This post will be about as cheerful as Demeur's weekly offering. It has been a couple weeks since I did an update on the situation here. In a way it is the same old same old but there are always things to read, like 20 to 40 articles per day on the web. I figure anyone desperate for that level of detail will already have taken advantage of the links provided in my posts and be reading their own. There are however a few things going on.
Proroshenko fired Kolomoisky as Governor of Dnepropetrovsk. Next to Akhmetov, I would guess Kolomoisky is the richest most powerful oligarch in Ukraine. He has been a strong force against Russian sponsored separatism and actually finances a volunteer battalion. But he got greedy and tried to keep control of two publicly owned energy companies, using his own militia to take over their head offices. That did not go down well. He is not trusted by many people at best but Ukraine down't need in-fighting along with Russian invasions.
The so called Minsk II cease fire has been honoured as much as Minsk I, which is to say, not at all by the Russian backed forces in DNR and LNR. Ukrainian positions have come under fire every day almost and the village between the front line and Mariupol is under constant attack.
Russians love anniversaries. Anna Politkovskaya was murdered on Putin's birthday. Stalin insisted Kyiv be retaken by the October anniversary of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution and wasted the lives of 10's of thousands of soldiers trying to achieve it. May 9th is the 709th anniversary of the end of the Great Patriotic War (NOTE: Russia does not recognize WWII from Sept 39 to May 8, 45 since they were allied with Germany during the first part of the war but rather June 41 to May 9 45). Consequently folks who are supposed to know are predicting a major Russian thrust to take Mariupol by that date. Certainly, there has been ample preparation for it to happen.
Of course we still get the greatly concerned but no arms stuff from EU and USA. Stay tuned.
Now I am going to provide a few links. If you read nothing more than the first one, you will understand my statement about cheerfulness:
Thomas Theiner has written a number of posts recently about the coming war with Russia. This one, Gotland – the Danzig of our time scares the bejabers out of me. Cheryl Rofer at the Nuclear Diner disagrees with the premise of the article and I hope she is right. Another couple of of his articles is this one Peace is over and this one Harsh realities and Western betrayals to come.
Analyst: Recent sharp rise in Russian military spending shows Putin preparing for bigger war
Proroshenko fired Kolomoisky as Governor of Dnepropetrovsk. Next to Akhmetov, I would guess Kolomoisky is the richest most powerful oligarch in Ukraine. He has been a strong force against Russian sponsored separatism and actually finances a volunteer battalion. But he got greedy and tried to keep control of two publicly owned energy companies, using his own militia to take over their head offices. That did not go down well. He is not trusted by many people at best but Ukraine down't need in-fighting along with Russian invasions.
The so called Minsk II cease fire has been honoured as much as Minsk I, which is to say, not at all by the Russian backed forces in DNR and LNR. Ukrainian positions have come under fire every day almost and the village between the front line and Mariupol is under constant attack.
Russians love anniversaries. Anna Politkovskaya was murdered on Putin's birthday. Stalin insisted Kyiv be retaken by the October anniversary of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution and wasted the lives of 10's of thousands of soldiers trying to achieve it. May 9th is the 709th anniversary of the end of the Great Patriotic War (NOTE: Russia does not recognize WWII from Sept 39 to May 8, 45 since they were allied with Germany during the first part of the war but rather June 41 to May 9 45). Consequently folks who are supposed to know are predicting a major Russian thrust to take Mariupol by that date. Certainly, there has been ample preparation for it to happen.
Of course we still get the greatly concerned but no arms stuff from EU and USA. Stay tuned.
Now I am going to provide a few links. If you read nothing more than the first one, you will understand my statement about cheerfulness:
Thomas Theiner has written a number of posts recently about the coming war with Russia. This one, Gotland – the Danzig of our time scares the bejabers out of me. Cheryl Rofer at the Nuclear Diner disagrees with the premise of the article and I hope she is right. Another couple of of his articles is this one Peace is over and this one Harsh realities and Western betrayals to come.
Analyst: Recent sharp rise in Russian military spending shows Putin preparing for bigger war
One Professional Russian Troll Tells All
Wesley Clark: Putin Plans Spring Offensive in Ukraine
The ‘failure’ of the ‘reset:’ Obama’s great mistake? Or Putin’s?
Discarding Democracy: A Return to the Iron Fist
and a couple of freebies:
The US has been so easily distracted to the middle east we have lost focus on the people we should be helping.
ReplyDeletethe Ol'Buzzard
I do not get the preoccupation with the ME. So they have oil. You can buy oil anywhere. ME has oil and sand. Not much market for sand so they have to sell oil.
DeleteThose links are downright scary. Hard to believe nobody from the UN appears to be paying attention to them.
ReplyDeleteI do not understand world reaction, or lack of it at all, Diane.
DeleteIt seems that everything is going to default on external obligations of Ukraine. Continuation of the war will not be set up suffocate Russia Ukraine economically.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.prognoz-kursa-dollara-v-ukraine.com.ua/2015/04/blog-post_8.html