Monday, March 10, 2014

Ukraine - another take on the causes of the conflict

This is raw Google Translate from a Facebook post on the page Русский Крым - что дальше?  Essentially Russia is facing economic disaster once Iranian sanctions are lifted and Iranian oil hits the world markets.

Cause of the war between Russia and Ukraine - primarily economic !

January 20 agreement entered into force on Iran. Iran promises to curtail its nuclear program , the West leads to a complete lifting of sanctions until 20 June 2014 , and the oil embargo in particular. Then you should expect an increase in oil supplies of the Persian one million barrels per day to a level of 4 million barrels a day by June , which of course , will significantly reduce the price per barrel. What's quite interesting to Russia , because its budget is written based on the price of $ 90 and below $ 60 leads to serious consequences for the country. It is easy to imagine that so difficult socio-economic situation will become critical Russia (and even revolutionary , good example of very close ) .

In general , trends in Russia in terms of oil and gas are becoming quite alarming . Crushed shale revolution is impossible. The Wall Street Journal published the results of the analysis of the global energy market indicators , according to which the U.S. bypass Russia by total oil and gas production . In July 2013 oil, gas and related fuels in the United States exceeded the daily volume equivalent to 22 million barrels , while Russia produced 21.8 million barrels. This means that for the first time since 1982 the U.S. also produced more natural gas than Russia . This means that the U.S. is beginning to create a Russian military threat is not fictional and the real economic . According to forecasts of the Institute of Energy Research, starting in 2015, Russia's gas exports could fall by 25-30 % , which would reduce Russia's GDP by $ 100 billion

Prices for oil and gas are determined by several factors : global demand , speculative pressure on the financial markets and the geopolitical situation . Demand is gradually recovering from the recession , but not as fast as we would like . At the same time the market will push more volumes that will go from Iran. The only factor affecting fluctuations in oil prices remain speculation in the stock markets due to various crises , including military conflicts . You should also consider the interests of OPEC , which will not allow the price of oil down stricter quotas on oil exports , which again would entail a crushing blow to the Russian economy. And in early 2015 , Putin can get in the Kremlin at its Independence .

What can Russia do in this situation : create conflict and incurring sanctions , not only did not give prices fall because of the new Iranian volumes , but also raise the price of oil and gas , while selling its oil , passing it off as Iranian ( Russia already has close ties with Iran ); predictably devalue the ruble, which gives exporters more revenue in rubles , including and the supply of goods to Iran. At the same time you can have in a new light once again to present all the benefits of the development of the South Stream bypassing unstable region . Why all this ? To force the U.S. to the negotiating table . Everyone understands that Russia can not long retain this situation , but to enter into negotiations with the U.S. on a whole range of world problems in its wake they can .

From the outset, it was simple to understand that it is not in the protection of Russians in the Crimea. Russia defends its fuel interests , simultaneously removing the prerequisites for the development of a revolutionary situation in the country. And, of course , develops Putin 's geopolitical ambition to restore Russia 's superpower status .

What will make the international community :
U.S., Britain and Russia were the guarantors of security in Ukraine Ukraine's rejection of nuclear weapons. There are two very important points . If now the club of nuclear states do not immediately stop Russian aggression towards Ukraine , they will show the world , all the countries that the only real protection is exclusively nuclear weapons. Ie it would lead to the uncontrolled growth of the number of nuclear weapons in the world.

The second important point in the status of the U.S. and UK . U.S. flaunts his status as a superpower . And she she remains until it is believed by others. How long it will believe in other countries if the United States can not meet its formal commitment ? Therefore, the problem is now the United States as quickly as possible and with minimal casualties to resolve the issue . And there will not even raise an issue about the federalization of Ukraine , or even more so on the separation of the Crimea. Since this signal is perceived by the world community as a loss by the United States as U.S. weakness . And on this the U.S. will never .

The third point - the U.S. economy picks up , which is always on the background of its military actions in other countries. And even more needed in the current situation when they difficult economic situation . Therefore , the U.S. administration is praying now to ensure that its carriers had put pinpoint strikes to resolve the conflict peacefully.

The fourth point - finally , the U.S. , China has a real opportunity to solve the problem of Russia as a superpower . Well, who likes to sit next to a monkey with a grenade in his paw . Anyone. All will try to shoot the monkey and take her hand grenade from the dead paws.

The fifth point - the EU , China dreaming normal raw politics of Russia after Putin's destruction and the collapse of Russia . Moreover, Japan and China have their own interests in the territories of Russia . And then such a wonderful occasion to annex not native Russian land. By the way, we also can give a hint about the Kuban within the borders of Ukraine in 1918 ... Also fought because ... I think that, as in the second world no one will mind a little redistribution ...

Regarding targeted sanctions . The backbone of a cohort of people who listens to make Putin KGB in which all funds in Russia and which are , as it is no wonder the USSR and the patriots who do not care for any targeted sanctions of the international community .

What can the international community do ? Or return to the path of Iran 's nuclear program (which now makes Putin , hinting that the papers are not a guarantee ) , the consequence of which will return to the policy of economic sanctions against Iran and return to high oil prices . Or already a complete embargo on Russia , as in his time , made ​​with Iran, Iraq , North Korea and similar countries . At the same time Ukraine will be in NATO and the EU and all sorts of ways to strengthen the border of Ukraine with Russia . Until the solid walls .

What can we do to ordinary citizens ? To prepare for guerrilla war , as now Putin has no options . It is extremely important to the armed conflict . If he happens to grab at least a small piece of land he will move on, glowing environment and increasing energy prices . Will not work - then there will be a reason to declare martial law , put all under the gun off the Internet and barbed wire to enclose . Well, blame all economic woes decaying West and Russia vsiya himself king , and anointed of God pr.pr. And once again raise the cost of energy . Why not ready to fight in the army . Because this would have to have served in the army at least a year . And best of two. Do not scrub the toilets and not to paint trees . Namely serve. Because the army is a complex mechanism . A militia is the people who give a rifle at five . And the costs of their transportation to the place of confrontation does not correspond to a pair of hours of time and expense of the enemy bullets. But guerrilla is where we in small groups not quite know how to fight in the ranks can cause very significant damage to enemy forces .

What do the authorities :
1. Immediate arrest of key criminals started to destabilize the region .
2 . Intensify the reform of the country to improve the efficiency of the economy, law enforcement and military
3 . Intensify the search for external military and political allies , and clearly state their common interests
4 . Begin immediate training of all those wishing to use weapons , action in partisan detachments , demolition case. Begin the formation of guerrilla groups and the distribution of weapons, ammunition, as well as provisioning of ammunition on site which can be occupied by the enemy for guerrilla warfare.
5 . Immediately develop a plan to provide mass care and start learning all the inhabitants of Ukraine ability to provide emergency care for injuries
6. Nationalize all fully or partially by Russian companies.
7. Immediately stop broadcasting all Russian TV channels , with the prohibition of their relay any cable network and broadcast in the normal range jamming suppression systems along the border.
8. Immediately stop the transit of any goods, gas, oil and other elements on the territory of Ukraine .
9. Immediately stop and recognize void all payments on all debts and agreements with Russia. Putin officially announced that Ukraine does not recognize the state and does not recognize any agreements with them. Will fulfill his wish .
10 . Develop a plan of destabilization of the aggressor , using the media, social networking , advocacy and other methods
11. Denouncement of the Kharkov agreements and agreements on the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation . Declare in parliament finding any troops on the territory of Crimea , Ukraine illegal in any quantity
12. Close the border with Russia on entry, as well as the airspace along the border with Russia .
13. Immediately request military assistance from the allied countries and guarantors of security of Ukraine , NATO to secure the Crimea, eastern provinces.
14. Immediately throw all its troops from the western and central areas to the east , south and north of Ukraine.
15. Block runways of all airports in Ukraine , including abandoned , military and civilian . We do not need Russian GRU dropping the rear.
16. To attack the Crimea with tanks . Pulls up a column of tanks , made ​​the announcement to the checkpoint with guns surrendered . Tanks are covered by snipers from anti-tank systems . Profit . All are in the Crimea men with guns do not belong to the army of the Russian Federation , according to official statements by Putin and Shoigu. Consequently, this bandit . It's not POWs . It's just thugs in wartime .
17. All parts of the Russian Black Sea Fleet to give one day to vacate the territory of Ukraine (including their former base in the Crimea). Based denounced ASU agreement on Black Sea Fleet in Crimea . At default - open fire on ( with the support of NATO).

Why violent confrontation ? Because the question is not about Russian in Crimea. Not about territory (this is only a by-product ) . And the price of oil. And on this issue , and if will talk with Putin at the level of the international community , they will go a very long time . During this time he will be more military force (tanks already deployed ) in the Crimea. Referendum in Crimea postponed to March 16. Ballots printed and brought to Russia . Counting Commission of the number of " tourists " with Russia formed. Print all DECs captured today in the office AVE. Therefore , the Crimea to Russia will receive 105% support " Crimean ". Will be followed by all the eastern region , Transnistria and, if possible , other parts of Ukraine. Then go Poland, Lithuania and further to the West .
Regarding the drop in prices of shares and other nonsense . Before the crisis, the EBM course was about 1420 . Now it falls to 1310 and , by the end of the day back to the previous value ) . At the same time , the minimum rate was last fall at the level of 1200 . ( exact figures , see for yourself ) . So stop worrying about them . The only thing that really affect the Russian economy is the oil price . And it is growing . Therefore financial Russia wins now and it will benefit from such position (exacerbation and more) . That's when the float in Russia 200 Tide , then everything will be completely different.

Please make maximum repost , because not everyone understands the true reason Putin's behavior and , as a consequence, the wrong conclusions about the purposes and methods of action of Russian troops .

A little bit about the relationship of oil prices and conflict :
1956 . Suez Crisis . The price of oil increased by 2 times
1967 . The Six Day War between Israel and a coalition of Arab states. Prices rose by 20%
1973 . The first oil embargo . Prices increased by 4 times.
1979 . The Islamic Revolution in Iran - an increase of 70%
1980 . Iraq attacked Iran . Prices rose by 270 %
1990 . Iraq invaded Kuwait . Prices increased by 2 times
1998 . Large-scale economic crisis in Asia. Price drop in 2 times. Major crisis in Russia.
2003 . U.S. launched the war in Iraq. Prices rose by 50%
2011 . "Arab Spring" . Prices rose by 30%
2012 . The conflict in Syria. Prices rose by 20%
2012 . Introduction U.S. and EU sanctions against Iran. Prices rose by 30%

Glory to Ukraine !


Thursday, March 6, 2014

A True Story from Tanya

Diane Henders in her last blog post "Confessions of a Vegas Swinger" admitted to returning home from Vegas, with her husband only to find in her wallet a scrap of paper with a man's name and phone number.  The name meant nothing to her, she claimed, and was certain she had not had more fun than she remembered.  If you haven't read her blog, you owe it to yourself.

I was chuckling to myself about the story last night and told Tanya who relayed this true story to me.

In Soviet times, not only did everyone get a month holidays (or two months, depending if you worked in the far north) you also got sent for up to a month to a sanatorium or spa for preventative maintenance and to "take the waters".  On holidays, you went with your family.  To the spa, you went where and when they sent you.  Husband and wife would often go to different spas at different times.

Short term summer romances or temporary hook-ups as we might call them were extremely common under such conditions.  The Soviet Union had very Victorian principles about sex which were ignored by everyone as it was something the government could not control even though they controlled everything else in your life.

So...the Director of a Collective Farm and his Agronomist (the guy in charge of crop production on the farm) who were good friends both went to Truskavets for 24 days.  (Tanya and I were in Truskavets a few years back and you can read my Canadian comments on a very European custom beginning HERE Trust me it is worth the read.)

The Agronomist promptly found a young lady and quite enjoyed his time at the spa.  The Director, being a conscientious man and good husband, drank the water  and did all the other strange things as prescribed that are for the good of one's health.  

The plot thickens.  The Agronomist told the young lady that his name was that of his Director.  When they exchanged addresses at the end of their stay, he gave her the Director's address.  A week or so after they returned home, the director began receiving love letters from the young lady.

His wife was in the process of suing for divorce when the Agronomist finally fessed up.

Ukraine – We Trade Yanukovych for Crimea

The Russians still refuse to acknowledge that they have troops all across Crimea.  The leader of the so-called self-defense groups has been recognized as a Russian military commander.  The Russian military have taken over the local TV cable company and pulled all channels off except Russian-approved channels.  The newly installed government of Crimea has moved the referendum date to March 16th.  There are only two questions on it.  How do you wish to die; by shooting or hanging.  Join Russia or independence. 

The latter comes with Russian troops to “maintain the peace”.  Crimea will join the illustrious ranks of Transnistria, Abkhazia and South Ossetia as “independent countries” occupied by Russian troops. They do not dare put a third option on it which is to stay as part of Ukraine because they could not guarantee even 50% in a fair ballot.  I am surprised Andy Borowitz hasn’t reported that Putin has announced today the results of the referendum with 98% turnout and 99% in favour of independence.

There will be no invasion of Ukraine.  The heavily Russified South East is not stupid.  Even with bussed-in Russians to stir the pot, those demonstrating for Ukraine heavily out number those chanting “Russia, Russia”.  Since there is no unrest and no one seems to want to be rescued, Putin will be satisfied with Crimea…until next time.

This article covers it all.

In the meantime, a new poll released by Democratic Initiatives Foundation on March 3, showed that only a third of Donetsk region residents believe that they should be part of Russia.  In Luhansk and Odesa this number was lower still, at 24 percent.  Other supposedly pro-Russian regions -- Zaporyhzhia, Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk -- have 16, 15 and 13 percent of supporters of this idea, respectively.
The following article is written by a Brit who has been here for the past 23 years trying to get the government to reform the legal system.  Reading it will give you an idea of what we have been faced with for the past two decades where corruption ruled.  The oligarchs controlled the Rada so for sure nothing was going to change that was going to prevent them from continuing top rape and pillage.  Yanukovych was just the worst of the worst.


Pay Officials in the Government Administration and Judges Properly. In the past, Ukrainian officials have been paid minor salaries, that equaled a tiny fraction of the salaries in the private sector, on the understanding that they could steal enough to make their position worthwhile for themselves, and also pass a percentage up to higher officials. It has been conservatively estimated that senior officials in the previous tax administration stole over USD 2 billion per year.

I was told that Peter the Great began this practice three centuries ago.  Pay the bureaucrats next to nothing and let them make up their income through bribes and extortion.  Kept the cost down to the Court so the tax money could be used for other things.

What I can only hope is that the need for money to keep the country afloat will force the government to make the needed reforms.  Otherwise we have simply reverted to the criminals who were in charge under Yushchenko and Timoshenko.  No one trusts any of the current deputies or even the current Cabinet of Ministers because they are all old jackets as the saying is.  We can only hope for a clean sweep in the next election at the end of May.  There are a few honest guys still; Klitchko being one of them, though how good a president he would make I don’t know.  Yulia, thank the good Lord, has kept her mouth shut, other than the usual, seemingly necessary, platitudes.

The Looney Left is making me crazy.  These are the anti-everything folks who see America as the ONLY evil on earth.  The Right call every one they dislike communist or socialist, without the slightest clue what they are talking about and the Left call everyone fascist or Nazi, with the same complete ignorance.  My friends used to call me the barefoot boy because if clues were shoes…   Well, these folks are more than barefoot.  Just saw another headline appear on FB that the Nazi’s had taken over the government of Ukraine.  That particular site just got itself unfriended.

Yes, we have some extreme right parties in Ukraine.  Big deal.  If you take a run down the list of identifying characteristics Here or Here, you will see that they apply to the two main empires involved in the current kerfuffle far more than to some black and red flag-carrying party in Western Ukraine.

Here is something to make you laugh.  Putin is making a big deal of the masked thugs with baseball bats, who are still strolling the streets of Kyiv.  Even the BBC referred to them as “Extreme Right”.  These guys are “Law and Order” since the revolution.  There has been little or no looting; traffic is moving, laws are being obeyed.  Those police who are not still in hiding for fear of the public taking revenge, will not go out without protection from the Euromaidan defense group.  The traffic cops are afraid they will be lynched by the taxi drivers from whom they have been extorting money for years, just as an example.

The vigilantes need to work with the police as they are not allowed to carry firearms and cannot arrest anyone.  But no one crosses them, either.

These are reposted from last night:
This is an excellent essay about what it takes to have a real democracy.  You can read it and see how your own country measures up. There is no easy path to democracy

Your key to all the recent headlines around the world : http://www.kyivpost.com/hot/euromaidan/


Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Ukraine- All Talk, No Shooting…So Far.

Putin held a press conference on Tuesday.  I have not watched it.  Watching either Putin or W make me want to hurl; W because he was so stupid and Putin because he is so smug.  I just want to slap his arrogant little face.  I read part of a translated transcript and the lies and bullshit just kept coming so I quit.  Apparently he said he saw no need for military force…yet. 


Mr Putin had told his Ukrainian counterpart he had “no chance of being re-elected”. Mr Yanukovich had no political future, Mr Putin added. Did he sympathise with him?  “A person who is head of state has certain rights and certain duties. The first duty is to implement the will of the people who elected him . . . You have to analyse if he did that.”

So far it appears Putin has done more to unite Ukraine than anyone else.  Ukrainians of Russian ethnicity, including my wife, are busy explaining to their relatives what the truth is as they only get the official state-approved version.  Mobile phones and internet are a great help but simply cannot reach everyone.

 Andriy Parubiy, national security chief, said the Kremlin had been disappointed in its hopes of exploiting the divide between the Ukrainian-speaking west and Mr Yanukovich’s heartland in the Russian speaking east. He said: “They thought they would be met here with flowers and that our armed forces would en masse switch to their side, but this did not happen.”
A western diplomat argued that the solidarity created through the Maidan protests among the anti-Yanukovich, pro-EU forces had now spread more widely. “Moscow has consolidated even Russian speaking Ukrainians against Russia.”

StopFake.org is a Ukrainian website in English as well as russian


The big news today is the leak of a phone call from the Estonian foreign Minister suggesting that the snipers were actually working for EuroMaidan politicians.  I had said a couple weeks ago that word had it the same bullets and MO killed police as protesters.  I would love to know which police were killed by the snipers as several young rookies with no experience were killed but how I don’t know.  I do not for a minute doubt the doctor who made the bullet call but do doubt the Estonian Foreign Minister’s conspiracy theory.  There were plans of snipers in the documents found in the offices of Yanukovych security people


This is an excellent essay about what it takes to have a real democracy.  You can read it and see how your own country measures up. There is no easy path to democracy

Your key to all the headlines around the world : http://www.kyivpost.com/hot/euromaidan/


Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Timmy has fallen down the well!

Enough knife-edge nail-biting politics.  Time for cats.

Bonya and Tigritsa are our two cats.  They will be a year old in a couple weeks.  We lost their father, Kuchma Kot, to diabetes at Christmas and their mother, Krasotka, disappeared from Lina's in May or June sometime.  (Lina has another of the litter, an evil black cat who looks like Putin so we named him Vovochka, soft or diminutive for Vladimir).

They keep us amused and we them.

Bonya
Bonya likes to go outside, regardless of weather.  His schedule is usually includes outside at 5:00 am and home at 8:00 when we get up and let him in.  The other night Tanya needed to get up at 4:00 am so Bonya decided he should go outside at 4:00 am.  It was raining and cold but out he went.

Tigritsa
Tanya then went upstairs to finish the night.  I was snoring according to her. Tigritsa went with her.  She is only my cat in the day time.  At 7:00 am Tanya is sleeping soundly and Tigritsa gets very agitated, meowing and running over Tanya's body, jumping off the bed running into another room and then back, jumping on the bed and meowing in Tanya's face.  She would not go away even when Tanya pushed at her.

Finally Tanya woke up enough to realize what was happening and went and opened the upstairs balcony door and let poor wet Bonya into the house.  He had given up waiting at the front door and climbed up the grapevine to the balcony which the cats often do and Tigritsa could see and hear him through the window in the door.  She worries about her brother I guess.



Monday, March 3, 2014

Ukraine – Not a good time to be a student of history

While several Oblast governments have declared for Ukraine, there are still pro-Russian demonstrations working hard to create incidents in Odessa, Kharkiv and Donetsk.  The new government has appointed some of the oligarchs as governors of these Oblasts, e.g. the new governor of Dnipropetrovs’k is the owner of the biggest commercial bank in Ukraine, Privatbank.  These guys have the most to lose and the most power to bring people around.

Crimea’s new Russian-backed government is working to block all TV channels from Ukraine so Russia will have full control of the information that Crimeans receive.  Russia is claiming hundreds of thousands of refugees from Ukraine, though “no one has seen them cross the border” and there are only a few cars at the Kharkiv border crossing.  

Crimea seems to be a tourist attraction with people out strolling and taking pictures of the Russian and Ukrainian military staring at each other. We're going to hang out the washing on the Siegfried Line…then the Battle of France started and it wasn't fun anymore.

Russia has taken full military control of Crimea, with the exception of the Ukrainian navy and military bases.  They have been given to 5:00 am tomorrow to surrender or face full scale attack.  It is quite likely that there will be an incident in which several Russian soldiers will be killed by people in Ukrainian military uniforms to give the Russians an excuse.  The Gleiwitz incident, anyone?

Lavrov states that Ukraine must go back to the agreement that kept Yanukovych in power; this time with Russian army to makes sure he stays there.  That agreement was signed by the politicians doing the negotiating and some of it by Yanukovych but not the part about reverting to the 2004 constitution.  It was flatly rejected by Euromaidan protesters.  It is not going to happen that Ukraine will ever go back under Yanukovych.  It is a condition the Russians expect will be rejected.  The Austrian ultimatum to Serbia was expected to be rejected but was accepted all but a couple of minor details.  Austria declared war a few days later.  This summer is the 100th anniversary of that particular war.

There have been many suggestions that Ukraine should be split and the highly Russified south east put under Russian control etc to protect its citizens.  First off a majority even in those areas do NOT want to end up under Putin’s iron fist and secondly can you say “Peace in our time”?

Links:

Crimea and punishment

How will the West read Putin’s playbook?

Crimea offers few signs as yet of an invaded territory


West scrambles to counter Russia


From Financial Times, I think

From Financial Times

Sunday, March 2, 2014

Ukraine – Extreme Apprehension

I sure called it wrong on Crimea.  We are on the brink of a war.  People are lined up to get international passports, including Lina and Tania.  Masha already has one and Dasha is too young to need one.  We will not leave without our family and by the time they get passports it could be all over but the crying.

The Russian army in unmarked uniforms has taken control of the peninsula, including Ukrainian military bases.  They are supported by the pro-Russian government of Crimea which has declared it independent and called in the Russians to save them from the right-wing terrorists who have taken control of Ukraine.  Russian propaganda has been preparing Crimea for years for something like this and the population of ethnic Russians has bought in to the whole thing.  

Fear mongering is rampant; the population is convinced that Western Ukrainian Nazis are on their way to Crimea and that the Crimean Tatars are just “Chechen” terrorists in waiting.  Expect to hear of a number of deadly bomb attacks which can be blamed on the Tatars, in the same way that the FSB arranged bombings of apartment buildings in Moscow triggered the second Chechen war and elected Putin to presidency.

The ex-Berkut police, now on the payroll of the Crimean government and backed by Russian soldiers are controlling entry and exit routes.  All journalists are banned from entering except Russian approved ones.  Russia flew in several thousand troops over the weekend.  The Kuban Cossacks are there also in thousands, though I may be double counting, if that was who flew in.  

It is hard to say what will happen next.  Every attempt is being made to create a civil war between pro-Russian and pro-Western people.  Where ever there are clashes, you can be certain whose beaten head will appear on Russian TV. 

Whether the intent is to split the country or force a federation, I don’t know.  A poorly run federation would certainly keep us out of the EU and a split country, ceding 1/3 to Russia to protect her citizens, smacks of “Peace in our time”.
Intervention is out of the question.  Neither EU nor USA have the testicular fortitude to tackle Russia militarily and likely not any other way either.  This whole script is way too familiar.  We saw it in Georgia in 2008 and we have seen it many times in other countries on the wrong side of other empires: the propaganda, the civil unrest and riots and finally the invasion.  

Empires will beat on little countries which cannot defend themselves but they hesitate to take on other empires except as a last resort.  Obama is brave when it comes to sending drones to kill people at weddings and funerals.  And the quote of the century from the Guardian from US secretary of state John Kerry*: 'You just don’t in the 21st century behave in 19th-century fashion by invading another country on completely trumped up pretext'

The Kyiv Post has links to lots of other papers. www.kyivpost.com/hot/euromaidan



*When I look at the presidents they could have had, Gore and Kerry, the wisdom of the American people in electing Bush simply astounds me.