The Blood Being Shed in Kiev is on Putin’s Hands

The Streetwise Professor ^ | February 18, 2014 | The Professor

[No One Special]

My prediction that the situation in Ukraine was easing turned out to be horribly optimistic, and terribly wrong. Within hours of posting, violence-the most extreme of the past months-erupted on the streets of Kiev.

The pretext for a brutal assault by regime forces was a march by oppositionists to the parliament building. The marchers were demanding that the Rada return the country to the 2004 constitution, which substantially limited presidential powers. They were set upon by militia. Then the government forces advanced on Grushevsky Street in Kiev, penetrating the protestors’ position through an opening that the opposition had agreed to make in exchange for amnesty of those previously arrested. Now the government forces have moved on the Maidan, and are announcing that all women and children should leave before the regime troops execute an “anti-terrorist operation.” The militia have already burned down the protestors’ tents. The scenes in the live feed are apocalyptic.

I have seen reports of up to nine dead, including seven protestors. One body was allegedly found headless. This nearly doubles the previous death toll, and the night is not over.

The timing of the repression is telling. It occurred the day after Putin released the next $2 billion in aid. He presumably did so only if his conditions were met. And Yanukovych would not have taken such action without the approval of his patron. The circumstantial evidence therefore strongly suggests that Putin either ordered the action, or gave Yanukovych permission to carry it out.

Even if the crackdown is not a direct quid pro quo demanded by Putin in exchange for the money, the blood is on Putin’s hands, and on Russia’s hands. The conflict on the streets results directly from his coercion of Yanukovych into walking away from the association agreement with the EU, and his demand that Ukraine associate with Russia alone. No such demand, no protests, no blood on the streets.

That is, Putin’s actions in November were necessary and sufficient conditions for what is transpiring today. If yesterday’s release of money was tied to Yanukovych’s agreement to end the protests by whatever means necessary, that only compounds the crime and determined the timing.

Thus, the blood is on Putin’s hands.

Now we have to watch to see what the coalition of the feckless-the EU and the US-does. A Rubicon has been crossed. What will Germany and the US do in particular to respond?

And respond not just against Ukrainian officials and the Ukrainian government, but at the ultimate source of the repression: Russia and Putin.

[No One Special]

The author's referenced previous article is here.

[SeeSharp]

...and his demand that Ukraine associate with Russia alone.

Nope. It was the EU that demanded an exclusive association, not Russia. To be more precise, the EU requires it's members to defer to the central government on issues such as tariffs and immigration.

[Truth29]

Soros’s hands are in this too and Obama is meddling in matters best left to those in the immediate vicinity.

[DaveA37]

I would NOT be surprised to see such violence break out right here in the U.S. and I believe odumbo would welcome it. More than likely he too, will be the cause.

[wolf78]

Nope. It was the EU that demanded an exclusive association, not Russia. To be more precise, the EU requires it's members to defer to the central government on issues such as tariffs and immigration.

That isn't quite correct. First of all, full EU membership wasn't even on the table yet. What was discussed was an Association agreement, basically what Switzerland has. Young Ukraininans wanted access to EU markets so they can show that they're hard-working and creative. The corrupt elite feared this because of competitive pressure and opted for Russian handouts.

As to immigration: There are different contracts within the EU framework. Only if you are member of the Schengen area (Ireland e.g. is an EU, even Eurozone member, but no signatory to the Schengen treaty, whereas Norway isn't in the EU per se, but part of the Schengen Zone), where there is completely free travel without borders, there is a hightened requirement to coordinate immigration policies. But this is mainly about securing the EU's eastern borders (e.g. Baltic States - Russia).

As to tariffs: Well, the whole EU-Ukraine agreement was about abolishing tariffs and other trade barriers.

[Sacajaweau]

What pi**** me off is that Obama tells both sides to stop it or he'll do something about it.

They chose Russia because the EU was giving them cr**.

[SeeSharp]

Well, the whole EU-Ukraine agreement was about abolishing tariffs and other trade barriers.

Among themselves. Try telling French farmers they're going to have to compete with Africans.

[MrEdd]

Now now. No bringing reality into the conversation.

[varmintman]

You’ve got George Soros involved in this ugly picture and you’re blaming Putin??

[varmintman]

You’ve got George Soros involved in this ugly picture and you’re blaming Putin??

[mac_truck]

The conflict on the streets results directly from his coercion of Yanukovych into walking away from the association agreement with the EU, and his demand that Ukraine associate with Russia alone. No such demand, no protests, no blood on the streets.

That's a deliberate lie, no such demand was ever made.

In fact Putin proposed tripartite negotiations with the EU & Ukraine several months ago, before Yanukovich made his decision.

Russia ready for tripartite talks with Ukraine, EU - Peskov

[Dalberg-Acton]

B.S.

[PGalt]

“Soros’s hands are in this too and Obama is meddling in matters best left to those in the immediate vicinity.”

“You’ve got George Soros involved in this ugly picture and you’re blaming Putin??”

from this link…(Soros involvement)

http://www.voltairenet.org/article181535.html

The connections between the Kyiv uprising and the EU outside manipulators are so apparent, the Kyiv square that has become the «Tahrir Square» of Ukraine is called «Euromaidan.» The initial Tahrir Square uprising in Cairo, which overthrew Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, was partly manipulated by Soros-financed and Sharp-influenced street demonstrators who took their cues from professional political agitators hastily flown into Egypt from the United States and Europe.

The latest professionally-agitated spectacle in Kyiv’s was spearheaded by the same Soros/Sharp/National Endowment for Democracy/CIA hydra that saw the overthrow of Ukraine’s government in 2004 in the so-called Orange Revolution. This time, not only is Ukrainian President Yanukovych, but ultimately Russian President Vladimir Putin, are the targets… [2]

Nuland, who is married to the neocon Robert Kagan, handed out snacks to protesters on Maidan Square. Imagine the reaction of the United States had a second-tier official of either the Russian or Chinese foreign ministry handed out food to Occupy Wall Street protesters in Washington and urged them to overthrow, by force if necessary, President Obama.

[PGalt]

FYI…

Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) derivative involvment in the Ukraine…

http://investor.cmegroup.com/investor-relations/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=581233

…the Ukraine girls really knock me out…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHD5nd3QLTg

(music to read this post by)

[Ivan Mazepa]

And Russian-led Customs Union has most of the votes being held by Russia, what’s your point?

[Ivan Mazepa]

The conflict on the streets results directly from his coercion of Yanukovych into walking away from the association agreement with the EU, and his demand that Ukraine associate with Russia alone. No such demand, no protests, no blood on the streets.
That's a deliberate lie, no such demand was ever made.

Yanukovych starts to sign the EU trade agreement, Russia closes the borders to Ukraine trade - summer 2013. These two events could be completely unrelated, then again, they might not be

[SeeSharp]

And Russian-led Customs Union has most of the votes being held by Russia, what’s your point?

The Russian deal doesn't prevent Ukraine from making similar deals with other parties. It only limits tariffs within the union.

[mac_truck]

The Russian deal doesn't prevent Ukraine from making similar deals with other parties.

Exactly.

The Russians also made a substantially better offer to Ukraine, (less strings, more money, and a natural gas discount) than the EU/IMF proposal.

The Europeans admitted as much afterwards and at least one rating agency agreed by raising Ukraine's credit rating.

[Ivan Mazepa]

Russian deal is the greatest, no strings attached, never. All the cool guys are already in there, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan etc.
As a sweetener, free Russian real estate

But seriously, what I read about the Customs Union bears little resemblance to the Russian magic stories you're telling me:

The presidents of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus sat down on October 24 in Minsk to grapple with the thorny problems facing their free trade zone – from trade barriers to confusion over Customs Union expansion. It was a tense meeting.

President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan – usually a staunch Russian ally – was in a combative mood, accusing Moscow and Minsk of erecting unfair barriers to trade, describing the Customs Union’s Russian-dominated regulatory body as politicized , and urging caution in Moscow’s efforts to welcome new members.
eurasianet.org link

[mac_truck]

That’s a very nice proletariat straw-man you’ve constructed there Ivan, but it doesn’t much resemble what’s really happening.

The Russians have not insisted that Ukraine join the nascent Eurasian Customs Union as a condition for accepting their economic proposal, nor have they said that Ukraine is prohibited from engaging in future trade deals with Europe. In fact, it was the EU/IMF and not Russia which made the either/or ultimatum to Ukraine.

Objective economic analysis supports the position that the Russian deal is the better choice for Ukraine. So save your scary Russian bed time stories for the limp wristed western socialist elites, and the geriatric cold war emos who unwittingly support their agenda.