Re: Russian Invasion Of Ukraine (Formerly: Democratic Malaise Draws Ukraine Eastwards
I'm also seeing rumors that Poland is moving forces east, I'd suppose in case Russia is feeling overly adventurous. I've seen a couple pics but those could have been taken any time. Haven't been able to confirm anything solidly.
Re: Russian Invasion Of Ukraine (Formerly: Democratic Malaise Draws Ukraine Eastwards
max @smashbrownies 3m
UNCONFIRMED REPORT JUST IN OF MULTIPLE VEHICLES WITH EMERGENCY LIGHTS ON TRAVELING TOWARDS CENTRAL #SIMFEROPOL. #UKRAINE #CRIMEA
shabbir gheewalla @shabbirghewalla 3m
RT @real_breaking: Russian troops use flash grenades to capture weapons depot at #Simferopol Belbek airport #crimea #ukraine #russia...
Dan Buhrdorf @DanBuhrdorf 4m
#Kerry & #Rogers want big bucks for #Kiev fascists & their bankers-as #FoodStamps are cut for 50mill Americans! Tell them NO! #p2 #ows #tcot
economia_feed_0 @economia_feed_0 1m
U.S. says it and #partners could give #Kiev as much help as it needshttp://goo.gl/FhUoB0
ysbee news @ysbnews 4m
#Kerry Goes to #Kiev: #NATO preparing joint statement signed by all 28 members to condemn #Russia's actions....http://fb.me/6IItKpfo1
Russian Helicopters Swarm over Ukraine
Spetsnaz
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Nikita Khrushchev:"We will bury you"
"Your grandchildren will live under communism."
“You Americans are so gullible.
No, you won’t accept To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. outright, but we’ll keep feeding you small doses of To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll finally wake up and find you already have communism.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ."
We’ll so weaken your To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. like overripe fruit into our hands."
Ukraine leader threatens Russia with nuclear weapons
The Ukraine nuclear missile crisis has just begun
By Staff Writer
(INTELLIHUB) — According to translated news sources within the country, Ukraine interim representative threatened Russia with nuclear weapons, if Russia does not remove their troops from within the Ukrainian borders.
Mikhail Golovko said in a live interview that,“Russia can not win in this situation, it is a violation of all international norms and guarantees … If they are violated, we reserve the right to recover a nuclear weapon. Resume nuclear status and will be quite different to communicate, “ he said.
Golovko said that Ukraine has all the necessary technology to recreate nuclear weapons, for these purposes must be “3-6 months,”
“They can not accept that Ukraine is moving away from their orbits. Under Yanukovich we were actually a colony of Moscow, signed an agreement … This onerous convulsions, attempts to play the card of Crimea “, he added.
“Crimea patchy, there is a very active group of Tatars … I’m sure that we can resolve … Admiral Igor Tenyukh knows the situation in the Crimea, he can respond appropriately … We have a real chance to cope. There needs cleaning staff … agents of foreign intelligence, “- he said.
The deputy called Russia’s actions ”explicit intervention”.
Defense: Breaking yet another promise, this one to Congress, the administration jeopardizes our national security with plans to eliminate an entire squadron of intercontinental ballistic missiles and destroy its silos.
Yet another example of what President Obama meant in 2012 when he promised Russian President Dmitry Medvedev at the Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, South Korea, that after his re-election he would have more "flexibility" on defense issues, comes on the news that an ICBM squadron would be scrapped to comply with the New START Treaty — even as both the Russians and Chinese deploy new ballistic missiles.
A document prepared by the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon maps out a strategy to eliminate an ICBM squadron — and destroy its missile silos — by Dec. 5, 2017.
The military would begin removing ICBMs next October, after an environmental assessment is complete, and the silo elimination would begin in May 2016.
The fact is, as the Heritage Foundation notes, the U.S. does not need to eliminate an ICBM squadron to meet New START's limits. The State Department's Oct. 1 fact sheet says the U.S. must dismantle 109 of its deployed ICBMs, deployed submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) and deployed heavy bombers, and remove another 138 warheads. Heritage notes the U.S. has already reduced its deployed warheads by 112 and that destroying an ICBM squadron to comply with New START is unnecessary.
Further cuts, if needed, could be made by removing the missiles and placing the silos in reserve status.
The document says the reductions are necessary to "meet the New START Treaty compliance date by closing an ICBM squadron and eliminating the associated Launch Facilities." But that's not true. New START does not require destruction of the silos. So why the unnecessary move to cut our offensive missile deterrent force after the administration has scrapped Phase IV of our European-based missile defense, which was the proposed replacement for the ground-based interceptors and missile radars that were scuttled in a betrayal of our Polish and Czech allies?
The president has said he dreams of a world without nuclear weapons, which critics point out seems to mean only a world without U.S. nukes.
He sees U.S. military supremacy as an anachronistic example of the American exceptionalism for which he has apologized so many times.
To that end, in his June 2013 Berlin speech, President Obama spoke of his desire to unilaterally reduce deployed U.S. nuclear forces by up to one-third.
Never mind his promises to U.S. lawmakers that he would maintain a strong land-based ICBM force, a promise he made to garner votes for ratification of the New START Treaty.
Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester, both Democrats from Montana, home of many ICBMs, issued a press release in 2010 backing New START and saying the missiles would "continue to play a key role in U.S. national security for decades to come." Read the full story here.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Nikita Khrushchev:"We will bury you"
"Your grandchildren will live under communism."
“You Americans are so gullible.
No, you won’t accept To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. outright, but we’ll keep feeding you small doses of To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll finally wake up and find you already have communism.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ."
We’ll so weaken your To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. like overripe fruit into our hands."
On This Week With George Stephanopoulos Sunday morning, the titular host pressed Secretary of State John Kerry for specifics as to the United States’ planned responses to Russia’s invasion of the Crimean peninsula, and whether President Barack Obama had the ability to execute repercussions against Russia. “All those violations,” Stephanopoulos said, “what’s the penalty for what Russia’s already done?”
“The United States is currently considering all options,” Kerry said. “This really puts into question Russia’s role in the world…They are inviting the possibility of very serious repercussions, on trade, on investment, on asset freeze, on visa bans, on the potential of actions by the global community.”
Kerry called upon Congress to pass economic aid for Ukraine, and Stephanopoulos asked if the US was considering economic sanctions against Russia, in addition to Ukrainian aid. “It may well come that we will have to engage in that kind of activity,” Kerry said.
Kerry added that Russia was jeopardizing its membership in the G8 and G20. “You cannot behave this way in the 21st Century, and sit around the table with the normal entities and pretend that life is as usual,” he said. “But we believe that there is an alternative. We call on Russia to engage with the government of Ukraine. We are prepared to work very closely with Russia in order to address the very legitimate concerns that exist.”
“Do you have any indication at all that President Putin is taking heed of what President Obama is saying?” Stephanopoulos asked, in reference to the fruitless phone call yesterday between Obama and Putin.
“Well, they just had the conservation yesterday,” Kerry said. “We’re going to continue to engage diplomatically. This is a time for diplomacy, in order to steer this away from an increase of tension and the level of the crisis.”
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Nikita Khrushchev:"We will bury you"
"Your grandchildren will live under communism."
“You Americans are so gullible.
No, you won’t accept To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. outright, but we’ll keep feeding you small doses of To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll finally wake up and find you already have communism.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ."
We’ll so weaken your To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. like overripe fruit into our hands."
From a UK perspective, I assess the following analysis is brilliant.
Ukraine: Putin's Crimea aim is to make the West look weak
The real purpose of Russian troops in Ukraine is to undermine the credibility of Nato
Men are seen near a military truck on the runway of Belbek Airport in the Crimea region Photo: BAZ RATNER/REUTERS
By Thomas Tugendhat
2:24PM GMT 01 Mar 2014
If you want to invade a country, it’s important to call it a liberation. Over the coming weeks and months, that’s what we’re going to see in Ukraine. In fact it has started already. Just look at the Crimea.
Troops in unmarked uniforms have started guarding the region’s main airport. They’re being assisted by some local people. After all, they’re just there to help.
Ukraine’s President Yanukovych, who was ousted only a week ago, is defining himself as a leader deposed in a coup, and the regional government of Crimea, home of a majority ethnic Russian population, is rejecting the new government in Kiev as illegitimate.
At the same time, Russian troops are flying in to help resist what Moscow is calling the 'Nazis’ who have taken over the government of Ukraine.
This is tragic for Ukraine, for the near-abroad and for Nato not because it is taking us by surprise but because we have expected it for so long and seen it before and yet remain incapable of acting. This is the salami-tactics that Yes, Prime Minister joked about decades ago. Slice by slice, Russia is invading Ukraine and weakening the alliance that has kept the peace in Europe for almost 70 years.
It is a textbook KGB-led operation: the agent provocateur, followed by a self-organised militia, then Russian military protection to defend 'their’ people. The tactic was used to good effect throughout the Soviet period in Communist coups. It’s what brought down the government of Afghanistan and caused 30 years of war. And again it is unlikely to be resisted.
That’s why Angela Merkel was right to thank Britain for defending Germany throughout the Cold War. The German Chancellor knew what Russian occupation meant and that it was only because our militarily was a force to be reckoned with that the Kremlin thought hard about acting.
But after watching decades of British defence cuts, Moscow feels confident it can act with impunity in territories it considers its own.
But that is not an end in itself. For Russia this is also about rebuilding the buffer. That was the purpose of the Soviet Bloc, which has been eaten away by Nato’s spread East.
Each Russian soldier in Crimea is lessening the chance of a united Ukraine emerging unscathed and without a civil war. They are 'proving’ to our Eastern allies that Nato is a paper tiger and to our Western friends that this is a pointless struggle. That is President Putin’s real goal.
He has tried it in the past, first with the cyber attack on Estonia in 2007 that closed down the government. At that moment, though, Nato was clearly credible – after all, it was fighting in Afghanistan and off the Horn of Africa.
Then he invaded - sorry, liberated - Abkhazia and South Ossetia from Georgia during the Beijing Olympics in 2008. But although Georgia had troops fighting alongside us in Iraq and Afghanistan it wasn’t a member of NATO. Today the victim is Ukraine.
Like Georgia, Ukraine isn’t part of the Brussels-based alliance, but timing is everything.
Today, Russia wants to prevent the spread of Western influence and to protect the home to its Black Sea fleet based in Ukraine’s Crimea region.
For Nato, meanwhile, withdrawing from Afghanistan is raising questions about its future role. What will be the next most important topic when the 28 member states meet in Britain this September? After all, without the kit still in Afghanistan, an already reduced Nato will be greatly enfeebled.
The only realistic way for our combat vehicles to get back is on Russian trains. Pakistan has proved unreliable and flying would take months and cost a fortune. Putin knows that and so does Nato. He’s gambling that most countries won’t want to act.
Putin also watched the US over both Libya and Syria. Obama barely supported Nato’s actions against Tripoli and his 'red-line’ over the use of chemical weapons was nothing but hot air.
So the next few weeks and months could shape the continent and define the next evolution of the most successful guardian of the peace for almost 70 years.
Russia is demonstrating that the tactics that made Jim Hacker nervous are just as dangerous today. By never giving us a binary choice, the Kremlin is gambling that by the time we realise what’s happened, it will be too late. By giving us the choice of saving our kit or our credibility, Putin has played his hand to perfection.
Tom Tugendhat was a journalist in the Middle East before joining the Territorial Army, and served as military assistant to the Chief of the Defence Staff. He now runs Lashkar and Co, a strategy consultancy, and is the prospective Conservative candidate for Tonbridge and Malling. Twitter: @TomTugendhat
Re: Russian Invasion Of Ukraine (Formerly: Democratic Malaise Draws Ukraine Eastwards
The above article by Vector is well said, and I think the author is right. Making the west look weak is what Putin wants.
I hope all the fucking Putin fanboys and girls choke on their fucking cornflakes.
Seriously, it's time for Obama to step up to the plate and do something, or get the fuck out of office. This is NOT going to stop with taking Crimea, in fact, this will be a new push for Communist USSR to rise again and we ALL know it.
There is nothing "Christian" about Putin. There is nothing "good" about the man. He's a God Damned Communist KGB officer. Who the fuck does he think he is kidding?
This is real world now folks. All of it, and it's NOT gonna be pretty.
Libertatem Prius!
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Re: Russian Invasion Of Ukraine (Formerly: Democratic Malaise Draws Ukraine Eastwards
Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany told Mr. Obama by telephone on Sunday that after speaking with Mr. Putin she was not sure he was in touch with reality, people briefed on the call said. “In another world,” she said. http://mobile.nytimes.com/2014/03/03....html?referrer
BEIJING: China and Russia's foreign ministers spoke about the crisis in Ukraine on Monday, and both countries agreed it was very important to "appropriately handle" the issue, China's Foreign Ministry said.
"Both sides believe that the appropriate handling of the Ukraine crisis is very important to maintaining regional peace and stability," the ministry said in a statement on its website.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Nikita Khrushchev:"We will bury you"
"Your grandchildren will live under communism."
“You Americans are so gullible.
No, you won’t accept To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. outright, but we’ll keep feeding you small doses of To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll finally wake up and find you already have communism.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ."
We’ll so weaken your To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. like overripe fruit into our hands."
Russia is in "operational control" of Crimea as soldiers surround Ukrainian troops and seize a ferry port
March 3, 2014
Russia has said China is largely "in agreement" over Ukraine, after other world powers condemned Moscow for sending troops into the country.
Hundreds of Russian soldiers have surrounded a military base in Crimea, preventing Ukrainian soldiers from going in or out.
The convoy blockading the site, near the Crimean capital Simferopol, includes at least 17 military vehicles.
Russian troops are also reported to have taken control of a ferry terminal in the city of Kerch on the eastern tip of Crimea, which has a majority Russian-speaking population.
Ukraine's defence ministry said two Russian fighter jets violated the country's air space in the Black Sea on Sunday night and that it had scrambled an interceptor aircraft to prevent the "provocative actions".
And reports claimed pro-Russian protesters had occupied a floor of the regional government building in Donetsk. The 11-storey building has been flying the Russian flag for the last three days.
Ukrainian prime minister Arseny Yatseniuk has insisted his country "will never give up Crimea to anyone" and urged Russian forces to withdraw.
Mr Yatseniuk said: "I was and am a supporter of a diplomatic solution to the crisis, as a conflict would destroy the foundations for stability in the whole region."
In an interview with Sky News, Foreign Secretary William Hague said the crisis is likely to take some time to resolve.
He said: "I think we probably are looking at a long period of very active diplomacy and looking for solutions to this since there is no sign of a change in the Russian position on this.
"It's impossible to be optimistic at the moment. We're not in any position to be optimistic about the security situation and what is happening in the Crimea."
Russia's central bank raised its rate to 7% from 5.5% as the ruble hit an historic low against the dollar and the euro.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov discussed Ukraine by telephone with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, on Monday, and claimed they had "broadly coinciding points of view" on the situation there, according to a ministry statement.
Speaking at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva later, Mr Lavrov said Russian troops were necessary in Ukraine "until the normalisation of the political situation" and dismissed threats of sanctions and boycotts.
He added: "We call for a responsible approach, to put aside geopolitical calculations, and above all to put the interests of the Ukrainian people first."
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said: "China has always upheld the principles of diplomacy and the fundamental norms of international relations.
"At the same time we also take into consideration the history and the current complexities of the Ukrainian issue."
As the tense stand-off continues, the other seven nations of the G8 urged Moscow to hold talks with Kiev.
"We, the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States and the President of the European Council and President of the European Commission, join together today to condemn the Russian Federation's clear violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine," they said in a statement.
"We have decided for the time being to suspend our participation in activities associated with the preparation of the scheduled G8 Summit in Sochi in June."
He described Russia's intervention in Ukraine as the biggest crisis in Europe in the 21st century.
At a news conference with Mr Yatseniuk, Mr Hague said: "If this situation cannot resolve itself, if Russia cannot be persuaded to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, there will have to be other consequences and other costs."
Mr Hague added: "The UK is not discussion military action, our concentration is on diplomatic and economic pressure."
Prime Minister David Cameron will later chair a meeting of the National Security Council on the "British and international response to the grave situation in Ukraine", where he will press for a European summit on the crisis.
European foreign ministers are holding an emergency meeting on Ukraine in Brussels to table a joint response to the military incursion.
Mr Yatseniuk heads a pro-Western government that took power in the former Soviet republic when its Moscow-backed president, Viktor Yanukovych, was ousted last week.
US Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Kiev on Tuesday to show "strong support for Ukrainian sovereignty".
Rear Admiral Denis Berezovsky was appointed head of Ukraine's navy on Saturday.
But a day later he appeared before cameras, alongside the pro-Russian prime minister of Crimea's regional parliament, saying he had ordered Ukrainian naval forces there to disregard orders from "self-proclaimed" authorities in Kiev.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday won parliament's authorisation to use force in Ukraine.
Re: Russian Invasion Of Ukraine (Formerly: Democratic Malaise Draws Ukraine Eastwards
Ukraine Standoff Intensifies as West Scrambles
By STEVEN ERLANGERMARCH 3, 2014
A Tense Standoff in Ukraine
KIEV, Ukraine — Western nations sought a political and economic response to the crisis in Ukraine on Monday as Russia strengthened its hold on Crimea and more pro-Russian demonstrations were taking place in the big cities of Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine.
There were unconfirmed reports tha the commander of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, headquartered in the Crimea port of Sevastopol, had ordered Ukrainian forces in Crimea to surrender by 5 a.m. Tuesday local time — 10 p.m. Monday Eastern time — or face assault by Russian forces. But Russia’s Foreign Ministry issued a conflicting statement, saying the Black Sea Fleet was not involved.
European Union foreign ministers met in emergency session in Brussels to discuss possible punitive steps against Russia unless it pulled its troops back to its own bases in Crimea, including suspension of talks with Moscow on visa liberalization. But France and Germany said that sanctions were not on the table, urging dialogue with Russia first.
Continue reading the main story
Related Coverage
The scene outside a Moscow currency exchange on Monday. As tensions grew in Ukraine, the ruble fell to a record low against the dollar.
Markets Tumble as Ukraine Crisis DeepensMARCH 3, 2014
Pro Russian protesters commandeered a regional parliament building in Donetsk.
Ukrainian Government Rushes to Dampen Secessionist SentimentMARCH 2, 2014
Sergey V. Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, spoke Monday before the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva.
At U.N., Russia Points to Ultranationalist Threats in UkraineMARCH 3, 2014
President Obama on Friday. On Sunday, he spoke with allies about Crimea and sent Secretary of State John Kerry to Ukraine.
Pressure Rising as Obama Works to Rein In RussiaMARCH 2, 2014
video
Video: Think Back: Obama's Cold WarMARCH 1, 2014
The German foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, said that “crisis diplomacy is not a weakness but it will be more important than ever to not fall into the abyss of military escalation,” an indication that the Europeans would not agree on significant action. Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans told reporters that “sanctions are not in order today but sanctions will become inevitable” if there is no change in Russia’s position.
Continue reading the main story
Latest Updates
10:52 A.M.
Khodorkovsky Offers to Mediate in Ukraine
9:31 A.M.
In Geneva, Lavrov Speaks About Troops in Crimea
9:14 A.M.
I.M.F. Team to Visit Ukraine
Visiting the new government in Kiev, British Foreign Secretary William Hague urged Russia to pull back its forces in Crimea or face “significant costs,” echoing comments made by President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry, who was due here on Tuesday.
Mr. Hague also emphasized diplomacy. “The world cannot just allow this to happen,” he told the BBC. “The world cannot say it’s O.K. in effect to violate the sovereignty of another nation in this way.”
The Russian foreign minister, Sergey V. Lavrov, responded that Russia was only protecting its interests and those of Russian citizens in Ukraine. In a Geneva speech, Mr. Lavrov broke from his text to say: “Those who try to interpret the situation as an act of aggression, threaten us with sanctions and boycotts, are the same partners who have been consistently and vigorously encouraging the political powers close to them to declare ultimatums and renounce dialogue, to ignore the concerns of the south and east of Ukraine, and consequently to the polarization of the Ukrainian society.”
The use of Russian troops is necessary “until the normalization of the political situation” in Ukraine, Mr. Lavrov said at an opening of a monthlong session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva. “We are talking here about protection of our citizens and compatriots, about protection of the most fundamental of the human rights — the right to live, and nothing more.” But he did not specify what threats Russian citizens faced from Ukraine.
With the new Kiev government confronted with the loss of Crimea and a worsening economic situation, a team from the International Monetary Fund was scheduled to arrive on Tuesday for a 10-day investigation of the true state of Ukraine’s finances. The government has said that it is prepared to take difficult economic reform measures if necessary to secure a stabilization loan from the fund.
Moscow suspended its offer of bond purchases when President Viktor F. Yanukovych was ousted more than a week ago.
Crimea was relatively calm, with Russian forces continuing their military standoffs around Ukrainian bases to neutralize them and seek their surrender. The Ukrainian military personnel were effectively hostages, hemmed in by Russian troops.
Continue reading the main story
In Donetsk, however, in eastern Ukraine, Mr. Yanukovych’s native region, a large pro-Russian demonstration led to some violence. About 1,000 pro-Russian demonstrators occupied the first floor of the regional government building that has already been flying the Russian flag for several days. The protesters, waving Russian flags and shouting, “Putin, come!”, were unable to go higher because lifts were disabled and stairwell doors shut. They had entered through a side door after confronting police, who were guarding the front entrance.
The rally seemed the latest in a series in eastern cities that Kiev says are encouraged or even organized by Russia. Most people in the region are ethnic Ukrainians who speak Russian as their native language.
The Donetsk protest leader, Pavel Gubarev, demanded that the parliament in Kiev be declared illegitimate, a pro-Russian governor be accepted in Donetsk and all security forces be put under regional command, much as has happened already in Crimea.
In Sevastopol, at the headquarters of Ukraine’s naval forces, six heavily armed men in unmarked uniforms and masks stood outside, cheered on by about 100 locals waving Russian flags and loudly proclaiming their loyalties. The armed men seemed torn; they turned away from cameras, or lowered their gaze.
Inside, Rear Admiral Sergei A. Gaiduk, said he was acting commander of the Ukrainian navy after the defection on Sunday of his predecessor and declared loyalty to the country’s acting president, Oleksandr V. Turchynov.
As an almost summer sun warmed the blue and white buildings, Capt. A. Ryzhenko, 45, who said he had worked closely with the Russians on several projects involving all Black Sea nations, was clearly dazed by the rapid divisions that now pit brother Slavs against one another. “We are a little bit shocked,” he said. “We worked together, in adjacent rooms, we studied together.”
How long the Ukrainians inside could withstand what was effectively a blockade was unclear. One young mother, who refused to talk to reporters, was seen holding a baby at the fence for her husband to kiss. She said she had also brought him food, “because they don’t feed them.”
Continue reading the main story
Ukraine in Maps
A series of maps that help explain the crisis in Ukraine.
She was loudly supported by two woman pensioners waving Russian flags. “It’s the Olympic flag, the flag of friendship,” said Nina Butkeyeva, 60, injecting a surreal reminder that it is barely more than a week since Russia welcomed the world to Sochi for the Winter Games.
The uncertainty hit the Russian stock market and the ruble hard on Monday morning. The Russian central bank raised its key lending rate 1.5 percentage points after the ruble fell 2.5 percent against the dollar at the opening of exchange trading on Monday, while the MICEX index of Moscow stocks sank 11 percent. Russian gas monopoly Gazprom, which supplies Europe through Ukraine, was down more than 13 percent in early trading.
The situation in Crimea remained one of a tense standoff, with Russian troops, wearing no badges on their uniforms, and pro-Russian “self-defense” forces, surrounded Ukrainian bases, neutralizing and essentially imprisoning the soldiers and sailors there. But there continued to be no real violence.
Ukraine said Russia was building up armored vehicles on its side of a narrow stretch of water near Crimea, while Russian forces took over the headquarters of the Ukrainian border control in Simferopol. Trucks outside had no license plates but at least one car had Russian military plates.
Ukraine’s government worked to stem protests in the east, recruiting wealthy eastern businessmen to become provincial governors in an effort to dampen secessionist sentiment there.
In Kharkiv, the eastern city that is the country’s second-largest, a sprawling pro-Russian protest camp occupied the central square, and Russian flags were on display. Many said they would even prefer that Russian troops invade the city, just 20 miles from the border, instead of submitting to Kiev’s rule.
“I would welcome them with flowers,” said Aleksandr Sorokin, 55, a pensioner walking by a phalanx of riot police officers guarding the administration building in Kharkiv. “We do not want to spill blood, but we are willing to do so.”
There were reports that two pro-government supporters died from injuries suffered on Saturday in Kharkiv, where there was a major pro-Russian demonstration and effort to take over government buildings.
Continue reading the main story
36 hours in Kyoto, Japan
Skiing in my own backyard
It remembers, you fold: Packing-list apps
Continue reading the main story
Even as Kiev’s pro-Western government called up its army reserves and vowed to fight for its sovereignty, calling Russia’s invasion of Crimea a “declaration of war,” it mustered a mostly political response to demonstrations in the east.
The office of President Oleksandr V. Turchynov announced the two appointments on Sunday of two billionaires — Sergei Taruta in Donetsk and Ihor Kolomoysky in Dnipropetrovsk — and more were reportedly under consideration for positions in the eastern regions.
The strategy is recognition that the oligarchs represent the country’s industrial and business elite, and hold great influence over thousands of workers in the east. Officials said the hope was that they could dampen secessionist hopes in the east and keep violent outbreaks — like fighting between pro-Western and pro-Russian protesters in Kharkiv that put at least 100 people in the hospital on Saturday — from providing a rationale for a Russian invasion in the name of protecting ethnic Russians.
At the same time, Ukrainian officials sought international help after a rapid Russian invasion of Crimea over the weekend turned into a celebration of pro-Kremlin sentiment in the streets there.
In a video address on her website, the former prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko, said that by occupying Crimea, Russia has effectively “declared war” on Britain and the United States, which had sought to guarantee Ukraine’s security through a 1994 Budapest memorandum also signed by Moscow.
“Vladimir Putin is fully conscious that by declaring war, he is also declaring war on the guarantors of our security, the United States and Britain,” she said.
In Kiev, Ukraine’s prime minister, Arseniy P. Yatsenyuk, warned that the country was on the “brink of disaster” after the Russian move into Crimea. “This is the red alert — this is not a threat, this is actually a declaration of war to my country,” Mr. Yatsenyuk said.
Libertatem Prius!
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Russia's fleet has ordered Ukraine's forces in the disputed Crimea Peninsula to surrender by 3 a.m. local time or "face a storm," a Ukrainian defense ministry source says.
The source spoke to the Interfax news agency, according to Sky News.
The threat came hours after Ukraine's new leaders called for Western nations to rally against Russia’s invasion of the peninsula, making a plea for economic and political support as Moscow continued to be defiant.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk insisted that Crimea remains Ukrainian territory despite the presence of thousands of Russian troops who have secured control over the region without suffering any casualties or firing a shot.
"Any attempt of Russia to grab Crimea will have no success at all. Give us some time," he said at a news conference with British Foreign Secretary William Hague, who is visiting Kiev.
"For today, no military options [are] on the table," he said, adding that what they urgently need is an economic and political support.
"Real support. Tangible support. And we do believe that our Western partners will provide this support," he said.
Hague said on the BBC that Moscow would face "significant costs" for taking control of Crimea.
But Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday justified the use of Russian troops streaming into the neighboring Crimea region as a necessary protection for his country's citizens living there.
The use of Russian troops is necessary "until the normalization of the political situation" in Ukraine, Lavrov said at an opening of a month-long session of the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva.
"We are talking here about protection of our citizens and compatriots, about protection of the most fundamental of the human rights -- the right to live, and nothing more," Lavrov said.
Ukraine has accused Russia of a military invasion and has called on the Kremlin to withdraw its troops. Lavrov dismissed the criticism, and said that "information is coming in about preparations for new provocations that are being committed, including against the Russian Black Sea fleet," which is based in Crimea, a strategic peninsula now effectively under Russian control.
"Those who are trying to interpret the situation as a sort of aggression and threatening us with sanctions and boycotts, these are the same partners who have been consistently and vigorously encouraging the political powers close to them to declare ultimatums and renounce dialogue," Lavrov said. "We call upon them to show a responsibility and to set aside geopolitical calculations and put the interests of the Ukrainian people above all."
Lavrov will meet later Monday with U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to discuss the situation.
Lavrov called on Ukraine to return to the Feb. 21 agreement signed by pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych aimed at ending his country's three-month political crisis. He fled after signing an agreement with the opposition and foreign ministers of France, German and Poland to hold early elections this fall and surrender much of his powers. But opposition supporters kept pushing for his immediate dismissal.
Lavrov said Yanukovych kept up the agreement, but criticized the opposition, saying they "did nothing."
"The illegal arms have not been relinquished, the government buildings and streets of Kiev have not been completely freed, radicals maintain control of cities," Lavrov said. "Instead of a promised national unity government a 'government of the victors' has been created."
European Union foreign ministers are working on a joint response to Russia's military incursion that could include economic sanctions.
The 28 foreign ministers are holding an emergency meeting on Ukraine Monday to discuss what Germany's foreign minister, Frank Walter Steinmeier, called "Europe's most dramatic crisis" since the end of the Cold War.
On Sunday, a senior Obama administration official told reporters that Russia had taken "complete operational control of the Crimean peninsula, some 6,000-plus airborne and naval forces, with considerable materiel [equipment].
"There is no question," the official continued, "that they are in an occupation position in Crimea, that they are flying in reinforcements, and they are settling in."
Pro-Russian troops on Monday took over a ferry terminal in the city of Kerch, on the easternmost tip of the peninsula, approximately 12 miles by boat from Russian territory. The men refused to identify themselves, but they spoke Russian and the vehicles transporting them had Russian license plates.
Troops that Ukraine says are Russian soldiers have also occupiedairports in Crimea, smashed equipment at an air base and besieged a Ukrainian infantry base.
On Sunday night, Ukraine's defense ministry said two Russian fighter jets violated the country's airspace in the Black Sea and that it scrambled an interceptor aircraft in response, according to Sky News.
Faced with the Russian threat, Ukraine's new government moved to consolidate its authority, naming new regional governors in the pro-Russia east, enlisting the support of the country's wealthy businessmen and dismissing the head of the country's navy after he declared allegiance to the pro-Russian government in Crimea.
Yatsenyuk said there was no reason for Russia to invade Ukraine and warned that "we are on the brink of disaster."
Western leaders were left scrambling for possible ways to defuse the crisis as phone calls were exchanged and threats and protests were made.
The Group of Seven nations -- including the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Britain -- said Sunday night that they're suspending participation in the upcoming economic summit scheduled to be held in Sochi, the recent site of the Winter Olympics, in protest of Russia's actions.
Earlier Sunday, President Obama spoke with British Prime Minister David Cameron, Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and the four leaders expressed their "grave concern" over "Russia's clear violation of Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity," the White House said. The leaders pledged to work together on a package of financial assistance to Ukraine, which is nearly bankrupt.
Outrage over Russia's military moves mounted in world capitals, with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry calling on President Vladimir Putin to pull back from "an incredible act of aggression." Kerry also announced Sunday that he would go to Kiev Tuesday for diplomatic talks.
Following an emergency meeting of NATO in Brussels Sunday, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said at a press conference that Russia should pull back its forces and refrain from interfering elsewhere in Ukraine, according to Reuters. NATO is urging the two countries to seek a peaceful resolution through dialogue.
Ukraine is not a NATO member, which means the United States and Europe are not obligated to come to its defense. But Ukraine has taken part in some alliance military exercises and contributed troops to its response force.
So far, however, Ukraine's new government and the West have been powerless to counter Russia's tactics. Russia has also said China is largely "in agreement" with its response to Ukraine, according to Sky News.
Russia has long wanted to reclaim the lush Crimean Peninsula, part of its territory until 1954. Russia's Black Sea Fleet pays Ukraine millions annually to be stationed at the Crimean port of Sevastopol and nearly 60 percent of Crimea's residents identify themselves as Russian.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Nikita Khrushchev:"We will bury you"
"Your grandchildren will live under communism."
“You Americans are so gullible.
No, you won’t accept To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. outright, but we’ll keep feeding you small doses of To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll finally wake up and find you already have communism.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ."
We’ll so weaken your To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. like overripe fruit into our hands."
Raymond Pritchett@Galrahn10 mins
The US and EU reaction to date only reinforces the Russian message to the Ukrainian people that the US and EU don't really care.
The 47th@THE_47th·20 mins
in case you thought Obama's WH wasn't indecisive enough RT @StevenTDennis: WH briefing has been canceled
Raymond Pritchett@Galrahn7 mins
History says eastern Ukraine is still in danger, because the old Russian playbook calls for a buffer zone.
Russian Market@russian_market3m
Putin appears in the news today as he watched the military exercises in Western & Central Russia pic.twitter.com/5rJVk7PQxG
Russian President Vladimir Putin spent the afternoon at Kirillovsky airfield in western Russia watching large-scale military exercises. Vladimir Putin and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu Credit: REUTERS/Mikhail Klimentyev/RIA Novosti/Kremlin Putin, accompanied by the Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and the head of the Russian army's main department of combat preparation Ivan Buvaltsev, watched naval warships and coastal troops conducting live fire exercises, the Russian defence ministry said. Vladimir Putin and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu Credit: REUTERS/Mikhail Klimentyev/RIA Novosti/Kremlin Kirillovsky airfield is in Russia's western military district which borders Ukraine. Putin shakes hands with military commander Anatoly Sidorov Credit: REUTERS/Mikhail Klimentyev/RIA Novosti/Kremlin
Source: Lavrov and GERMAN Foreign Minister will hold a meeting in Geneva on the situation in Ukraine Policy March 3, 18:22 UTC +4
Geneva, 3 March. /ITAR-TASS/. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and GERMAN Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier will meet in Geneva on Monday. Journalists have been informed about that by a source in the Russian delegation.
"In a telephone conversation Russian President and German Chancellor in Ukraine the Foreign Ministers of the two countries will hold a meeting today in Geneva," the spokesman said. http://itar-tass.com/politika/1018078
Paolo Alfieri @Paolo_Alfieri 51 sec
#Russian flag waves from #Odessa regional council, occupied by 700 pro-Russian protesters #Ukraine #Russia #Crimea
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Nikita Khrushchev:"We will bury you"
"Your grandchildren will live under communism."
“You Americans are so gullible.
No, you won’t accept To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. outright, but we’ll keep feeding you small doses of To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll finally wake up and find you already have communism.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ."
We’ll so weaken your To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. like overripe fruit into our hands."
MOSCOW, March 3 (RIA Novosti) – Russian naval warships and coastal troops conducted live fire exercises Monday in the country’s western Kaliningrad and Leningrad Regions, a Ministry of Defense spokesperson said.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Nikita Khrushchev:"We will bury you"
"Your grandchildren will live under communism."
“You Americans are so gullible.
No, you won’t accept To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. outright, but we’ll keep feeding you small doses of To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll finally wake up and find you already have communism.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ."
We’ll so weaken your To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. like overripe fruit into our hands."
MOSCOW, March 3 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Cheng Guoping and his Russian counterpart Grigory Karasin agreed Monday that the international community should work on the harmony and stability of the Commonwealth of Independence States (CIS).
Both sides agreed that CIS countries' sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and their development strategies should be respected, and outside powers should stay away from internal affairs of this region.
The international community, they said, should respect history and reality when dealing with issues concerning certain country's internal affairs and relations among the region's states.
Prospects, fates and fundamental interests of certain country should be prioritized, they said, adding the international community should also do more to promote unity and harmony in this region.
The two diplomats expressed deep concern over the current situation in Ukraine, condemning the violence in that country.
They called on all relevant Ukrainian parties to resolve their disputes through dialogue and consultation within legal frameworks, thus ensuring stability, economic growth and social harmony of the country.
China and Russia, they noted, treasure traditional friendship with the Ukrainian people, and are willing to do whatever they can to support and help the Ukrainians.
QINGDAO, March 2 (Xinhua) -- China's first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, Sunday left its homeport of Qingdao in east China's Shandong Province on tests and training missions.
The journey is the first of its kind for Liaoning in 2014 and is part of its yearly tests and training schedule, according to sources with he People's Liberation Army Navy.
DF-26C deployment confirmed
Follow @FreeBeacon
Chinese Internet photos first published Feb. 29, 2012 show China's new DF-26c intermediate-range ballistic missile.
Chinese Internet photos first published Feb. 29, 2012 show China's new DF-26c intermediate-range ballistic missile.
BY: Bill Gertz Follow @BillGertz
March 3, 2014 4:59 am
U.S. intelligence agencies recently confirmed China’s development of a new intermediate-range nuclear missile (IRBM) called the Dongfeng-26C (DF-26C), U.S. officials said.
The new missile is estimated to have a range of at least 2,200 miles—enough for Chinese military forces to conduct attacks on U.S. military facilities in Guam, a major hub for the Pentagon’s shift of U.S. forces to Asia Pacific.
As part of the force posture changes, several thousand Marines now based in Okinawa will be moved to Guam as part of the Asia pivot.
In April, the Pentagon announced it is deploying one of its newest anti-missile systems, the Theater High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) to Guam because of growing missile threats to the U.S. island, located in the South Pacific some 1,600 miles southeast of Japan and 4,000 miles from Hawaii.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Nikita Khrushchev:"We will bury you"
"Your grandchildren will live under communism."
“You Americans are so gullible.
No, you won’t accept To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. outright, but we’ll keep feeding you small doses of To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll finally wake up and find you already have communism.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ."
We’ll so weaken your To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. like overripe fruit into our hands."
The New York times deposits a story today titled “Pressure Rising as Obama Works to Rein In Russia“. The generally sympathetic article toward Obama is being cited by numerous politicos while the left-leaning media are circling an almost bizarre wagon to prop up the perception of Obama as strong.
MSNBC’s Mark Halperin is winning so far in the over-the-top water carrying category by stating that Ronald Reagan never faced a Russian adversary as strong as Russia’s President Putin:
The political analyst and author also cited a New York Times report published Sunday that said in her call with President Barack Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel raised doubts about Putin being in touch with reality, saying he is “in another world.” Halperin called it “the scariest thing I’ve seen in the last 24 hours.”
“President [Ronald] Reagan never faced a Soviet leader like this. This guy is ruthless,” Halperin added. (link)
Gregor Peter @L0gg0l · 6 min
UKRAINE SAYS RUSSIA'S ACTIONS MAY BE EVIDENCE OF INVASION THROUGH ITS LAND BORDER, FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN SAYS (via @20committee
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Nikita Khrushchev:"We will bury you"
"Your grandchildren will live under communism."
“You Americans are so gullible.
No, you won’t accept To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. outright, but we’ll keep feeding you small doses of To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll finally wake up and find you already have communism.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ."
We’ll so weaken your To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. until you’ll To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 15 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. like overripe fruit into our hands."
Re: Russian Invasion Of Ukraine (Formerly: Democratic Malaise Draws Ukraine Eastwards
Originally Posted by vector7
"FLEXABILITY" - Obama orders ICBM squadron disbanded, silos filled.
Men are seen near a military truck on the runway of Belbek Airport in the Crimea region Photo: BAZ RATNER/REUTERS
.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks