russian-backed rebels were also on the move, but they claimed they had no information about any Ukrainian withdrawal of heavy weapons from the frontline.
>“We continue to receive worrying intel of the Ukrainian military reinforcing their positions and regions along the front line. The situation towards Mariupol also remains restless near Shyrokino, where our positions came under fire over the last 24 hours from National Guard positions,” said the self-styled Donetsk Peoples Republic spokesman Eduard Basurin. 0c8a77 No.2636
And here's a two day old article I found (pretty sure it wasn't posted):
U.S., Russia Clash Over Ukraine At UN:
http://www.rferl.org/content/united-nations-ukraine-united-states-russia-/26865451.html
>The United States and Russia traded accusations, mainly over the conflict in Ukraine, at the UN Security Council on February 23. Basically, US and Russia are calling each other out; Ukraine and Lithuania are backing US, obviously.
>China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said "antiquated thinking, such as the Cold War mentality and zero-sum games, should have long been thrown into the trash bin of history."
>China had organized the ministerial meeting of the UN Security Council to assess the operation of the United Nations as it nears its 70th anniversary. 58036b No.2641
>>2444Something that i find interesting is how russia is taking advantage of turkey's exposure to isis. Would turkey really not say anything about this if isis weren't around? Have there been any official responses from turkey regarding this decision? (for those who don't know, turkey controls the north-eastern half of cyprus and has since the 1970s)
Has the uk also responded to this or are they also too pre-occupied with isis?
a5ff35 No.2646
>>2371Wow, that's Dutch armour.
Feels mixed feelings man.
0c8a77 No.2648
ECB Warns UK: Excluding Russia From SWIFT "Could Undermine Confidence In The Whole System":
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-02-26/ecb-warns-uk-excluding-russia-swift-could-undermine-confidence-whole-system
>A SWIFT exclusion of Russia as a sanction against the EU-Ukraine Moscow because of the crisis had last been suggested by British Prime Minister David Cameron. Nowotny said he had spoken with EU Commissioner for Economic Affairs Pierre Moscovici… the question of the Russia-EU sanctions.
>"I pointed out that one has to be very careful here," the governor said. Exclusion of Russia from Swift "we would see as very problematic because it could potentially undermine confidence in this system as a whole". fa01f6 No.2650
>>2641Turkey would never say anything about it, anon. For all I'm concerned, Turkey is pretty damn self-centered, and currently a member of NATO (for like over half a century), isn't it? One thing to understand in the Turkey-Russia relationship is that Imo it looks a bit like China-India current relationship, but a bit less tense.
They don't really give a fuck about each other, and given a chance would maybe tear each other apart, but are too damn close and important/would cause too much military damage to even consider any hostilities between the two.
I mean Russia is creating tremendous amount of jobs in Turkey, just that new pipeline from a couple of months ago, how many billions was funnelled directly into Turkey's government jobs from Russia? And Turkey has always been seen from the Russian side as someone they could rely on, they even said that moving the pipeline out of Ukraine and through Turkey would allow them to watch the gas shipments up until the Greek border, meaning they plan on following it close-up all through Turkey, implying clease tightly-knit relationship.
Also, I don't want to seem paranoid, but do take a trip in Syria's thread on polpol, for all I'm concerned, Turkey pretty much loves ISIS and isn't threatened for shit by them, hell they even used the opportunity to raid Syria (literally was a declaration of war) and steal a historical tomb from there. Also, money and "us support of "moderate" rebels" is funnelled through Turkey (and ISrael, but no1 talks about that).
I doubt Turkey cares very much, I doubt they are preoccupied with ISIS either (except being preoccupied helping them if that's what you meant), Russia pretty much would be allowed to place a big part of its military in Turkey if it wanted and I doubt they'd say anything lol, Turkey will be amongst the first countries to ditch NATO in case of conflict, imo, they would just get ran over by the russian army before even noticing what happened.
Do not forget Russian is very pro-Assad, so relations are already tense between Turkey and Russia, or at least borderline neutral, adding to the fact they're a NATO member, and the proximity makes the chances of Turkey being the first death in a conflict very high, so I'm pretty sure Turkey will be smart about this and say fuck off to the US and save its badly NATO positioned geopolitical ass.
Nice contrib00ting to thread, will read and comment as I see ( comments/discussions are nice, besides a live news feed guys ;) )
ffbd77 No.2654
File: 1425012244446.jpg (43.89 KB, 650x433, 650:433, 134384-action-man-vladimir….jpg)
>>2645B A S E D
But the fuck happened to the Shanghai Composite?
0c8a77 No.2670
Gazprom data shows Ukraine paid $15mn for March supply – energy minister:
http://rt.com/business/236019-gazprom-naftogaz-russsia-gas/
>Ukraine’s Naftogaz has transferred $15 million to Russia’s Gazprom, averting the risk of delivery disruptions to Kiev and Europe, Russian Energy Minister Aleksandr Novak has said referring to Gazprom. The money hasn’t yet reached Gazprom, he added.
>“…we know that Gazprom data shows that Ukraine transferred $15 million, but the money hasn’t yet reached Gazprom,” Novak said Friday.
>Given the current deliveries to Ukraine and the volume prepaid by Ukraine, Kiev now has enough gas to last only until the end of the week, Novak added. Police disperse protesters at Ukraine National Bank:
http://www.panorama.am/en/society/2015/02/27/kiev-bank-protest/
>Earlier, media reports said that police used riot batons to disperse a rally at the building of the National Bank of Ukraine while the protesters’ tents were pulled down with bulldozers, some of the protesters were injured.
>The protesters have been demanding resignation of Ukraine’s National Bank Governor Valeria Gontareva and her first deputy Alexander Pisarchuk for several days.Deep mistrust threatens Ukraine's shaky ceasefire:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/ukraine/11438587/Deep-mistrust-threatens-Ukraines-shaky-ceasefire.html
>From these trenches, the war in eastern Ukraine is seen in almost exact mirror image to that in the west: it is the Ukrainians on the other side who started the war; it is they who are still violating the ceasefire; and it is the Americans, not the Russians, who are stoking the conflict by arming proxies.
>“The Ukrainians will not keep to the Minsk agreement, we are certain of it - Poroshenko does not want peace,” said the separatist commander in charge of this stretch of the front line.
>“It’s all a lot of nonsense this stuff about Russians here. I wear a Russian flag shoulder patch because I like that country, I used to take my holidays there. If there are Russians here they are volunteers. We’re all locals, and we’re fighting for our land.”
>There is evidence of Russian involvement in eastern Ukraine, but it is also true that, contrary to some statements from Kiev, many of the fighters on the separatist side are locals, and fighting for what they see as genuine grievances against the government in Kiev. >>2650Sorry, I normally don't have much to add in discussions; I'm not sure why no one else is posting.
eeeff1 No.2691
>>2670>Sorry, I normally don't have much to add in discussions; I'm not sure why no one else is posting.That is really weird. Ukraine threads used to be the ones with most movement.
Maybe the usual posters are busy? Now its friday so maybe we will se a return.
eeeff1 No.2701
BREAKING NEWS
>Spanish police arrested eight people who fought for Novorossiya, writes "El Pais".The arrests were made in Asturias, Catalonia, Extremadura, Murcia, Navarra and Madrid. As the newspaper said, the detainees are accused of murder, possession of weapons and explosives, as well as actions against the interests of Spain. The police operation was the result of several investigations under the guidance of the National Court of Spain.
Would seem to be the comrades of the International Brigade Carlos Palomino Brigade which operated in the Vostok Brigade.
http://politica.elpais.com/…/actuali…/1425026528_611328.html 0c8a77 No.2704
Russia's Khodorkovsky: Putin is a 'naked king' facing economic ruin:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/26/us-russia-khodorkovsky-idUSKBN0LU29K20150226
>"Putin with bare chest isn't a mighty leader: He is a naked king," Khodorkovsky, once Russia's richest man who was arrested in 2003 after falling foul of Putin only to be released in 2013, told an audience in London.
>In a message which is likely to anger the 62-year-old Kremlin chief, the former tycoon also called on the West to build ties with opposition groups in expectation of an end to the Putin era.
>"Tomorrow when the regime changes you will have to build a relationship and you will have very little time," Khodorkovsky, 51, told an event organized by Chatham House policy thinktank. Deaths shake Ukraine truce; Poroshenko wary of Russian threat:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/27/us-ukraine-crisis-poroshenko-idUSKBN0LV0SZ20150227?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>Ukraine on Friday reported the first deaths in three days in east Ukraine and President Petro Poroshenko said Russia would pose a "military threat" even if a ceasefire holds.
>Government troops fighting pro-Russian separatists in the east began towing artillery away from the front line on Thursday, a sign the truce meant to begin on Feb. 15 could at last be taking effect.
>But Kiev's military later announced the deaths of three servicemen in the past 24 hours, following two days with none.
>"Even under the most optimistic scenario … the military threat from the east would unfortunately remain," Poroshenko said in a televised speech, in a clear reference to Russia. >>2701They're being charged for volunteering in a conflict that isn't anywhere near Spain? Well shit.
0c8a77 No.2705
Chinese diplomat tells West to consider Russia's security concerns over Ukraine:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/27/us-china-ukraine-idUSKBN0LV0H120150227
>Qu Xing, China's ambassador to Belgium, was quoted by state news agency Xinhua late on Thursday as blaming competition between Russia and the West for the Ukraine crisis, urging Western powers to "abandon the zero-sum mentality" with Russia.
>He said the "nature and root cause" of the crisis was the "game" between Russia and Western powers, including the United States and the European Union.
>He said external intervention by different powers accelerated the crisis and warned that Moscow would feel it was being treated unfairly if the West did not change its approach.
>His comments were an unusually public show of understanding from China for the Russian position. China and Russia see eye-to-eye on many international diplomatic issues but Beijing has generally not been so willing to back Russia over Ukraine."Panic Must Be Stopped" Ukraine Central Bank Head Says, Boosts Capital Controls:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-02-27/panic-must-be-stopped-ukraine-central-bank-head-says-boosts-capital-controls
>The problem is that the ramp will certainly not continue once the latest buying spell is exhausted, now that all confidence in the Ukraine currency is now lost, and the central bank has effectively assured of an unhappy ending with statement such as “Panic must be stopped and we are doing that now,” Gontareva said. “For the time being, we are working not on canceling restrictions, but on new ones."
>Needless to say, there is nothing that creates more panic than warning "panic must end or else…"
>And as we noted in the "Endgame" article, Ukraine now faces an even bigger problem: running out of cash.Ukraine Left Behind as Russian Stock Gains Are Unmatched:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-26/ukraine-left-behind-as-russian-stock-gains-are-unmatched
>Russia is emerging as the world’s best stock market after putting in the worst performance last year. For neighboring Ukraine, the second-biggest loser in 2014, there’s no sign of such a turnaround yet.
>Russia’s dollar-denominated RTS Index has soared 15 percent in 2015, while the Ukrainian Equities Index is last in dollar terms among 93 markets tracked by Bloomberg after tumbling 49 percent. The divergence contrasts with 2014, when the two benchmarks sank to the bottom together, losing more than 40 percent amid an investor exodus following President Vladimir Putin’s annexation of Crimea one year ago. 0c8a77 No.2708
Pic is something I saw in livemapua; we might see English news of it tonight or tomorrow.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces will leave eneough (sic) units and equipment along the line of contact to react to a possible ceasefire violation:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150227/1018828587.html
>Ukrainian forces will leave enough forces and equipment on the line of contact in case the current ceasefire is breached, the head of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s information technologies department said Friday.
>“The Armed Forces of Ukraine will leave enough forces and equipment along the line of contact in case of a [ceasefire] breach by the terrorists,” Serhiy Halushko said.‘Ukraine crisis could’ve been avoided if proper decisions were made in 80’s’:
http://rt.com/op-edge/236151-ukraine-nato-crisis-russia/RT interview with Lt Cdr Martin Packard, former NATO intelligence analyst, here's a fragment of the beginning to get a gist of it:
>RT: How was this situation avoidable?
>MP: Well, I worked in and with Russia from 1986 to 1991 and there was an extremely strong wish as far as I could understand at that time to achieve a closer relationship with Europe and a gradual linkage with Europe. And I was asked to help in this process. The US saw that as something that was dangerous for their long-term economic interests. And the danger was just as much in Europe tying up with Russia as it was with Russia tying up with Europe.
>RT: So are you saying that the US convinced Europe that Russia was an economic threat?
>MP: No, I’m saying that the United States saw or imagined that a democratic Russia, which I was told was on the cards for 1991, if that democratic Russia tied up with Europe that would present a long-term economic threat to the United States. And that was how Washington saw it, and that triggered the Washington’s very virulent opposal to…this process of Russia moving away from its old history from 1986 almost into 1991 when it was expected to have much closer tie-up with Europe. And that was very much blocked and thwarted by Washington. 7a1ceb No.2709
>>2705I don't into economic words very well
wtf is pic related "Hryvnia"
fa01f6 No.2710
7a1ceb No.2711
>>2710O-oh..
That's an interesting word for money.
0c8a77 No.2712
>>2711Pic related.
Wesley Clark: Remember Rwanda. Arm Ukraine:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2015/02/26/wesley-clark-balkans-putin-aggression-ukriane-us-role-column/23953497/
>In the old days of the post-Cold War world, the U.S. learned the hard way that when we could make a difference, we should. In Rwanda, we didn't, and 800,000 died. In Bosnia, we tarried, and more than 100,000 died and 2 million were displaced before we acted. It's time to take those lessons and now act in Ukraine.
>In Ukraine today, Russian-backed forces continue to reinforce and attack Ukrainian positions. The Minsk II agreement that calls for a cease-fire, pullback of heavy weapons, and withdrawal of foreign forces hasn't been implemented. Losses on both sides are heavy, far heavier than publicly acknowledged. Russia is using its newest equipment — tanks, long range rockets, cluster munitions, drones, electronic warfare — to slowly grind away Ukrainian forces that lack modern equipment. Russia, of course, still denies its troops are present: This is "hybrid warfare," military aggression covered by the cloak of lies and propaganda. But, actually, except perhaps for a few stubborn European diplomats, there is surprisingly little dispute as to the facts.'Lotta warmongering going around.
0c8a77 No.2714
Rougly google translated:
Ukrainian security officials said about 16 new cases of ceasefire violation in the Donbas:
http://www.gazeta.ru/social/news/2015/02/27/n_6966821.shtml
>Ukrainian security officials reiterate that their positions were shelled , despite acting in the Donbass ceasefire .
>"From 9 am criminals 16 times violated the silence near the Donetsk airport " - said in a statement on the official website of the press center Ukrainian military raid in eastern Ukraine .
>Press center also noted that for several days in a row in the area of special operation " has been a significant decrease in attacks on Ukrainian position ."OSCE officials say Ukraine is at crossroads of war and peace:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11409494&ref=rss
>Ertugrul Apakan, head of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine, told the U.N. Security Council that in recent days combat operations have been significantly reduced across the conflict zone in the east, and some heavy weapons have been withdrawn.
>But he said there has still been some firing around Donetsk Airport " recently seized by Russian-backed separatists " and the government-controlled southeastern port of Mariupol.
>Heidi Tagliavini, the OSCE's lead figure at talks on the latest cease-fire and peace process, said the current moment "may become a tipping point in the Ukraine conflict."Some 200 Volunteers Join Donbas Forces Every Day - Donetsk Leader:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150227/1018852905.html
>Some 200 volunteers are joining the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic's forces on a daily basis, DPR leader Alexander Zakharchenko said Friday.
>"The inflow of volunteers continues — up to 200 people every day, it remains steady," Zakharchenko said at a news briefing in Donetsk. 0c8a77 No.2715
Bulgarian President says Putin wants to ‘blow (up) the EU from inside’:
http://www.euractiv.com/sections/europes-east/bulgarian-president-says-putin-wants-blow-eu-inside-312512
>During a visit to Brussels, the President of Bulgaria, a country which depends on Russia for over 90% of its gas supplies, accused Vladimir Putin of planning to destroy the EU from the insideAnti-Maidan Activists Picket RFE/RL Offices In Moscow:
http://www.rferl.org/content/moscow-protest-rfe-russia-ukraine-media/26873190.html
>Dozens of young activist belonging to an anti-Maidan movement in Russia have protested in front of RFE/RL's offices in Moscow.
>The young people gathered at RFE/RL's bureau in the Russian capital on February 27 with placards and large pictures of cookies with the slogans: "Radio Liberty Is a Liar," "The State Department's Cookies for Liars," and "Cookies from Obama."Russian President Putin cuts staff's salaries by 10%:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-31657633
>The move is presumably meant to set an example, as Russia enters difficult economic times, the BBC's Sarah Rainsford in Moscow reports.
>It is all part of a broader austerity drive, she says, as Russia's income has shrunk along with the falling oil price. Western sanctions over the Ukraine conflict are also biting. 0c8a77 No.2716
>>2708Dubai’s deal with Kiev includes no weapons supplies – UAE Foreign Ministry:
http://rt.com/news/236319-uae-ukraine-weapon-supply/
>“An agreement on cooperation in defense technologies the UAE and Ukraine signed recently does not stipulate any contracts for deliveries of weaponry to the Ukrainian side,” said Faraj Faris al-Mazrouei, adviser to UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan. d5cfc3 No.2717
>>2715Bulgarian here. Our president is a retard.
But we can't really do much about it, the only OK party is heavily Pro-EU and would follow whatever the EU says. Even if its the most retarded thing and even if it'll hurt us, we'll follow it… The biggest example is us denying South Stream, because the EU said so.
The ones that are pro-Russia are the ex-communists, which has basicly become Sweden 2.0 trying their best to increase the gypsy population, and one of the "nationalist" parties which decided to make a coalition with the ethnic turkish one… There isn't really a good pro-rus or even better - a neutral party, which forces the people to vote for the pro-EU based on the "lesser evil" idea.
We're really fucked :(
*Anyway:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-02-27/china-just-sided-russia-over-ukraine-conflictIt appears China has finally put up a stance on this conflict.
>Today we finally got the answer, and the winner is… pic related
>Xinhua reported that late on Thursday Qu Xing, China's ambassador to Belgium, was quoted as blaming competition between Russia and the West for the Ukraine crisis, urging Western powers to "abandon the zero-sum mentality" with Russia.
>Reuters' assessment of Xing speech: "an unusually frank and open display of support for Moscow's position in the crisis."
>As noted above, China has long been very cautious not to be drawn into the struggle between Russia and the West over Ukraine's future, not wanting to alienate a key ally. And yet, something changed overnight, with this very clear language, warning some could say, that China will no longer tolerate Pax Americana, and even the mere assumption of a unipolar western world, let alone the reality.
>On Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused Western powers of trying to dominate and impose their ideology on the rest of world. The United States and European delegations slammed Moscow for supporting rebels in eastern Ukraine.
>Qu said Washington's involvement in Ukraine could "become a distraction in its foreign policy".
>And then, Qu's slap in the face of Obama: "The United States is unwilling to see its presence in any part of theworld being weakened, but the fact is its resources are limited, and it
will be to some extent hard work to sustain its influence in external
affairs."
Huehue
0c8a77 No.2719
>>2717>Bulgarian here. Our president is a retard.Remember it could be worse: you could be an americlap.
>>2717
>It appears China has finally put up a stance on this conflict.Yep, and even better:
>>2636
>China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said "antiquated thinking, such as the Cold War mentality and zero-sum games, should have long been thrown into the trash bin of history."
>China had organized the ministerial meeting of the UN Security Council to assess the operation of the United Nations as it nears its 70th anniversary.Maybe the UN is going to be seen as a failure and disbanded like it's precursor: the League of Nations.
0c8a77 No.2720
From Ilya Yashin's twitter:
Nemtsov shot. He's dead.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilya_Yashinhttps://twitter.com/IlyaYashinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_NemtsovA Putin critic reported to be dead almost a day after this article is released:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/26/us-russia-khodorkovsky-idUSKBN0LU29K20150226I'm not insinuating Putin had a part in this, but it is suspicious.
0c8a77 No.2721
>>2720Confirmation from RT:
http://rt.com/news/236363-nemtsov-killed-politician-moscow/Nemtsov's Wikipedia also claims it was before an anti-crisis rally (Ukraine related?); that's unsubstantiated so far, though.
0c8a77 No.2723
Prominent Russian Politician And Putin Critic Shot To Death In The Center Of Moscow:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-02-27/prominent-russian-politician-and-putin-critic-shot-death-center-moscow
>Just nine hours after tweeting "Putin annexed Crimea and is now handing over Siberia to the Chinese," and three ours (sic) after calling for a "Russian Spring" march, prominent Vladimir Putin critic and former deputy prime minister (in March 1997 Nemtsov was appointed First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, with special responsibility for reform of the energy sector), Boris Nemtsov, was killed in the center of Moscow.
>The question now: who did it - a retaliation or a provocation, and if so - who is behind it and why? And of course - how will PUtin respond?
>One thing is certain: the full weight of the western media will fall like a ton of bricks on Putin and on what has already been described as Russia's descent "into darkness." eeeff1 No.2724
>>2723There is a big chance it is a false flag to try and trigger a Russian "Maidan"
0c8a77 No.2725
>>2724Goddamn, this is getting crazy. So the way this could play out is:
Putin is accused of assassinating the opposition and a new Putin critic is championed by Western media as trying to bring democratic change to Putin's regime. Mass protests flood Moscow's Red Square in remembrance of Nemtsov and to push for change in the government. Obviously, this would lead to large coverage in the media about these protests - the goal to convince the Russian public to cast Putin from his office.
0c8a77 No.2726
>>2725Just realized that this also could just be a play for western/US media to convince their respective populations that we need to do something about Putin (read: send arms to Ukraine). The issue is that this can easily lead to hot war if the populations become too hawkish.
fa01f6 No.2727
>>2724>>2725>>2726It is obviously a false-flag, and The Saker predicted it as well iIrc, but let's not forget that the Russians are pretty tightly-knit, and that Putin's approval has never been higher. The western already tried making a big deal out of that Pro-Kiev protest that wanted to take place, led by a (literally) criminal opposed to Putin, but failed to make it big, now they're trying again.
I doubt the people will stand against Putin, but then again, it was the same shit in Maidan, not so many people were actually against the regime, but they got funded like crazy to take massive visibility.
Now, Russia is another thing. It has incredibly capable secret services and police to watch around for that kind of bullshit, and I think Putin has been waiting that kind of event and preparing for it for a while now. I think they will manage to scare the people a bit, and mostly piss off Putin, they are fuelling the reasons for a WWIII.
d88e13 No.2729
>>2353That Stephen Cohen video was a good watch, thank you for linking it. I legit lol'd at the end, however, when that last guy got up to ask his "questions."
The summary for those who missed it is that at the end of the question session following the talk, this Ukr guy wearing a camo jacket with Ukraine patches gets up, says he worked for Voice of America half of his life, accuses Cohen of not telling the truth (for example, there is no separatist movement, Putin just wants to destroy Ukraine), emits a nonsensical stream of factoids for 5 full minutes, then asks Cohen what he himself describes as a leading question.
Cohen looks at the dude and says how crazy it is that when he has been giving talks about this topic lately, random people from the Ukraine Patriot's Association or whatever show up do this exact same thing.
Lol, shillin' ain't just for forums.
fa01f6 No.2731
>Nemtsov’s assassination comes just one day ahead of the Vesna (“Spring”) opposition rally slated for March 1 in Moscow.
>Russian President Vladimir Putin was “immediately informed” about Nemtsov’s assassination, presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov told RT.
>“Putin has stressed that this brutal murder has all [the] signs of a contract murder and is extremely provocative,” Peskov said.http://rt.com/news/236363-nemtsov-killed-politician-moscow/Really look like a false-flag to me.
fa01f6 No.2732
>Gazprom wants Ukraine’s Naftogaz to confirm it is refusing to prepay for gas, as long as Russia supplies fuel to Donbas. If Kiev doesn’t pay, Russia may stop supplying Ukraine by Saturday.
>The head of Gazprom Aleksey Miller sent a letter to the head of Naftogaz Andrei Kobolev Wednesday, in which he demanded confirmation from Kiev that the latest prepayment for Russian gas would only be made should Gazprom stop supplying the Donbas region, reports Kommersant.
>A new gas standoff between Russia and Ukraine broke out last week when Kiev suspended gas supplies to Donbas, saying it was due to damage caused to the pipelines. After that Gazprom started supplying gas 12 million cubic meters of gas a day directly to the republics of Donetsk and Lugansk.
>On Wednesday Russian President Vladimir Putin said that should Russia not get a prepayment from Kiev Moscow will stop its supplies which "may threaten transit to Europe.” He also assured that Gazprom is fully complying with the contract signed in 2009. He said the suspension of gas supply to a war zone by Ukraine “smells like genocide.”
>"Either Ukrainian authorities consider it [Donbas – Ed.] their territory and bear the responsibility for the situation, or it isn’t so. Let them then openly say it."http://rt.com/business/235655-ukraine-delay-prepayment-gas
>Gazprom is ready to separate gas supplies to Ukraine and Donbas, said company spokesman Sergey Kupriyanov, as an energy standoff between Moscow and Kiev escalates.
>"At the moment we are ready to take gas supply to Donbas out of the discussion. We are ready to deliver the volume required by Naftogaz at the specific entry points," added Kupriyanov.
>On February 19 Ukraine suspended gas supply to Donbass saying the reason was the damage of the pipeline. After that Russia began separate gas deliveries to Donbass saying that a delay in prepayment by Ukraine may threaten further supplies of Russian gas to the country.http://rt.com/business/235723-russia-ukraine-donbas-gas/
>The people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk will introduce a multi-currency financial system using the US dollar, euro and yuan. This is to shield against the free fall of the domestic currency, the hryvnia, and the “economic blockade” by Kiev.
>Plotnitsky said this will be a “temporary measure”until it becomes clear whether the republic will use the hryvnia in future, or look for other options. The self-proclaimed Republic of Donetsk has already put several foreign currencies into circulation. "We allow several currencies – dollars, as well as euro and Chinese yuan,” said the Donetsk Republic envoy Denis Pushilin at a news conference. He said printing their own currency is a very expensive process and it’s not worth it at present.
>"We’ve got economic potential. The enterprises on our territory have this potential. We’ve already declared the mechanism of getting out of the difficult economic situation,” he said suggesting that Russian businesses build ties with Donetsk industry.http://rt.com/business/235747-donetsk-lugansk-currency-market/ a688a9 No.2733
>>2731could be maneuvering for a attempted coup
0c8a77 No.2734
US, UK meddling in OSCE’s mandate in Ukraine – Russia's envoy to UN:
http://rt.com/news/236371-osce-mandate-us-uk/
>During the meeting, Washington and London were trying to “re-write” the Minsk agreements and somehow “lecture the OSCE on what to do,” Churkin said, adding the ideas proposed were “out of scope of the existing mission mandate.”
>One of the proposed ideas was for the OSCE to monitor the entire Russia-Ukraine border. “There are Minsk agreements in place, where the question of borders is explained. Why would this question be brought up at the UNSC? All of this is probably to add psychological pressure and divert attention,” Churkin said.
>Another issue raised was the type of resources the OSCE might need, Churkin said. “…It is not the role of the UNSC to discuss the supply [of] those resources, the OSCE Permanent Council is charge of that.”
>The UN envoy added that there have been calls for peace and adherence to the Minsk agreements, but they were largely overshadowed by out-of-scope suggestions. fa01f6 No.2735
>>2732>>2733Yup. I think it is, the timing is just too perfect for the US media to spin this one out of control, and even Obongo did a statement regarding this (wtf, why is America always making statements about literally everything)…
Anyhow, I think it is quite interesting to look at both the internal economics of Russia and the relationship/economic stance of Novorossiya, which is starting to go international and do its own buisness by itself, no matter what Kiev plans to do, they are already pretty much autonomous by now, and don't rely on them anymore.
Also, the interesting Novorossiya/Russia relationship is worth the notice, as Gazprom specifically asks about them regarding Kiev's gas and reliability for them, considering splitting the gas and the bill, and shipping the gas directly to DPR and LPR, it is an interesting way of waging their own economic war on Ukraine, while they are getting done that by the West.
fa01f6 No.2736
0c8a77 No.2737
U.S. Grad Students Find 'Suspicious' Russian Stock Trading Before Crimea Takeover:
http://www.rferl.org/content/stock-trading-russia-crimea-connection-ukraine-american/26873353.html
>It was a Saturday when Russia’s upper house of parliament authorized President Vladimir Putin to dispatch troops to Ukraine.
>When trading opened two days later on March 3, 2014, the Russian stock market plunged more than 10 percent.
>But suspicious trading prior to Putin's green light for intervention suggests insiders knew something was afoot, according to research by two U.S.-based doctoral students.
>Using an algorithm known as Volume-Synchronized Probability of Informed Trading (VPIN), which measures "volume imbalance and trade intensity" to determine the portion of “informed traders” on the market for a specific security. What they concluded was that the suspicious trading spiked two trading days prior to the market plunge.
>"Evidently there were people on the market trading on…political news before it became widely known," Volkova wrote in a February 24 op-ed for the respected Russian business daily Vedomosti.EU Lawmaker Tells Of Shelling And 'Chaotic Retreat' After Eastern Ukraine Cease-Fire:
http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-withdraw-eyewitness-debaltseve-russia/26873579.html
>It was very chaotic," said Mark Demesmaeker, a Belgian member of the European Parliament who visited eastern Ukraine from February 16-19. Ukrainian troops "came back in great distress," he added.
>"I saw them when they arrived in Artemivsk, and those men were really traumatized, in complete shock. Many of them were not able to speak even," Demesmaeker said in a February 27 interview with RFE/RL.
>He added that he observed "constant" shelling and artillery fire from Grad rockets, as well as a "major offensive" that was underway against Ukrainian troops stuck in Debaltseve.
>Pro-Russian separatists intensified their fighting against Ukrainian troops in Debaltseve even after European powers, Russia, and Ukraine announced a cease-fire deal on February 12 that was supposed to take effect on February 15.
>"The rebels would attack the first vehicle in the convoy and also the last one so that the convoy was blocked, and they would attack and kill every vehicle and person in it in between," he said.
>The situation was terrible for civilians as well, he said, with "a lot of people" left behind in villages, many of them elderly and lacking medicine, food, electricity, and running water. Roads and houses were also destroyed, he added.
>Demesmaeker said he believes the Ukrainian government "is losing support very rapidly with local people [in eastern Ukraine] because there's not enough assistance." 0c8a77 No.2739
Russia Complains About Lithuania's Arms Supplies To Ukraine:
http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-lithuania-ukraine-weapons-complaint-moscow/26873503.html
>Russia says it has formally complained to Lithuania that the Baltic country's supply of weapons to Ukraine violated its international arms trade commitments.
>The Russian Embassy in Vilnius said on February 27 that the complaint was sent in a letter from the Russian Foreign Ministry to the Lithuanian Embassy in Moscow.
>It said such supplies "represent a direct violation of Lithuania's legal commitments in the area of export of armaments."
>Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius denied his country had violated any agreements.
>Lithuania has supplied weapons to Ukraine "in small quantities and openly," Linkevicius told Reuters.
>He added that: "and yet we are reprimanded by the country that continually supplies arms to the conflict in Ukraine, in nonsymbolic quantities, and denies doing so."Russian Diplomat Slams 'Destructive' U.S. Stance:
http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-us-relations-ryabkov-destructive/26873452.html
>Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said in Moscow on February 27 that U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had breached "diplomatic ethics" when he said earlier this week that Russian officials had "lied to his face" in denying Moscow's support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.
>Ukraine, NATO, the United States, and several western countries have accused Russia of using troops and weapons to support the rebels.
>Ryabkov reiterated the Kremlin's denial of such backing.
>He also warned that Russia could retaliate against potential new U.S. sanctions against Moscow – which Kerry told lawmakers this week Washington has ready to go – with "quite painful countermeasures."
>But he said Russia might not publicize the measures it would take against the United States. 0c8a77 No.2740
Pic related is Obama's statement on Nemtsov's assassination.
0c8a77 No.2743
Why Russia Will Lose in Ukraine:
http://www.worldaffairsjournal.org/blog/alexander-j-motyl/why-russia-will-lose-ukraine
>Thus far skittish about military aid, the Obama administration is coming under increasing pressure to provide Ukraine with lethal weapons and real-time intelligence. Provided that meaningful economic reforms move forward in Kyiv, chances are good that other Western states and institutions will give Ukraine significant economic assistance, especially now that the IMF has committed itself to a $40 billion aid package. And the more Western money is sunk into Ukraine, the greater the likelihood that Western states will follow with military aid, if only as a guarantee of their financial investment. Meanwhile, Ukrainian elites—prodded by the West and compelled by Putin’s threat to annihilate Ukraine—will embark on (more or less) radical economic reforms.
>The Ukrainian armed forces are getting stronger and more effective by the day, inflicting high casualties on the militants and Russians and maintaining their positions. Even the retreat from the Debaltseve salient, mistakenly portrayed in the Western press as a “debacle,” was anything but. (In order to know that, however, you need to be able to read Ukrainian- and Russian-language sources.) According to one of Ukraine’s top military analysts, Yuri Biryukov, Ukraine’s losses were 179 dead and 89 missing and presumed dead in the period from January 18th to February 18th, while Russian and proxy losses amounted to 868 dead—roughly three to four times as many. And small wonder. As Ukraine’s other top military analyst, Yuri Butusov, has repeatedly argued on his Facebook page, there is simply no comparison between the Ukrainian army of today and the ragtag band of soldiers that was Ukraine’s armed forces in March of 2014, when Putin seized the Crimea. More important, Ukraine’s less than competent military command appears to be on the verge of a major change in personnel.
>The situation on the front is a military stalemate that is as deleterious to the Donbas enclave’s economic viability as it is beneficial to Ukraine’s ability to survive as an independent political entity. As this blog has argued ad nauseam, a frozen conflict—which may be in the process of emerging, even though everyone denies it—would be the best thing that could possibly happen to Ukraine.
>Finally, although Ukrainians are one-fourth as many as Russians, Ukrainians are fighting for their homeland. In both eastern and western Ukraine, they know this is perhaps their last chance to break free of Moscow’s imperial grip. The remarkable thing about Ukraine’s dedicated volunteer battalions is the high number of eastern Ukrainians in them. Western Ukrainians dominated in both the 2004 Orange Revolution and the 2014 Maidan Revolution. Russian-speaking eastern Ukrainians have demonstrated that, when it comes to defending their own homes, they’re more than willing to step up.
>Russia can’t win big. Ukraine can’t lose big. And that means that Russia is losing and Ukraine is winning—and that Russia will lose and Ukraine will win.
>The West should know that, in supporting Ukraine, it’s not just doing the right thing. It’s also betting on the winner.This guy seems really goddamn sure that Ukraine is going to win.
Boris Nemtsov: 'We Must Free Russia From Putin':
http://www.rferl.org/content/boris-nemtsov-interview/26874063.html
>If you think that [authorities] would run away on March 1 in fright, they will run away if we get a million [people]," he said in the February 3 interview. "But in order to get a million, we need to first have a successful march on March 1."
>Nemtsov said the most important goal of the march was to stop the war in Ukraine.
>"We need to prepare an anti-crisis march, and the most important requirement is to stop the war. … We need to think of what the chants will be not only in Moscow, in St. Petersburg, in Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, and other cities," he said.
>Nemtsov, who was shot and killed in Moscow on February 27, did not live to see out his vision. But the former first deputy prime minister under President Boris Yeltsin continued his sharp criticism of current President Vladimir Putin up until his death.
>"Putin has created this capitalism of bureaucratic thieves, where poor people live in hardship," he said. "Putin is constantly lying, saying that there were no troops in Crimea, that there was a fair referendum, and that we are not at war." There are a lot of articles that use rhetoric similar to this one that sort of hint that Putin was behind Nemtsov's death, so I figured I'd link to at least one.
0c8a77 No.2744
Also interesting to note is how every NATO member and their mother seems to be shocked and demanding justice for Nemtsov's death.
eeeff1 No.2754
>>2743>Ukraine’s losses were 179 dead and 89 missing and presumed dead in the period from January 18th to February 18th, while Russian and proxy losses amounted to 868 deadThank you anon, you have provided me with the toppest of keks.
d5cfc3 No.2775
>>2743Some of the statements are just retarded, and I don't know how they came with this. I mean simply by looking at data, be it from any source, you can see they are wrong.
>Having destroyed the Russian economyFrom what I know Russia lost around 40 billion from the sanctions and all this, with the highest estimate being 120 billion. (If someone has the exact numbers, please respond)
But they did make a 400 billion deal with China, right? Meaning that despite all the sanctions and despite the drop of oil prices they are still on the growth.
Another thing that people forget is that Russia has one of the lowest debts in the world - 20% or so. The country is still functioning, and the economy is still growing. No doubt the growth has slowed quite a bit, but its still positive - How is it possible for these experts to claim Russia's economy is kill???
>transformed Russia into a rogue stateDidn't explain why. Its almost as if they're implying they invaded Ukraine. Almost.
>In contrast, Ukraine wins as long as it does not lose big.So basicly holding on to their current territories is a win. Never mind that 2 of the most industrious regions are no longer part of Ukraine, never mind that they lost Crimea, never mind that their economy shrunk dramaticly, never mind that they took billions dollars of debt. They are winning!
> it will demonstrate that it possesses the will and the military capacity to deter the Kremlin, stop Putin and his proxies, and survive as an independent democratic state.They've so far been loosing, and so far have used the same tactic:
>Invade in a straight line, no backup no nothing>Cut deep into Novorussia>Go even further without protecting their back>Suddenly get encircled>Repeat 4 to 5 timesSuch will and such millitary capacity.
>Putin is therefore likely to maintain the military pressure on Ukraine—having the separatists strike here, strike there, withdraw, regroup, make nice, and then repeat the cycle—in the hope of draining Ukraine’s economic, military, and human resources.What? Since when have the rebels used hit-and-run tactics? They are literally making shit up.
> Ukraine’s losses were 179 dead and 89 missing and presumed dead in the period from January 18th to February 18th, while Russian and proxy losses amounted to 868 dead—roughly three to four times as manyStrange, Germany said that around 50 000 were injured or killed.
>Ukrainians are fighting for their homeland.Do they believe what they write? Novorussia has so far been on the defence. They were the ones that were fighting for their homeland, and Ukrainian army was the one invading. How is it possible for a news agency to write so many false things at once? And even more horrifiyng is the fact that most of the comments are agreeing with them… Can't people fucking think for themselfs?!? I mean they might hate Russia - fine, they might hate Putin or think he is jewish puppet ( which might be true ofcourse ) - fine, but even so how the fuck can they believe everything thats written over there?!?
0c8a77 No.2803
Germany prepared to sell tank howitzers to Lithuania: Der Spiegel:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150228/1018889417.html
>Hundreds of people gathered outside the National Bank of Ukraine headquarters in Kiev on Saturday to protest the bank’s financial policy and demanding the resignation of its head Valeriya Hontareva.
>The list of demands includes, among other things, measures to alleviate the plight of borrowers who took out loans denominated in foreign currency as the hryvnia's exchange rate is rapidly falling.
>These include a law enabling them to repay loans at the exchange rate valid at the time when they took them out.Russian investigators suggest killed opposition leader was ‘sacrificial lamb’ in plot to destabilize the country:
http://news.nationalpost.com/2015/02/28/boris-nemtsov-murder-investigation/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:%20NP_Top_Stories%20%28National%20Post%20-%20Top%20Stories%29
>Russia’s top investigative body said Saturday it is looking into several possible motives for the killing of prominent opposition figure Boris Nemtsov, including an attempt to destabilize the state, Islamic extremism, the Ukraine conflict and his personal life.
>A statement from the body, the Investigative Committee, did not address the possibility seen as likely by many of Nemtsov’s supporters — that he was killed for being one of President Vladimir Putin’s most adamant and visible critics.
>The Investigative Committee said it was looking into whether Nemtsov had been killed as a “sacrificial victim for those who do not shun any method for achieving their political goals,” a suggestion echoing the comments by Putin’s spokesman and other Russian politicians that the attack was a “provocation” against the state.
>Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev echoed the suggestion that the killing was a provocation.
>“It’s an attempt to push the situation into complications, maybe even to destabilizing the situation in the country,” he was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency.Germany prepared to sell tank howitzers to Lithuania: Der Spiegel:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/28/us-germany-lithuania-howitzers-idUSKBN0LW0KF20150228?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>Deputy defense minister Katrin Suder said in a defense committee meeting it would be possible to sell howitzers to Lithuania as the German armed forces had a sufficient number of them, the magazine said.
>It added that Suder had stressed Germany wanted to help its NATO partner modernize its forces and would "favorably examine" a potential request for tank howitzers.
>A spokesman for the German defense ministry said Lithuania had not made an official request but the country had expressed an interest and Germany was prepared to help.
>Lithuania, like Latvia and Estonia - part of the Soviet Union for much of the last century - worries that Russia's annexation of Crimea and support for rebels in Ukraine may be a foretaste of it reasserting itself in other former Soviet territories. 0c8a77 No.2804
>>2803Shit that first one is borked - should be:
Hundreds of Protesters in Kiev Demand Central Bank Head's Resignation:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150228/1018889417.html 0c8a77 No.2805
Poroshenko: Nemtsov planned to reveal Russian links to Ukraine conflict:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/11441992/Poroshenko-Nemtsov-planned-to-reveal-Russian-links-to-Ukraine-conflict.html
>"Putin opened Pandora's box and released dangerous powers: non-acceptance of a different opinion (from his), representatives of the opposition were called traitors, while we (Ukrainians) are considered US Department of State agents.
>"And now people who believed in Russia's television lies may also believe that some robbers killed him, but I think that this was organised by Putin in order for him to stay in power."
>"Boris Nemtsov, a big friend of Ukraine and big patriot of Russia has been killed. He was like a bridge connecting Ukraine and Russia, he built the kind of relations between our countries that I would like to see," said Poroshenko.
>"To me Nemtsov is a symbol of a Russian citizen that connects (Ukraine and Russia) and sincerely respects Ukraine."
>"Boris had declared that he would provide the clear evidence of Russian Armed forces' participation in (the war) in Ukraine.
>"Somebody was afraid of this, Boris wasn't afraid. Killers and executors were afraid." When I say he was a monster,
when I set fire to his name,
It does not matter where you hear it from,
whether truth or lies,
It gets said all the same.
Glancing once again at the countdown, he spoke plainly to the reporters.Whatever's on the table plays!
0c8a77 No.2811
Donetsk rebels announce full heavy weapons withdrawal in E. Ukraine:
http://rt.com/news/236523-ukraine-heavy-weapons-withdrawal/
>"As of mid-day February 28, the corps of the people's militia has withdrawn 80 percent of heavy weapons from the demarcation line. By March 2 or 3, the process of the withdrawal of heavy weapons is planned to be completed. Of course, if there are no incidents,” a Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) statement reads.
>Ukrainian forces are also withdrawing their heavy weapons, but the rebels blame Kiev for delaying the process. According to Basurin, Ukraine has so far pulled out only 15 percent of its hardware in the Donetsk and Lugansk Regions.
>“There was no control from the OSCE (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) and the weaponry was relocated to positions from which it can be returned within an hour,” the DPR representative said.Sir John Sawers, ex-MI6 chief, warns of Russia 'danger':
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-31669195
>Russia's threat was "not necessarily directly to the UK but to countries around its periphery".
>"[Russia] keep on reminding us that they have nuclear weapons," he said.
>"The one level in which Russia and America are equals is at the nuclear level.
>"Now we don't want to have a repeat of the Cuban missile crisis in 1962 where we got to the brink of nuclear war.
>"We need to be able to address this through increased dialogue."
>"This crisis at the moment - it's focused on Ukraine but Ukraine is a symptom. It's not the real problem.
>"The real problem is how we live with a Russia which feels very exposed. Putin's actions are ones of a leader who believes his own security is at stake.
>"And here we've got nuclear bombers approaching the Cornish coast."
>Sir John said the UK needed to prepare to take defensive measures for itself and the nation's allies, which include the Baltic states and central Europe.
>"We've got to have the capability to deal with things like the hybrid warfare that we've seen Russia deploy, first in Crimea and then in the Donbass region, we've got to have the ability to deal with cyberwarfare. 0c8a77 No.2813
Ukraine war to be Putin’s undoing, Khodorkovsky says:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/02/28/world/politics-diplomacy-world/ukraine-war-putins-undoing-khodorkovsky-says/
>A year after annexing Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, Russia finds itself isolated and on a path to self-destruction, said Khodorkovsky, one of Putin’s most outspoken critics. The former oligarch spent a decade in prison on what he said were politically motivated charges.
>Khodorkovsky, 51, wrote in the Vedomosti daily that Russian involvement in the Ukraine war a “monstrous” mistake. But he said that the Kremlin leader’s economic system, heavily dependent on state control and export of natural resources, made aggressive foreign policy inevitable.
>“Instead of cultivating huge territory, state leaders decided to seize more land for which they paid dearly,” he said, referring to the Soviet Union’s decadelong invasion of Afghanistan that ended in Moscow’s 1989 withdrawal.
>“The invasion of Afghanistan began during the 15th year of Brezhnev’s rule. Crimea and Donbass (eastern Ukraine) happened during the 15th year of Putin’s rule,” the ex-billionaire said.
>“When people have been in power for so long, when all checks inside the country have been destroyed, they begin to cross all boundaries — the boundaries of common sense and the borders of neighboring countries.”
>He said that Putin’s regime would collapse “within the next 10 years,” but that eastern Ukraine risked instability and chaos even longer.
>“There is still no peaceful life in Afghanistan,” he wrote. “There is a high probability that a similar fate awaits eastern Ukraine.” fa01f6 No.2820
>>2743>Putin’s threat to annihilate Ukraine>The Ukrainian armed forces are getting stronger and more effective by the day, inflicting high casualties on the militants and Russians and maintaining their positions. >Even the retreat from the Debaltseve salient, mistakenly portrayed in the Western press as a “debacle,” was anything but. (In order to know that, however, you need to be able to read Ukrainian- and Russian-language sources.) >According to one of Ukraine’s top military analysts, Yuri Biryukov, Ukraine’s losses were 179 dead and 89 missing and presumed dead in the period from January 18th to February 18th, while Russian and proxy losses amounted to 868 dead>there is simply no comparison between the Ukrainian army of today and the ragtag band of soldiers that was Ukraine’s armed forces in March of 2014, when Putin seized the Crimea>Ukraine’s less than competent military command appears to be on the verge of a major change in personnel.aka coup?
>military stalemate>deleterious to the Donbas enclave’s economic viability>beneficial to Ukraine’s ability to survive as an independent political entityu wot?
>Finally, although Ukrainians are one-fourth as many as Russians, Ukrainians are fighting for their homeland.>Moscow’s imperial grip.>Ukraine’s dedicated volunteer battalions>high number of eastern Ukrainians in themHoly shit this is like Ministry of Truth's goodest goy, anon, I'm actually crying, great find holy shit.
>The West should know that, in supporting Ukraine, it’s not just doing the right thing. It’s also betting on the winner.Omg ;__; why are you doing that anon.
Ya it was also pretty predictable about Putin's involvement, the West will try to spin that very fortunate event incredibly well timed for them to boost the hostilities against Russia and play their cards, Russia had it coming, they were just waiting for it, look at how they were placing their pawns on Earth's chessboard. Also.
>"Putin has created this capitalism of bureaucratic thieves, where poor people live in hardship" Isn't it the very thing he destroyed pre-2000?
Gee people are blatantly lying and not even caring about getting caught anymore…
0c8a77 No.2823
>>2820>Gee people are blatantly lying and not even caring about getting caught anymore…Saw pic related on Reuters.
I fucking swear, this is yellow journalism at it's finest, some USS Maine tier shit (
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Maine_%28ACR-1%29 ).
fa01f6 No.2824
>>2775>Having destroyed the Russian economyThey managed to fuck up Europe's economy way harder than Russia's economy, last I checked they lost the equivalent of a small country worth of GDP from the export/import ban, about 150-200 billions, they aren't the biggest losers in the story lol.
>lowest debts in the world - 20% or soThey still have one of the lowest debt in the world, and people don't forget, they just don't talk about it in the Western media.
>How is it possible for these experts to claim Russia's economy is kill???Politics + America = Freedom.
>Its almost as if they're implying they invaded Ukraine.They did goy ;)
>never mind that they took billions dollars of debt. They are winning!They do. They get freedom and democracy and statist capitalism along with a lot of debt. Enough to make Greece jealous in the long-term. Who wouldn't consider that a win, a communist? ;^)
>Such will and such millitary capacity.But they did survive the full might of the Russian army, they are stronger than Russia goy, because Russia is invading Ukraine with 10k tanks ;^)
>How is it possible for a news agency to write so many false things at once?Motyl is also active as a poet, a writer of fiction, and a visual artist. In a review of The Jew Who Was Ukrainian, Michael Johnson wrote in The American Spectator: "Alexander Motyl was clearly having great fun when he wrote his latest book, The Jew Who Was Ukrainian, a comic novel with half-serious historical underpinnings. It manages to amuse and challenge without losing its headlong momentum into the realm of absurdist literature."
He's one of the goodest goys, that's why.
4e7ef9 No.2825
>>2823>By Timothy Heritage and Alexander WinningAre those even real people?
d88e13 No.2828
>>2823Not to mention the crazy post-mortem hagiography the MSM is making for this guy. Based Saker described him as a "spent" politician, and ever since he worked with the Yeltsin goverment (literally the most hated Russian leader ever) selling off state assets to Western corporate interests at fireside prices, he has been irrelevant or disliked by the majority of Russian people.
Even this absurdly hysterical piece in the NYT:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/28/magazine/after-boris-nemtsovs-assassination-there-are-no-longer-any-limits.htmldescribes him as having just spent his time handing out leaflets in the Moscow subway. Such is the stature of this opposition figure. He was absolutely worth more assassinated than he was alive and "speaking out."
fa01f6 No.2829
Fuck this. It makes me so mad. Looking/talking around me and literally everyone buying into all the crap that is being spoon-fed to the Western fat mouths with no sense of patriotism nor fucking self-esteem, trying to ruin the only country that managed to get the fuck out of the infernal jew-driven-capitalism™ banking system in which we are all stuck, they were getting out of it, and now we're seeing 1933 all over again for Christ's sake, the lies, manipulation, the evil propagandists are brainwashing their people into thinking freedom, democracy and capitalism are evil, bomb them all!
Just today I heard someone talking about the assassination, and how he was certain that it was Putin, he made the connection between all the small links by himself the greatest goyim, probably not spoonfed by some shitty blogger or media that told him :
>1. Putin evilPutin evil
>2. Putin no democracyPutin no democracy
>3. Putin propaganda over all his mediaPutin propaganda
>4. Putin kills people he's against to get big approval ratePutin killer anti-democracy
>5. Anti-Putin man diedAnti-Putin man died
>6. He wanted Putin out, real democracy and freedumbsReal democracy xDDD I know nothing about the guy, but I know he was full on democracy xDD
>7. Friendly reminder, Putin KILLS good goys who want democracy and capitalismOkay okay
Now tell me goy, who killed him?
HURR PUTIN KILLED HIM!!! WE NEED WAR TO KILL THE INFIDELS AND SPREAD OUR PEACEFUL WAYS THROUGH NUCLEAR WARFARE!
This fucking disgusts me polpol, I'm honestly fucking done, witnessed that from a close friend too, one that I thought was pretty redpilled, he did watch a part of Israel's bullshit in Palestine and is following the middle-East, with such doublethink from someone I held in esteem, I can only wonder how bad it is in the general population, I really don't want to live in such a shitty world anymore. Let the nukes fall please, it's the best thing that can happen to this shit Earth…
>>2813>But he said that the Kremlin leader’s economic system, heavily dependent on state control and export of natural resources, made aggressive foreign policy inevitable.Jesus, that's the kind of bullshit that makes me believe we deserve the world we live in, and good God will we deserve when it return to ashes. How can he sincerely believe that? Russia got one of the most self-centered economy, besides some shitty African country and the Scandinavians who are heavy enough on brain economy to be self-sustainable, and Luxembourg/Switzerland who are bankers paradise, Russia comes way before USA/Canada/Australia/Europe/Middle-East in terms of "peaceful" economy that has absolutely no need in expanding… These people can't possibly be believing that kind of shit, can they?
>“There is still no peaceful life in Afghanistan,” he wrote. “There is a high probability that a similar fate awaits eastern Ukraine.”I'm sorry, who exactly is to blame for this, Mr. ex-Billionnaire pissed off that Putin doesn't play the same licking ass that Obongo does? Is it Russia that fucked up Afghanistan big time, or the very people's asses you're licking, dear freedom lovers USA? Jesus Christ these people…
I fucking give up polpol, fuck this gay Earth.
>>2823I'll read the Maine thing asap.
>>2826What a surprise…
>>2828Lol, glad to see JewYorkTimes at least represents the guy well, here it's being spinned as the figurehead of opposition, just like that shitty political figure a couple weeks ago, that literally broke his home arrest AND frauded millions from the Russian Govt with election fraud, and then cried he was being a political prisoner, after which the MSM spun the story crazy saying Putin was killing any opposition he has…
Let this world burn.
0c8a77 No.2831
Nemtsov killing follows slaying of other Kremlin critics:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_RUSSIA_OPPOSITION_KILLINGS?SITE=CALAK&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
>Prominent Russian opposition figure Boris Nemtsov's killing follows the slaying over the past decade of several other high-profile critics of President Vladimir Putin and his policies. Here is a look at some of the best-known cases.(I'll list only the names for spacing, check the article for details)
>ANNA POLITKOVSKAYA
>ALEXANDER LITVINENKO
>STANISLAV MARKELOV
>NATALYA ESTEMIROVANemtsov Murder: Anti-Putin False Flag!:
http://english.pravda.ru/opinion/columnists/28-02-2015/129936-nemtsov_murder-0/
>Before Washington's coup, he said "(w)e support Ukraine's course toward European integration…By supporting Ukraine, we support ourselves."
>Along with Aleksey Navalny, Garry Kasparov, Vladimir Ryzhkov, and other Putin opponents, he had close Western ties.
>He got State Department funding through the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). It wages war on democracy worldwide.
>It advances US interests. Its board of directors includes a rogue's gallery of neocon extremists.
>In 2009, Nemtsov and Kasparov met personally with Obama. They discussed anti-Putin tactics - regime change by any other name.
>Nemtsov's killing was strategically timed - ahead of Sunday's Vesna (Russian Spring anti-government) opposition march. Uh, a lot of this article goes the complete opposite of other articles about Nemtsov - it's overwhelmingly pro-Russian.
0c8a77 No.2833
fa01f6 No.2836
>>2831>National Endowment for Democracy (NED)Hahahaha holy fucking shit anon, they actually have a pro"democracy" gang worldwide, that's how they call their insider "CIA" operatives, like Porko, probably. Jesus Christ this is gold.
053258 No.2838
>>2829>I can only wonder how bad it is in the general population, I really don't want to live in such a shitty world anymoreAt least you are not the only one in this situation. I just gave up any discussion on the subject. The whole world isn't that bad either, I'm considering to give a try to the East as I do not picture myself living where I live anymore.
I do not have any worry for the Russians by the way. Even if a lot of them begin to desire a regime change, the FSB will probably do a good work normalizing such scenario. This is the more important to me. The West can say whatever they want about Russia and its leaders, or any else blatant lie about anything else, it will not kill us nor transform us into the same brand as zombie.
0c8a77 No.2848
Biden welcomes pending passage of Ukrainian economic plan:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11409982&ref=rss
>Vice President Joe Biden is welcoming plans by the Ukrainian government to pass legislation next week to help stabilize the country's economy.
>The White House says Biden expressed his approval during a conversation Saturday with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko (por-oh-SHEHN'-koh).
>They also discussed the situation in eastern Ukraine, with Poroshenko informing Biden of continued shelling by Russian-backed separatists in the vicinity of Donetsk and Mariupol in violation of peace agreements. Poroshenko also reported on additional casualties among Ukrainian forces.
>The leaders also reviewed the inability of international monitors to verify that Russia has pulled back its heavy weapons from the front lines.
>The measure due for a vote was developed with the International Monetary Fund. It will help stabilize Ukraine's economy and hasten the disbursement of international financing.Conflict at 'crossroads' after troop deaths:
http://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/1726430/conflict-crossroads-after-troop-deaths
>The deaths of three Ukrainian soldiers after a two-day lull in clashes with pro-Russian separatists highlighted the fragility of the ceasefire as the United Nations said some five million people needed humanitarian aid due to the conflict.
>The envoy to Ukraine for the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which is monitoring the peace deal, told the UN Security Council that while there were encouraging signs, the country still risked all-out war.
>"We seem to be at the crossroads, where we are facing the risk of a further escalation of the conflict or where common sense, responsibility, and humanity shall prevail and we may be able to walk on the road to peace," envoy Heidi Tagliavini told the 15-member council.
>The UN said on Friday there was a crisis in rebel-held areas, where people were living in "extraordinarily difficult circumstances".
>"We really do have a humanitarian crisis in the separatist-held areas," UN aid coordinator in Ukraine Neal Walker said in Brussels.
>"We've been really hoping that the ceasefire will hold over time and that that will enable us to respond more rapidly to those critical humanitarian needs," Walker said, as the UN this week launched an appeal for US$316 million in humanitarian aid.
>The UN estimates 4.7 million people in or near the combat zones need help while another 300,000 people have fled to other parts of the country and a million overseas to escape the conflict which has claimed at least 5,800 lives.
>Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said on Friday three soldiers were killed and seven wounded in 24 hours.
>President Petro Poroshenko said the killing of troops "who were withdrawing constitutes a serious breach of the ceasefire", during a telephone call with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, her office said.
>No fatalities had been reported over the previous two days, raising hopes that the February 12 ceasefire brokered by Germany and France might hold.
>Kiev said that, while fighting had mostly halted, there were still clashes in villages around the ruins of Donetsk airport, one of the most fought-over prizes in the conflict, which fell to the rebels last month.No salary rise due to east Ukraine military operation: PM:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/ukraine/2015/ukraine-150228-presstv01.htm
>The Ukrainian prime minister says the costs of military operations in the country's volatile east have made it impossible for the Kiev officials to increase salaries and pensions.
>'At the moment, the country does not have resources for this [salary increase] as all resources are spent on defense, security, army, tanks, weapons, on strengthening security, building a border,' said Arseniy Yatsenyuk on Saturday.
>The premier added that 5.2 percent of Ukraine's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is dedicated to the military which is the country's "first priority" at the moment.
>Earlier in the day, a French Foreign Ministry spokesman said Paris is satisfied with the implementation of the Minsk agreement as both sides are pressing ahead with pulling their weapons out of the frontline.
>"France satisfactorily notes that ceasefire in east Ukraine is in general observed by both sides,' stated Alexandre Giorgini, adding, 'We approve the continuing process of heavy weaponry withdrawal which must be carried out in compliance with the package of measures adopted in Minsk.'
>The French official also called on Kiev and pro-Russians to help the representatives of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) with their monitoring mission in the region. 0c8a77 No.2849
>>2848Just found something interesting:
Brzezinski Mapped Out the Battle for Ukraine in 1997: http://original.antiwar.com/chris_ernesto/2014/03/14/brzezinski-mapped-out-the-battle-for-ukraine-in-1997/
>Why would the United States run the risk of siding with anti-Semitic, neo-Nazis in Ukraine?One of the keys may be found by looking back at Zbigniew Brzezinski’s 1997 book, The Grand Chessboard in which he wrote, “Ukraine, a new and important space on the Eurasian chessboard, is a geopolitical pivot because its very existence as an independent country helps to transform Russia. Without Ukraine, Russia ceases to be a Eurasian empire.”
>“However, if Moscow regains control over Ukraine, with its 52 million people and major resources as well as access to the Black Sea, Russia automatically again regains the wherewithal to become a powerful imperial state, spanning Europe and Asia.”
>The former national security advisor to Jimmy Carter from 1977 to 1981 and top foreign policy advisor to Barack Obama, Brzezinski wrote that US policy should be “unapologetic” in perpetuating “America’s own dominant position for at least a generation and preferably longer still.”
>Understanding Brzezinski’s long-term view of Ukraine makes it easier to comprehend why the US has given $5 billion to Ukraine since 1991, and why today it is hyper-concerned about having Ukraine remain in its sphere of influence.
>It may also help explain why in the past year the US and many of its media outlets have feverishly demonized Vladimir Putin.
>By prominently highlighting the mistreatment of activist group Pussy Riot, incessantly condemning Russia’s regressive position on gay rights, and excessively focusing on substandard accommodations at the Sochi Olympic Games, the Obama administration has cleverly distracted the public from delving into US support of the ultra-nationalist, neo-Nazi factions of the Ukrainian opposition, and has made it palatable for Americans to accept the US narrative on Ukraine.
>Interestingly enough, it was Brzezinski who first compared Putin to Hitler in a March 3 Washington Post Editorial. Hillary Clinton followed-up the next day with her comments comparing the two, followed by John McCain and Marco Rubio who on March 5 agreed with Clinton’s comments comparing Putin and Hitler. Apparently Brzezinski still continues to influence US political speak. 0c8a77 No.2860
Shaky Ukraine ceasefire takes hold, but tensions rise over gas supply:
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/02/27/europe/ukraine-conflict/index.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:%20rss/edition_europe%20%28RSS:%20Europe%29Article is stuff we've seen before, except I don't remember this:
>A meeting between the European Union, Russia and Ukraine is due to take place in Brussels, Belgium, on Monday to discuss gas supply to Ukraine.Independence Fighters Fired at Azov Battalion - Ukraine’s Interior Ministry:
http://sputniknews.com/military/20150301/1018904062.html
>"The minister's advisor Zorian Shkiryak, who is currently in the area of the anti-terrorist operation, has informed that today, at 20:00, terrorists opened fire at the frontline of the anti-terrorist operation forces, particularly the National Guard's attack battalion 'Azov' in Shirokino," a statement, released on the official website of Ukraine's Interior Ministry early on Sunday says. 0c8a77 No.2862
Biden, Poroshenko Discuss Truce Deal:
http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-biden-poroshenko-/26875457.html
>According to the White House, Poroshenko informed Biden on February 28 of continued shelling around Donetsk and Mariupol by Russian-backed separatists in violation of Minsk cease-fire agreement.
>The two also discussed the inability of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to verify whether Russian heavy weapons have been pulled back from the front lines, it said.
>Biden praised the Ukrainian government's plan to pass reform legislation, recommended by the International Monetary Fund, to stabilize the economy, the White House said in a statement.
>The Ukrainian military said the truce had been most fully observed overnight around the rebel-controlled city of Luhansk and near government-held Mariupol on the Sea of Azov.Ceasefire in Donbas Observed Over Night: Kiev Forces:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150301/1018906343.html
>"On the night of March 1, between midnight and 6 a.m. [4:00 GMT] no terrorists’ shelling in the zone of ATO [anti-terrorist operation] was recorded,” the press center of special operation said.
>However, the Kiev forces claim that between 16:00 GMT and 22:00 GMT, the militant forces opened fire at the Ukrainian army positions for five times “chaotically.” 263930 No.2876
>>2570fag did a ama on 4 chan i sware same person
0c8a77 No.2884
Tens Of Thousands Rally In Moscow To Mourn Slain Boris Nemtsov: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-03-01/tens-thousands-rally-moscow-mourn-slain-boris-nemtsovWidow of murdered spy blames Russian govt for new killing:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11410147&ref=rss
>The widow of murdered Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko thinks the Russian government may have been involved in the murder of leading opposition figure Boris Nemtsov.
>Marina Litvinenko told BBC Radio on Sunday she thinks Nemtsov's slaying Friday night in Moscow seems to have been the Russian government's way of silencing critics of President Vladimir Putin, but offered no proof. She said the Russian government has become particularly aggressive since the Ukraine crisis began. She called Nemtsov's death "absolutely devastating."
>Marina Litvinenko has blamed the Russian government for the poisoning of her husband, who died in London in 2006 after ingesting radioactive tea. An inquiry into her husband's death is ongoing.Ukraine military says rebels using truce to regroup:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/01/us-ukraine-crisis-military-idUSKBN0LX1EC20150301?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>"In order to mislead OSCE representatives, the rebels are moving military equipment from the front line … and bringing it back at night," military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said.
>"There are signs the enemy is preparing for further offensives," he said, naming as major targets government-held Mariupol, a strategic port city, and Artemivsk, north of the rebel stronghold of Donetsk.
>While there was no shelling in the night, rebels shelled government troop positions 34 times on Saturday, wounding eight Ukrainian soldiers, Lysenko said.
>On the other side, rebels said Ukrainian forces had fired mortar rounds and rockets in the Donetsk area 26 times in the past 24 hours, according to separatist DAN press service.
>The OSCE, which is monitoring the implementation of the peace deal, said on Saturday it had monitored the pull back of rebel equipment in parts of the Donetsk region and would check daily to see if the weapons remained in the areas they had been pulled back to.
>It said it had also observed the withdrawal of two convoys in Luhansk region, but separatists had "prohibited the special monitoring mission from following either of these convoys to their end-points."Police Arrest Ukrainian MP Involved in Odessa Tragedy at Nemtsov's Mourning:
http://sputniknews.com/russia/20150301/1018921582.html
>Moscow police confirmed the arrest of Ukrainian parliament member Oleksiy Goncharenko ahead of the march commemorating slain Russian politician Boris Nemtsov on Sunday.
>Goncharenko took part in the violent events in southern Ukraine's Odessa on May 2, 2014, when far-right activists blocked anti-EU protesters inside the city's House of Trade Unions and set the building on fire. According to official statistics, the incident killed 48 people and wounded over 250.
>Ukrainian parliamentarian Oleksiy Goncharenko is being questioned regarding crimes against a Russian citizen during last year's tragic events in southern Ukraine's Odessa, which killed 40, the Russian Investigative Committee said in a statement Sunday.
>"Oleksiy Goncharenko is being interrogated on charges of crimes against a Russian citizen during the tragic events in Odessa," the statement said.
>However, Goncharenko's lawyer told RIA Novosti Goncharenko had been detained for disobeying a police officer during a march commemorating killed Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, Goncharenko's lawyer told RIA Novosti Sunday. 0c8a77 No.2885
Poroshenko Signs Law on Regional Policy Based on Decentralization Principle:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150301/1018921185.html
>Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed a law defining the principles of the state regional policy, the president's press service said in a statement Sunday.
>The draft of the law stipulated that the state regional policy must be built on the principles of subsidiarity and ethnic development, that is decentralization of power and the preservation of ethnic groups' culture to promote their identity.
>The draft law cites the observance of state-guaranteed social standards for every citizen, regardless of his place of residence, as the aim of the new Ukrainian regional policy.Kiev to Complete First Stage of Heavy Weaponry Withdrawal Sunday:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150301/1018915737.html
>Kiev forces will complete the first stage of their heavy weapons' pullout in east Ukraine’s Donbas region on Sunday, Ukrainian military spokesman Anatoliy Stelmakh told RIA Novosti.
>“The first stage of the 100-mm ‘Rapira’ [anti-tank] guns pullout is coming to an end,” Stelmakh said, adding that the stage would be completed on Sunday.Estonians vote in parliamentary election amid security fears:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11410120&ref=rss
>Estonians were voting Sunday for a new parliament in an election dominated by economic issues and security concerns due to Russia's actions in Ukraine.
>Opinion polls ndicate a close race between the Baltic nation's governing center-right coalition, led by Prime Minister Taavi Roivas' Reform Party, and the opposition Center Party, which is favored by the country's ethnic Russians. The ruling coalition holds 52 of the 101 seats in parliament.
>Even though Estonia is a NATO member, many are worried that Moscow might try to boost its influence in the country, a former Soviet republic where one-fourth of its 1.3 million residents are ethnic Russians. All main political parties strongly support defense spending and a continuation of the NATO presence in Estonia, which together with neighbors Latvia and Lithuania, was occupied by the Soviet Union for nearly five decades.
>Defense Minister Sven Mikser said Sunday that Estonia should improve its defense capabilities "to maintain solidarity with Western nations."
>The Center Party has a more lenient attitude to Moscow and has refrained from criticizing Russia's annexation of Crimea and its actions in Ukraine. 0c8a77 No.2888
Driver of getaway vehicle found (Nemtsov assassination): http://rt.com/news/236359-nemtsov-killed-moscow-politician/
>16:46 GMT:
>The driver of the silver-colored VAZ-2102 who was wanted by police in connection with the murder of Boris Nemtsov has been detained by police in Zelenograd, Moscow’s suburb, Life News reported. The media talked to the driver on the phone and he claimed he did not commit the crime. Moscow Offers No Answers, But Plenty Of Theories, On Nemtsov's Death:
http://www.rferl.org/content/moscow-no-answers-many-theories-nemtsov-death/26875991.html
>1. The United States did it.
>Officially, members of Russia's Investigative Committee and other top authorities have abstained from specific accusations, saying only that Nemtsov could have been a "sacrificial victim for those who will stop at nothing to achieve their political aims."
>Many Russians appear to interpret this vague blanket definition as a reference to the United States. The Kremlin has repeatedly accused Washington of organizing last year's Euromaidan protests and government overthrow in Ukraine and seeking to do the same in Russia.
>An informal online poll by the AntiMaidan organization found that 45 percent of respondents said the United States had arranged the killing of the liberal Nemtsov in order to provoke Maidan-style protests in Russia. (The Russian opposition came in second for essentially the same reason: 23 percent of respondents suggested the opposition was willing to kill one of its own in order to ignite protests.)
>Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov followed suit, writing on Instagram, "there is no doubt that the murder of Nemtsov was organized by Western intelligence agencies who seek by any means to create internal conflict in Russia."
>(Nonstate media, including Novaya Gazeta, have suggested that Nemtsov was under threat from Kadyrov's own security personnel for his repeated criticism of the Chechen leader.)
>2. Islamic extremists did it.
>Russian investigators say they have evidence Nemtsov had been threatened because of his outspoken support for secularity and free-speech rights following the Charlie Hebdo killings in January.
>3. Ukrainians (of any persuasion) did it.
>Nemtsov was fiercely opposed to suspected Russian involvement in eastern Ukraine and was weeks away from publishing what he said was incontrovertible proof of Russia's role in the crisis.
>Nonetheless, Vladimir Markin, spokesman for Russia's Investigative Committee, has suggested that Ukraine is to blame for Nemtsov's killing. Markin said, "both sides of the conflict have very radical figures among their ranks" – a statement that makes room for either pro-Ukrainian nationalists or pro-Russian separatists to serve as the culprit.…the final reason:
>4. His messy personal life did it.Don't think this one is likely - info is in the article.
0c8a77 No.2895
File: 1425239082275.jpg (70.18 KB, 599x538, 599:538, Upon the instruments of de….jpg)
Russia ready to repel any nuke strike, retaliate – missile forces command chief:
http://rt.com/news/236573-russia-repel-nuclear-strike/
>Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces are ready to react to any nuclear strike even if it is lightning fast, SMF Central Command chief said. A retaliatory strike would take place in all circumstances, “without hesitation,” he added.
>“If there’s a challenge to repel a lightning-fast nuclear in any given conditions – it will be done in fixed time, that’s dead true,” the Strategic Missile Forces Central Command’s chief, Major-General Andrey Burbin, told Russian News Service on Saturday.
>Russia’s strategic missile forces are positioned geographically in such a way that no global strike can knock them out completely, Burbin said.
>In case an order is given to carry out a nuclear strike, Russian nuclear weapons operators will fulfill it, he added.
>“There would be no hesitation, the task would be executed,” he said. 0c8a77 No.2920
US to Send Arms to Ukraine Using Private Contractors - Hacker Group: http://sputniknews.com/military/20150228/1018889209.html
>“We, CyberBerkut, got access to files stored on the electronic device that belonged to an employee of the private military contractor “Green Group”, who recently visited Kiev with a US military delegation. The documents reveal that the United States is still mulling over the idea of supplying lethal weapons to Kiev, but first, it would like to gain the support of its European allies.” – said the statement published on CyberBerkut website.
>Washington plans to use Western private military contractors to deliver weapons to Ukraine. These companies, of course, would deliver arms “voluntarily”, out of kindness. Moreover, once weapons are delivered to Ukraine, these companies will send volunteers to come and fight against Donbas forces in Eastern Ukraine, CyberBerkut says.Kiev Regroups Heavy Arms Near Contact Line, Violates Minsk Deal - Donetsk:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150301/1018923535.html
>Ukraine's government troops are regrouping heavy arms near the line of contact, the deputy commander of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic's (DPR) forces said Sunday.
>"Unfortunately, DPR intelligence is spotting new cases of withdrawn Ukrainian units being redeployed [in] violation of Minsk agreements, 20-30 kilometers [12-18 miles] from the line of contact," Eduard Basurin said at a news briefing.
>The official also flatly denied accusations that DPR was secretly turning back its large-caliber arms to positions from which they had been previously pulled away.
>"These assumptions are untrue and cannot serve as justification for Ukraine's non-compliance with its obligations to withdraw weapons," Basurin said.Ukraine's Mariupol holds its breath for next rebel move:
http://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-ukraine-s-mariupol-holds-its-breath-for-next-rebel-move-2065386
>While a fragile two-week-old ceasefire shows signs of holding, Kiev says pro-Russian separatists are using the truce to regroup their forces, especially around Mariupol, a strategically important port city in Ukraine's southeast.
>Control of the industrial hub would help the rebels form a corridor to the Crimea peninsula which Russia annexed from Ukraine last year. Since the truce, they have said they aim to win the city through negotiation, not force of arms. Aware there is no provision for that in the latest internationally brokered peace accords, Mariupol's residents are holding their breath.
>The guns have fallen silent in recent days, but on Friday Ukraine's military said it had tracked a convoy of GRAD missile systems and other military equipment leaving the separatist stronghold of Donetsk in the direction of Mariupol.
>Kiev also says military equipment from Russia has been spotted crossing the border by Novoazovsk, east of Mariupol, since the start of the ceasefire, aimed at ending a conflict in which over 5,600 have been killed. The separatists, who seized Mariupol briefly as they swept through eastern Ukraine last year, say it should be theirs.
>"If Putin decides he wants Mariupol then they will take it, they're better armed than us," said national guard soldier Vitaly Mashtabei, stationed near Vostochnaya. "When we capture fighters from the other side, they have top-of-the-range modern guns and most of our guys only have the old Soviet stuff," he said. Kiev and its Western allies say the rebels are funded and armed by Moscow, and backed by Russian military units. Moscow denies aiding sympathisers in Ukraine. db3ba0 No.2923
>>2320>But they prefer to be be grudgeful and say that Russia is the devil, as if they are still the USSR, and to rush against Russia. To their own detriment.I guess Moldova "rushed" against Transnistria huh?
I guess you can accept the mongoloid parasites who raped and economically devastated eastern Europe huh?
I guess we can find endless retarded shills here also.
0c8a77 No.2948
Ukraine unofficially has 272 percent inflation:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/03/01/ukraine-unofficially-has-272-percent-inflation/
>It happens after wars or revolutions, when governments have to print the money they need because there's not much of an economy left to tax—which brings us to Ukraine. It had a revolution, it has a war now, and it's all but broke. Inflation is officially 28.5 percent, but, according to Johns Hopkins professor Steve Hanke, it's really more like 272 percent. And that's only going to get worse as long as Ukraine's currency does.
>It's hard to overstate how challenged Ukraine is. Its economy has actually shrunk since communism ended in 1991. Or since 1992. Or even 1993. That's because communism never really did end. Ukraine just traded party bosses for oligarchs. Sure, it privatized companies and introduced markets, but Ukraine didn't shed its Soviet-era corruption or inefficiency. There was barely any rule of law, tax rates had to be jacked up to make up for all the wink-wink, nod-nod tax evasion, and, as a result, even more of the economy entered the shadows. The IMF estimates that Ukraine's underground—and non-tax-paying—economy is as much as 50 percent of GDP. d88e13 No.2963
>>2831Along these lines, here is something interesting from the wiki page of Michael McFaul, former US ambassador to Russia and self-described "specialist in democracy, anti-dictatorial movements, and revolutions" :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_McFaul#Russian_opposition_visitGuess who he was filmed meeting with right after he took the job? Boris Nemtsov.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yf3LjntNX20&feature=youtu.be 0c8a77 No.2971
Estonia's ruling, pro-NATO center-right claims election win: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/02/us-estonia-election-idUSKBN0LX15620150302?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>Estonia's center-right prime minister claimed victory in an election on Sunday, cementing pro-NATO policies after a campaign dominated by fears of interference by neighboring Russia following Moscow's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region.
>Taavi Roivas' Reform Party won 28 percent, ahead of 25 percent for the opposition center-left Centre Party which wanted Estonians to embrace a new policy of better relations with Moscow to ensure security for the small Baltic state.
>The vote reaffirmed support for a coalition government which has urged the West to unite in deterring Russian President Vladimir Putin. Estonia has suffered more frequent breaches of its airspace by Russian military aircraft since Moscow annexed Crimea.
>But the vote showed deep splits in Estonia. A quarter of Estonia's 1.3 million population are Russian speakers and about 70 percent of them support the Centre Party, which signed a 2004 cooperation deal with Putin's United Russia Party.
>"Silver medal shouldn't be a disappointment for anyone," Centre Party leader Edgar Savisaar told supporters, the Baltic New Service said. "A party which represents so many people of Estonia can't be shunned or forced to be silent." So, is Estonia going to pursue a more hawkish attitude towards Russia than before now that elections are out the way?
d5cfc3 No.2977
>>2928Russia should just invade Ukraine. Then these protesters might have a real reason to protest.
344b05 No.2980
>>2260The amount of saging and shilling going on in this Ukraine post on /pol/ is unbelievable.
Ukraine: Behind the Kosher Nationalist Facade
https://8ch.net/pol/res/1362166.htmlsome gems
>If you are suggesting that the Ukrainian Nationalists are getting Jewish support/money, that is fine.
>They may think they are doing it to thwart Putin or who knows what, but as long as it isn't communist, I have not problem with it.Has /pol/ been posted to some EUIDF sites or something? The Ukie apologists seem to be much worse than a few months ago.
58036b No.2981
>>2980Didn't the Ukrainians recently make that IDF squad of theirs? Is this that in action?
0c8a77 No.2982
Hopes for peaceful Russian transition fade with Nemtsov: Kasparov:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/02/us-russia-nemtsov-kasparov-idUSKBN0LY0A320150302
>Kasparov, a former world chess champion who lives in self-imposed exile in the United States, offered a gloomy outlook for Russia's political opposition after Nemtsov was shot dead meters from the Kremlin late on Friday.
>"Boris hoped, in vain as we understand, to see some form of peaceful transition into normal, civilized democratic government," Kasparov told Reuters, describing Nemtsov as one of Russia's leading advocates for non-violent political expression.
>"I see no chance for Russia now to move from Putin's brutal dictatorship into something that will be even (as) mild as we had 10 years ago," he said, predicting it could take a violent mass uprising if change was to come.
>Nemtsov, 55, was one of the leading lights of a divided opposition struggling to revive its fortunes, three years after mass rallies against Putin failed to prevent him returning to the presidency after four years as prime minister.
>Russian authorities have suggested the opposition itself may have been behind his shooting in an attempt to create a martyr and unite the fractured movement.
>Kasparov joined supporters of Nemtsov who suspect Russian authorities were behind the killing, sending a clear message to anti-Putin activists.
>He said there appeared to be little room for political activists in Russia to maneuver, let alone to develop a political strategy.
>"What kind of strategy (is there) if you can get killed?," he said.Can't believe fucking Kasparov, widely known as a brilliant strategist, is actually saying you can't strategize if you can be killed. Isn't strategy used all the time to prevent people (usually the strategist included) from being killed, primarily? One could even argue that strategy was invented to prevent one from dying (which would be a condition of defeat). Chrissake, Garry, the years have not been good for you - that or you're hoping to help build up the NATO narrative of Nemtsov's assassination (which is extremely likely, you being in the USA now).
On the topic of him leaving Russia (which I was unaware of before this article):
http://www.rferl.org/content/kasparov-russia-exile/25008778.html>>2980>>2981see:
Facebook frontline: Kiev calls up 'online army' amid information war:
http://rt.com/news/235251-kiev-war-online-bloggers/
>A day after Ukraine announced it is joining the information war by creating an 'online army,' the Information Policy Ministry entered into its first controversy. It has reportedly called on bloggers to create accounts to spread information useful to Kiev.
>The ministry has begun accepting applications from people wanting to join the online army. Once users are registered, they reportedly receive instructions on how to proceed.
>One of the users published the first set of instructions he allegedly received from the “internet army headquarters.”
>The task outline is to create as many fake accounts on social media as possible without raising suspicion. The instructions explain that it is preferable to set up a new email account that uses a Western server. It also advises to set up new Twitter, Facebook, and VKontakte accounts (the Russian equivalent of Facebook). I don't think 8chan or any English chan would be their concern (more numbers on Facebook and Twitter, but it is possible.
0c8a77 No.2984
Lavrov, Kerry begin talks on Ukraine in Geneva
>Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry began talks in Geneva on Monday, discussing the conflict in eastern Ukraine. The atmosphere was tense before talks and no statements were made, AFP reported. Kerry is also expected to raise issues about the investigation into the assassination of Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov.
I'll be posting more on this as it updates - here's hoping neither Kerry nor Lavrov don't sperg the fuck out.
0808a2 No.2995
I'm so glad you cancerous cunts got your own board to shit up. Now if only the shills would move it over here to the RIDFchamber(Back to /pol/ anon)
0c8a77 No.2998
>>2995But I'm neutral, anon (at least I try).
36e24f No.2999
>>2995what is it about us cunts? what makes us alike? not sure what ideology you think we are
what is RIDF?
d9a74e No.3011
This is ID: 0c8a77 posting from a new IP. I'm doing shit right now so I don't have time to act as the Human Newsline at the moment. However, here is Kerry's debriefing to the press in Geneva:
http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2015/03/238077.htmRelevant excerpt:
>Well, Michael, first of all regarding Russia, it’s clear from the conversations that I’ve had with President Poroshenko as well as with Foreign Minister Lavrov, and the conversations that we’ve had in Washington in the aftermath of the Minsk negotiations, that there was not a clarity with respect to Debaltseve, which we obviously saw play out in the drama of the soldiers who were left there and who were fighting and who eventually fought their way out, with many being killed. What is critical here is that the maps that were agreed to show several different areas of drawback on both sides from the line of contact and according to the size of the weapon, the gauge of a particular weapon, they have to pull back different amounts.
>Right now, the OSCE has complained to us, at least, that they have not been granted full access to be able to make those judgments, and particularly the end zones as to where items that have been withdrawn have actually been placed, whether they’ve been placed there or not.
>So there’s been a kind of cherry picking, a piecemeal selectivity to the application of the Minsk agreements. And as we all know, shooting, shelling has still been going on and people have still been killed over the course of these last days. So there is not yet a full ceasefire, and it’s extremely difficult for the full measure of the Minsk agreement, which includes a political component, to begin to be implemented until you actually have the full measure of security that comes with OSCE monitoring and an actual ceasefire. So our hope is that in the next hours, certainly not more than days, this will be fully implemented. I might add, a convoy that came through from Russia passed across the border into the eastern part of Ukraine without being properly inspected also.
>So these are the issues I raised with the foreign minister. He assured me that they are intent on seeing to it that the accord – that the agreements are, in fact, implemented. He said he would get back to me with respect to a number of the issues that I raised. And our hope is, indeed, that this will prove to be a road to further de-escalation rather than a road to disappointment, potential deception, and further violence. But that’s going to have to play out, obviously, over the course of the next few days. So I’m very hopeful that it will, in fact, be the start of a change which would be an improvement for everybody.>>2999Russian Internet Defense Force - it's a common insult. Do you not go to Ukraine threads often?
7a1ceb No.3016
>>2995that doesn't even make sense..
d5cfc3 No.3019
>>3016What do you expect from your typical /pol/ user? He didn't even try to argue, and came with the "RIDF" bullshit. Its'been said many times that if someone backs the Ukrainian side he is free to come and post his opinion and provide information and sources. Strangely no one even tried to.
I wonder why…
36e24f No.3021
>>3011not ones with shills in them. so it's supposed to be a pun on JIDF implying that russia would stoop to the level of the jews. ha, hahaaa
as you can tell, I'm of the opinion that the russian seperatists don't actually get any direct support or encouragement from russia, despite what the western media whants you to think
ec1319 No.3022
>>3021Oh please, major countries like Russia, China & USA definitely have paid shill armies on the web. It would be foolish or hopelessly naive of you to think otherwise.
a688a9 No.3029
So, someone in pol noticed that the US troop going to ukraine to help with training are the same unit thats used to sieze airports and bridgeheads for heavier stuff to move in
Someone theorized that obama is gonna pull a kosovo on eastern ukraine, since there technically arent russian soldiers there, putin couldnt help without actually going fullout
Now this is just a theory, but it wouldnt suprise me if the US does it, simply for obama trying to "solve" the oroblem and to get revenge on Putin
36e24f No.3042
>>3022china and russia? I wouldn't assume as such but if you are so certain do you have anything to back up your claim?
ec1319 No.3043
>>3042Go ahead and mine vkontakte & english social media for major Russia-related incidents in recent years. You will notice certain patterns emerging provided you aren't autist & unable to think holistically. Case for China is even more obvious given how extensive their domestic web censoring is. Do you honestly believe that they wouldn't have paid shills on web as well?
36e24f No.3044
>>3043censoring and shilling are two different things
that's exactly why I doubt they would. the people of their country don't have access anyways so why would they waste energy to shill?
israel and america don't have blatant censorship, but they do have covert censorship, and it only makes sense that those that are willing to do covert online censorship would also covertly spread misinformation online
china and russia are not covert
also you are again just posting your opinion, and so am I.
there is evidence for jewish shilling called JIDF (though I'm only assuming that it's gotten state funding)
36e24f No.3053
>>3043also I'm sure there is but I actually didn't find any vk censorship (let alone shilling) but only found requests to give data to the russian government, something america does with fb on a regular basis so… yea…..
d5cfc3 No.3054
>>3043There is the so called "Internet chinese police" which ofcourse censors stuff, but also uses the internet to spread ideas to the chinese people. But they aren't shills, as in to target Western Countries to defend China, they are trying to change the opinion of chinese people, and are acting solely in China and ROC.
They do have paid "shills" but they don't operate outside China, and don't really care about changing the opinion of the western people. Really don't know aoout Russia.
cc999a No.3060
New IP again.
>>3054More Violence Reported In East Ukraine Despite Truce:
http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-violence-despite-truce/26879816.html
>Ukraine says that three of its servicemen have been killed and nine wounded in the previous 24 hours in the country's east.
>The casualties underscore the fragility of a two-week-old cease-fire between government forces and Russian-backed separatists in a conflict that has killed more than 6,000 people since April.
>A military spokesman said on March 3 that rebels shelled Ukrainian positions 22 times over the past day.
>Meanwhile, separatists accused Ukrainian troops of firing mortar shells in the outskirts of Donetsk overnight.The Ukrainian School of War:
http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/181056/the-ukrainian-school-of-war.html
>Russian President Vladimir Putin's tactics in Ukraine do resemble those of Serbian President Slobodan Milošević during the breakup of Yugoslavia. Putin's misuse of World War II references in propaganda, aimed at fueling intense Russian nationalism, is often said to be a cut-and-paste replica of Milošević's disinformation campaigns in the early 1990s, which stirred up anti-Croat sentiment among Serbs.Just wanted to take a second and ask: what has Putin said about WWII? I'm unaware of it and can only think when the West collectively related him to Hitler.
>Both Putin and Milošević empowered ethnic kin in the countries over which they wanted to assert control, before launching military invasions under the pretense of protecting those kin. Finally, both leaders secured the establishment of self-proclaimed “republics" within another country's borders.
>Given these similarities, many argue that Western powers should emulate their approach to ending the crisis in Yugoslavia – and that means providing “lethal defensive military assistance" to Ukraine. After all, it is asserted, the Dayton Agreement that ended the Bosnian War became possible only after the Americans decided to arm the Croats and Bosnian Muslims.
>But, of course, Putin's Russia is not Milošević's Serbia. Russia is not a footnote in history or a Balkan mini-state; it is a nuclear Great Power, against which Ukraine, however heavily armed, does not stand a chance militarily. Given this, providing weapons to Ukraine would exacerbate the bloodletting, without compelling Putin to reconsider his approach and support a lasting peace.
>Moreover, the geopolitical context has changed considerably in the last two decades. At the time of the Yugoslav war, the West not only occupied the moral high ground, but was also viewed as invincible, owing to its Cold War victory. Today, the West is perceived as in decline, with America's legitimacy as a global leader increasingly called into question.
>In this context, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is right to oppose arming Ukraine. But she is wrong to assume that negotiations with the Russians can produce a lasting solution like the Dayton Accords, because the conflicts themselves are fundamentally different. Whereas Yugoslavia experienced a local crisis with broader European implications, Ukraine is mired in a European crisis with local implications.
>Putin remains involved in Ukraine for reasons that seem largely pedagogical. He has a message for the sanctimonious West – and for the Ukrainians who craved entry into its club.
>For the West, the message is that Russia will not tolerate meddling in its backyard. In Putin's view, the West must acknowledge the entire post-Soviet space, minus the Baltic states, as Russia's exclusive sphere of influence. (The Kremlin's apparent failure to anticipate China's refusal to accept such a dispensation – particularly in Central Asia, which is key to President Xi Jinping's economic vision – represents a puzzling lapse in Putin's strategic calculus.)
>For Ukraine – and its new government, in particular – the message is that the country cannot survive, at least not within its current borders, without Russia's support. Putin also wants to show Ukrainians that, at the end of the day, the West does not really care about them. Americans will not fight for them, and Europeans will not provide the money that their government so desperately needs.
>The West's motivations in Ukraine, too, seem more pedagogical than strategic: to show Putin that changing borders by force is unacceptable in Europe today. The hope is that economic sanctions, together with Russian casualties on the ground, will force Russia humbly to accept its post-Cold War status as a third-rate power, while sending the additional message that any effort to revise the US-led world order is doomed to fail – with serious economic costs. cc999a No.3061
Russia ready to consider discount on gas price for Ukraine in Q2:
http://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-russia-ready-to-consider-discount-on-gas-price-for-ukraine-in-q2-2065843
>Russia is ready to consider providing Ukraine with a discount for gas supplies within their existing contract starting from the second quarter, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak told Rossiya 24 TV channel on Tuesday.
>Moscow earlier agreed to provide a discount of $100 per 1,000 cubic metres of gas for Ukraine in the first quarter. Further supplies are expected to be discussed later this month. Novak, fresh from another round of talks in Brussels, said that Moscow could consider another discount for Ukraine by way of reducing an export duty on gas.
>"We, obviously, will look into the possibility of providing such a discount, depending on our budget and market environment," he said. "In theory, there is such a possibility… it is a matter of separate agreements."
>Novak added that Moscow would take into account a change in contract prices for gas for Ukraine which are revised regularly according to a formula pegged to the prices of crude oil and oil products with a lag of six to nine months.
>"(Oil) prices have fallen and the period that will serve as a basis (for pricing) saw lower oil and oil product prices," he said in an interview. Ukraine has been paying $329 per 1,000 cubic metres of Russian gas in the first quarter. cc999a No.3063
>>3061Accidentally clicked post.
Ukraine says return of Crimea a must for mending ties with Russia:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/03/us-ukraine-crisis-klimkin-idUSKBN0LZ0LW20150303?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>No normalization of ties between Ukraine and Russia is likely unless the region of Crimea, now under Russian control, is returned to Kiev's sovereignty, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said on Tuesday.
>Klimkin, on the second day of his two-day trip to Japan, also said the border between Ukraine and Russia needed to be completely closed to achieve any settlement to the armed conflict between Kiev and pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
>He reiterated his government's stance as a ceasefire deal, reached last month in Minsk, is broadly holding on the front line, but fighters in the separatist stronghold of Donetsk are training for another round of clashes against government troops.
>"There could be no slightest way of normalizing or getting back to business in the relations between Ukraine and Russia without returning to status quo and establishing full Ukrainian sovereignty over Crimea," Klimkin told reporters in Tokyo.
>"The ultimate precondition for any effective, final settlement is to fully close down the Ukrainian-Russian border," he said.
>"Because everything that has been destabilizing the situation in (the Ukrainian cities of) Donetsk and Lugansk - mercenaries, money, weapons, heavy weaponry, and of course Russian rebel troops - came through the Russian-Ukrainian border." Normandy Group to Convene in Berlin to Discuss Ukraine Crisis on March 6:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150303/1018982591.html
>Representatives from the foreign ministries of Germany, France, Ukraine, and Russia have been invited to convene in Berlin March 6 to discuss the Ukrainian crisis, German government spokesman Steffen Seibert said Tuesday.
>"The future implementation of issues being discussed will be reviewed this Friday in Berlin in the Foreign Ministry at the high official level," Seibert was quoted as saying on the official German government website.
>The so-called Normandy Group includes representatives from Germany, France, Ukraine, and Russia.Relevant to Russia:
Fugitive Ex-President Threatens Georgia With Protests, 'Coup': http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150303/1018995010.html====
>The party led by Georgia's fugitive ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili, United National Movement (UNM), has announced that it is planning massive anti-government protests in Tbilisi, the country's capital, as the country faces economic issues following a devaluation of its national currency.
>In a communique to his supporters, which has been circulated Georgian media, Saakashvili calls for mass protests similar to the 2013-2014 Euromaidan protests in Ukraine.
>Saakashvili's party has already responded to the request, announcing anti-government protests on March 21, using Georgia's economic situation as the motivation.
>"Other than the government having no concrete plan, they are not listening to the people. That is why we, as an opposition force, must make it so that they hear our voice," the party announced.
>Deputy State Minister on Diaspora Issues Alexandre Bregadze has confirmed the plans, telling Georgian media that Saakashvili is planning Maidan-style protests.
>In recent weeks, Georgia's national currency, the lari, has devalued by almost 24 percent in recent weeks following similar trends in neighboring Azerbaijan. Members of the opposition and experts have blamed the government's economic policy for the devaluation.
>Non-government organizations in Georgia have responded to the announcement by protesting against the planned anti-government protest outside of the UNM headquarters. Protesters burned a banner displaying the party's members and threw eggs at the party building, which led police to detain six of the protesters.Quick glance at wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikheil_Saakashvili
>Saakashvili energetically supported Ukraine's Euromaidan movement and the 2014 Ukrainian revolution. On 13 February 2015, he was appointed by the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko as head of the International Advisory Council on Reforms. Saakashvili is wanted by Georgia's new government on multiple criminal charges, which he denies as politically motivated.[5]Happening?
cc999a No.3064
>>3060Also, sorry for replying to you with my first post.
cc999a No.3065
Despite Russian Warnings, US Will Deploy A Battalion To Ukraine By The End Of The Week:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-03-02/despite-russian-warnings-us-will-deploy-battalion-ukraine-end-week
>Ukraine's infamous pink Porsche-driving central bank governor, Valeriya Gontareva, raised the nation's refinancing rate from 19.5% to a stunning 30% (effective Wednesday) in order to "stabilize the situation in the money and lending markets," and imposed some 'capital controls' on exporters holding foreign cash.
>For now, the hink to the highest rate since 2000 is having a positive effect as UAH has rallied 2-3 handles back to one-month highs against the USD - having lost over 60% of its value in the last year (though we note these are the 'official' rates and may not represent actual UAH transactions in the real world). "The central bank is trying to send a strong signal that it is in charge," noted on analyst as the country desperately waits for its $17.5bn bailout from US taxpayers The IMF.
>As Bloomberg reports, Ukraine's central bank is “eager” to strengthen the hryvnia toward the 21.7 per dollar average rate in the 2015 budget, which is important to ensure a board approval of the IMF loan next week…
>Ukraine’s central bank raised its benchmark interest rate to the highest since 2000 as policy makers struggle to curb a decline in the nation’s currency and seek to move closer to obtaining an emergency loan.
>The National Bank of Ukraine raised its refinancing rate to 30 percent from 19.5 percent, effective Wednesday, to “stabilize the situation on the money and lending markets,” Governor Valeriya Gontareva told reporters in Kiev. The regulator also retained a requirement for exporters to convert 75 percent of their foreign-currency revenue, helping the hryvnia strengthen 9.3 percent against the dollar.
>Ukraine is working to access an International Monetary fund loan to avert default after the war with pro-Russian separatists in the country’s east helped wipe 15.2 percent off the economy last quarter compared with a year earlier. Authorities are also trying to prevent capital flight and stabilize the hryvnia, which has lost 60 percent against the dollar in the past year to become the world’s worst-performing currency.
>“The rate hike will increase the appeal of holding hryvnias, so it will be a positive factor, but I’m not sure that it alone will be enough to fix a rather acute deficit of dollar supply,” Fyodor Bagnenko, a Kiev-based trader at Dragon Capital, said by e-mail. “What’s really needed in this situation is a combination of administrative and monetary measures – and it seems like this is exactly what the central bank is doing.”
>All laws demanded by the IMF for the approval of a four-year $17.5 billion loan program have been adopted by lawmakers, Gontareva said.Ukraine’s First Deputy Finance Minister Ihor Umanskyi said Feb. 27 that IMF funds will go into reserves, because “it will be very difficult to douse the fire and panic without additional resources poured in.”
>So it would appear - by raising rates so dramatically, and choking off any hope of economic recovery - that the central bank is betting the netire nation's future on achieving the target FX rates that enable money to flow from The IMF…
>Ironically, The IMF, at the same time, is drawing blood from Greece's stone (as it raids its pension funds to cover its debt).
>Ukraine credit risk remains the worst in the world… cc999a No.3066
>>3029Despite Russian Warnings, US Will Deploy A Battalion To Ukraine By The End Of The Week:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-03-02/despite-russian-warnings-us-will-deploy-battalion-ukraine-end-week"Before this week is up, we’ll be deploying a battalion… to the Ukraine to train Ukrainian forces for the fight that's taking place," stated US 173rd Airborne Brigade Commander Colonel Michael Foster said at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC on Monday. Despite earlier warnings from Russia (and claims that NATO had not agreed to any such foreign 'boots on the ground' action'), Sputnik News reports, Foster added, "what we’ve got laid out is six United States companies that will be training six Ukrainian companies throughout the summer."
This comes a week after PM David Cameron confirmed Britain will be sending 75 military personnel to help combat Russian military aggression.
Despite earlier reports from Russia's NATO envoy that, as TASS reports,
NATO has taken no decisions on sending British or any other instructors to Ukraine, Russia’s Ambassador to the North Atlantic Alliance Alexander Grushko said on Monday."NATO has taken no decisions on sending instructors," he told the Rossiya 24 television channel. "NATO is implementing the decisions that were taken at the political level at the Wales summit in September 2014."Moscow will take all measures, including military-technical, to neutralize possible threat from NATO presence in Ukraine, he added.It seems it is happening, as Sputnik News reports,
The United States will deploy personnel by the end of this week to train the Ukrainian national guard, US 173rd Airborne Brigade Commander Colonel Michael Foster said at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC on Monday.''''
“Before this week is up, we’ll be deploying a battalion minus… to the Ukraine to train Ukrainian forces for the fight that’s taking place,” Foster stated. “What we’ve got laid out is six United States companies that will be training six Ukrainian companies throughout the summer.”''''
The current plan is for US forces to stay six months, he said, and noted there have been discussions about how to increase the duration and the scope of the training mission.The current channels for military training set up between Ukraine and the United States would not be used for transferring defensive lethal aid if the United States decided to provide arms to Ukraine, Foster told Sputnik on Monday. “It would go through something separate… We would not funnel the lethal aid or arms through that [training] event, we would use a secondary method for that,” Foster said, adding that a completely separate process is preferable. cc999a No.3067
>>3066Formatting is fucked and I forgot greentext. Fuck it.
4a6f41 No.3068
>>3066Shit, it seems now that we're even closer to the midnight.
4a6f41 No.3069
>>3068forgot the pic related.
0c8a77 No.3078
>>3068>>3069I wish that the Bulletin judged the Doomsday Clock's position more often. Maybe bicentennial announcements?
Back to my old IP (ID might be different). Hopefully, I can now fuck up less often.
Ukraine agrees tough austerity package to gain $17.5bn IMF bailout:
http://rt.com/business/237157-ukraine-cuts-budget-imf/
>The Ukrainian parliament has approved amendments the 2015 budget that sees drastic pension cuts and energy bills tripling. The changes are needed to comply with the terms of the agreed $17.5 billion IMF bailout package.
>The budget amendments were passed at an extraordinary meeting on Monday with a majority of 273 votes, well above the minimum 226 votes necessary to pass legislation.
>According to the changes, Ukraine’s budget deficit increases from 3.7 percent to 4.1 percent of GDP. Amendments envisage the expenses increasing by about $1.3 billion (35 billion hryvnia), with a 21.7 hryvnia per dollar exchange rate. At the same the cabinet plans to cut government funding of Naftogaz in 2015 by 5.8 percent to 29.7 billion hryvnia.
>The changes also see a cut in pensions for retired people by 15 percent. Moreover, pension payments for people working in the tax, customs and regulatory bodies, will be suspended. The job tenure for people working in hazardous and heavy industries will be gradually increased from 20 years to 25 years for men and from 15 years to 20 years for women.
>The amended budget provides for increasing the rent charged for gas production from 20 percent to 70 percent.
>At the same time Ukraine’s national commission responsible for controlling energy and utilities has more than doubled the cost of gas to average consumers. Thus, gas used for heating will jump 230 percent to about $132 per 1,000 cubic meters.
>The price for gas used in cooking and heating water is expected to skyrocket from $43 to $263 per 1,000 cubic meters.
>The IMF two-year loan program for Ukraine is worth $17.5 billion. The overall financial assistance from the IMF and other sources could be as much as $40 billion. The IMF is expected to approve the new aid package to Ukraine on March 11, 2015.
>Ukrainian Prime Minister Yatsenyuk is sure the International Monetary Fund will agree. He says external financing will increase foreign exchange reserves, which will help stabilize the hryvnia which has lost around 70 percent of its value since the crisis begun a year ago.
>Nicholas Burge, the head of the trade and economic section of the EU Delegation in Ukraine suggests the country’s reserves are a third of what is needed. Ukrainian reserves stood at $6.42 billion on February 1, 2015, enough to cover about five months of import. U.S. Commander Says Some 12,000 Russian Soldiers In Eastern Ukraine:
http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-us-commander-hodges-12000-russian-troops/26880574.html
>The U.S. military estimates some 12,000 Russian soldiers are supporting pro-Moscow separatists in eastern Ukraine.
>Hodges also said some 29,000 Russian troops are in Crimea, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine last year.
>Hodges said in Berlin on March 3 that helping Ukraine with weapons would increase the stakes for Russian President Vladimir Putin at home.
>He added that "when mothers start seeing sons come home dead, when that price goes up, then that domestic support begins to shrink."
>The White House still hasn't decided whether to send arms to Ukraine, and Hodges reiterated Washington wanted a diplomatic solution. 0c8a77 No.3079
>>3078Hey, my ID is still the same.
Ukraine foreign minister says in doubt about Minsk truce:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/ukraine/2015/ukraine-150303-presstv02.htm
>Ukraine says it doubts that the European-brokered truce with pro-Russia forces will hold long, pointing to the lack of trust between Kiev and Moscow.
>"There was always a problem of lack of trust in relations between Ukraine and Russia…. We can't rely on any kinds of agreements between us and Russians," he said.
>Describing the situation on the ground in volatile east Ukraine as "very difficult and tense" despite the ceasefire, he noted that shelling by pro-Russia forces continues in the region.
>The Ukrainian foreign minister emphasized that the distrust between his country and Russia makes it necessary to have what he called a "consistent position of the whole international community for defending Ukraine peace and Ukrainian territorial sovereignty and territorial integrity."
>Klimkin further rejected the possibility of normalization of ties between Kiev and Moscow unless the region of Crimea is returned to Ukraine.
>"There could be no slightest way of normalizing or getting back to business in the relations between Ukraine and Russia without returning to status quo and establishing full Ukrainian sovereignty over Crimea," he said.
>Crimea declared independence from Ukraine on March 17, 2014 and formally applied to become part of Russia following a referendum a day earlier, in which 96.8 percent of participants voted in favor of the secession. The voter turnout in the referendum stood at 83.1 percent.Kiev must modernize army before joining NATO: FM:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/ukraine/2015/ukraine-150303-presstv03.htm
>'As concerns NATO, we need to modernize Ukraine, bringing its possibilities in ensuring security and its defense sectors to higher standards, the standards of NATO. After carrying out these reforms, we will decide what will be the next move towards NATO,' Pavlo Klimkin said at a press conference in Tokyo on Tuesday.
>Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has pledged to seek NATO membership over the allegation that Moscow supports pro-Russian forces in Ukraine's restive east. Russia rejects the accusation.
>Last December, Ukrainian lawmakers overwhelmingly voted to renounce Kiev's non-aligned status and backed a move towards NATO membership.
>Meanwhile, Russia has warned that Ukraine joining the Western military alliance would only boost tensions around the crisis in the east.
>'It will only escalate the confrontation and creates the illusion that it is possible to resolve Ukraine's deep internal crisis by passing such laws,' Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last December.
>In an interview with Japan's Nikkei newspaper, Klimkin said Ukraine expects to receive arms supply not only from the US, but also from other countries.
>Last week, Oleg Gladkovsky, the first deputy chief of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, said that Kiev signed contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars on exports and imports of weapons at the IDEX-2015 exhibition in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates.Reminder: Dubai’s deal with Kiev includes no weapons supplies – UAE Foreign Ministry:
http://rt.com/news/236319-uae-ukraine-weapon-supply/
>It is 'critically important' to increase the capability of Ukrainian military forces, the minister said, adding, "We need additional defensive weapons.'
>Gladkovsky said the majority of the contracts have been reached with US companies, but did not provide further details. 0c8a77 No.3081
US Should Arm Ukraine Within NATO Alliance Context - General Dempsey:
http://sputniknews.com/military/20150304/1019022741.html
>The United States should consider providing Ukraine with lethal defensive military aid in coordination with other NATO members, US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Martin Dempsey told the US Senate on Tuesday.
>“I think we should absolutely consider providing lethal aid and it ought to be in the context of our NATO allies,” Dempsey said at the US Senate Armed Services Committee.
>“[Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s ultimate objective is cracking NATO,” Dempsey stated in response to a question regarding arming Ukraine.
>Dempsey insisted that Putin intends to “generate disagreement among our NATO allies” and emphasized the importance of reassuring and reinforcing the NATO alliance to US military strategy.
>The United States Congress and members of US President Barack Obama’s administration have stated their support for arming Ukraine, but other NATO allies including Germany, France, Spain, and Italy have opposed the measure.Ukraine replenishes Donbass tank supplies amid ceasefire:
http://rt.com/news/237429-ukraine-ceasefire-tank-supplies/
>Amid the efforts to bring warring parties in eastern Ukraine to the negotiating table, Kiev has announced fresh supplies of tanks to its forces in Donbass, jeopardizing the truce reached by the Minsk deal which requires the withdrawal of heavy weaponry.
>Under the internationally struck deal in Minsk last month, the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics have already fulfilled some of the obligations and pulled back their heavy weaponry from the contact line with Kiev’s forces.
> “We have taken the first step and brought 100mm caliber artillery to the designated distance, which is 25 kilometers away on an approved border arrangements under Minsk agreements. Therefore, we are ready to continue to withdraw heavy weapons but only in case that other party will begin withdrawing its artillery systems,” Alexander Motuzyanyk said.
>The latest special OSCE monitoring mission report noted that the security situations in Donetsk and Lugansk regions is “relatively calm” with some instances of “distant shelling and gunfire” heard by the observers. And while all parties concerned agree that the truce is holding, Kiev is taking active steps to reequip itself. a688a9 No.3090
>>3084
>if you can show that Russia DID NOT down the plane
not really possible
the story has already been written and will carry on regardless of conflicting evidence
36e24f No.3094
0c8a77 No.3095
>>3084I can promise nothing, but I'll look into it and make a thread in a bit (if there isn't already a thread).
As 1000s Mourn At Nemtsov's Funeral, Seven Main Conspiracy Theories Emerge:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-03-03/1000s-mourn-nemtsovs-funeral-seven-main-conspiracy-theories-emerge
>Tens of thousands marched Sunday through Central Moscow to honor Boris Nemtsov, outspoken opposition critic of Vladimir Putin who was murdered Friday night and thousands more mourned today at his funeral (though notably not Putin himself) and more pointedly, The BBC reports, several EU politicians and Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny were barred from attending the funeral. Hours later, Mr Navalny accused the Russian authorities of responsibility for the murder, adding to slew of competing theories involving everything from the CIA to Islamic militants and Ukrainian nationalists.
>There appear to seven key theories as to who (or what) was responsible, as InterpreterMag explains:
>1. Islamists angry at Nemtsov’s support for the Charlie Hebdo cartoonists; this theory was indicated by Vladimir Markin, spokesman for the Investigative Committee)
>2. Business partners, jealous lovers, or other private persons – In most cases involving money and love triangles, the victim is killed inside or right outside their home. The murderer is not going to want to risk being seen in a wide-open public space, or caught on surveillance cameras. The fact that Nemtsov was killed in a wide-open space with lots of possible witnesses, and surveillance cameras in a highly-secure area near the Kremlin, tends to suggest that personal reasons are not involved.
>3. Ukrainian government or State Department paymasters. Those positing the involvement of the Ukrainian or any Western government in the assassination who are unhappy with their charge’s supposed work for them have to explain why these putative pay-masters looking to “punish for poor performance” or conversely “split society” didn’t wait until March 1, and a presumably failed march with fairly low turnout (or a wildly successful march), to then settle their scores — and thus miss an opportunity for a high-profile event first to attract support of their cause. Given that in Russia, murders and arrests tend to intimidate dissidents rather than fuel them to more protest, this seems counterintuitive to their hypothetical interests.
>There’s also the obvious problem that if these paymasters want to recruit new helpers, making obvious examples of poor performers by executing them may tend to drive down recruitment.
>4. Western intelligence seeking destabilization of Russia. The argument that any assassination “destabilizes society” seems readily credible until we contemplate that in Russia, killing an opposition leader without much of a following in the broader society does not achieve the desired affect.
>There have been dozens of assassinations in the last 25 years of journalists, priests, civic activists, lawyers, parliamentarians, artists, and business people. None of these affected the rule of Vladimir Putin whatsoever; other factors were involved in the demise of Mikhail Gorbachev and Boris Yeltsin. Russia is already severely destabilized by Putin’s own actions in Ukraine, the fall of the ruble’s value and the price of oil. The effect of a chill on speech and assembly would arguably provide more stability (albeit of the potentially volatile kind due to state oppression), rather than destabilization.
>This could be projection by Kremlin-controlled media, as one key way in which Russian-backed separatists and suspects who were trained in Russia, according to Ukrainian police, have destabilized cities like Lugansk and Kharkiv is to commit high-profile assassinations or bombings (see the cases of the Russian ultrarightist activist Aleksandr Prosyolkov who came to Lugansk from Moscow; Aleksandr “Batman” Bednov in Lugansk; and at least 10 bombings of Kharkiv in which Maidan activists and other civilians have been killed.) 0c8a77 No.3096
>>3095cont.
>5. Russian opposition itself making of Nemtsov a “sacrificial victim”. This is a version of the “false flag” technique in subversive activity, and is also likely a projection based on the Kremlin’s own methods. The single greatest disinformation story that the Kremlin has put out regarding Maidan is that the snipers who killed 100 people were from Right Sector or other ultrarightist forces who killed their own fellow demonstrators as well as police to provoke a violent coup. While some of the demonstrators may have shot police, the evidence also indicates that most demonstrators were unarmed and shot by riot police.
>Furthermore, there is indication that not only did the Kremlin have a scenario for takeover of the Crimea and the Donbass before Yanukovych fled, Yanukovych had plenty of reasons to flee without actually facing gunmen in his own office or residence — which never occurred.
>Blogger Oleg Kashin has an interesting post about the “sacrificial lamb” theory, noting that he himself heard this theory espoused during his own police interrogations regarding the 2010 attack on him which left him severely injured, after which he was eventually forced to flee Russia to live abroad.
>An investigator asked him if he didn’t think the attack on him was meant to “destabilize Russia” or was an effort by opposition to make him into a “sacrificial victim.” He didn’t think that about his own case, and doesn’t think it about Nemtsov’s case now, either. He took it at face value for what it was: government-related intimidation to punish him for blogging critically about an environmental issue.
>Ilya Ponomarev argued backward from the actual “audience” that would be most affected by the assassination to discard both the “sacrificial lamb” and “destabilization of society” theory:
>“The audience for that crime was not the Russian people; the target audience is within the Russian elites, who knew Nemtsov very well, and even those who were Putin supporters had great respect and they knew him as first vice prime minister; and elites in the West – an even greater target than elites in Russia.”
>Not ordinary Russians or “all of Russia” were affected, because if Nemtsov had any recognition value, it was only as a figured hated for his association with the Yeltsin regime. Rather, it would be the liberal intelligentsia in Russia and its supporters in the West who knew Nemtsov and his value who would be most affected.
>As Ponomarev pointed out, unlike other figures who were less transparent, everything about Nemtsov was known, including his love affairs and business dealings and he was never shy about expressing his opinion on a wide range of issues. That made it difficult for officials to control him.
>6. Ultranationalist or nationalist-Bolshevik or other type of groups to the right or left of the Kremlin operating on their own. The assassination of the most visible enemy designated by Anti-Maidan as “the organizer of Maidan” is not merely intended to “discredit Putin” — who is already quite discredited. Rather, it signals to Putin that extremists will hedge him in by “taking care of” enemies they believe may influence him, to one extent or another in the “fifth column.”
>Regardless of the forces or interests at play in the murder of Nemtsov, it’s likely that suspects in the murder will be delivered quickly — already there is talk of “license plates from Ingushetia or Ossetia,” Caucasian republic near Chechnya, which indicates that a Chechen or other Caucasian, the standard culprits for crimes in Russia may turn out once again to be involved.
>For one, a key feature of the annual report of Aleksandr Bastrykin delivered last Friday, February 27 (the same day as Nemtsov’s murder) is that 86% of murders are solved, and that the percentage of such cases has increased since last year. After boasting about this facet of his Investigative Committee — which he believes makes the reason self-evident for separating the investigative functions from the prosecutor’s office — he will be under pressure to make good on his claim, not to mention under considerable political and media pressure with such a high-profile case.
>For another, the faster the government can find a credible scapegoat, even if the investigation and trial process drags out for years, the more any undesirable fallout can be controlled. 0c8a77 No.3098
>>3096cont.
>Ilya Ponomarev predicted that in the next few weeks, the culprit will likely be found:
>“Their face will be on Russian TV, their biographies and the evidence — ‘the evidence’ — would be on RT, very nicely presented,conveyed in perfect English by people like Ms. Boykov…conveyed in perfect English, and with all the proof that is needed to convince a Western audience. My personal bet is that it will be somebody next to Khodorkovsky whom Kremlin really fears.”
>(Note: The Interpreter is a project of the Institute for Modern Russia which is funded by Pavel Khodorkovsky, son of Mikhail Khodorkovsky.)Where have I heard that name before… Oh, that's right: Russia's Khodorkovsky: Putin is a 'naked king' facing economic ruin:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/26/us-russia-khodorkovsky-idUSKBN0LU29K20150226Back to the article:
>7. The Kremlin. When political killings have occurred in the United States, Latin America, Asia or Africa, media have no trouble questioning whether the government in power could be involved somehow. Yet when it comes to Russia, such probing is instantly relegated to the category of “conspiracy theory” and discredited as tin-foil hattery.
>Even so, the simplest explanation for the murder of an opposition leader against the dramatic backdrop of the Kremlin walls and towers and St. Basil’s Cathedral, on the eve of a public anti-war march, is that forces in power or close to the government were most motivated and most capable of the deed.
>There are a number of factors that support government involvement in some form:
>a. Nemtsov was under constant surveillance. This was proven multiple times as his cell phone calls were publicized in the press and his meetings with people were broadcast on TV. His killers would know where he was meeting his girlfriend and where he might stroll after dinner on his way home. Presumably if an attempt was made on Nemtsov while he was under surveillance, agents could prevent it or quickly nab the culprits. Even if it seems to some unlikely Nemtsov wasn’t under total 24/7 surveillance, in the period leading up to a high-profile march, he would be.
>b. The videotape from the security camera trained on the Bolshoi Moskvoretsky Bridge indicates the involvement of a city vehicle in deliberately blocking the view of the murder and making escape possible. As we noted regarding the video, there is suspicious activity as people get in and out of the vehicle and then make a getaway in a passenger car. This is the key indication of possible official collusion. Other video cameras much closer to the scene of the crime likely caught more details, but the footage has not been publicized.
>c. A fear that the march might get more than the barely 30,000 that the government mustered for the Anti-Maidan cause, even paying demonstrators, bussing in protesters, and urging unions and local government to turn out people dependent on the state for their salaries. Had 30,000 appeared for “Spring” — and it’s not clear at all that they would, although a rally last March produced that many — the Kremlin might have felt it had a significant challenge. It’s not a challenge it would have been overwhelmed with, however, as experience shows that with just a few dozens arrests and long sentences of 4-5 years such as in the Bolotnaya Square cases, the government could deter participation in large rallies. Even so, it could represent a fresh round of challenges.
>d. Recent leak of a document purporting to come from the Kremlin indicating plans to annex the Crimea and the Donbass long before Yanukovych was toppled. So much effort has been spent on finding reasons to discount or downplay this document that it may be overlooked that it simply could be true. In that case, a leak from a top official would need to be punished and further leakers or would-be publishers discouraged. Perhaps the Kremlin does not (yet) know who the leaker is and needs to smoke him out.
>Many believed Novaya Gazeta‘s Dmitry Muratov was in great danger when he announced the leak days before publication, yet to attack or jail him might not get as much publicity as the assassination of an opposition leader about to lead a large public march. Nemtsov was also planning to release a report himself.
>e. A demonstrable need in advance of various threatened or anticipated crackdowns to have a powerful deterrence in place to prevent protest. These range from from blocking of independent media websites, Western social media like Twitter and Facebook, due to untenable demands on these companies to place their servers on Russian territory, to further taxation and austerity measures, and a law that will define “undesirable” organizations with foreign ties in addition to the “foreign agents” law. 344b05 No.3099
>>3090Aircraft possibly downed using extremely powerful Radio Signals, causing interference with Navigation and Controls?
>An air data inertial reference unit (ADIRU) is a key component of the integrated air data inertial reference system (ADIRS), which supplies air data (airspeed, angle of attack and altitude) and inertial reference (position and attitude) information to the pilots' electronic flight instrument system displays as well as other systems on the aircraft such as the engines, autopilot, flight control and landing gear systems.
>On 7 October 2008, Qantas Flight 72 made an emergency landing at Learmonth airport near the town of Exmouth, Western Australia following an inflight accident featuring a pair of sudden uncommanded pitch-down manoeuvres that resulted in serious injuries to many of the occupants. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) identified in a preliminary report that a fault occurred within the Number 1 Air Data Inertial Reference Unit (ADIRU) and is the "likely origin of the event". The ADIRU — one of three such devices on the aircraft — began to supply incorrect data to the other aircraft systems. The ATSB's continuing accident investigation will include assessment of speculation that possible interference from Harold E. Holt facility or passenger personal electronic devices could have been involved, although based on initial analysis, the Bureau believes these are unlikely to have been of any impact.
>On 27 December 2008, another aircraft, Qantas Flight 71, also had a malfunction in its ADIRU. The incident again fuelled media speculation regarding the significance of the Harold E. Holt facility, with the Australian and International Pilots Association calling for commercial aircraft to be barred from the area as a precaution until the events are better understood, while the manager of the facility has claimed that it is "highly, highly unlikely" that any interference has been caused.
>Malaysia Airlines Flight 124>On 1 August 2005 a serious incident involving Malaysia Airlines Flight 124, occurred when a Boeing 777-2H6ER (9M-MRG) flying from Perth to Kuala Lumpur also involved an ADIRU fault resulting in uncommanded manoeuvres by the aircraft acting on false indications. In that incident the incorrect data impacted all planes of movement while the aircraft was climbing through 38,000 feet (11,600 m). The aircraft pitched up and climbed to around 41,000 feet (12,500 m), with the stall warning activated. The pilots recovered the aircraft with the autopilot disengaged and requested a return to Perth. During the return to Perth, both the left and right autopilots were briefly activated by the crew, but in both instances the aircraft pitched down and banked to the right. The aircraft was flown manually for the remainder of the flight and landed safely in Perth. There were no injuries and no damage to the aircraft.
>Qantas Flight 68>On 12 September 2006, Qantas Flight 68, Airbus A330 registration VH-QPA, from Hong Kong to Perth exhibited ADIRU problems but without causing any disruption to the flight. At 41,000 feet (12,000 m) and estimated position 530 nautical miles (980 km) north of Learmonth, Western Australia, NAV IR1 FAULT then, 30 minutes later, NAV ADR 1 FAULT notifications were received on the ECAM identifying navigation system faults in Inertial Reference Unit 1, then in ADR 1 respectively. The crew reported to the later Qantas Flight 72 investigation involving the same airframe and ADIRU that they had received numerous warning and caution messages which changed too quickly to be dealt with.
>Qantas Flight 72>On 7 October 2008, Qantas Flight 72, using the same aircraft involved in the Flight 68 incident, departed Singapore for Perth. Some time into the flight, while cruising at 37,000 ft, a failure in the No.1 ADIRU led to the autopilot automatically disengaging followed by two sudden uncommanded pitch down manoeuvres, according to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB). The accident injured up to 74 passengers and crew, ranging from minor to serious injuries. The aircraft was able to make an emergency landing without further injuries. The aircraft was equipped with a Northrop Grumman made ADIRS, which investigators sent to the manufacturer for further testing.All flights had malfunctions of their Air data inertial reference unit causing "uncommanded manoeuvres" while they were in the area of the of the Naval Communication Station Harold E. Holt which lies north of Perth, Australia.
>In July 2002, the Royal Australian Navy handed over operation of the station to the Defence Materiel Organisation. The base is currently operated under contract by Raytheon Australia. On 15 July 2008, Australia and the US signed a bilateral treaty governing the future joint use of the facility for the next 25 years.
>THAT BASE SHAPE 0c8a77 No.3100
Hungary ahead of Eastern Europe states for Turkish Stream implementation:
http://www.panorama.am/en/comments/2015/03/03/ekaterina-blinova/
>As Russia, forced to withdraw from its long-anticipated South Stream, announced its new Turkish Stream initiative, Hungary took the opportunity of strengthening energy ties with Moscow.During his last visit to Budapest, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a number of important agreements in the energy sphere with Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
Experts stressed that the meeting took place amid growing tensions between the West and Russia, aggravated by the ongoing turmoil in Ukraine. It should be mentioned that
Russia is Hungary's largest trade partner, supplying the state with almost 80 percent of its oil and 70 percent of its natural gas. Facing strong criticism from Brussels and the EU's member states for his close cooperation with Russia, Viktor Orban, however, welcomed a chance to give his support to the construction of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline.
>The Hungarian government vowed to become Russia's key partner in the new project that aims to deliver natural gas to Europe circumventing Ukraine. Furthermore, Hungary's Prime Minister never missed an opportunity to criticize the EU for its unproductive sanctions policy. Regardless of the EU's stance, the leaders of Serbia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Bulgaria consider Russia as a viable alternative to the West, however, they are still hesitating to join the new energy project launched by Moscow, experts noted. In this light Budapest appears to be an absolute leader among the Eastern Europe states.
>According to the Kremlin, Russia will be guided by considerations of logistics, seeking more profitable ways of delivering its resources to European states while implementing the Turkish Stream project. A section of the Stream passing Turkey will be expanded to Hungary, and can go to Serbia, Austria and other European countries that will demonstrate their interest in cooperation. 344b05 No.3101
>>3100A corridor is being established between Russia and Germany via Turkey.
Greece
>Despite Greece's membership in the EU and NATO, the country's friendship with Russia has many years of fine traditions. Due to the common interests and shared religious heritage of both countries, Greece and Russia enjoy excellent relations which is reflected by the fact that both states are co-operating in several fields, and especially in trade, culture, energy, military and tourism.Macedonia
>Bilateral political relations between Macedonia and Russia are friendly and characterized by high-level cooperation between the two countries.Serbia
>Dmitry Medvedev described Serbia as a "key partner" for Russia in Southeast Europe and announced "We intend to continue to coordinate our foreign police moves in future, including the ones related to the solving of the issue with Kosovo"Hungary
>President Vladimir Putin hailed Hungary as one of Russia's most important partners on Wednesday, giving his seal of approval to a budding relationship with a Soviet-era ally that is worrying some of its European Union allies.It's happening - Putin has outmanoeuvred the Ukrainian Pipeline monopoly and both Ukraine and US are now sitting with egg on their face.
d5cfc3 No.3104
>>3084
> Russia DID NOT down the plane
The thing is that we can't do that.
Its the other way around - when someone makes a claim that something happened or something existed then he must provide evidence. Not the other way around.
Example:
>Im a billionaire and if you can't prove me wrong, then I am a billionaire.
>Im actually Marsian, and if you can't prove me wrong, then I am actually Marsian.
>I am both Stalin and Hitler, and since you can't prove me wrong, then im both Stalin and Hitler :DDDD
<- This is basicly what the western world is doing. We can't fight with this logic anon.
b5c119 No.3110
>>3104I'd improve that by making it so that when someone makes a claim (of any type), they must provide evidence.
>Dolphins don't existI now need to prove that dolphins don't exist, rather than wait for people to prove me wrong. All claims are positive if their truth value is supposedly 1. That is what I mean…
1bbc16 No.3123
>>3098>7. The Kremlin. When political killings have occurred in the United States, Latin America, Asia or Africa, media have no trouble questioning whether the government in power could be involved somehow. Yet when it comes to Russia, such probing is instantly relegated to the category of “conspiracy theory” and discredited as tin-foil hattery.wut
the same happens here, anytime you say the government did something you're automatically a tinfoil/cuntspiracy nut
1bbc16 No.3124
>>3098>When political killings have occurred in the United States, Latin America, Asia or Africa,>>3123i should say "in the US" you get marked as a consiparcy right winger
in latin america you get disappeared
in africa you get machete'd
in asia you get arrested and disappeared
who wrote that crap?
d5cfc3 No.3127
>>3098>7. The Kremlin. When political killings have occurred in the United States, Latin America, Asia or Africa, media have no trouble questioning whether the government in power could be involved somehow. Yet when it comes to Russia, such probing is instantly relegated to the category of “conspiracy theory” and discredited as tin-foil hattery.Too bad they don't allow comments. Would've loved to see how the users call me a tin-foil for telling them who did 9/11. Man sometimes those news are so ironical that I can barely believe people actually take them seriusly.
0c8a77 No.3131
More than 30 coal miners trapped underground after deadly explosion in Ukraine: http://news.nationalpost.com/2015/03/04/more-than-30-coal-miners-trapped-underground-after-deadly-explosion-in-ukraine/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:%20NP_Top_Stories%20%28National%20Post%20-%20Top%20Stories%29
>An explosion ripped through a coal mine before dawn Wednesday in war-torn eastern Ukraine, killing at least one miner and trapping more than 30 others underground, rebel and government officials said. One injured miner reported seeing five bodies.
>The explosion at the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, an eastern city under separatist control, was not caused by shelling, rebel authorities said. Eastern Ukraine has been wracked by fighting between government forces and Russian-backed rebels for almost a year, a conflict that has killed more than 6,000 people.
>The blast Wednesday occurred more than 1,000 metres underground as 230 workers were in the mine, separatist authorities in Donetsk said in a statement, blaming a mixture of gas and air — a common cause of industrial mining accidents.
>Rescue operations were continuing and at least 157 workers had been evacuated from the mine, Donetsk rebel officials said.
>One lightly wounded miner being evacuated, who gave his name only as Sergei, told The Associated Press that he saw five bodies being pulled out, but provided no further details.
>Another injured miner, 42-year-old Igor Murynin, said at a hospital in Donetsk that he was blown off his feet by the impact of the explosion.
>“When I came to, there was dust everywhere. People were groaning,” said Murynin, who doctors said had burns over 20% of his body.
>Murynin said the mine had installed new equipment and that nothing appeared to be out of order.
>The rebels said 14 miners were sent to medical centres in Donetsk, and a doctor there, Emil Fistal, was quoted as saying that at least six were in grave condition.
>There was no immediate way to reconcile the varying numbers given of miners working, injured, possibly trapped or dead.
>The speaker of Ukraine’s parliament, Volodymyr Groysman, said he can confirm only one death, pedaling back on an earlier claim that 32 miners had died. It was unclear what his source for the information was, since rebel authorities do not answer to the government in Kyiv.
>“For now, I can say only that 32 people are below ground. One person has died,” Ivan Prikhodko, administrative head of the Kyiv district in Donetsk, where the affected mine is located, told Donetsk News Agency. “Until rescuers get to them, speaking about how many people have died would be unethical, to say the least.” 0c8a77 No.3132
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
Caught On Tape: DashCam Footage Captures Nemtsov Murder Scene:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-03-04/caught-tape-dashcam-footage-captures-nemtsov-murder-sceneThat white car that cuts off the dashcam driver is the getaway car. Dumptruck is the scene of the crime.
344b05 No.3133
>>3132I really hope Putin doesn't go down the road some of his early investigators are going. Blaming such a highly organised hit on Ossetians or Chechens would have difficulty being credible.
This looks like it's been planned for quite some time to coincide with the planned protest for maximum impact.
Had he just been gunned down in a normal fashion a few months ago it would be nowhere near as easy for the US to attempt to get the snowball rolling.
The EU and Ukraine flags at the protest reeks of paid rent-a-mob.
0c8a77 No.3134
U.S., Europe weighing potential deeper Russia sanctions: Nuland:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/04/us-ukraine-crisis-nuland-idUSKBN0M023Y20150304?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>Victoria Nuland, U.S. assistant secretary of state for European affairs, told a congressional hearing there were new concerns about heavy shelling and fighting around Donetsk and on the road to Mariupol by pro-Russian separatists.
>Another Russian convoy also had crossed the Ukrainian border, she told the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
>"Our sanctions team is in Europe this week," Nuland said, adding that there had been more than 100 violations of the European-brokered ceasefire agreements.
>She said it was important that the United States was in line with Europe on additional sanctions that will be imposed on Russia if the ceasefire worked out in Minsk last month is "further violated or if there is a further land grab."Does the successful siege of Debaltseve count as a further land grab?
>Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle expressed frustration with what many said was the Obama administration's "resistance" to providing weapons to Kiev despite increased Russian aggression.
>Representative Eliot Engel said he would propose legislation to support Ukraine and that while the United States was providing substantial assistance to Kiev, it was not enough.">It will offer Ukraine greater assistance on a variety of fronts," Engel said. "It will dial up the pressure on Vladimir Putin for his reckless, destructive and destabilizing policies."
>Nuland acknowledged Ukraine had tried to acquire weapons on the world market but countries were waiting for the green light from Washington before they sold them to Kiev.
>"A number of the things that the Ukrainians requested are not readily available unless the U.S. were to license onward export," Nuland said.Moscow court rejects Ukraine ex-pilot Nadiya Savchenko’s appeal:
http://www.euronews.com/2015/03/04/moscow-court-rejects-ukraine-ex-pilot-nadiya-savchenko-s-appeal/
>A Moscow court has rejected an appeal for the temporary release of Ukrainian former military pilot Nadiya Savchenko.
>The officer, who has been on hunger strike since December, had asked to travel to Strasbourg to attend a session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe – following her symbolic election to the Ukrainian parliament.
>Savchenko appeared in court on the 82nd day of a hunger strike to protest against her imprisonment and the charges she faces.
>She denies involvement in the deaths of two Russian journalists covering the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
>Moscow claims she provided the coordinates for the mortar attack that killed them.
>President Petro Poroshenko has written to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin calling for the ex-pilot’s immediate release.
>“I have sent a letter to President Putin with an appeal for immediate freedom for Nadiya Savchenko, including for medical reasons,” Poroshenko said in a press conference after meeting Italian premier Matteo Renzi.
>Savchenko has lost over 20 kilograms since going on strike.
>Earlier this week the Ukrainian leader officially declared her a national hero.
>Last Sunday large crowds rallied for Savchenko’s release in Kyiv, where she’s seen as a symbol of resistance to Russian aggression.
>She claims she was kidnapped by Russian-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine last June and illegally transferred to Russia.
>If convicted in Russia, she faces up to 20 years in jail. 0c8a77 No.3135
Kiev's Prepaid Gas to Run Out Early on March 6 - Gazprom:
http://sputniknews.com/world/20150304/1019054717.html
>Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov said in a Rossiya-24 TV broadcast that Ukraine wants to receive about 10 million cubic meters of gas daily.
>"That's why Gazprom has sent a letter to Naftogaz saying that under the current delivery volumes and with no advance payments, the prepaid amount [of gas] will be enough to last until the early hours of March 6," he said.
>Gazprom switched Ukraine to a prepayment system and halted gas deliveries last summer over Kiev's massive gas debt, surpassing $5 billion at the time.New US Sanctions Won't Change Russia's Foreign Policy:
http://sputniknews.com/russia/20150304/1019053758.html
>Dmitriy Peskov, Russian President Vladimir Putin's press secretary announced that the new sanctions imposed by the United States will not alter Russia's foreign policy.
>"No sanctions will ever pressure Russia to change its consistent foreign policy."
>"Sanctions are a double-edged sword, and they do cause discomfort for the Russian Federation, but they also hurt entrepreneurs and the economy of those countries who play around with these sanctions. These sanctions don't bring any good to the global economy," Peskov said.Majority of Russians oppose military action in Donbass:
http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/181109/majority-of-russians-oppose-military-action-in-donbass.html
>Close to 60% of the Russian people are against military deployment of Russian forces in Donbass even if tensions escalate.
>Merely 25% of people would support military action with Russian participation, while 16% found the question difficult to respond to.
>The data is based on a sociological survey of public opinion, as reported by the Bulgarian National Radio.
>However, as a result of the conflict in the southeastern part of Ukraine, the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics are verly likely to eventually become independent states, similarly to the Abkhazia and South Ossetia. This was the opinion expressed by 38% of Russians surveyed by sociologists.
>In comparison to the opinion poll taken in September of 2014, the number of people who find this scenario likely has increased by 8%.
>Approximately 20% of people believed that both separatist republics will remain within the jurisdiction of Ukraine, but will achieve relative autonomy. Only 9% on the other hand believed that they could be annexed to Russia. 000000 No.3136
It seems that the russian military complex depends largely on ukrainian made parts and mining operations (including nukes).
http://ukraineatwar.blogspot.de/2015/02/russia-needs-ukraine-to-fulfill-its.html 0c8a77 No.3137
>>3136Good find, anon.
Europe’s Defense Wanes as the Putin Threat Grows:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/ian-birrell-europes-defense-wanes-as-the-putin-threat-grows-1425427717
>The chill of a new Cold War is descending over Europe. In Ukraine, ripped apart by Russian President Vladimir Putin ’s adventurism, a shaky cease-fire holds but there are growing fears of a new onslaught on the key port city Mariupol. In Estonia, one of the increasingly nervous Baltic states, a Feb. 24 Independence Day celebration in Narva, 300 yards from the Russian border, was marked by a NATO show of strength with troops from seven nations, including the U.S. and U.K., marching in the slush.
>On the same day Russian troops drilled on their side of the border in Pskov, with 1,500 paratroopers swooping from the sky in exercises to capture an “enemy” airfield. Meanwhile, Lithuania revealed plans to reintroduce conscription in response to “growing aggression” while Norway is restructuring its armed forces to ensure faster response to Russian threats.
>A few days earlier, British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon had warned of “real and present” danger to the Baltic states. In Moscow, Kremlin-connected pundits debate whether nuclear war is “winnable” while opposition leaders like Boris Nemtsov, shot in the back last week, are murdered. Russia is probing NATO reactions and response times, with four times as many interceptions made for breaches of Baltic airspace last year than in 2013. Twice recently the Royal Air Force scrambled fighter jets to escort Russian bombers flying over the English Channel.
>But when a Russian submarine was suspected of slinking into Scottish waters late last year, weeks after another was spotted off the Swedish coast, the RAF had to summon NATO assistance for sea patrol planes to hunt it down. Such is the state of the British armed forces, cut by governments desperate to cash in the “peace dividend” after the last Cold War and then hit by financial meltdown. Sadly, the U.K. now appears reliant on allies for aircraft to search its own waters. With fewer than 100,000 full-time troops, Great Britain now has a smaller army than during the mid-19th-century Crimean War.
>Meanwhile, a new report by the European Leadership Network think-tank reveals that most NATO members are failing to fulfill pledges to reverse declines in defense spending. It found six key countries cutting budgets, including the economic powerhouse of Germany, while the cash flow is flatlining in France, the other big spender. Budgets are rising in frontline states such as Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, but only one country—Estonia, with defense spending of less than $500 million—will meet the NATO target this year of all alliance members spending at least 2% of GDP on defense. 0c8a77 No.3139
>>3137cont.
>While Mr. Putin has lied consistently about Russian involvement in Ukraine since the start of his seizure of Crimea, he has been relatively open about his determination to modernize his nation’s creaking military machine. His biographer, Masha Gessen, points out that six of the first 11 decrees Mr. Putin passed after taking office concerned the military, with defense spending soaring despite deep economic problems. Russia’s annual defense spending has doubled over the past decade—surpassing Great Britain’s—and Moscow has plans to replace over two-thirds of the country’s aging military equipment by 2020.
>Restraint of Russian expansionism is about more than spending, of course—and U.S. defense budgets still dwarf those of Russia (although Washington seems more focused these days on its “pivot” to Asia and the rapid buildup of China’s arsenal). But Europe needs to wake up after witnessing the first annexation on the continent since 1945, followed by the willful wrecking of Ukraine.
>European leaders have been woefully slow to appreciate the threat posed by Mr. Putin’s gangster-style presidency furled in the flag of nationalism. Moscow will strategize on the basis of Western weakness, while continuing to chip away at European divisions. Mr. Putin, for instance, has just awarded a €2.5 billion loan to the financially challenged government of Cyprus—a European Union member opposed to Russian sanctions—in return for naval access to its ports.
>NATO is planning a rapid response unit and mounting more exercises. But is this really enough to stop more “little green men,” whether in Russian uniforms or not, from sparking another conflict? As Malcolm Chalmers, research director at the Royal United Services Institute in London, recently told me: “The danger is that Russia next bites off a bit of Estonia, then asks what NATO is going to do about it.” 0c8a77 No.3140
Russia accuses US of plot to oust Putin via opposition aid:
http://www.stripes.com/news/europe/russia-accuses-us-of-plot-to-oust-putin-via-opposition-aid-1.332761
>Russia's Security Council accused the U.S. of plotting to oust President Vladimir Putin by financing the opposition and encouraging mass demonstrations, less than a week after a protest leader was murdered near the Kremlin.
>The U.S. is funding Russian political groups under the guise of promoting civil society, just as in the "color revolutions" in the former Soviet Union and the Arab world, council chief Nikolai Patrushev said in an e-mailed statement Wednesday. At the same time, the U.S. is using the sanctions imposed over the conflict in Ukraine as a "pretext" to inflict economic pain and stoke discontent, he said.
>More than 50,000 people turned out in central Moscow on Sunday to mourn the death of Boris Nemtsov, a former deputy premier turned Putin opponent who was gunned down late Friday in one of the most heavily guarded areas of the capital. That was the biggest rally Russia has seen since 2011-2012, when Putin was preparing to return to the presidency for a third term.
>"It's clear that the White House has been counting on a sharp deterioration in Russians' standard of living, mass protests," Patrushev said. Russia can withstand the pressure, though, thanks to its resilience and "decades of experience in combating color revolutions," he said.
>Russia has long maintained that the U.S. and its allies were behind the 2003 and 2004 revolts in Georgia and Ukraine that brought to power governments seeking to break free of their neighbor's grasp.
>Since the protests in Moscow in 2011-2012, the largest of Putin's 15-year rule, the government has cracked down on non- governmental organizations, requiring those that get money from abroad to declare themselves "foreign agents."
>"President Putin misinterprets a great deal of what the United States has been doing and has tried to do," Secretary of State John Kerry told reporters in Geneva on Monday. "We are not involved in multiple color revolutions, as he asserts."
>If Russia and pro-Russian rebels fully implement a Ukraine peace deal struck last month, the U.S. will "roll back significant sanctions," Will Stevens, a spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, said by e-mail. The aim of the punitive measures is not to force a change in the Russian government, but to press for a change in its policies, he said.
>Patrushev, like Putin an ex-KGB officer and former head of the Federal Security Service, said the U.S. is also working to undermine governments in the Middle East, including by promoting extremism and supporting militant groups.
>While the U.S. is leading an international coalition to fight the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, it appears to be slowing its efforts to destroy the terrorist group to avoid bolstering Russia's biggest ally in the region, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Patrushev said."
Our trans-Atlantic partners have a clear goal to divide the Muslim world and to weaken Russia and China at the same time," Patrushev said.
0c8a77 No.3142
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
Office of the Right Sector in Odessa has been blown up!
a37dbd No.3144
>>3142Anyone got any ideas on the big picture for this?
0c8a77 No.3145
>>3144http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right_Sector
>Right Sector is a Ukrainian nationalist political party that originated in November 2013 as a paramilitary confederation at the Euromaidan protests in Kiev, where its street fighters fought against riot police. The coalition became a political party on 22 March 2014, at which time it was estimated to have perhaps 10,000 members.Maybe ethnic Russians are tired of their shit? Or maybe just a lone wolf rebel.
a37dbd No.3146
>>3145I meant more in the sense of long term effects, in case any signs of that came up. I wouldn't exactly cry a river if they started to mount a resistance against the Kosher Nazis. Surprised we haven't seen more things like this.
0c8a77 No.3148
>>3146Well, there's been explosions in Odessa for a few months at this point, so I'd assume Ukraine's new-found ATO is going to make its presence more well-known in the south-west of the country. We might get some more pockets of resistance fighters if that happens, but it could just end up like Kharkov (and if the ATO gets involved, it probably will).
0c8a77 No.3149
>>3148Wow, that second sentence is fucked. Basically, ATO will get involved and the resistance will likely be quelled (or, at the very least, won't garner support with the public). However, I'm not sure if the ATO can handle both Kharkov and Odessa - they might not have the resources or numbers.
Putin warns against extremists seeking to destroy Russian state:
http://www.stripes.com/news/europe/putin-warns-against-extremists-seeking-to-destroy-russian-state-1.332795
>President Vladimir Putin told Russia's police to guard against extremist threats to the state aimed at provoking civil conflict similar to the revolt in neighboring Ukraine.
>"Extremists poison society with the venom of their belligerent nationalism, intolerance and aggression," Putin said at a meeting with Interior Ministry officials in Moscow on Wednesday. "We are well aware what this can lead to, given the example of our neighbor Ukraine."
>Putin told police to give "the most serious attention" to high-profile crimes with a political context. Russia needed to rid itself of the "shame and tragedy" of killings such as Friday's assassination of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov "right in the center of the capital," he said.
>Ukraine's President Viktor Yanukovych fled the country in February last year after violence erupted between police and protesters opposed to his decision to seek closer ties with a Russian-led trade bloc rather than with the European Union. Russia has accused the U.S. of fomenting a coup in Ukraine, while Putin has repeatedly decried so-called "color revolutions" that swept out allies in former Soviet republics in favor of ones seeking closer ties with Europe and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
>Russia is facing "attempts to use so-called color technology, from organizing illegal street protests to open propaganda of hostility and hatred," Putin said.
>Extremists are becoming more sophisticated and "the goal is obvious," he said. "To provoke civil conflicts, strike at the constitutional foundations of our state and, in the end, our country's sovereignty." 0c8a77 No.3150
Bulgaria: Bring Back Nabucco Pipeline:
http://www.voanews.com/content/bulgaria-bring-back-nabucco-pipeline/2667879.html
>Bulgaria wants the European Commission to revive plans for the Nabucco pipeline that would pump gas from the Caspian Sea, after a Russian project seen as a rival was scrapped, Prime Minister Boiko Borisov said on Wednesday.
>Keen to diversify its energy supplies due to the Ukraine crisis, Bulgaria meets more than 80 percent of its gas needs with imports from Russia.
>Sofia was caught off guard by President Vladimir Putin's surprise announcement in December to abandon plans for the South Stream pipeline that would have supplied gas to Europe via Bulgaria, while bypassing Ukraine.
>Nabucco was backed by Western powers, but was shelved in part because there was not enough demand to sustain both it and South Stream. Bulgaria, which would have benefited from charging transit fees for South Stream, sees reviving Nabucco as a way to compensate for its loss.
>Moscow is now working on an alternative that would pass through Turkey but avoid Bulgaria, prompting accusations from Brussels that Russia was holding European Union member Bulgaria to ransom.
>“We want to unfreeze the Nabucco project through Bulgaria,” Borisov told reporters after meeting Azeri President Ilham Aliyev in Sofia.
>“It is not aimed against anyone, this is about preserving Bulgaria's national interest, so that our gas network be full with gas, so that we take transit fees and not be bypassed,” Borisov said.
>European leaders had pushed Nabucco in order to weaken Russia's grip on the Central and Eastern European energy market, but the project was derailed by cost overruns, a lack of available gas and Russian lobbying.
>The Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), a rival project to Nabucco that will bring Azeri gas to Italy via Greece, is still under consideration.
>Speaking alongside Borisov, President Aliyev said Bulgaria could build an interconnector with Greece to draw gas from the TAP route, which could then be sent on to Romania and Hungary.
>Azerbaijan, whose total gas reserves stood at 2.5 trillion cubic meters, is expected to start shipping Caspian gas to Europe from its biggest gas field, Shah Deniz II, in 2020.
>“We think that we can unite TAP and Nabucco. It is not important what you call this route. Our main goal is that the volumes of Azeri gas enter Europe,” Aliyev said. “The more EU countries receive our gas, the better for all.” 0c8a77 No.3151
Ukraine starts second phase of heavy weapons withdrawal:
http://en.people.cn/n/2015/0305/c90777-8857376.html
>The Ukrainian armed forces on Wednesday began the second phase of pulling back their heavy weapons from the frontline in eastern regions, the press service for the government's military operation said.
>In a statement on its Facebook page, the press service said that a relocation of Akatsiya 152 millimeter caliber howitzers is already underway.
>During the second stage of withdrawal, government forces should pull 152 millimeter caliber weapons back 70 kilometers from the contact line to create a buffer zone.
>Earlier in the day, a government military spokesman Anatoliy Stelmakh said that the Ukrainian army has completed the first phase of heavy weapons pullout, withdrawing 100 millimeter caliber artillery from the boundary line.
>On Sunday, pro-independence insurgents said that they had withdrawn all heavy weapons, except Grad rocket launchers, from the frontlines in Donetsk and Lugansk regions.
>The government and the rebel forces have begun pulling back heavy weapons from the combat area last week as part of a peace plan agreed in Minsk, capital of Belarus, on Feb. 12.
>The truce agreement, which includes a ceasefire regime, has helped to calm down the fighting across eastern Ukraine, raising hopes for an end of the almost 11-month-old conflict that has killed more than 6,000 people. 0c8a77 No.3152
Ukrainian Authorities Struggle to Secure a Divided Mariupol:
http://www.voanews.com/content/ukrainian-authorities-struggle-to-secure-a-divided-mariupol/2668416.html
>Since last month's cease-fire went into effect, shelling around the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol has decreased, but it is thought pro-Russian separatists remain poised to attack. For the city’s authorities, a major challenge is gaining the trust of residents, while at the same time rooting out informants who are passing sensitive information to the rebels.
>Children still play in the squares of central Mariupol, but this city is holding its breath. With the constant threat of separatist invasion, city authorities here acknowledge the population remains deeply divided.
>They estimate just 30 percent support the government while another 30 percent support the rebels. They say the remaining 40 percent are undecided, longing only for a return to normality.
>For Mariupol’s Civil Defense Organization, this disunity makes the city even harder to secure. Ukrainian security services monitor mobile phone traffic to stop people from passing information to separatists. And there has been a spate of arrests in recent weeks as Ukrainian authorities try to root out suspected spies.
>“All of these people were taking part in terrorist groups, and the relatives have no idea. What they have done? They transfer information, smuggle weapons, but mostly it’s sending information,” said Roman Sokolov, chairman of Mariupol Civil Defense Organization.
>But this family disputes the official version of events. On Friday, Anna got a terrified phone call from her 14-year-old sister. She said armed men with no official identification papers had pushed their way into the house and beaten their father.
>“My sister ran in here. She could see our father’s face had a bruise from this tool. His face had been beaten, and it looked like they’d beaten his head on the table," said Anna.
>Anna said her father was not involved in politics, but the men took him away after beating him. She tried to follow them but she says they threatened to shoot her. Now she has no idea where he is.
>“A person in our country is unprotected now; wherever he goes, he doesn’t have any rights. At this moment the political situation in Mariupol is like if you criticize the local administration, you are a separatist,” said Anna.
>Perhaps nowhere is Mariupol’s atmosphere of mistrust more evident than in the suburb of Vastochniy. When a rocket attack in January killed 30 people here, Human Rights Watch investigators said it was highly likely that the rebels were to blame.
>But in spite of the evidence, many continue to believe that the government was responsible, though they are too afraid to say so openly.
>“The shelling of Vastochniy district, the shelling in Donetsk, when they hit the trolley bus, the shelling in Volnovaha when they hit the bus, 75 percent of the people here are sure that this was a provocation by the Ukrainian government,” said a man using the name Pasha.
>Authorities in the region are facing a classic counterinsurgency dilemma: how to enforce security without losing the hearts and minds of local people. And as the war continues to send the local economy deeper into the abyss, it seems the government's position here may only get more precarious. 0c8a77 No.3153
Italian PM to Talk About Ukraine, Libya During Upcoming Meeting with Putin:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150304/1019038738.html
>Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi will talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Thursday; Ukraine and Libya are expected to be high on the agenda, news reports said.
>This will be Renzi's first visit to Russia since he became Prime Minister in February 2014. The two men last met during the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Milan in October 2014.
>Meanwhile, Renzi is meeting with Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko on Wednesday in Kiev, where the two are set to discuss the implementation of the February 12 Minsk agreement on a comprehensive ceasefire in eastern Ukraine.Violence in east Ukraine kills one government serviceman: military source:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/04/us-ukraine-crisis-military-idUSKBN0M00TD20150304?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>One Ukrainian government serviceman was killed and another was wounded in eastern Ukraine despite a ceasefire deal with pro-Russian rebels who have taken up arms there, a military source said on Wednesday. 5987c9 No.3156
There will be a false flag nuclear strike on Iran between March 20th and April 4th. It will mark the fifth of the seven trumpets of Revelations.
eeeff1 No.3157
>>3156Why do you say that?
d5cfc3 No.3158
So im not a tank expert, can anyone say if Russia is or is not suplying tanks to Novorussia?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxcABZl4zrYhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqetCJW-GL4Im only giving this for you to see the footages of the tanks. But beware most of the video is bullshit, the video is supposed to be evidence of russian invasion but so far its:
>10 sec cut from an interview>a girl in a car talking about the fighting>the girl on the field looking at graves>a guy talking about how he hates PutinTheir "evidence" barely even talks about troops from Russia let alone an evidence for invasion. But again - it doesn't matter I'm only giving it for the tanks you can skip the other parts.
also
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTjn4beiqYA—-
Just to say I know this has been talked about in old pol and 8chan's pol, but its been a long time and I didn't pay attention. While I believe Russia is suplying them with amunition, food, and weapons Im not sure about the tanks. But I think we can all agree that the invasion is just bullshit.
c4a3b8 No.3159
>>3158Novorussia is equipped with russian equipment for sure, Russia did leave poorly defended arsenals in the region for this exact purpose IIRC. Aside from that, Ukrainian mercenaries and milice are equipped with surprisingly expensive and difficult to get equipment.
0c8a77 No.3161
NATO is using Ukraine crisis to advance towards Russian borders - Defense Ministry:
http://rt.com/news/237977-nato-russia-border-diplomacy/
>NATO is using the situation in Ukraine to push closer to Russia's border, according to the Russian deputy defense minister. He says the Alliance's activities have expanded considerably over the past years.
>In their push, Anatoly Antonov says Allied forces are ignoring diplomacy.
>"We've noticed that NATO member states are using the situation in southeastern Ukraine as a pretext to discard all diplomatic conventions, tricks and slogans and push forward, closer to the Russian border."
>According to the minister, what NATO is doing is completely out of proportion with what NATO commanders call the build-up of Russian forces on its side of the border in Ukraine. "NATO's activities are many times greater than Russia's."
>However, he added they aren't a threat to Russia's security.
>All of this is being done to restrain Russia and punish it for refusing to play along with rules set by the West, according to the official.
>"Instead of uniting forces to fight evil, the worst of which is terrorism, Western nations are drawing new divisive lines, trying to realize containment schemes against unwelcome states. Today, Russia has been chosen as the target."
>He added that NATO currently can’t be considered the pillar of world freedom and security it is cracked up to be.
>All this doesn’t bode well for relations between the US and Russia, Antonov said.
>"Throughout my military and diplomatic career, I haven't seen another period when Russian-American relations have been so difficult."
>The activities he was referring to include massive wargames in Eastern Europe and naval exercises in the Black Sea. On Wednesday, warships from the US, Turkey, Italy, Canada and Romania started drills there.http://rt.com/news/237645-russia-nato-black-sea/
>Another example is the NATO military parade on February 24, held just 300 meters from the Russian border, in the Estonian town of Narva. About 140 pieces of armor and 10 times as many troops, including US soldiers, took part in that event.
>Moscow saw it as a stab in its direction, but Estonia defended its right to host a parade, saying it can move military whichever way it likes on its territory - the same argument used by Russia when accused of military build-up along its borders. Ukraine: Nationwide day of mourning as 33 confirmed dead in coal mine blast:
http://www.euronews.com/2015/03/05/ukraine-nationwide-day-of-mourning-as-33-confirmed-dead-in-coal-mine-blast/
>As the death toll from the Zasyadko coal mine disaster reaches 33, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has declared Thursday (March 5) a day of national mourning.
>Sixteen people have been hospitalised as a result of the explosion – thought to have been caused by a build-up of methane gas.
>Miners returned to work in other parts of the pit the day after the disaster.
>Zasyadko mine lies in the rebel-held Donbass region, in Ukraine’s industrial heartland. However, recent fighting in the area, between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian government forces, is not thought to have any link to the blast.
>The mine has a history of fatal accidents. There were three accidents in 2007 alone, one of which killed 101 people. c6a43d No.3162
>>3156You have yet to see the first trumpet my friend.
Please do not mistake Chernobyl for wormwood (the 3rd trumpet). It may play a part in the future still, but you are not there yet.
Also what does this have to do with the current subject? I recommend a deletion of your post and mine.
We need to keep these topics on track. The Ukraine is one of the last major pushes of a dying US economy and their anti-Russian military shield plan.
0c8a77 No.3163
Russia's Gazprom gets $15m gas prepayment from Ukraine:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/foreign/05-Mar-2015/russia-s-gazprom-gets-15m-gas-prepayment-from-ukraine
>Russian natural gas exporter Gazprom said on Thursday that it had received a $15 million prepayment from Ukrainian state energy firm Naftogaz following warnings supply could be cut off if no payment was made.
>The payment is enough for 45.6 million cubic metres of gas, or about five days' supply at current rates of delivery, Gazprom said by e-mail. Gazprom had warned supply to Kiev could be cut off as soon as Friday if no payment was made. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday he did not want a repeat of pay disputes that have seen the Russians cut off supply to Ukraine three times in the last decade.
>Once Gazprom's largest export market, Ukraine has managed to reduce its reliance on direct gas imports from Russia in recent years. Its imports from Russia in January and February fell by half from a year earlier, according to gas transit monopoly Ukrtransgaz. Russia and Ukraine have agreed to discuss a new gas deal before a current pact ends at the end of March.Russia Holds Big Military Drills In South, Crimea, Abkhazia, South Ossetia:
http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-exercises-drills-south-crimea-abkhazia-south-ossetia/26883276.html
>The Russian military says more than 2,000 servicemen are taking part in "large-scale" air-defense exercises in southern Russia, Crimea, and the breakaway Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
>The military's Southern Federal District said on March 5 that 500 pieces of heavy weaponry or military equipment were being used in the drills conducted by air-defense units, whose job is to repel attacks by aircraft and missiles.
>In a statement, it said drills were taking place at 12 training grounds in Russia's Southern, North Caucasus, and Crimean federal districts, as well as at bases in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
>It was not immediately clear how long they would last.
>Previous exercises in western and southern Russia have raised concerns among neighbors and prompted accusations that Moscow has used them as cover for sending forces into Ukraine to support rebels in a conflict that has killed more than 6,000 people since April.Ukraine military says one soldier killed in past 24 hours in east:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/05/us-ukraine-crisis-military-idUSKBN0M10L120150305?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>One Ukrainian soldier was killed and another wounded fighting pro-Russian separatists in the east, a military spokesman said on Thursday, as Kiev accused rebels of increasing violations of a ceasefire deal.
>President Petro Poroshenko, whose initiative to boost the armed forces by a third 250,000 personnel was passed easily in parliament, has called the ceasefire the last chance for peace with the pro-Russian rebels. 0c8a77 No.3169
Russian Activist Vows to Publish Nemtsov's Ukraine Findings:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/russia/2015/russia-150304-voa01.htm
>Russian opposition activists say they will publish documents gathered by opposition leader Boris Nemtsov before his February 27 murder that purport to show Russia's direct military role in Ukraine.
>Activist Ilya Yashin, a close Nemtsov ally, said Wednesday the evidence gathered by the slain activist includes details obtained from parents of Russian soldiers killed while fighting on Ukrainian soil. He told the British newspaper The Times that the evidence has been safeguarded and was not lost when police seized Nemtsov's computer as part of the probe into his murder.
>Meanwhile, calling the murder of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov a "disgrace" to Russia, President Vladimir Putin called on the country's law enforcement agencies Wednesday to focus on high-profile crimes, including those that are politically motivated.
>The Russian leader told a televised meeting with Interior Ministry officials that they need to solve more crimes, both new ones and those from 'past years,' Putin said.
>"The most serious attention should be paid to high-profile crimes, including those with a political motive. Russia should finally be spared the kind of shame and tragedy we have recently endured and seen. I mean the audacious murder of Boris Nemtsov right in the center of the capital."
>The director of Russia's main security agency said Wednesday that suspects have been identified in the case, according to Russia's Interfax news agency.
>'There are always suspects,' said Federal Security Service chief Aleksandr Bortnikov. He did not elaborate, but cautioned that investigations are ongoing.EU urges Russia to forget old gas contract with Ukraine:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11412660&ref=rss
>The European Union is concerned that Russia might want to enforce its old gas contract with Ukraine once their current arrangement runs out, saying it could contravene Moscow's peace obligations.
>EU energy chief Maros Sefcovic said Thursday that any return to the previous contract between Russia's Gazprom and Ukraine's Naftogaz "would be quite difficult, complicated."
>Russia and Ukraine agreed a truce this week in their latest natural gas price dispute that will ensure supplies until the end of March.
>Sefcovic warned that Russian insistence on using the old contract "might really hamper the cooperation and the spirit in which also the Minsk declaration was adopted." 0c8a77 No.3173
Italy-Russia Cooperation Grows Despite Sanctions - Italian PM:
http://sputniknews.com/politics/20150305/1019109093.html
>Cooperation between Italy and Russia is actively developing despite Western economic sanctions against Russia and Moscow' retaliatory measures, Italy's Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said Thursday.
>"The cooperation is developing actively despite a rather adverse environment," Renzi said at a joint news conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
>"I mean [the Western] economic sanctions and Russia's counter-sanctions, which, as you understand, create serious problems for both sides," Renzi stressed.
>Putin noted that the two countries have good investment cooperation in fields such as aeronautics, and space and nuclear technologies.
>A Ukrainian reconciliation agreement, signed by representatives of Kiev and independence supporters in Minsk on February 12, mentions the decentralization of power among measures needed to de-escalate tensions in the country.
>"Italy is ready to render all possible support within the framework of the European Union structures, including to share its experience as far as the decentralization of Ukraine is concerned," he said.
>Decentralization of power in Ukraine will be reviewed within the framework of constitutional reform. The amendments are expected to be introduced by the end of 2015, when the country's new constitution comes into force.Russian troops dying in ‘large numbers’ in eastern Ukraine: NATO:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/foreign/05-Mar-2015/russian-troops-dying-in-large-numbers-in-eastern-ukraine-nato
>NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow told a conference in the Latvian capital Riga, he said that the Russian soldiers are fighting and dying in large numbers in eastern Ukraine, while Moscow has flatly denied the presence of any of its troops in eastern Ukraine.Fate of US training mission to Ukraine could depend on cease-fire:
http://www.stripes.com/news/europe/fate-of-us-training-mission-to-ukraine-could-depend-on-cease-fire-1.332830
>If final approval from the White House isn’t granted in a matter of days, plans to send U.S. paratroopers into western Ukraine this month for a long-planned training mission will be pushed back if not canceled outright, U.S. military officials say.
>Only a few weeks ago, plans for the 173rd Airborne Brigade to train three Ukrainian national guard battalions appeared to be set in stone. However, U.S. officials have been analyzing the results of a new cease-fire in eastern Ukraine, where for the past year government forces have been waging a battle against Russian-backed separatist fighters.
>On Tuesday, U.S. Army Europe commander Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges told reporters in Berlin that Washington has placed the training mission on hold as it looks for signs that the agreement, reached in Minsk February, is being honored. A decision on whether to proceed with the training would be needed within days to continue with the original plan to start by mid-March, Hodges said.
>“We are prepared to conduct training at the request of the Ukrainian government,” Hodges told Anadolu Agency, Turkey’s state-run news agency. “But my government is obviously anxious to see the Minsk cease-fire agreement fulfilled and has put on hold this training mission.” 1bbc16 No.3175
>>3169>The Russian leader told a televised meeting with Interior Ministry officials that they need to solve more crimes, both new ones and those from 'past years,' Putin said.
>"The most serious attention should be paid to high-profile crimes, including those with a political motive. Russia should finally be spared the kind of shame and tragedy we have recently endured and seen. I mean the audacious murder of Boris Nemtsov right in the center of the capital."who else starting to suspect Putin was behind this after all?
0c8a77 No.3177
>>3175Always a possibility. However, I'd be interested in what his reasoning would be to assassinate a fairly obscure opposition politician days before an anti-government protest concerning Russia's role in Ukraine; mind you that Putin is at the height of his popularity (this could damage his reputation) and that killing Nemtsov only makes him a martyr for the opposition, as well as making the protest's reasons more well-known. All of this can contribute to a possible protest, riot, or even an attempt at a coup.
It seems really stupid to do this since it only weakens his political influence - unless he plans on pinning Nemtsov's death on Ukraine or a NATO nation (or actually provides evidence it was Ukraine or NATO). That is the only legitimate plan that works to Putin's benefit - that I'm aware of. If you have other ideas, let them be known. Just remember to consider: Cui bono.
Boehner, other top House members urge weapons for Ukraine:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/05/us-ukraine-crisis-congress-idUSKBN0M11V120150305?feedType=RSS&feedName=politicsNews
>U.S. House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner and other senior Republican and Democratic House members urged U.S. President Barack Obama to quickly authorize lethal weapons for Ukraine as it battles Russian-backed separatists, according to a letter released on Thursday.
>"We urge you to quickly approve additional efforts to support Ukraine’s efforts to defend its sovereign territory, including through the transfer of lethal, defensive weapons systems to the Ukrainian military," they wrote in a letter, dated Wednesday and signed by eight Republicans and three Democrats.
>The letter followed up on a meeting between Boehner, other members of Congress and Ukrainian lawmakers last week.
>U.S. lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have expressed frustration with what many see as the Obama administration's resistance to providing weapons despite what they see as increased Russian aggression.
>"In the face of Russian aggression, the lack of clarity on our overall strategy thus far has done little to reassure our friends and allies in the region who, understandably, feel vulnerable. This needs to change," the lawmakers wrote in the letter.
>The House and U.S. Senate voted unanimously late last year for a bill authorizing Obama to provide weapons to Kiev but he has yet to decide whether to send any.
>Wednesday's letter was signed by Boehner, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and top Republicans and Democrats from the House Foreign Affairs, Armed Services and Intelligence Committees, as well as the Republican chairs of the House Appropriations Committee and Defense and State and Foreign Operations Appropriations subcommittees. 0c8a77 No.3179
Odessa police have found a 1 kilogram TNT package - liveuamap
————————–
EU extends Yanukovich asset freeze, drops sanctions on some allies:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/05/us-ukraine-crisis-yanukovich-idUSKBN0M123120150305?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>The European Union said on Thursday it had extended a freeze on the assets of ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich and 17 others suspected of stealing from the Ukrainian state.
>It will also will lift current sanctions on four people. Diplomats said legal proceedings in Ukraine had not produced enough evidence of their role in misappropriating funds which Kiev's new leaders allege ran into tens of billions of dollars.
>EU officials confirmed Yanukovich and his prime minister Mykola Azarov would remain under sanctions. Of the 22 people sanctioned last year, the identities of the four who have been freed from restrictions will be made public on Friday.
>The EU froze the assets of Yanukovich, his two sons, Azarov and 14 other senior Ukrainian officials a year ago after Yanukovich fled to Russia following huge protests over his failure to sign a trade agreement with the EU.
>A further four names, including Azarov's successor Serhiy Arbuzov, were added in April last year.
>The pro-Western authorities who took over accused Yanukovich and a coterie of relatives and close allies, known as The Family, of accumulating huge wealth by robbing state coffers and plundering national assets through corrupt deals.
>Current Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk alleged that Yanukovich embezzled as much as $37 billion.——————–
Ukrainian pilot Savchenko ends 83-day hunger strike:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-31753535
>In a letter distributed on Twitter by her lawyer Mark Feygin, Ms Savchenko said she had ended her strike at the request of her fellow Ukrainians whom she wanted to "thank… properly".
>She added: "If I need to fight, then I will fight with strength."
>Her decision to end her hunger strike comes after reports that she was "near death" in recent days - something Russian investigators denied.
>Speaking to the BBC's Sarah Rainsford on Wednesday, she said: "This will get me in the end. Sooner or later. Of course it will.
>"Forty kilograms means death, and now I weigh 55. I've got 15 to go. But it won't finish me off soon. So don't worry. I will last a bit longer."
>Ms Savchenko had been on hunger strike since December, even denying a glucose drip in mid-February.
>Since her capture in June, Ms Savchenko has been elected to the Ukrainian parliament as a member of the Fatherland party, led by former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko.
>The appeal rejected on Wednesday had asked for her to be freed in order to attend a session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
>There has been no reply to Mr Poroshenko's letter, also sent on Wednesday, though Mr Putin's spokesperson said a response was "being formulated". 0c8a77 No.3190
>>3177Oh, a possible plan that Putin might have had: get the evidence that Nemtsov claimed he had concerning Russian soldiers in Ukraine, but that was already foiled because the investigators didn't get to his office or home fast enough. Of course, maybe Putin could use an excuse - he could claim the police need it for evidence. However, that probably wouldn't fly with the public or the rest of the world; overall, not a solid plan.
0c8a77 No.3207
In Odessa, anxiety over Russia's next move:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/03/05/odessa-ukraine-anxiety-over-russia-next-move/24363957/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzRss&utm_campaign=usatodaycomworld-topstories
>Like many people in this gritty southwestern port city on the Black Sea, Nastya Shapoval is afraid more trouble is in store after a series of bombs targeted pro-Ukrainian activists and separatists announced plans to spread their campaign to Odessa.
>"Of course, I'm worried," says Shapoval, 19, a law student at the Military Academy of Odessa, who lost many friends among government forces fighting separatists in eastern Ukraine in the past few months. "As far as (rebels) managed to get … anything is possible."
>Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists have begun to withdraw heavy weapons from the front lines as part of a shaky cease-fire agreement that was supposed to start Feb. 15 in the eastern part of the country, where fierce battles have been ongoing for months and have left nearly 5,800 dead since April.
>Though Odessa is more than 400 miles away from the separatist stronghold in Donetsk, it is haunted by the deadly conflict. More than 50 people were killed when a building was set on fire in May during clashes between pro-Russian activists and Ukrainian government supporters.
>The city could see renewed violence after separatists announced a new phase of the "Russian Spring" this week, calling for an expansion of the rebel movement to the cities of Kharkiv, Kherson, Nikolaev and Odessa, according to an unconfirmed report in a Facebook post by Andrew Levus, a member of Ukraine's parliament.The rest of the article is stupid bullshit from interviewing random Ukrainian workers - most of it is irrelevant. I saw a line where someone was worried about Russian peackeepers in Transnitria; insinuating that the Russians will attack from the border, I guess?
————–
Putin: Situation in Ukraine remains tense:
http://english.pravda.ru/news/russia/05-03-2015/129976-putin_situation_ukraine-0/
>"We have exchanged views on the crisis in Ukraine. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi expressed his position on this issue. He set forth a number of valuable suggestions about what could be done to resolve the situation in the future. The situation in Ukraine, as you know, remains difficult, but, at least, the fighting has stopped and people are not being killed, cities and towns are not being destroyed," Putin said, Pravda.Ru says with reference to RIA Novosti.
>"We were unanimous in the view that the conflicting parties must comply strictly with the agreements reached on February 12 in Minsk. I am sure that this gives us an opportunity for a comprehensive peaceful regulation and establishing direct dialogue between Kiev, Donetsk and Luhansk," Putin said.————–
Petro Poroshenko ready to declare martial law in Ukraine:
http://english.pravda.ru/news/world/05-02-2015/129711-petro_poroshenko_ukraine_martial_law-0/
>Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is ready to declare martial law in the country, if it impossible to regulate the conflict in the Donbass in the near future.
>"If the conflict continues to exacerbate, I am ready to declare martial law throughout the country, and the Rada will support it. For the time being, I am not doing it, as it would involve restrictions on democracy and freedoms and pose a threat to the development of economy," Petro Poroshenko said in a recent interview with a foreign publication.
>Poroshenko stressed out that he would like to resolve the conflict by peaceful means in accordance with the Minsk agreements.
>"There is no other way. One should declare a cease-fire without preconditions. It is impossible to discuss economic regulation, or other topics, when the Ukrainian army defends its positions, while the rebels intend to attack the army, receiving all kinds of support from Russia - arms, instructors, commanders and units of the Russian army that act at their own risk," said Poroshenko.
>Needless to say that Poroshenko did not say anything about clear evidence from both militia representatives and the OSCE about the use of NATO weapons by the Ukrainian forces. 0c8a77 No.3209
Georgian fighters defy Russia in Ukraine:
http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/181137/georgian-fighters-defy-russia-in-ukraine.html
>Conflict-riddled Ukraine has found new allies in its fight against pro-Russian rebels in the eastern part of the country.
>Fueled by past conflicts between Russia and their own country, Georgian fighters have been participating in clashes against pro-Russian separatists.
>Mamuka Mamulashvili, who is founder and commander of an armed group called the “Georgian Legion,” has been fighting against pro-Russian separatists for the past 10 months.
>Speaking to The Anadolu Agency, Mamulashvili refused to reveal the number of men he led, defiantly boasting instead: “We have enough fighters to ruin the Russian army.”
>Several Georgian nationalists have chosen to fight alongside the Ukrainian army against what they say is Russia pulling the strings of separatists in order to wreak havoc in the eastern regions of Luhansk and Donetsk.
>Mamulashvili said Georgian fighters were currently deployed in the Ukrainian army from the easternmost city of Luhansk to the southeastern city of Mariupol.
>“They are experienced fighters,” he said. “Some of us, who had fought in Ossetia and in Abkhazia, trained (certain members of) the Ukrainian army.”
>However, the Georgian commander added that he and his fellow countrymen fighting in Ukraine had no connection with Tbilisi’s army.
>According to Mamulashvili, two Georgian fighters have died in the Ukrainian conflict so far.
>For Mamulashvili, Russia is a “common enemy” of both Ukraine and Georgia: “We have a common motivation to defeat this enemy.”
>He believes that should Moscow fulfill its objectives in Ukraine – he does not go into specifics on what these are – Georgia will be next.
>Mamulashvili made it clear that he was in Ukraine to avenge the 2008 Russian-Georgian war.
>“The reason why we are fighting here is Russia’s attacks against Georgia,” he said.
>Back home, however, Georgian fighters in Ukraine are viewed by some as mere mercenaries.
>While the government does not openly support them, it does nothing to prevent them from going to Ukraine to fight.
>When a Georgian combatant was killed in Ukraine on Dec. 20, 2014, the government in Tbilisi took it upon itself to bring back the body for a funeral in Georgia.
>Deputy Foreign Minister Vladimer Gurgenidze said that the government and the Georgian people were together in solidarity with the Georgian fighter’s family.
>Disturbing to the government is the alleged relationship between the fighters and former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, who had felt the wrath of the Russian tanks back in 2008.
>Saakashvili was said to be responsible for the Georgian Defense Ministry’s statement offering condolences after the death of the Georgian fighter.
>Six days later, incumbent Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili accused Saakashvili of calling Georgian fighters to go to Ukraine’s frontlines.
>“The current government separates itself from us,” Mamulashvili said. “It is something sad but they (the government) don’t even want to name us. Our presence in Ukraine is beneficial for Georgia.” 7a1ceb No.3211
0c8a77 No.3213
Exclusive: Scribbled note shows Nemtsov on trail of Russian deaths in Ukraine:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/05/us-russia-nemtsov-ukraine-idUSKBN0M120C20150305
>It may have been the last note Boris Nemtsov ever wrote, a hurried scrawl in blue pen on a plain white sheet of A4 paper.
>A day before he was shot dead near the Kremlin last week, the Russian opposition figure and his close aide Olga Shorina were discussing a sensitive investigation he was preparing into Moscow's backing for separatist fighters in eastern Ukraine.
>Fearing their office was bugged by state intelligence, Nemtsov resorted to scribbling.
>"Some paratroopers from Ivanovo have got in touch with me. 17 killed, they didn't give them their money, but for now they are frightened to talk," said the note, shown to Reuters by Shorina.
>"He did not want to say anything, just in case. He did not want to utter it out loud, which is why he wrote it down for me," she said.
>It was not possible to independently confirm the authenticity of the handwritten note.
>Since last summer, reports have been circulating inside the country that many serving Russian troops have died in combat in eastern Ukraine, where the separatist war has killed more than 6,000 people.
>Despite what Ukraine and its Western allies say is overwhelming evidence, Moscow adamantly denies sending arms or troops to the region, saying any Russians fighting in Ukraine are volunteers.
>That is why Nemtsov's last report was so sensitive - perhaps sensitive enough, according to some of his friends, to provide at least part of the motive for killing him, though they say they doubt it was the main reason.—————
It’s Nato that’s empire-building, not Putin:
http://www.spectator.co.uk/features/9459602/its-nato-thats-empire-building-not-putin/
>Just for once, let us try this argument with an open mind, employing arithmetic and geography and going easy on the adjectives. Two great land powers face each other. One of these powers, Russia, has given up control over 700,000 square miles of valuable territory. The other, the European Union, has gained control over 400,000 of those square miles. Which of these powers is expanding?
>There remain 300,000 neutral square miles between the two, mostly in Ukraine. From Moscow’s point of view, this is already a grievous, irretrievable loss. As Zbigniew Brzezinski, one of the canniest of the old Cold Warriors, wrote back in 1997, ‘Ukraine… is a geopolitical pivot because its very existence as an independent country helps to transform Russia. Without Ukraine, Russia ceases to be a Eurasian empire.’
>This diminished Russia feels the spread of the EU and its armed wing, NATO, like a blow on an unhealed bruise. In February 2007, for instance, Vladimir Putin asked sulkily, ‘Against whom is this expansion intended?’
>I have never heard a clear answer to that question. The USSR, which NATO was founded to fight, expired in August 1991. So what is NATO’s purpose now? Why does it even still exist?
>There is no obvious need for an adversarial system in post-Soviet Europe. Even if Russia wanted to reconquer its lost empire, as some believe (a belief for which there is no serious evidence), it is too weak and too poor to do this. So why not invite Russia to join the great western alliances? Alas, it is obvious to everyone, but never stated, that Russia cannot ever join either NATO or the EU, for if it did so it would unbalance them both by its sheer size. There are many possible ways of dealing with this. One would be an adult recognition of the limits of human power, combined with an understanding of Russia’s repeated experience of invasions and its lack of defensible borders. 0c8a77 No.3214
>>3213cont.
>But we do not do this. Instead we have a noisy pseudo-moral crusade, which would not withstand five minutes of serious consideration. Mr Putin’s state is, beyond doubt, a sinister tyranny. But so is Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Turkey, which locks up far more journalists than does Russia. Turkey is an officially respectable Nato member, 40 years after seizing northern Cyprus, which it still occupies, in an almost exact precedent for Russia’s seizure of Crimea. If Putin disgusts us so much, then why are we and the USA happy to do business with Erdogan, and also to fawn upon Saudi Arabia and China?
>Contrary to myth, the expansion of the EU into the former communist world has not magically brought universal peace, love and prosperity. Croatia’s economy has actually gone backwards since it joined. Corruption still exists in large parts of the EU’s new south-eastern territories, and I am not sure that the rule of law could be said to have been properly established there. So the idea that the recruitment of Ukraine to the ‘West’ will magically turn that troubled nation into a sunny paradise of freedom, probity and wealth is perhaps a little idealistic, not to say mistaken.
>It is all so much clearer if we realise that this quarrel is about power and land, not virtue. In truth, much of the eastward expansion of Nato was caused by the EU’s initial unwillingness to take in backward, bankrupt and corrupt refugee states from the old Warsaw Pact. The policy could be summed up as ‘We won’t buy your tomatoes, but if it makes you happy you can shelter under our nuclear umbrella’. The promise was an empty assurance against a nonexistent threat. But an accidental arrangement hardened into a real confrontation. The less supine Russia was, the more its actions were interpreted as aggression in the West. Boris Yeltsin permitted western interests to rape his country, and did little to assert Russian power. So though he bombarded his own parliament, conducted a grisly war in Chechnya, raised corruption to Olympic levels and shamelessly rigged his own re-election, he yet remained a popular guest in western capitals and summits. Vladimir Putin’s similar sins, by contrast, provide a pretext for ostracism and historically illiterate comparisons between him and Hitler.
>This is because of his increasing avowal of Russian sovereignty, and of an independent foreign policy. There have been many East-West squabbles and scrimmages, not all of them Russia’s fault. But the New Cold War really began in 2011, after Mr Putin dared to frustrate western — and Saudi — policy in Syria. George Friedman, the noted US intelligence and security expert, thinks Russia badly underestimated the level of American fury this would provoke. As Mr Friedman recently told the Moscow newspaper Kommersant, ‘It was in this situation that the United States took a look at Russia and thought about what it [Russia] wants to see happen least of all: instability in Ukraine.’
>Mr Friedman (no Putin stooge) also rather engagingly agrees with Moscow that overthrow last February of Viktor Yanukovych was ‘the most blatant coup in history’. He is of course correct, as anyone unclouded by passion can see. The test of any action by your own side is to ask what you would think of it if the other side did it.George Friedman is CEO of Stratfor, by the by.
>If Russia didn’t grasp how angry Washington would get over Syria, did the West realise how furiously Russia would respond to the EU Association Agreement and to the fall of Yanukovych? Perhaps not. Fearing above all the irrecoverable loss to NATO of its treasured naval station in Sevastopol, Russia reacted. After 23 years of sullenly appeasing the West, Moscow finally said ‘enough’. Since we’re all supposed to be against appeasement, shouldn’t we find this action understandable in a sovereign nation, even if we cannot actually praise it? And can anyone explain to me precisely why Britain, of all countries, should be siding with the expansion of the European Union and NATO into this dangerous and unstable part of the world? 0c8a77 No.3242
Anna Duritskaya, Lone Witness In Slaying Of Russia's Top Critic, Gets Death Threat:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/06/witness-in-russian-boris-nemtsov-killing_n_6814662.html?utm_hp_ref=world&ir=WorldPost
>Authorities in Ukraine say the sole witness in the killing in Moscow of prominent Russian opposition figure Boris Nemtsov has received death threats since returning to her family home in Ukraine.
>The General Prosecutor's office in Kiev said in a statement Friday that Anna Duritskaya, the 23-year old model who was walking with Nemtsov at the time of his killing, is being provided with protection. The statement offered no information on who might have issued the threats.
>Duritskaya was detained by Russian police for several days of questioning before she was permitted to leave the country.
>Russian President Vladimir Putin has called the slaying of his top critic a "disgrace" to Russia, although scant progress has been made in the investigation into the shooting last Friday night.————-
Pressure to arm Kiev could increase despite risks: top U.S. diplomat:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/06/us-ukraine-crisis-usa-idUSKBN0M20SY20150306?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>The second-highest ranking U.S. diplomat warned on Friday that pressure to arm Ukraine would increase if aggression from pro-Russian separatists persisted, even though Moscow would easily be able to send more weapons into the country than the West.
>Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken told German radio (DLF) the United States was already working on supplying Kiev with non-lethal equipment, including $130 million worth of protective vests, night-vision goggles and other equipment.
>"But if the aggression continues, I think there will be more and more pressure to give them other means to protect themselves," he said in the interview with DLF.
>With both the government in Kiev and the rebels in eastern Ukraine accusing each other of violating a fragile ceasefire agreed last month, U.S. President Barack Obama and European leaders are weighing their next steps to try to halt a conflict that has killed about 6,000 people since last April.
>U.S. and European officials are concerned that sending arms to Kiev would risk escalating the fighting and suck them into a proxy war with Russia.
>But some U.S. lawmakers are urging Obama to counter what they see as increased aggression by Russia by providing weapons to Kiev.
>Blinken said he did not believe there could be a military solution and the emphasis must be on diplomatic efforts, which continued on Friday when European Union foreign ministers met in Latvia and Berlin hosted separate talks among top foreign ministry officials from Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany.
>"And you know, it's certainly true that, were any of us to provide weapons to Ukraine, Russia could match that and then double that and triple that and quadruple that," he told DLF.
>"But it's also important to have in mind that the Ukrainians should be able to defend themselves and we provided significant security assistance, defensive, non-lethal security assistance to Ukraine to do just that," he said.
>Accusing the separatists "who are armed and supplied by the Russians" of repeatedly breaking ceasefires declared by Ukraine throughout the conflict, Blinken added: "At some point you have to say almost as a moral proposition, we have to do whatever we can to help them defend themselves against aggression."
>Moscow denies Western and Ukrainian accusations that it is backing the rebels in eastern Ukraine with troops and weapons.———–
Latvian Defense Minister Calls Russia a 'Foe':
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150306/1019138126.html
>Latvian Defense Minister Raimonds Vējonis has described Russia as Latvia's enemy in light of the latest developments in eastern Ukraine, news reports said.
>"Regrettably, the situation in Ukraine shows that Russia has decided to be our enemy, not a partner," Vejonis tweeted on Friday.
>The remarks came several weeks after Vejonis said that Russia is currently not a threat to the Baltic states , but could possibly use conventional or hybrid warfare against other countries. 0c8a77 No.3244
China People's Daily Slams Western Sanctions Against Russia:
http://sputniknews.com/asia/20150306/1019154858.html
>A commentary in China's most widely-read daily newspaper analyzing the impact of sanctions in the year since they were put in place, has said that they have had "no results," apart from "prolonging unrest in Ukraine, increasing the suffering of the Ukrainian people, and increasing anti-Western sentiment in Russia with every passing day."
>"Over the course of the last year, by carrying out several rounds of sanctions, the United States has constantly tried to link Europe with opposition to Russia, forcing it to toughen its restrictive measures against Moscow," says the commentary from the paper, which is one of the world's top ten selling newspapers and an official publication of the government of China.
>"However, the countries of the European Union, which are closer to Russia, and to Ukraine, after many rounds of sanctions have not gained the expected stability in Ukraine, and on the contrary, to a certain extent have started to feel the consequences of a rebound from sanctions."
>The commentary also referred to the regime of sanctions against Iran as an example of the counter-productivity of the sanctions approach, claiming that they "do not help to solve acute problems, but only complicate matters."
>"In negotiations on the Iranian nuclear issue, Western countries headed by the US never stopped waving the truncheon of sanctions," says the Daily. "However, in the long term, sanctions did not lead to a solution to the problem, and it's unlikely that any country would give up its own vital security interests in order to rid themselves of sanctions."
>At a time when the first signs are appearing of a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine crisis thanks to the agreements reached in Minsk, writes the author, it would be wiser "not to rush to threaten more sanctions, but continue joint efforts at mediation between the conflicting parties in Ukraine."
>"It can be said," continues the paper, "that the tragedy of Ukraine exists in the poor capabilities of the authorities to manage the state; because of this, the logic of the US attempt to overcome the crisis in Ukraine by sanctioning third countries is absurd and incomprehensible."
>"After all, they themselves had a hand in last year's overthrow of the government in Kiev, which in the end developed into a full-blown crisis in the country."———————
EU chief speaks out against arms supplies for Kiev:
http://www.stripes.com/news/europe/eu-chief-speaks-out-against-arms-supplies-for-kiev-1.333045
>The European Union's foreign policy chief on Friday came out against a bipartisan call in the United States to provide lethal, defensive weapons to Ukraine in its fight against Russian-backed separatists.
>House Speaker John Boehner and a group of top Democrats and Republicans wrote to President Barack Obama calling for deliveries but so far have found few backers in the 28-nation EU.
>Federica Mogherini said Friday that "the European Union is doing enough" and insisted that the implementation of the peace deal brokered in Minsk last month "is the way to go forward."
>German Chancellor Angela Merkel are been particularly outspoken against pouring more firepower into the conflict in eastern Ukraine. Mogherini said that "what Ukraine needs now is not only the full respect of its sovereignty, of its territorial integrity, but it is also peace."
>On Friday, Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz said arms deliveries "would only stoke the fire."
>"Our goal must be a ceasefire, not an escalation," Kurz said
>The U.S. lawmakers insisted the so-called Minsk agreements have only consolidated Russian and separatists' gains, and the urged quick approval of additional efforts to support Ukraine. They said the EU was far too slow and meek in its reaction to the crisis.
>Britain on Friday continued its policy of providing non-lethal defense assistance to Ukraine as the EU continues to look for a political solution, approving 850,000 pounds ($1.29 million) for first aid kits, night vision goggles, helmets and other equipment.
>"Our overall aim is to strengthen the defensive capability of the Ukrainian armed forces and build the resilience that they need," said British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon.
>Boehner and others found the EU approach insufficient, especially for a conflict happening on its doorstep, as they urged Obama "to lead Europe" in challenging Putin. 0c8a77 No.3247
Operation Atlantic Resolve expands with Black Hawks:
http://www.stripes.com/news/europe/operation-atlantic-resolve-expands-with-black-hawks-1.333038
>An additional 450 soldiers and 25 Black Hawk helicopters will join the expanding roster of units converging on eastern Europe in March as part of a longer-term effort to reassure allies worried about Russia’s intentions.
>Pilots, flight and ground crews from the 4th Battalion, 3rd Aviation Regiment, 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade out of Hunter Army Air Field, Ga., will be deploying to Illesheim, Germany, later this month.
>From the staging ground there, they will then deploy in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve, a multinational training mission to reassure Poland and the Baltic countries of NATO’s commitment in the face of Russia’s aggressive moves in Ukraine.
>The unit will remain deployed for about nine months, U.S. Army Europe said in a March 3 news release.
>While in Europe they will serve as a supporting element to the Operation Atlantic Resolve ground forces, led by the 1st Armor Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, from Fort Stewart, Ga., as that unit assumes the role of the regionally aligned force in the area. The Vilseck-based 2nd Cavalry Regiment is currently holding that position.
>About 100 soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division from Fort Carson, Colo., make up the regionally aligned force operational command element, led in part by Brig. Gen. Randy George, the 4th ID deputy commander.
>“USAREUR right now is running [Operation Atlantic Resolve], but the commander of USAREUR also has responsibilities elsewhere throughout Europe,” said 4th ID mission command element deputy chief of staff Maj. George H. Johnson. “He just has somebody now that he can give particular direction to.”
>George will run the first iteration of the mission command element in Europe. His first task, according to Johnson, will be to coordinate the transition with the outgoing 2CR.
>After that, the 4th Infantry soldiers will settle in for their first long-term command of troops in Europe as Operation Atlantic Resolve continues.———
Putin Takes 10 Percent Pay Cut:
http://www.rferl.org/content/putin-takes-10-percent-pay-cut/26885471.html
>Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree that reduces his salary as well as the wages of other top officials by 10 percent.
>The Kremlin announced on March 6 that the salaries of Putin, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, Prosecutor-General Yury Chaika, and Investigative Committee head Aleksandr Bastrykin, will be cut by 10 percent from March 1 to December 31.
>From May 1, the wage reduction will also apply to those employed by the Kremlin administration, the cabinet, and the Accounts Chamber.
>The reductions come as Russia’s economy is being hit hard by a sharp drop in the price of oil, a key export, and is feeling the effects of Western sanctions imposed over Moscow's interference in Ukraine.
>They come less than a year after the Kremlin announced the tripling of Putin's salary. In 2013, the president was earning less than his ministers.
>Kremlin critics say official salaries for Putin and other top officials are meaningless because of perks and alleged corruption.————-
Two Injured In Car-Bomb Blast In Kharkiv:
http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-kharkiv-car-bomb/26885691.html
>A senior special-police officer loyal to Kyiv has been injured along with his wife in a car-bomb blast in the eastern city of Kharkiv.
>Police told RFE/RL that Andriy Yanholenko and his wife, Inna, were hospitalized after a bomb under Yanholenko's car exploded on March 6.
>City officials said they suffered shrapnel wounds.
>Yanholenko commands Slobozhanshchyna, a police battalion whose members refused to participate in a crackdown on the protests that led to the ouster of President Viktor Yanukovych in February 2014.
>An aide to Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said on Facebook that authorities were treating the blast as a suspected terrorist act.
>Four people have been killed and 14 wounded in three apparent bombings since January 19 in Kharkiv, which lies northwest of the site of the conflict between government forces and Russian-backed rebels.
>Ukrainian authorities have blamed a series of bomb blasts in Kharkiv and the southern city of Odesa on Russia and the rebels. 0c8a77 No.3252
File: 1425668055087.png (172.61 KB, 2000x1459, 2000:1459, between the iron gates of ….png)
Ukraine says it is pulling back rocket launchers from front line in accordance with ceasefire agreement:
http://news.nationalpost.com/2015/03/06/ukraine-ceasefire-heavy-weapons-pullback/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:%20NP_Top_Stories%20%28National%20Post%20-%20Top%20Stories%29
>Ukrainian military officials say government forces are withdrawing heavy rocket launchers from the front line with Russian-backed separatists in accordance with last month’s cease-fire accord.
>Military spokesman Col. Andriy Lysenko said the Uragan launchers were being pulled back by 35 kilometres from the line of contact.
>Both sides in the conflict, which has claimed more than 6,000 lives since flaring up in April, have given assurances they are complying with pullback requirements. Monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe have complained that they have been obstructed from conducting exhaustive verifications, however.
>Also, despite the heavy weapons withdrawals, multiple skirmishes and exchanges continue to be reported daily.
>Lysenko accused rebels of mustering equipment, weapons and manpower in several locations in preparation for potential upcoming offensives.————
Ukraine's Conflict Tops Agenda Of EU Foreign Ministers In Riga:
http://www.rferl.org/content/eu-riga-talks-ukraine/26885071.html
>The Ukraine conflict is high on the agenda of two days of informal talks between European Union foreign ministers who are gathering in Latvia’s capital, Riga.
>According to officials in Latvia, which currently chairs the EU Council, the talks will focus on the conflict in Ukraine – including tensions between the EU and Russia over Moscow's deployments of troops and weaponry there, and the implementation of the Minsk cease-fire agreements for eastern Ukraine.
>On the eve of the gathering, European foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said the ministers would consider additional sanctions against Russia over its support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.
>Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, said ministers from the 28 EU member countries would also discuss the possible use of international peacekeepers in Ukraine.
>Also on the agenda are preparations for the EU’s Eastern Partnership summit in May. 0c8a77 No.3265
Ukraine: Separatists hand over bodies of 23 soldiers:
http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/181257/ukraine-separatists-hand-over-bodies-of-23-soldiers.html
>Self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic says it unilaterally returned bodies to Ukrainian volunteers.
>The bodies of 23 Ukrainian soldiers killed in the country’s east have been handed over to Ukrainian representatives by officials from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic.
>The 23 Ukrainian soldiers were killed last summer in clashes near the town of Illovaisk in the country’s east, according to Donetsk People’s Republic’s "defense ministry" representative, Liliya Rodionova.
>According to Rodionova, the bodies were handed over unilaterally to volunteers Thursday, as officials from the Ukrainian Defense Ministry did not attend the procedure.
>"The Ukrainian side is not handing over our men’s bodies," she said, "We are not exchanging bodies, we are just handing them over to Ukraine."
>She also added that the bodies of soldiers killed in intense clashes in Debaltseve would be delivered to the Ukrainian side as well.
>At least one Ukrainian was killed Thursday and another wounded in clashes despite a cease-fire signed Feb. 12, said spokesman for the Ukrainian military, Anatoliy Stelmakh.
>According to Stelmakh, the cease-fire was violated at least 20 times Thursday.————-
'The West' Did It: Nemtsov Conspiracy Theory Snowballs In Russia :
http://www.rferl.org/content/nemtsov-conspiracy-theory-russia-west-killing/26878381.html
>Since Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov’s slaying in central Moscow on February 27, numerous senior Russian officials, talking heads, and pro-Kremlin activists have insinuated or outright claimed that "the West" is responsible for the crime.
>"Some kill in cold blood in front of movie cameras, with all of the cinematic flourishes and techniques, …like Islamist radicals do in the Middle East. Others kill in such a way that it appears they have nothing to do with another person’s death, mumbling something about democracy," Dmitry Kiselyov said on March 1 in his weekly news program Vesti Nedeli on the state-run Rossia-1 television channel.
>Kiselyov, head of the state-owned media organization Russia Today who relentlessly decries what he calls attempts by the West to undermine Russia’s sovereignty, stopped short of directly accusing Western governments of organizing Nemtsov’s killing.
>But in the segment, which featured a graphic reading "Bloody Provocation," he added that the West would benefit from the images of the crime scene on a bridge near the Kremlin on the eve of an antigovernment protest in Moscow that he said was destined to flop.
>"No one would find out that the air was going out of the protest even before it started. Blood, stars, Nemtsov, bullets: Those are the associations they need," Kiselyov said.
>Unlike Kiselyov, other prominent members of Russia’s political elite refused to dance around the conspiracy theory that the United States or Europe was responsible for killing Nemtsov in order to discredit Russian President Vladimir Putin and his government. ———————–
Ukraine, Neocons And Neonazis:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-03-06/ukraine-neocons-and-neonazis[Excerpt]
>See, by now you would think that anyone who reads that all 31 US banks that were tested have passed the Fed stress test, knows this says absolutely nothing about the banks, but all the more about the test. You would think. But the media try – and succeed – to cram it down the public’s throat as a success story anyway.
>There’s simply a very strong feeling, if not conviction, in the western media, that they’ve won the propaganda battle. They have no adversary other than the blogosphere, and since they reach a thousand times more people, who are to a (wo)man more complacent and gullible than any of your typical interwebs readers, Bob’s their uncle.
>But come on guys, are we really going to let this happen without raising our voices or even batting as much as one of our eyes? We’re drowning in nonsense here, and we’re prepared to just die without even trying to swim?
>Look, I find real fun in reading that the UK House of Lords issues a report that claims 150,000 jobs will be created by 2050 in the ‘drone industry’, and at the same time clamors for a ‘personal drone registry’. I mean, these guys are way too old to even know how to spell ‘drone’. But that’s just mindless ‘journalism’, and to a point innocent.
>What is not is the two portraits of US girl power in Ukraine from the Guardian and Bloomberg that appeared over the past two days. That’s not innocent, that’s vile and bastardly lies. Victoria Nuland and Natalie Jaresko should not be praised by the western media, they should be taken apart bone by bone, because the roles they play are far too shady to stand up to our alleged democratic principles. 003e02 No.3268
Hi guys, you're doing a great job here, so I'd like to thank you first.
Second, I'd like to show you anti-Russia propaganda in western eu. This scan is from a belgian journal, it reads as follows :
>Russian embassy's anti-Ukraine propaganda.
>Russian embassy in Belgium wants to prove that the Ukrainian government is the one committing atrocities in eastern Ukraine. Cold war tier propaganda.
>One would believe he's back into the cold war and 60&70's Russian propaganda.
>The Russian embassy in Belgium sent a dvd to most belgian journals, featuring shocking videos of what is supposed to be atrocities commited by ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine.
>These pictures are woesome. And, of course, don't bring any proof that those atrocities were committed by ukrainian forces.
>We made a phone call to the russian embassy in order to know what was the purpose of this communication.
>The answers of Alexis Grigoriev, from the press office, are quite disturbing….
>(Q)Mr. Grigoriev, why did the ambassy send those videos to the journals? Isn't it straight propaganda?
>(A)We estimated that it was interesting as an information. You are free to use it or not.
>In Europe, we always only see a single point of views in the journals. We simply want to show the truth, with facts…
>(Q)So, according to Russia, Ukrainian forces are the only ones committing atrocities in eastern Ukraine.
>What about pro=Russian forces?
>(A)We are simply showing you the truth. Do you have proofs of pro=Russian forces commiting atrocities? Sounds, videos? If you do, you can send them to the embassy. What you are telling me, what we read in the newspapers, these are not facts. You should distinguish the cause from the effect.
>The cause is war, started by the Ukrainian government in eastern Ukraine. The consequence is that this governement pushed away the populations living there.
>(Q)And Russia, doesn't she support pro-russian forces in eastern Ukraine?
>(A)We have no proof of that. Everything Russia wants is that peace comes back in that country, the end of military action and that the Ukrainian government talks…
003e02 No.3270
>3268
forgot the file
0c8a77 No.3271
>>3270>>3268The ride never ends - it seems we're gonna get war no matter what.
Also, anon, are you Belgian? Any news on the general consensus in Belgium for arming Ukraine?
—————-
Ukraine government source: Russian troops 'rotating' into Ukraine:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-31773932
>Ukrainian government sources have told the BBC that they believe that Russian troops are continually entering and leaving eastern Ukraine.
>According to some claims there could be at least 18,000 involved, despite last month's ceasefire agreement which requiring all foreign troops to leave the region.Hold on, what about the Georgian mercs fighting for Ukraine - aren't they required to leave as well? Is anyone following the goddamn agreement at this point?!
>At least 6,000 people are believed to have been killed since the conflict in the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions erupted last April.
>Russia denies accusations that it is helping the rebels.—————
Russia defends Ukraine pilot's detention; U.N., U.S. demand release:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/06/us-ukraine-crisis-russia-savchenko-idUSKBN0M229Z20150306?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>The United Nations, the United States and Britain demanded during a United Nations Security Council meeting on Friday that Russia release Ukrainian military pilot Nadezhda Savchenko, but Russia defended her detention as legal.
>Pro-Russia forces captured Savchenko eight months ago and handed her over to Russia, where she is being held on charges of aiding the killing of two Russian journalists in east Ukraine.
>The 33-year-old, who has been on a hunger strike since December, has become a national hero in Ukraine and a symbol of resistance to Russian aggression. She denies the Russian accusation, but could be jailed for 20 years if found guilty.Pretty sure I posted an article earlier where she said she was ending her hunger strike. [ Ukrainian pilot Savchenko ends 83-day hunger strike:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-31753535 ]
>"It is highly important to ensure that Ms. Savchenko is released from custody immediately. She should either be released under the "all for all" formula, or on humanitarian grounds, because of her health conditions," U.N. Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic told the council.
>Under a deal agreed last month in Minsk, Belarus, to end fighting in eastern Ukraine, Russia and Ukraine agreed to ensure the release and exchange of all hostages and unlawfully detained people based on the principle of "all for all."
>"Russia committed to releasing all prisoners, and yet Ms Savchenko and many others remain in captivity. This is a clear violation of the Minsk agreement," Britain's U.N. Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant told the council.
>Russian U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said the charges against Savchenko were serious and an investigation and trial would determine her guilt or innocence.
>"We keep talking about the fact that we need to protect journalists, there should be no impunity. She has been accused of this and her detention is in no way illegal," he said.
>U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, described Savchenko and other Ukrainians being held in Russia as hostages. "Again, we call on Russia to release Nadezhda Savchenko," she told the Security Council. 0c8a77 No.3272
File: 1425680904835.png (244.02 KB, 767x809, 767:809, and watered by the deeds o….png)
EU Drops Sanctions on Yanukovich's Security Chief:
http://www.voanews.com/content/reu-eu-drops-sanctions-on-yanukovichs-security-chief/2670306.html
>The European Union has dropped sanctions imposed last year on the head of ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich's security service, according to a legal notice published on Friday.
>Oleksandr Yakimenko, who ran Ukraine's SBU security service until the bloody street protests that forced Yanukovich from power, was one of four people whose assets were frozen a year ago but whose names were absent from an EU list of those on whom sanctions were renewed for a further period.
>EU officials declined to confirm the names dropped from the sanctions list or explain their absence. However, diplomats and EU officials had said some Ukrainians were likely to be exempted from sanctions because Ukrainian proceedings against them had produced insufficient evidence of their involvement in the theft of state funds, the charge on which the sanctions are based.
>The new authorities in Kyiv have accused Yakimenko, 50, of involvement in killing civilians during the Maidan protests last February and have demanded Russia extradite him. His successor at the head of the SBU accused him last summer of channeling arms to pro-Moscow rebels and called him “Traitor No. 1”.
>Yanukovich himself, who is now in exile in Russia, as well as his elder son and his last two prime ministers, was among 14 people on whom the asset freeze was extended for a further year, according to a notice in the EU's Official Journal giving details of a decision taken by member states on Thursday.
>The current government has said Yanukovich and his allies, known as “The Family”, looted the state treasury of over $30 billion during his four years in power.——————-
Donetsk Authorities Register 16 Artillery Attacks by Kiev in Past 24 Hours:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150306/1019166699.html
>Authorities of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic in eastern Ukraine have registered a total of 16 artillery attacks by Kiev-led forces in violation of the Minsk peace accords, a senior DPR military official said Friday.
>"We have registered 16 artillery attacks from the Ukrainian side, including three instances of mortar shelling at the Donetsk airport," deputy commander of the DPR militia Eduard Basurin told a news briefing in Donetsk.
>Basurin added that officials form the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) in Ukraine, who were at the Donetsk airport at the time of the shelling, noted that the attacks were carried out from the Ukrainian positions along the line of contact.
>According to Basurin, on Friday, the Ukrainian side impeded the work of the SMM at least twice. First, by not letting the Mission's monitors observe the withdrawal of Kiev's heavy weaponry near the town of Volnovakha and second, by not letting two OSCE vehicles that left the DPR-controlled territories to return back.
>Basurin added that DPR authorities have registered the withdrawal of several units of heavy weaponry by Kiev but have no idea where they are being moved. Earlier of Friday, he stated that under the guise of withdrawing heavy artillery, the Ukrainian side was holding a covert rotation. 003e02 No.3273
>>3271I'm belgian, but I'm not watching TV. In local journals, Ukraine isn't n°1 priority, it gets maximum 2 pages on cheap journals. I'd say that as for everything in Belgium, politicians do what they are told, and keep fighting each other for sheckels (at least, it's the case in Wallonia).
I believe no public figure contests the image of russia given by the media, but I know that the people are balless leftists, they are anti war but don't protest when the govt goes on war. If the EU goes to war, Belgium will follow, but eu's biggest actor (germany) seems to hesitate.
I guess they don't want to risk anihilation.
0c8a77 No.3282
>>3273Thanks for the info and the article, anon.
>but eu's biggest actor (germany) seems to hesitate.Speak of the devil…
Breedlove's Bellicosity: Berlin Alarmed by Aggressive NATO Stance on Ukraine:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/germany-concerned-about-aggressive-nato-stance-on-ukraine-a-1022193.htmlI'm not going to do my 'few-huge-posts-of-copy-pasting-the-article-and-highlighting-bits' shtick for brevity's sake. I'll just say it goes over the dissonance between Germany and NATO supereme commander Breedlove.
0c8a77 No.3286
[video] In Ukraine's Nikishino, No House Untouched by Fighting:
http://www.voanews.com/media/video/in-ukraine-nikishino-no-house-is-untouched-by-fighting/2670753.htmlPlace got fucked up. Nikishyne is south-east of Debaltseve for reference.
———————
Russia, Germany, Ukraine agree to double OSCE monitors:
http://www.dw.de/russia-germany-ukraine-agree-to-double-osce-monitors/a-18301030?maca=en-rss-en-top-1022-rdf
>The German and Russian foreign ministers, Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Sergey Lavrov, urged the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to increase its number of observers in Ukraine's conflict-ridden east.
>"The ministers called on the OSCE Permanent Council to make a quick decision on extending the mandate of its special monitoring mission, ramping up its size to 1,000 observers and assigning it additional technical and financial resources," the Russian ministry said in a statement after Lavrov and Steinmeier spoke on the phone.
>The two ministers also acknowledged "progress on issues of observing the truce and withdrawal of heavy weapons by Ukrainian troops and Donetsk and Luhansk rebels," the statement added.
>Around 450 monitors have currently been deployed in eastern Ukraine to monitor the ceasefire after Kyiv and the pro-Russian separatists, along with Germany, Russia and France, hammered out a peace deal last month in Belarus' capital, Minsk. The ceasefire officially came into effect on February 15, but proved fragile with rebels and Kyiv indulging in skirmishes over border controls and withdrawal of heavy weapons.
>Ukraine also agreed to an increase in the number of OSCE observers following a discussion among officials from France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine in Berlin, the German foreign minister said on Friday.
>Also on Friday, OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier said his officials were still being denied full access to monitor the truce.
>"There are areas we simply can't reach," Zannier told the AFP news agency in Riga, where he was participating at an EU foreign ministers meeting.
>The OSCE mission had earlier reported that its capabilities were limited due to "lack of information on whereabouts of landmines and restrictions imposed by third parties."——————
Ukraine Showcases Captured Russian Military Hardware:
http://dailysignal.com/2015/03/06/ukraine-showcases-captured-russian-military-hardware/
>Normally the square outside St. Michael’s Cathedral in central Kiev is filled with sightseers taking photos of the famous golden-domed monastery while souvenir merchants hawk their goods.
>But this past week one of Kiev’s most famous tourist spots was filled with evidence of the nearly year-old war in eastern Ukraine, including a Russian drone aircraft perched on wooden pallets, Russian tanks and armored personnel carriers peppered with shrapnel damage, and Russian Grad rocket launcher systems pockmarked with bullet holes.
>According to the Ukrainian military, the Russian military hardware on display in St. Michael’s Square was captured from pro-Russia separatists during recent battles. The captured equipment is proof, Ukrainian officials claim, of the Kremlin’s complicity in the ongoing conflict.
>“It was bizarre, the rebels started out with hunting rifles,” Ukraine National Guard Capt. Alexei Lebed said, speaking about the evolution of military hardware used by the pro-Russian separatists over the course of the 10-month-old conflict. “And then the next day they had artillery, and then the next day they had tanks, and then the next day they had helicopters and missiles.”
>The display of captured Russian equipment in Kiev is part of a broader effort by Ukrainian officials to highlight Russia’s role in the conflict—a move meant to convince the United States and the European Union to continue sanctions against Russia and to secure additional military equipment and training for Ukraine’s armed forces.
>The military hardware currently on display in Kiev includes a Russian T-64 tank captured on June 13, 2014, during a battle between Ukrainian government troops and separatist rebels outside the eastern Ukrainian town Slavyansk. According to a Ukrainian information placard accompanying the display, the tank was never a part of the Ukrainian military, underscoring its Russian provenance.
>The Kremlin denies providing material support for the separatists and has said that any Russian soldiers captured fighting in Ukraine were there on their own accord while on leave. Moscow has also said that convoys of trucks crossing from Russia into separatist-controlled areas have been transporting humanitarian supplies despite claims from Kiev that the convoys were a ruse meant to conceal arms shipments. 0c8a77 No.3288
Ukrainian reforms are under threat – UN:
http://www.unian.info/world/1052821-ukrainian-reforms-are-under-threat-un.html
>The reforms Ukraine needs are under threat, UN Assistant Secretary General for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic says.
>He announced this at a UN Security Council meeting on Friday, an UNIAN correspondent reported.
>According to him, the reforms Ukraine has needed long ago and that have been promised are now under threat, as the government is currently focused on other priorities.
>Against the current economic background, the Ukrainian government needs to demonstrate its commitments when fighting against corruption and ensure the dispassionate execution of justice and punish those who are guilty of human rights violations, he said.
>"This will restrain further violations of human rights", Simonovic said.
>He also claims that those who are responsible for the violence that has killed many people should be brought to justice.
>John Ging, the Operations Director of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, earlier told the UN Security Council meeting on Friday that in the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine there are two million people that need urgent humanitarian assistance.———————
U.S. at UN Security Council accuses militants of murdering 500 civilians in Debaltseve:
http://www.unian.info/war/1052832-us-at-un-security-council-accuses-militants-of-murdering-500-civilians-in-debaltseve.html
>U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power claims that bodies of 500 civilians killed in firing by pro-Russian militants have been found in the town of Debaltseve in Donetsk region.
>Power announced this at a meeting of the UN Security Council in New York on Friday.
>According to her, the separatists use the current ceasefire for redeployment, and Russia continues to provide them with unrestricted access to weaponry.
>Describing the situation around the village of Shyrokyne, she expressed concern that the nearby city of Mariupol, which is currently under the Ukrainian government's control, could become the next target for separatists and the Russian military.
>Power also drew attention to the situation in Debaltseve, where "hundreds of bodies" have been found. In particular, referring to data provided by the UN, the U.S. Ambassador said 500 bodies had been found in the cellars of residential buildings in Debaltseve after the attack by militants on the town. According to her, people were hiding in the cellars and houses from firing by pro-Russian separatists.
>"An OCHA report from the end of last month said that 500 bodies had been found in houses and basements at the end of the siege – 500 bodies. Homes and basements where people took shelter from the endless barrage of Russian-made mortars and rockets as they rained down on the city's residents – residents who could not escape," she said.
>Power said that one of the rebel leaders had once declared that those who would be leaving the town would fall under their fire.
>"Weeks into the siege, at the end of January, the self-declared leader of the Russian-backed separatists had announced, “Anybody who leaves…will be in the interlocking field of fire of our artillery. From today, the road is under fire.” And so those inside were left with a choice: risk your life by staying, or risk your life by leaving. Civilians were killed doing both, and again, 500 bodies found in homes and basements where people took shelter," she said.
>According to her, the casualties and the displaced are one of the devastating consequences of this conflict. "Another – and one we rarely speak about in this Council anymore – is the ongoing illegal occupation and attempted annexation of Crimea by a permanent member of this Council. Crimea is important not only because it constitutes the continuing violation of the territorial integrity of a sovereign nation – a violation orchestrated in Moscow, and dressed up in a sham referendum – but also because it offers a preview of the kind of rule that we can expect in the other parts of Ukraine seized by those who see themselves as part of Novorossiya," Power said. 0c8a77 No.3289
Switzerland steps up sanctions against Russia over Ukraine:
http://www.unian.info/politics/1052853-switzerland-steps-up-sanctions-against-russia-over-ukraine.html
>The government of Switzerland has stepped up its sanctions against Russia over Ukraine by prolonging their effect and extending the list of restrictive measures taken by the European Union in connection with the situation in Ukraine.
>The Federal Council of Switzerland on March 6, 2015, decided to extend its measures to prevent the circumvention of international sanctions, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported.
>"It added the measures decreed by the EU last December following non-recognition of the annexation of the Crimea and Sevastopol to the ordinance on international sanctions of 27 August 2014," the Federal Council said in an official statement.
>All foreign investment in the peninsular of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol is now prohibited. Service bans apply in the investment and tourism branches, and in some other economic sectors. The existing ban on the export of key goods to Crimea and Sevastopol has been extended to include further articles. In addition, the measures have been made more precise to accord with adjustments made to the EU sanctions.
>Furthermore, 28 names have been added to the existing list of individuals and businesses with whom financial intermediaries may no longer enter into new business relationships. Anyone in Switzerland with existing business dealings with any of these entities is required to report this relationship.——————
Poroshenko vows to release 204 Ukrainian soldiers from captivity:
http://www.unian.info/society/1052680-poroshenko-vows-to-release-204-ukrainian-soldiers-from-captivity.html
>The Ukrainian government has promised to release 204 Ukrainian soldiers from captivity in the self-proclaimed Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republics, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said on Friday at a meeting with activists of the Khmelnitskiy region.
>"We will definitely return home 204 Ukrainian prisoners held by the Russian-backed militants. I also believe that Ukrainian pilot Nadia Savchenko will also be home soon," he said.
>"I do my best step by step so that Ukraine can live in peace. We need this peace to revive our economy," Poroshenko said.
>"If the war in the east of Ukraine ends, 2016 could be a year of economic recovery," he added. 0c8a77 No.3290
Russia to match US lethal aid to Ukraine: Top US diplomat:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/ukraine/2015/ukraine-150306-presstv01.htm
>A top US diplomat has said the United States will supply lethal arms to Ukraine if "aggression" from pro-Russian forces persists, but warned that Moscow would easily match the effort by sending more weapons into the country.
>Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday that the US was already moving to provide the Ukrainian military with non-lethal military assistance.
>'But if the aggression continues, I think there will be more and more pressure to give them other means to protect themselves,' Blinken said in the interview with German radio (DLF), according to Reuters.
>'And you know, it's certainly true that, were any of us to provide weapons to Ukraine, Russia could match that and then double that and triple that and quadruple that,' he stated.———————
Ukraine's Economy Is Worse Than It Looks:
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-03-06/ukraine-s-economy-is-worse-than-it-looks
>The world's worst-performing currency this year, the Ukrainian hryvnia, has bounced back 47 percent since last week's precipitous plunge. It's tempting to conclude Ukraine has pulled back from the brink of financial disaster. In reality, the Ukrainian central bank and government are just sweeping their problems under the rug to make them less obvious to the International Monetary Fund as it prepares a decision on a rescue package for the country on March 11. After the IMF money arrives, Ukraine will probably resume its previous monetary policy – the most disastrous and Soviet-like pursued anywhere in Europe since the early 1990s.
>This chart of the hryvnia's exchange rate to the U.S. dollar may look depressingly like a dead bird lying on its back, but, in theory, it shows progress in recent days: [see pic related]
>The hryvnia has now approached the 21.7 per U.S. dollar level stipulated by the IMF program. That would be great if it weren't just the meaningless official exchange rate. Though the hryvna was officially floated last month, it is propped up by Wednesday's refinancing rate hike to 30 percent from 19.5 percent and by currency controls. These include a ban on foreign exchange sales of more than 3,000 hryvnias to individuals and on foreign currency deposit payouts of more than 15,000 hryvnias, limits on currency purchases by banks for their own accounts, a requirement that exporters sell 75 percent of their foreign receipts for hryvnias and the ceaseless harassment of importers trying to make payments outside Ukraine.
>These draconian measures might seem reasonable given that Ukraine's international reserves at the end of February were down to $5.6 billion, the lowest level since June 2003. There's also the fact that the National Bank of Ukraine spends about $1 billion per month despite all the present restrictions, half on debt servicing and half on interventions to prop up the hryvna's official rate. With the coffers running empty, National Bank governor Valeria Gontareva had to do something to convince the IMF that Ukraine would be able to repay it.
>The problem is that the harsh foreign exchange regulation, which makes it nearly impossible to travel abroad or conduct cross-border business, and the interest rate, which pretty much precludes domestic investment through bank funding, are driving much of the economy into the shadow sector. Ukraine has long had one of the biggest shadow economies in the world. Before last year's "revolution of dignity," the IMF estimated it at about 50 percent of output, and it is probably bigger now, because private citizens' foreign exchange transactions have moved almost entirely to the black market, and the corporate ones have gone offshore. 0c8a77 No.3291
>>3290cont.
>At the same time, the National Bank is not independent by any measure. It is printing money to finance public spending: Last year, according to Gontareva, the National Bank funded 40 percent of the country's consolidated budget. This is being done through the direct – non open-market – purchase of domestic bonds issued by the government. The National Bank has promised the IMF to stanch this flood, limiting the direct funding of public expenditures to 90 billion hryvnias this year. But between Jan. 1 and Feb. 26, 2015, it has already bought 20.3 billion hryvnias of government bonds.
>Gontareva insisted in a speech to parliament today that the country's monetary base has actually shrunk in the last two months, but that's hardly what people believe. The black market exchange rate (this being tech-savvy Ukraine, you can follow it on the Internet) is now more than 27 hryvnias to the dollar, about 25 percent lower than the official one. More than half of the Ukrainian economy likely runs on this basis, outside the regulators' reach.
>As Gontareva spoke today, parliament deputies, led by radical populist Oleh Lyashko [pic related], shouted her down until it was impossible for her to finish the speech. The National Bank eventually published her full remarks on its site, which is the only reason I know what she planned to say. The legislators never heard the central bank governor announce that she expected a rate of 20-22 hryvnias to the dollar would eliminate Ukraine's current account deficit and that new IMF loans would be used to replenish the country's international reserves to $17 billion by the end of this year.
>But this is no panacea. If the planned increase in foreign reserves prompts the National Bank to relax its currency controls, the hryvnia will inevitably sink at least to the current black market level unless the National Bank intervenes and depletes the reserves again.
>Ukraine today faces a rare paradox. Its citizens are fervidly patriotic and energized by the need to resist Russian aggression, but they are so deeply mistrustful of the authorities they elected by a landslide last year that they do everything to escape their watch. They are drawing down their bank deposits and moving most of their economic activity to the shadow sector: Last year, banks lost 126 billion hryvnias in deposits, and in the last two months, another 18 billion hryvnias. The enormous volunteer infrastructure supporting Ukraine's ragtag military also exists off the government's radar.
>Strictly speaking, the IMF shouldn't approve the bailout package next week. Recent events have shown that the government and the national bank are losing control of the economy. Yet the Fund will probably make a political decision to fund Ukraine anyway. Any other decision will ruin the country and hand Russian President Vladimir Putin an easy victory.
>There are indications that once the bailout is all set, Kiev will see a massive government reshuffle, in which Gontareva and a number of ministers may lose their jobs. This game of musical chairs, however, is unlikely to increase trust in President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk. As long as there's no significant decrease in corruption levels and scant evidence that the government knows what it's doing, the possibility of a coup by the battered, angry military will grow. Ukraine has wasted time, and now not even the IMF may be able to help. c6eaba No.3295
>>3286>Hurrhurr here are some Russian weapons the other guys got from Russia>Shows off Soviet equipment likely built in Donbass in the 70's and 80's that might as well be wrecked Ukrainian vehicles since they're also in service in the Ukrainian armed forcesThis again, courtesy of the people that can't even be bothered to show a single photo to back up their repeated claims that they've beaten off entire Russian invasions without losing a single person?
These people are worse propagandists than the North Koreans. At least show off something like a T-72 model you don't have in your own stockpile, or something like that which has been operating in the region. You know, as opposed to showing off vehicles that your own army has lost in their hundreds over the past year. Or heck, that you abandoned in the hundreds to the NAF after Debaltseve!
Good on you guys for keeping this up by the way. I'd been mostly gone for over a week, so as time consuming as it was to go through a hundred posts full of summarized news articles, that's a pretty fantastic resource and I can't thank you guys enough for putting in the hours in this thread.
c6eaba No.3297
TWO MEN HELD OVER NEMTSOV MURDERhttp://rt.com/news/238653-suspects-nemtsov-murder-detained/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-31778279Not directly Ukraine related, but since it's been talked about earlier in the thread this update seemed relevant. Russian and English sources provided for the sake of comparison.Jokes about a Perfect Prosecutor spinoff where Natalia tries to solve the crime once and for all go here.
c6eaba No.3298
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
Here's the current RT coverage on the murder for those that don't feel like reading the articles.
>Two suspects from the North Caucasus region are detained
>FSB claims to have strong proof supporting their case
b892a7 No.3302
>>3297>>3298It's not even remotely possible Putin ordered it, this is an obvious false flag.
0c8a77 No.3306
>>3297I figured it was likely to become relevant to Ukraine in some manner, but the only way it's connected now is through Nemtsov's alleged proof of Russian involvement in Ukraine (which he kept no record of, choosing to use his memory instead of notes). Source:
http://www.dw.de/russian-opposition-wants-to-publish-nemtsov-report/a-18301203
>Before he was gunned down in Moscow, Russian opposition figure Boris Nemtsov was working on a report that aimed to shed light on "the lies" of President Vladimir Putin, some of his associates have said to the media. Now, those same colleagues from the opposition movement Solidarnost want to publish Nemtsov's findings.
>Nemtsov's colleagues said most of what he had gathered was publicly available, but to their knowledge he had never written anything but a table of contents. He also dictated his accounts from memory. Shorina and Yashin hope to put his reports together and publish them next month. According to Yashin, the body of information will be called "Putin and the war." 0c8a77 No.3307
Welcome to Ukraine: Wild West of Populist Politics:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nikolas-kozloff/welcome-to-ukraine-wild-w_b_6820930.html?utm_hp_ref=world&ir=WorldPostGoes over the rise in populist politics in Ukraine - particularly Lyashko ( see
>>3291 ).
0c8a77 No.3310
>>3306>>3302Also, upon further thought, isn't it possible that Nemtsov was assassinated because of this report on Ukraine (assuming it isn't bullshit)?
——————
Statements by US permanent representative to the UN Samantha Power:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/ukraine/2015/ukraine-150306-usun01.htm
>Just as Russia and Russian-backed separatists prevented the SMM from going to Debaltseve while these forces carried out their vicious attack, recent SMM reports chronicle repeated, persistent obstruction by Russian-backed separatists, obstructions that include even threatening to kill OSCE monitors.
>To date, the separatists have granted OSCE monitors sporadic access limited to certain roads, when and where it suits them. As we have asked before, it bears asking again: Who obstructs an objective observer other than someone who has something to hide from an unbiased eye?
>The Minsk Implementation Package also calls for the full pullback of all heavy weapons. That, too, has not happened.Not true, according to the rebels.
Pro-Russian Rebels In Ukraine Say Weapons Pullback Complete:
http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-weapons-withdrawal-rebels-russia-finished/26887141.htmlImportant to note, however, is that they only claim to have pulled back. OSCE will have to confirm. Back to Power's statements.
>Two days ago, Russia sent its 17th so-called humanitarian convoy into Ukraine, once again denying international observers and Ukrainian border guards the right to conduct a full and complete inspection of its contents. Russian convoys that should be coming out of Ukraine are instead going in. If these convoys are carrying humanitarian assistance, why not allow a full inspection?I do agree with this point; there's no reason the convoys should not be fully inspected.
I'll leave it at that - you can read the rest at will. Here are other statements by her:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/ukraine/2015/ukraine-150306-usun02.htm c6eaba No.3313
>>3302>>3306That it isn't Putin is a no-brainer. At most you could probably argue that a lone wolf vaguely related to United Russia disagreed with his views, but even that seems very, very far-fetched and unlikely. The guy commanded almost no popular support, especially with his opposition to the Crimean unification and support for Ukrainian integration into the west, and was a no-name dead-end politician as far as most of Russian society was concerned. You can also correct me on this point if I'm mistaken, but his party didn't even have a seat in the Duma. So for western media to march in lockstep and claim that Putin was shaking in his boots in terror of this supposedly influential politician is absurd drivel. He might as well have Duma's janitorial staff shot at that point; they were closer to the seat of power than this guy.
This is what western coverage of Russian politics has always been though. Yeltsin 2.0's that are either reviled or completely unknown are described as the beloved hopes of the nation that only lose in the polls because of cheating, and actual opposition parties like the communists are unheard of. Propaganda press, nothing new, etc.
It will be very interesting to where the investigation leads. Of course, if it turns out to be a false flag, even if they catch a CIA/SBU stooge red-handed with all relevant documentation, I wouldn't exactly be shocked if BBC and their ilk brushed it all under the rug and went off on a new tirade on how Putin is murdering your kids. Speaking of fools!
EU won’t be pushed into confrontation over Ukraine – foreign policy chiefhttp://rt.com/news/238681-eu-oppose-confrontation-ukraine/
>The EU is resisting calls from hotheads to supply arms to Ukraine, saying it won’t be pulled into a confrontation with Russia. Europeans cite the progress in implementing a ceasefire in eastern Ukraine between Kiev and local rebels.The EU claiming it won't do what it's already doing, or a positive sign for the cease fire? You be the judge.
0c8a77 No.3314
A rebel battalion commander has been assassinated according to liveuamap.
——————-
Kiev Continues Third Stage of Heavy Arms Withdrawal in East Ukraine:
>Ukrainian army is continuing the pullout of heavy arms in Donbas, Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said Saturday.
>"The third stage of the Ukrainian armed forces' military equipment in accordance with the Minsk agreement is continuing. The withdrawal of Uragan multiple rocket launchers to a previously prepared site began yesterday," the National Security and Defense Council spokesman said at a briefing.
>The 100-mm Rapira anti-tank guns, as well as the 122-mm Grad multiple rocket launchers and the 152-mm Akatsiya self-propelled artillery have already been removed from the line of contact, Lysenko added.
>The pullout of large-caliber weapons from the line of contact in Donbas is part of 13 measures toward the Ukrainian reconciliation, collectively referred to as the Minsk agreement, signed by the sides of the Ukrainian internal conflict to the nearly year-long conflict on February 12.
>March 1, two weeks after a ceasefire came into force, marked the deadline for the withdrawal of heavy arms set out by the Minsk deal. Independence forces claim they have met the deadline by completing the process on Sunday.
>Eduard Basurin, a top military official of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), announced on Saturday the withdrawal of 24 120-mm heavy mortars.
>Basurin emphasized the pullout was not part of the February 12 Minsk peace deal, but was done in "the spirit, rather than the letter" of the agreement.———————
>>3313Related:
EU shows little appetite for more Russia sanctions:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/07/us-ukraine-crisis-eu-idUSKBN0M30GV20150307?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
>EU foreign ministers showed little appetite on Saturday for stepping up pressure on Russia over Ukraine, preferring to give a fragile ceasefire a chance before deciding whether to apply more sanctions or even to extend existing ones.
>Most ministers at an EU meeting in the Latvian capital pinned their hopes on the latest Minsk agreement succeeding and said the EU should only consider tightening sanctions if the ceasefire was seriously violated, such as by a separatist offensive on the Ukrainian port of Mariupol.
>Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni saw "encouraging signals" on the ground in eastern Ukraine.
>"At the moment we don’t need either new sanctions or automatic renewals (of sanctions)," he told reporters.
>Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz agreed.
>"There is a glimpse of hope since Minsk … We should do everything now to improve the situation and decide later whether that improvement really happened and we can reduce the sanctions, or if we have to extend them," he said.
>The comments reflect divisions within the 28-nation EU over sanctions on Russia, the bloc's biggest energy supplier.
>While Britain, Poland and the Baltic states take a tough line, many other EU members, including Italy, Austria and Cyprus, are skeptical about sanctions. Alexis Tsipras's election victory in Greece has strengthened the dovish camp.
>A key decision that the EU must face soon is whether to extend economic sanctions against Russia which it adopted for one year last July. Unanimity is required to extend them.
>French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Friday that a debate was going on in the EU, with some countries saying the bloc should state now that it would extend the economic sanctions until the end of the year.
>"Others say it would be a bit contradictory to say, on the one hand, Minsk is being applied and on the other hand we are going to go (extend sanctions) until the end of year," Fabius told reporters in Riga.
>He said a decision on whether to extend existing economic sanctions on Russia could wait until around July.
>"If Minsk develops positively, then it is likely that nothing new will be done on sanctions," he said. If, on the other hand, there were serious violations to Minsk, sanctions remained available, he said.
>Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius, an EU hawk on Russia, said on Friday that extending sanctions to the end of the year was "the least we can do".
>Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders said on Saturday existing sanctions would probably be extended until year-end.
>"What matters is that … we maintain unity within the EU, and above all that we continue to put on pressure so that things change on the ground," he said. 0c8a77 No.3315
>>3314Shit forgot source: Kiev Continues Third Stage of Heavy Arms Withdrawal in East Ukraine:
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150307/1019195910.html c6eaba No.3316
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
>>3314I hope it isn't Givi assuming that it isn't just misinformation/fog of war.
Not surprised that the EU doesn't have much of a heart in it for more sanctions though. They're broke and set to lose the GDP of a small country due to lost trade at this rate. When you're addled with a mess like Greece, that's not the right time to burn away hundreds of billions just so America can have a few more missile bases in eastern Europe. When push comes to shove though, the MEPs tend to shoot themselves in the foot when asked to. There's been a rift between the US and EU over this, but I tend to air on the side of the EU being irrational if we're taking odds in any given scenario.
The attached video is related. Covers the optimism of the observers on the ground, prisoner/body swaps, and the weapons withdrawals. Since I'm shilling stuff from RT anyway, here's another related to the topic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BowKAIaBvMOn the EU/US split and the difference in rhetoric between Germany and the US/NATO brass.
For the sake of comparison:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-31779869
>Pro-Russia rebels in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, says they have "fully removed" heavy weapons from the front line, as agreed in a ceasefire deal.
>The claim was made by the head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, Alexander Zakharchenko, who added that Ukraine had not reciprocated
>Ukraine's government said it would move its artillery by the end of Saturday.
>The European-brokered ceasefire signed in Minsk last month appears to be holding despite sporadic violations.If both RT and the BBC can agree on a positive news story, that's usually a good sign that it's at least somewhat stable since the BBC is otherwise prone to make claims that reek of the prelude to the Iraq war in terms of credibility.
b892a7 No.3326
>>3313>>3310He was in the company of a Ukrainian spy at the time, who led him to the ambush point.
Obvious Ukrainians did it, question is why.
0c8a77 No.3327
Authorized anti-war rally in Moscow gathers about 20 participants:
http://www.unian.info/politics/1052998-authorized-anti-war-rally-in-moscow-gathers-about-20-participants.html
>Up to 20 people took part in the event. It had been agreed with local authorities in advance.
>Participants in the rally were holding posters calling on the Kremlin to stop military aggression against Ukraine, Ukrainian Channel 5 reported.
>In addition, there were banners with portraits of killed Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov and jailed Ukrainian pilot Nadia Savchenko. Activists were also wearing yellow and blue ribbons patterned in the national colors of the Ukrainian flag.
>The rally was resolutely countered by supporters of Putin's policy. A few dozens of people with flags of Russia and black and orange ribbons of Saint George, used by Russian civilians as a patriotic symbol and widely associated in Ukraine with Russian nationalist and separatist sentiment, gathered near the venue of the event. They made attempts to disrupt the anti-war rally. However, Russian police took measures to prevent clashes.————————
US/UK Set to Violate Minsk2 Agreement?:
http://english.pravda.ru/opinion/columnists/08-03-2015/129992-violation_minsk_two-0/
>What we've got laid out is six United States companies that will be training six Ukrainian companies throughout the summer."The training will take place at the level of US and Ukrainian national guard companies, Foster explained, adding that "we have nothing above battalion staff level" engaged in the military training.
>"The current plan is for US forces to stay six months, he said, and noted there have been discussions about how to increase the duration and the scope of the training mission."
>The UK also announced that they would be sending about 75 of their military over.
>However, look at the terms of Minsk2, Item 10:
>"Withdrawal of all foreign armed units, military equipment, as well as mercenaries from the territory of Ukraine under the supervision of the OSCE. The disarmament of all illegal groups."Not posting the rest since it's just biased vitriol directed towards the West, but I hadn't considered that the foreign troops training the Ukrainians would violate the Minsk protocol.
——————–
4 suspects in Nemtsov murder detained:
http://rt.com/news/238653-suspects-nemtsov-murder-detained/
>Four suspects in the high-profile murder case of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov have been detained, according to the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Russian republic of Ingushetia’s Security Council.
>According to FSB chief Aleksandr Bortnikov, the authorities originally detained two suspects on Saturday, who were identified as Anzor Gubashev and Zaur Dadayev.
>Bortnikov said both suspects come from Russia’s southern region of the North Caucasus, a restive place with insurgency and crime problems.
>The Investigative Committee confirmed that the two detainees are implicated in both organizing and executing the hit on Nemtsov. “We are continuing our work to establish which individuals may be involved in this crime,” the committee’s spokesman Vladimir Markin said.
>Later on Saturday, the secretary of the Security Council of Russia's Republic of Ingushetia told Sputnik that two more people have been apprehended by the authorities in connection with the investigation.
>They were identified as Gubashev’s younger brother and a man who was in the same car with Dadayev at the time of the arrest, Albert Barakhoyev told the news agency.
>Investigators are looking into five possible motives behind Nemtsov’s assassination. According to Vladimir Markin, spokesman for the Investigative Committee, the murder may have been a provocation to destabilize the political situation in Russia.
>It could also be linked to threats Nemtsov received over his stance on the Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris, or the current war in Ukraine. The politician’s business activities and a possible assault related to his personal life are also being looked into.
>The prime witness to the crime, Ukrainian model, Anna Duritskaya, who was accompanying Nemtsov, has since returned to Kiev. She told the media she was unable to identify the killer. 0c8a77 No.3344
5 suspects arrested over Nemtsov murder, 1 'confessed' - court:
http://rt.com/news/238813-nemtsov-murder-charged-court/
>Moscow's Basmanny district court has arrested five people in connection with the murder of Boris Nemtsov, a prominent opposition figure, who was gunned down last week.
>Two judges are reviewing the charges against the five people brought before the court by the prosecutors on Sunday.
>Two of them are Zaur Dadaev and Anzor Gubashev, who were identified as key suspects in the killing of Nemtsov after their detention on Saturday.
>The prosecutors asked the court to arrest the duo by April 28, the current deadline for the investigation, saying that otherwise they may flee or interfere with the investigation.
>According to the judge, who ordered Dadaev’s arrest as requested by the prosecution, he confessed his involvement to the police. The accused didn’t comment on this during the court session.
>Gubashev pleaded not guilty to the crimes he is charged with.
>The other individuals, who may have had a hand in the crime, are Gubashev’s brother Shagit and two identified as Ramzat Bakhaev and Tamerlan Eskerkhanov. The request for their arrest has been reviewed separately by another judge.
>“The suspects denied their ties to the crime, but we have evidence of their guilt. It includes forensic evidence and eyewitness accounts,”an investigator told the court.
>The trio denied their involvement, with Eskerkhanov claiming to have an alibi. But the judge ordered their arrests as well.
>Eskerkhanov and Bakhaev have been remanded until May 8 and Shagit Gubashev - until May 7.————-
ATO Headquarters: fourth phase of heavy weaponry pull-out over:
http://www.unian.info/war/1053157-ato-headquarters-fourth-phase-of-heavy-weaponry-pull-out-over.html
>The Ukrainian side has completed the fourth phase of the withdrawal of heavy weaponry from the line of contact in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) zone in eastern Ukraine.
>This was announced by ATO speaker Andriy Lysenko.
>"We've completed the withdrawal of heavy weaponry from the line of contact. In particular, 100mm caliber Rapira and Ruta anti-tank guns and Grad and Uragan multiple rocket launcher systems have been pulled out," he said.
>According to him, all the heavy weapons are being withdrawn to designated sites. The process is being monitored by OSCE observers and journalists.—————
Putin risks further sanctions on Russia over Ukraine, says Philip Hammond:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/08/putin-russia-risks-further-eu-sanctions-ukraine-says-philip-hammond
>Vladimir Putin risks a further round of punitive EU economic sanctions against Russia if Moscow-backed separatists mount another large offensive in the Ukraine, UK foreign secretary Philip Hammond has said.
>Speaking on the BBC’s Andrew Marr show, Hammond said the post-cold war detente between Russia and the west had soured under Putin’s presidency to the point where it now sees western countries as adversaries.
>Hammond also warned that Europe faced having a “difficult, prickly relationship” with Russia for some time to come, claiming Putin believed he had “some kind of strategic veto” over the freedom of action of former Soviet states.
>Hammond told Marr: “We have all made clear that if there is a big assault, for example on Mariupol, that will be responded to with a significant increase in the economic pressure on Russia from the EU.
>Asked if that could trigger a new cold war he said: “I don’t want to talk about cold wars, but we are clear that Russia has decided, it has made the decision that it wants to be in a strategic competition with the west, with Europe.
>“It doesn’t any longer see us as partners, it sees us as competitors or even adversaries and that means that we are going to have a difficult, prickly relationship with Russia probably for some time to come.”
>Hammond told Marr that under the Minsk peace plan Moscow agreed to hand back control of all Russian territory by the end of the year and could “expect the temperature to be turned up significantly” if it did not.
>He also said Putin was aware of Nato’s “hard red line” protecting its Baltic members from Russian incursions.
>The foreign secretary claimed the Russian president believed he had “some kind of strategic veto” over the freedom of action of former Soviet states, adding: “That puts him, frankly, at odds with our view of the post-Soviet settlement in Europe.” 0c8a77 No.3345
Nemtsov murder suspect blows himself up as more arrests made:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/11457476/Nemtsov-murder-suspect-blows-himself-up-as-more-arrests-made.html
>A suspect in the murder of Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov blew himself up with a grenade as police tried to detain him in Chechnya, it has been reported.
>Officers surrounded the man at an apartment in Grozny on Saturday evening, but he was killed by a hand grenade that exploded as he tossed it towards them, a law enforcement source told Interfax. b892a7 No.3352
>>3314liveuamap is a ukrainian controlled site, they said motorolla was dead too
0c8a77 No.3353
>>3352True, and I've yet to see any news on an assassination in Ukraine. I use liveuamap because the alternative site, militarymaps.info/ , is hell on my browser (usually crashes when I pull up the site) and it's also in Cyrillic the majority of the time.
0c8a77 No.3358
China vows cooperation with Russia despite West’s sanctions:
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1732599/china-vows-cooperation-russia-despite-wests-sanctions
>China vowed Sunday to plough ahead on economic and diplomatic cooperation with Russia despite Western sanctions against Moscow over the conflict in Ukraine, stressing their relations are based on “mutual need”.
>“The practical cooperation between China and Russia is based on mutual need, it seeks win-win results and has enormous internal impetus and room for expansion,” said Beijing’s foreign minister Wang Yi.
>As well as sanctions, Vladimir Putin’s Russia is facing a sharp decline in its ruble currency amid an economic crisis fuelled largely by plunging oil prices.
>Both countries are permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, where they have in the past jointly used their veto power against Western-backed moves such as in the civil war in Syria.
>Wang told reporters on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress, China’s Communist-controlled parliament, that Beijing and Moscow will “continue to carry out strategic coordination and cooperation to maintain international peace and security”.
>Wang’s comments signal that Putin, assailed by the West over the annexation of Crimea and the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine, can count on continued Chinese economic and diplomatic support.
>Beijing and Moscow, allies and then adversaries during the Cold War, have over the past quarter century often found common ground internationally, frequently taking similar stands at the UN.
>They have also forged increasingly closer economic ties, with China hungry for Russia’s vast hydrocarbon resources. Western sanctions have made seeking stable markets an urgent need for Putin, whose economy has been hit hard by the fall in prices for oil, a major source of revenue.
>Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, who met five times last year, have a close personal relationship.
>Xi told visiting Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov in February that the two countries’ “cooperation grows ever deeper”.
>In the economic arena, the two sides will “work hard” to increase bilateral trade to $100 billion, while intensifying cooperation in the financial, oil and gas and nuclear power sectors, Wang said, after China-Russia trade totalled $95.3 billion last year.
>Among other results, he said they would begin “full construction” of an eastern natural gas pipeline and also sign an agreement on the western route.
>Wang added that they would “accelerate joint development and research” on long-range wide body passenger jets, begin working together to develop Russia’s far eastern region and step up cooperation on high speed railways. 00f02c No.3360
>>3353I have the same problem. 100MB/s download speed, i7 quad core CPU and 16GB of RAM. No idea why, but it runs like dogshit. Plus being unable to read Russian doesn't help.
0c8a77 No.3361
Falsification Revealed: Zbigniew Brzezinski Lied to US Senate About Crimea:
http://sputniknews.com/analysis/20150308/1019229771.html
>Zbigniew Brzezinski, the former National Security Advisor, urged US policy-makers to bolster NATO military presence in the Baltic states and provide military aid to Ukraine, by falsifying facts and history, an American political analyst said.
>At a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on threats to US national security, former National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski repeatedly claimed that Russia "seized" Crimea and could soon attack the Baltic states, urging American policy-makers to increase NATO military presence in Latvia and Estonia.
>The former national security advisor stressed that "the only sensible step" was to amass NATO military forces near the Russian border. He said that he also considered some "actions of a semi-military type" as well as "occasional military engagement" of NATO's forces in armed confrontation with Russia.
>According to Brzezinski, deterrence is the only way to peace, so far Washington should send arms and troops to Eastern Europe in order to prevent World War III.
>"I wonder how many people in this room or this very important senatorial committee really anticipated that one day Putin would land military personnel in Crimea and seize it. I think if anybody said that's what he is going to do, he or she would be labeled as a warmonger. He did it. And he got away with it. I think he’s also drawing lessons from that. And I'll tell you what my horror, night-dream, is: that one day, I literally mean one day, he just seizes Riga, and Talinn. Latvia and Estonia. It would literally take him one day," the old hawk Brzezinski underscored during the hearing.
>Eric Zuesse, an American political analyst, exposed the hypocrisy of Zbigniew Brzezinski pointing out three serious falsehoods in the former national security advisor's testimony.
>The analyst emphasized that what Brzezinski called the "seizure" of Crimea by Russia on March 16, 2014, was in fact an act of aggression of the United States, that backed a military coup in Kiev. The so called "Maidan revolution" resulted in ousting of democratically elected president Viktor Yanukovych.
>Eric Zuesse cited the founder of Stratfor, "the private CIA firm," who dubbed the event as "the most blatant coup in history." Predictably, Washington's move was qualified by Moscow as a hostile action directly threatening Russia's security. Surprisingly, Zbigniew Brzezinski did not say a word about it, although he had repeatedly claimed in his publications that without Ukraine Moscow would be unable to ensure its security and would lose a chance become a truly global player.
>The analyst even went so far to claim that Brzezinski could have intentionally deceived US congressmen, by not shedding light on the historical background of the event.
>Eric Zuesse also pointed to the fact that Gallup polls both before and after the Crimean vote on March 16, 2014 indicated an overwhelming majority of the population of the region (more than 90 percent) demonstrated their strong determination to be part of Russia. The analyst emphasized that Crimea had been a Russian territory from 1783 to 1954 and so far its inhabitants always considered themselves Russian, not Ukrainian nationals.
>Zuesse called into question the thesis of Brzezinski that Russia "land[ed] military personnel in Crimea and seize[d] it," pointing to the fact that Russia's Black Sea Fleet has been stationed in the region since 1783. The Russian military were ensuring security in Crimea during the peaceful vote. Therefore, the idea put forth by Brzezinski that Russia was preparing for a quick military assault against the Baltic states was completely divorced from reality, the analyst underscored.
>Zuesse also pointed out that the NATO Treaty is a mutual-defense provision, and denounced Brzezinski's idea that US should send weaponry and troops to all Eastern Europe NATO member states – Russia's former allies – in order to "prevent Putin to invade NATO" as ridiculous.
>He underscored that the alarmist statements made by the former national advisor are evidently directed to provoke a confrontation between Moscow and Washington. The question remains open, whether Brzezinski is demonstrating his ignorance as a geostrategist or whether he wants to trigger a possible military conflict between the global powers intentionally.>>3360And here I was thinking it was just my shitty laptop.
95621b No.3362
>>3360100mb/s internet? Is that domestic? Shit, domestic 100mb/s is fiction in my country, yet…
Also, i'm here to remind you guys to use the new thread, please.
d61338 No.12570
YouTube embed. Click thumbnail to play.
>>2650>Do not forget Russian is very pro-AssadThis video explains Putin's view on Syria.
781792 No.12571
>>12570Russia could do a lot about it now, though.
>Cypros d61338 No.12604
>>2719>Maybe the UN is going to be seen as a failure and disbanded like it's precursor: the League of Nations.Fuck that!
If the UN isn't there to, with the use of law, hold back the US the US could steam-roll the entire world militarily.
78f11e No.12645
Lots of claims on Twitter that there's fighting in Donetsk and that the ceasefire is over. Probably best to search ukraine on twitter than to try to paraphrase everything here.
(One account covering it)
https://twitter.com/shelomovskiy
>Russia to stop gas delivery via Ukraine by 2019, push ahead with Turkish Stream -Gazprom CEOI suppose it's not a surprise that the contract won't be renewed
(via RT)
https://archive.today/RFSw5
>#Novorossiya n hackers published the names of Western military instructors that will be training #Ukraine soldiers. (via cyber-berkut.ru, shitty English description, Russian language dox)
https://archive.today/7K0zt 78f11e No.12646
I'm seeing some more claims and videos (dark videos) of fighting at Donetsk Airport again. Isn't that airport well within rebel held territory? I don't understand how that can still be a front-line. It's almost like they put on a show there most of the video that has ever been released was from that same location.
78f11e No.12647
Lots more claims of heavy fighting in Donetsk here
https://twitter.com/NewRussiaPress
>BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's foreign minister met his Russian, Ukrainian and French counterparts in Berlin on Monday evening to discuss how the Minsk agreement can be put into action as violence intensified in eastern Ukraine.(via thestar.com.my)
https://archive.today/fg4jo e455e5 No.12684
>>12604>Implying that the US wouldn't just up and steamroll the rest of the world in spite of the UN to begin with, if it really wanted to. fccbf6 No.12795
>>12604>>12684
>implying it could, even if it wanted.Oh wait, they DO WANT, they just can't.
That is why they have to put up such theatrics.
Direct confrontation is Mutually Assured Destruction.
d5cfc3 No.12798
>>12604>If the UN isn't there to, with the use of law, hold back the US the US could steam-roll the entire world militarily.You're joking, right?
UN is an american tool to justify their deeds, not the other way around. They use it to justify their actions and to spill their propaganda, UN has no way of enforcing anything to anyone… Not even gonna comment about the part how US is steamrolling anything…
>>12646Shouldn't be possible.
Either its a missinformation, or the Ukrainian troops somehow survived in the airport for months without any food or supplies, hiding themselfs from any rebels, which is highly unlikely.
>>12647Thanks for the update.
But still, it was a no-brainer that the minsk treaty won't last.
According to the Minsk treaty Rebel held territory should become a special area WITHIN Ukraine, while according to the Rebels they would only accept a peace in which they are independant FROM Ukraine.
Basicly this treaty is doing the exact opposite of what the rebels said they want.
270660 No.12929
TL;DR Escalation despite peace talks since this Tuesday (April 15th).
Ukraine conflict: Soldiers killed despite truce talks
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32296796Ukraine said six government soldiers were killed in a 24-hour period and rebels said one of their fighters died in an army attack.
Fighting in eastern Ukraine rages on overnight despite talks
http://news.yahoo.com/fighting-eastern-ukraine-rages-overnight-despite-talks-072101600.htmlFighting raged overnight and in the early hours on Tuesday on the outskirts of the rebel stronghold of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine despite an agreement reached by the Ukrainian and Russian foreign ministers a day earlier.
Ukraine crisis: 700 explosions around Donetsk airport and Shyrokyne despite truce
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/ukraine-crisis-700-explosions-around-donetsk-airport-shyrokyne-despite-truce-1496509OSCE verifies heavy weapons are still being used despite truce.
8c56ee No.12934
>>12798But it is not peace, it's a ceasefire. In fact the Rebels considered being granted special status a minor victory.
d5cfc3 No.13053
>>12934Will post the videos and sources if I find them, but Im 100% sure that they've said numerious times that after all the shelling they've received they no longer fight for having a special status, and won't accept it no matter what. The only thing they'll accept is independence and it is not negotiable, the only thing thats negotiable is what size will Novorussia become.
fccbf6 No.13060
Attention
You guys have actually been posting in the old Ukraine thread.
Post in the latest one instead, please.