Archived material Access restricted Article
Rantburg

Today's Front Page   View All of Tue 02/18/2020 View Mon 02/17/2020 View Sun 02/16/2020 View Sat 02/15/2020 View Fri 02/14/2020 View Thu 02/13/2020 View Wed 02/12/2020
1
2020-02-18 Home Front: Politix
How the heroic Michael Flynn may have prevented WWIII
Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.
Posted by Besoeker 2020-02-18 00:00|| || Front Page|| [13 views ]  Top

#1 by staging a coup to oust the pro-Russian president of Ukraine

Not so. The wheels turning in Kiev had nothing to do with Nuland or any other American. Ukraine has been embroiled in its own tortured (you could say Byzantine) internal clusterfook that has nothing to do with us, for good or ill.

We didn't create Maidan, we didn't create the earlier aborted botchjob at reform, the Orange Revolution (remember that? Bueller?), and we won't solve their problems either.

Zero's errors in Ukraine have more to do with the man's usual laziness, ignorance and incompetence than with anything like sins of commission.
Posted by Lex 2020-02-18 03:32||   2020-02-18 03:32|| Front Page Top

#2 That forced Russia to annex Crimea to preserve its centuries-old essential military interests there

Uh, no
Posted by Frank G 2020-02-18 05:55||   2020-02-18 05:55|| Front Page Top

#3 ^Uh, yes or maybe (Russia saves a lot of money by not having to support Ukraine)
Posted by g(r)omgoru 2020-02-18 07:44||   2020-02-18 07:44|| Front Page Top

#4 "that forced Russia to annex Crimea to preserve its centuries-old essential military interests there"

this was the second annexation of Crimea, the first was in 1783

the 2014 annexation was recognized by Cuba, Venezuela, Syria, North Korea, Zimbabwe and a few others

the various sanctions placed on Russia post annexation have hurt Russia economically
Posted by lord garth 2020-02-18 10:02||   2020-02-18 10:02|| Front Page Top

#5 Actually it is a little more complex. There was a portion of the tsarist empire populated by "Little Russians" that is Ukranians.

The Bolcheviks created a Republic of Ukrania but applying the rule of "divide et impera" they included in it,zones populated by "Grand Russians" that is what was call Russians. Came ukranian Krhoushov and he gave Crimea to Ukrania in order to please his power base. Crimea had never been ukranian and was never populated by Ukranians.

Came implosion of USSR and the new states kept their soviet drawn borders but the Russians in Ukrania were not particularly happy about it. In fact in the last elections before the civil war: ALL of the districts populated by Russian speakers voted for a candidate and ALL of regions populated by Ukranian speakers voted for the other one. The "Russian" candidate was elected but he was deposed and replaced by an Ukraniand speaking woman named Timoshenko. At this pont Russian speakers decided they had had enough
Posted by JFM 2020-02-18 10:51||   2020-02-18 10:51|| Front Page Top

#6 Hey everyone? You know that the US backed neo-nazis in Ukraine, right? Because the US backed neo-nazis in Ukraine. Swastikas and all.

Those are the 'good guys' who are on our side. You know how our government backed Al-Nusra and other Islamist headchoppers in Syria? Yeah, that.
Posted by Herb McCoy 2020-02-18 15:04||   2020-02-18 15:04|| Front Page Top

#7 Interesting. I'd always assumed the Russians were in the crimea because of the naval bases and lack of trust in non Russians.
Posted by rjschwarz 2020-02-18 15:05||   2020-02-18 15:05|| Front Page Top

#8 There are three options for Ukraine - either

1. neutral but whole and at peace, a la Austria

2. partitioned a la postwar Germany, with each part free to make its own military and foreign policy decisions, and therefore in a state of perpetual tension

3. the current situation in which it's neither independent nor peaceful

Our foreign policy geniuses - note how many of the current coup plotters are billed as "Ukraine experts" - have helped us slouch into the worst possible outcome, #3.

It's Flynn, Trump et al. who, I wager, would best position us to get to #1: Ukraine as a neutral, nonaligned, unified nation that poses no threat to anyone.

No NATO membership - ever. No EU membership now or at any foreseeable time. Limited autonomy for the Donbass.

Why is this so hard for our "Ukraine experts" to see?

Why does absolutely everything have to be a source of conflict with Russia?

Oh wait...
Posted by Lex 2020-02-18 16:39||   2020-02-18 16:39|| Front Page Top

#9 But if they were Communists it will be okay Herb?
Posted by Thorong Grundy1520 2020-02-18 16:51||   2020-02-18 16:51|| Front Page Top

#10 Heroic?

He seems have been a bit dumb.
Posted by Thorong Grundy1520 2020-02-18 17:04||   2020-02-18 17:04|| Front Page Top

23:34 gorb
23:32 Skidmark
22:57 Secret Master
22:50 trailing wife
22:21 trailing wife
22:02 Alaska Paul
21:55 SteveS
21:43 SteveS
21:32 swksvolFF
20:37 Canuckistan sniper
20:14 Glenmore
20:03 trailing wife
19:51 Herb McCoy
19:33 Mullah Richard
19:26 Abu Uluque
19:25 Thing From Snowy Mountain
19:14 jpal
19:13 Woodrow
19:12 Seeking Cure For Ignorance
18:59 Dron66046
18:59 Woodrow
18:54 swksvolFF
18:50 Frank G
18:43 swksvolFF









Paypal:
Google
Search WWW Search rantburg.com