Posted on 03/16/2014 6:11:16 AM PDT by Dartman
On Thursday, Barack Obama was talking tough about Russia. His secretary of state, John Kerry, issued an ultimatum to Vladimir Putin. If Putin did not stop his troops massing on the Ukrainian border, “there will be a very serious series of steps on Monday.”
That’s what he said on Thursday.
On Friday, he capitulated. Kerry capitulated, that is. Not Putin.
On Friday, Kerry not only erased any threat he had made. He positively made concessions to Russia.
He said that Russia has “legitimate interests in Ukraine.”
As in, Russia legitimately has as say in a foreign, sovereign, independent country.
Kerry helpfully described those legitimate interests: “historical, cultural, current strategic. These are real interests. And I think all of us who are joined together in the EU and extended contact group understand those interest and are prepared to respect them.”
Neville Chamberlain himself wasn’t that speedy in giving his approval to Adolf Hitler’s annexation of Czechoslovakia. And for the same reasons – ethnic, cultural and strategic claims of Germany.
It is true that there are some ethnic Russians in Ukraine. This is not an accident. After the Soviet Union enslaved Ukraine, Josef Stalin launched the world’s largest deliberate famine, called the Holodomor, that killed an estimated 7.5 million Ukrainians. Stalin also forcibly deported other ethnic groups, like the Tatars. And his policy of Russification – shipping in ethnic Russians to dominate political and business life – lingers on today. Not just in Ukraine, but all across the former Soviet Union, in places like Poland, Lithuania and Estonia.
Will John Kerry also “respect” Vladimir Putin’s “legitimate interests” in those foreign countries, too?
This is a spectacular submission by the United States. Spectacular because it was uttered just two days before a referendum in Crimea, part of Ukraine. The referendum question would make the Parti Quebecois jealous: neither option allows Ukrainians there to vote to stay in Ukraine.
The first choice is to outright join Russia. The second option is a bizarre, legally meaningless choice to adopt a defunct 1992 Ukrainian constitutional status for Crimea. Either choice destroys Ukraine’s sovereignty over Crimea.
It goes without saying the vote is rigged. The group that normally monitors elections in Europe – the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe – isn’t even sending observers. They say the entire election is illegal from the start – they won’t dignify it with their presence. The ballot question is absurd. There are reports of ballots being shipped in, from Russia, with the “join Russia” option pre-checked. And of course there is the traditional Russian vote-rigging apparatus, from the censorship of opposition media to violence against opposition political leaders.
But John Kerry is happy to declare, even advance of such a fraud, that Vladimir Putin’s imperial interests are “legitimate.”
This is outrageous by any standard. But the standard in Ukraine is especially high, since in the 1990s Ukraine agreed to give up its nuclear weapons in return for a specific American guarantee to protect them from Russian interference. It’s a written treaty. And now the world knows the value of an American promise, under Barack Obama.
This isn’t news, actually. Last year, the world saw Obama declare his intentions to attack Syria in response to Bashar Assad’s alleged use of chemical weapons. At the last moment, Obama countermanded his own orders, handed the Syrian file to Putin – Assad’s arms dealer! – and Obama literally went golfing the same day.
This is the second Obama surrender to Putin in two years. Do you think it will be the last?
The world is watching and learning. Former Soviet colonies from the Baltics to Poland to Asia are watching and learning. Obama will not protect them.
Iran and North Korea are watching and learning. China is recalibrating its strategy regarding disputed islands claimed by Japan.
And Israel, Egypt and Saudi Arabia now know what Obama’s word is worth, too.
Obama will be president for another two years. America’s enemies will not let that go to waste.
I think it’s pretty clear that we are not the leader of the free world anymore, Russia is. It’s not surprising since we don’t have a legitimate leader in this country...
That’s OK, Samantha Powers gave the Russkies a good scolding at the UN.
You’d think a “Black belt” would know how to tie a belt. The man in the background has a properly tied square knot. Putin has the kind of knot I yell at my 10 year old for tying.
not only is the U.S. not a power anymore-
A. this admin has bankrupted us!
B. we have SUPPORTED our terrorist enemies!- Libya and
Egypt, and Syrian AL QUAEDA!!
C. WE supposedly promised the Ukrain 1$ Billion dollars!
without going through congress!- the money will go right back to the Russians!
This admin is pure Anti American Evil- True Demonic
spirits who hate the U.S.
Oh brother. You needed a barf alert for your own post.
So the only choice for the Ukraine is to remain a vassal state of Russian? Unbelievable.
Hopefully they were smart and saved a few tactical nukes just for this occurrence. If course you would still blame the Ukrainians for wanting freedom rather than to bend over to their Russian overlords.
Even worse. Observers noted that Hitler was in high anxiety and sweated out his bluff of Chamberlain. Putin has yet to break a sweat eating Obama's lunch. He has got to be thinking, "This is to easy."
I’m pointing out that we don’t want to be the world’s policeman.
And just because we no longer want it, doesn’t mean the vacuum remains empty. Others - like Russia will be more than happy to fill it.
Which is exactly what is now happening. And there is nothing we can do about it.
Putin figured these clowns out right off the bat. He knew he was dealing with buffoons. And he knew there was not limit to where his ambitions could take him.
Putin does not care for such details. He doesn't wear correct attire when he rides horses either. He doesn't have to. He is an autocrat: he does what he pleases and anyone who criticizes does so at great risk.
I can see Obama asking Putin to be "flexible" and relax a bit.
It would not surprised me to see Obama try to create a faux crisis after assuring Putin that it's for domestic purposes only and not to worry.. destroying the "tea baggers" by charging them with sedition is the purpose.
FDR's Great Sedition Trial of 1944 started with small fry and planned to move up the chain of opposition. FDR failed. Obama might succeed, the Establishment today is arguably aged 1960s New Left Marxist-Alinsky radical, campus psycho spoiled brats and their ideological issue. The Establishment in FDR's days were Americans who eventually stopped the atrocity.
The Great Sedition Trial of 1944
Doesn't this sound like something that's already been done against the "tea baggers"?
"My mother was indicted with many others, most of whom she had never had any contact with whatsoever. For example, some of such co-indictees were members of the German-American Bund. My mother said they were included to give the case a ‘sauerkraut flavor.’ "
I guess the pictures that mac daddy sent to Putin of him in his newest sexy bra and silk panties had no effect.
The mac daddy administration is such an embarrassment for America throughout the world with no creditability anywhere.
Putin is a KGB murdeous thug who has invaded two neighbors .And he plans to keep invading.
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/patrick-goodenough/russia-seeks-access-bases-eight-countries-its-ships-and-bombers
Stop peddling Putin propaganda here.
And he keeps the mom jeans for his ma!
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/patrick-goodenough/russia-seeks-access-bases-eight-countries-its-ships-and-bombers
This is happening in our back door.
You surender fools here are dangerous .
Putin is a dictator and a murdeous thug not the leader of is free country.
There are no free elections in Russia under him.
You Putin propagadist are dangerous useful idiots.
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/patrick-goodenough/russia-seeks-access-bases-eight-countries-its-ships-and-bombers
He is rebuilding the communist hell with fellow commies in Cuba, Venzuela and trying to expand it.
Who are you trying to fool here ?
Why are we are obsessed with Crimea when we aren’t paying attention to what goes on in our own backyard?
We abandoned the Monroe Doctrine a long time ago.
Yup.
Alaska might be next.
Sounds and looks like the early thirties doesn’t it.
These Paulbots and DU posters are useful idiots.
Putin is a murderous monster who worked as a KGB agent in east Germany with Stasi to kill and torture defectors to the west.
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