Magda Hassan Wrote:Mothers are occupying recruitment centers and villagers are chasing out the Kiev officials.
The Occupy Movement moves to the Ukraine?
"All that is necessary for tyranny to succeed is for good men to do nothing." (unknown)
James Tracy: "There is sometimes an undue amount of paranoia among some conspiracy researchers that can contribute to flawed observations and analysis."
Gary Cornwell (Dept. Chief Counsel HSCA): "A fact merely marks the point at which we have agreed to let investigation cease."
Alan Ford: "Just because you believe it, that doesn't make it so."
Quote: I have been trying to wait as long as possible to get some facts confirmed, but at this point in time I am confident enough to say that there are numerous and convergent signs that things are going extremely badly for the Kiev junta. Just look at the following recent headlines:
Clearly, things are not going well *at all* for the Junta. Concerning Debaltsevo and the rumors that the Junta forces were encircled in another "cauldron", they are probably a little premature. However, even if the Junta forces have not been fully encircled *yet*, there is strong evidence that they are indeed in the process of being encircled and many reports even speak of panic. However, the Junta has kept numerically large forces north of Donetsk and we should not dismiss them. By all accounts, the Junta forces are trying hard to break the Novorussian noose around Debaltsevo and they are also trying to recapture the Donetsk airport. Here are two SITREPS translated by the great Kazzura which I find interesting: Prime Minister Zakharchenko
I am generally weary of triumphalism and I always get nervous when I see somebody underestimating the enemy. Most importantly, we should remember that while the Junta seems to be suffering major military losses, it still has two options available a false flag operation and declare war with Russia. Option one: false flag The worse the Junta's military defeats, the higher the risk of a major false flag. Keep in mind that the Nazi Junta despises the east Ukrainian which it considers as "bugs", "insects" and "subhumans" which should be barbecued and that it will have no pity for its own forces if they are defeated or, worse, disloyal. And remember the Nazi slogan about Crimea: "the Crimea will be Ukrainian or empty". We have to assume that the Nazi freaks in Kiev are capable of anything and, having already shot down a civilian airliner, I would not put it past them to sabotage a nuclear plant or some other very high risk target. Option two: declare with with Russia Notice, I did not say war "on Russia" because that would make the Junta the aggressor. But the Rada is quite capable tomorrow of declaring Russia an "aggressor state". And if that is not enough, Kiev is absolutely capable of striking (at least a few times) anywhere along the Russian-Ukrainian border (including in Crimea) in order to pull Russia in. Even if Russia does not take the bait and simply rides out the strikes, or if Russia responds with a very minimal amount of force, Kiev will continue to declare the "thousands" of Russian troops have invaded and that Russian "tactical battalion groups" are operating all along the line of contact. There is no way that Kiev will ever admit that its forces have been defeated by local Novorussian resistance fighters. In other words, any defeat of the Junta forces will always be presented as a "Russian aggression against the European choice of the free Ukrainian nation". Folks like Yatseniuk or Turchinov will never just flee like Yanukovich did - before they do that, they will make darn sure to destroy as much of the Ukraine as possible and that happens to be exactly the US plan to: if Uncle Sam cannot have it, neither will anybody else.
This one is far from over
I therefore caution everybody against any premature triumphalism. It ain't over and it won't be over anytime soon. Even if the Novorussians comprehensively defeat the Junta forces (again!), this will not push their attack very far beyond the current frontlines (they just don't have the manpower for that). So don't expect the Novorussians to free Kiev and overthrown the Junta. That is something only the Ukrainian people themselves can do, and right now they are nowhere near that kind of outcome. Things to look very, very bad for Kiev and the current tactical difficulties faced by the Junta might well result in an operational level collapse. At which point we can expect all sides except the Novorussians to try to revive some kind of stale and futile "peace process" which the Novorussians will have to accept, except that this time around Russia will probably make more demands then the first time around. Now that Putin has declared that the Junta's army what just "NATO's legion" the mood in Moscow is rather dark and the disgust with Poroshenko and all his lies very wide-spread. So even if Russia accepts another cease-fire, the Junta will have to pay a price for its failed assault. I think that the loss of Mariupol might be one of the conditions demanded by Russia (at least I hope so). What about the imperial "Axis of Kindness"? The Empire is in full combat mode. After George Soros, the US Commander of NATO ground forces has visited Kiev and the western credit rating agencies have further downgraded Russia even though every single objective economic indicator says otherwise. Things are a tad more complicated in Europe were the victory of Syriza in Greece will create a major risk for the future of the EU. Sure, Merkel is more then willing to do the USA's bidding, but her popularity suffers from it and tensions between the EU plutocrats and the European people are only on the rise. In France the entire Charlie Hebdo psyop has resulted in a chaotic and most volatile situation, the Polish nonsense about Auschwitz being liberated by Ukrainians has damaged the credibility of the russophobic camp and the awareness that the Kiev Junta and its supporters are bona fide Nazis is slowly but inexorably growing everywhere.
As Lincoln is supposed to have said "you can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time". Time is running out for the Nazi freaks in Kiev. The Saker
"We'll know our disinformation campaign is complete when everything the American public believes is false." --William J. Casey, D.C.I
"We will lead every revolution against us." --Theodore Herzl
This chap's called Yuri Butusov, and it's from a Facebook posting of some length. I thought it might be interesting to hear from the CIA side at least once:
Quote:Putin's strategy and the January attack Russia in the Donbas. Analysis of the operational situation at the front
Forces of the enemy:
Overall command of all the forces of the enemy in the Donbas carries, according to "Tsenzor.Net" Army Command Armed Forces.
In the attacks are involved infantry and armor Russian mercenaries - about 60%, and local traitors - up to 40%. This mixed martial groups of infantry, armor and artillery.
The number of shock troops of mercenaries - to 6-7 battle groups, with a total of up to 10 thousand people.
Not only combat-ready gangs in the rear, which are given to feeding cities and villages, and that, too, receive weapons and military aid, have a total population of up to 20 thousand people.
Russian troops and mercenaries local gangs do not have large units to concentrate and massing of forces. Enemy units retain the character of the large partisan detachments. However, the Russian command puts serious efforts to improve training, increase discipline, cohesion, and the formation of mercenary units and tactical level company commander and battalion tactical groups of constant composition. Bandit army deployment scenario is exactly the scheme of Transnistria, Ossetia and Abkhazia.
Regular Russian army provides logistics and combat support, radio intelligence, electronic warfare, air defense, communications on operational and tactical level, the supply of military equipment, artillery reconnaissance and artillleriyskuyu support. Regular part of Russian troops - battalion tactical groups mechanized troops and special forces units, perform the functions of operating reserves, protect the rear, fire damage Ukrainian troops. Russian security services also serve as counter-intelligence, and keep order in gangs, without stopping to have to physically eliminate uncomfortable warlords - were destroyed by Alexander so poor, Yevgeny Ishchenko.
The total number of regular Russian troops in Donbass is now no more than 10 thousand people, but on the border with Ukraine focused and engaged in software, rotation, and support for at least 20 thousand.
The Russian command uses Ukraine as a military training ground for working out the plan of combat training and explore possible routes to the case of the large-scale invasion.
Part of the regular army obviously have an order to enter into contact fight only in individual cases. As a rule, Russians are noncontact war - battle formations groping our troops and then causing fire damage revealed centers of defense. A similar tactic of trying to use the troops and mercenaries.
EVALUATION tactical situation:
The purpose of the attacks of the enemy - the destruction of the combat capability of the specific Ukrainian units. I emphasize - this is a war of attrition. Therefore, the aim of the war - do not capture territories and the flag-raising - the goal of reducing the combat forces fighting capacity drop to disrupt connectivity combat formations.
Strikes are at the same time in different places, to avoid the maneuver forces and get to spend the maximum amount of reserves on all fronts. However, most of the attacks is just an imitation of action. Opponent masks so the direction of the main attacks.
Russia wants to destroy the army - to knock our military equipment, especially artillery, armored vehicles - all the things that we have not made ​​up, that provides combat stability of many poorly trained infantry units.
"Boilers" sector "D" and Ilovaiskaya show that knockout technology, transport logistics and wearing down combat-ready units leads to a rapid collapse of the front, waste and surrender territory without a fight. This is the most convenient and desirable for the opponent option.
Since the opponent is free to maneuver reserves on internal operational lines and related tasks protection extended front, he tries to defeat the parts on the front line. Large sparse combat orders and insufficient density of our troops simplifies this task.
Direction of enemy action:
1. Debaltsevskaya arc. Debaltseve - one of the key communication nodes Donbass. The enemy is making attacks on our units on both sides at the throat of the arc - in Svetlodarsk and Trinity. These are two of the most dangerous area in the front.
2. Donetsk. The enemy is trying by all means to push the front of Donetsk. The direction of impact - Marinka, Avdiyivka, Sands. Donetsk - a large supply base and a key node enemy communications. The proximity of Ukrainian troops very difficult enemy use of Donetsk, and threatening enemy bases in the city and surrounding area.
3. Bakhmutskaya track. The enemy is trying to drop our troops from the road, which is of great importance for operational maneuver forces. Monitoring is a key route for the control of the majority of positions in the area.
4. Horlovks. Horlovks - one of the most vulnerable cities in the enemy's defenses. Horlovks tightly covered flanks of the Ukrainian part. Position for the assault of the city is very convenient. Therefore Horlovks binds many enemy forces. Russian commanders also intends to bring down our units with a comfortable position.
5. Fighting in Volnovakha and Mariupol are currently only symbolic. Mariupol terrorist shelling was aimed to draw attention to Mariupol, and tie down large forces of the Ukrainian army, which keep this strategic city. Information from the resonance killing of civilians by terrorists use to conceal their operational plans. However, the enemy often changes the direction of shock, because it continues to attack only where not met strong resistance. Unfortunately, according to the "Tsenzor.Net" likelihood of terrorist attacks on cities Russian mercenaries has increased dramatically.
6. Fighting in the area Popasnaya also are symbolic, but there is an active opponent of more emphasis, and it is possible that the enemy can also take local attacks to divert our reserves from Debaltseve.
Russian troops are taking local attacks in various sectors. Concentration of striking forces of the enemy, capable of striking at the operational depth - not observed. Continuous front as such does not exist - defense and attack are focal in nature, around the towns and communications nodes. The intensity of the fighting is not high. Attacks in the case of an effective response to be suspended or held as a reconnaissance to identify fire weapons, probing weaknesses in combat formations.
The enemy concentrated shock units in various sectors of the front, which conduct proactive, trying to provide direction to favorites narrow local superiority in forces.
However, no overwhelming superiority of the enemy is not, and Ukrainian command is quite capable to repulse the attacks.
The greatest threat is in the area of ​​crisis Debaltseve.
The success of the battle depends on the maneuver forces and defeat of the enemy a district Svetlogorsk and Trinity. Debaltsevskaya arc at the moment - this is the point of all the connected Donbass front.
Assessment of the military-political situation:
The goal of the enemy: The aim remains the same - a large-scale destabilization of Ukraine, provoking a system of economic, political and social crisis. Putin wants to create the conditions for the collapse of the current state model, and to strengthen the pro-Russian influence, including in the leadership of Ukraine pro-Russian leaders. This is the exact scenario in Georgia when using the war, the economic and political blockade Putin won the election defeat of the Democratic Party and Saakashvili came to power a pro-Russian regime Ivanishvili, who accompanies the Kremlin.
According to the "Tsenzor.Net" Strategy of Russia's actions during the war in Ukraine remains unchanged and cyclical: the escalation of the war - a truce - preparing for a new phase of aggression - the beginning of local hostilities - the escalation of the war - a truce. Russia has no resources for the occupation of Ukraine. Putin wages war primarily by the departments and units of constant readiness. He can not throw a large group of Russian troops for the offensive in Ukraine, because Ukraine is required for the occupation in the mobilization of the Russian Federation, and for a big war in the Russian Federation has no available resources. For Putin, the constant low-intensity conflict - a political lever of constant exposure to the Ukraine, and internal mobilization tool due to the growth of nationalist sentiment in Russia, convenient political tool to combat the economic crisis and stagnation.
As Ukrainian society demonstrates high political stability and economic crisis still could not bring down the government, the Russian invasion of the central Ukraine will not lead to collapse, and vice versa - will make a fierce resistance. Russia is trying to avoid responsibility for the invasion - because resources include war-ravaged country, Putin is not. Russia does not provide the Donbass. And completely stopped funding Transnistria, serious disturbances because of funding cuts passed in Abkhazia.
Direct intervention will lead to a complete shutdown certainly Russia on world financial markets, and disaster for lending and import-dependent Russian economy. Putin is not ready to make such a bet. He is afraid to completely sever ties with the West. He is afraid of becoming an outcast, he wants to keep access to the western Russian elite material world.
Therefore, the onset of the broad objectives at this turn of the war should be expected.
PROBLEMS:
The main problem of Ukrainian command - is the complete lack of strategic initiatives, excessive centralization of management decisions, limiting independence at the tactical level commanders command ATO. Unfortunately, the Chief of General Staff demonstrates a lack of understanding of the situation, the lack of strategic thinking and operational planning, low-scale culture without understanding the nature of modern warfare, and the inability to analyze and draw lessons.
Reform of the army, which according to the plan approved Muzhenko Poroshenko Poltorak and further reduces the capacity of the army command, because the General Staff proposes to complicate the management structure to create what for two operational command.
Command and control system has deteriorated significantly compared with the beginning of the war - talk about it all the sources "Tsenzor.Net." Victor Muzhenko project to create additional intermediate levels of management between the staffs of operational commands and subordinate brigades - creating sectors and the Army Staff ATO proved absolutely a disaster. As a result, all the staffs are understaffed, and the sector headquarters exercising operational command staffed weakest. Besides Muzhenko completely confuse management that is constantly subject to separate parts and even personally unit itself. Coordination and interaction forces do not improve, but on the contrary - are worse. That is the main reason for the defeat in Donetsk airport and at the checkpoint in the Red partisan who Muzhenko and command ATO cynically tried to hide.
Supreme Commander Poroshenko covers Muzhenko and saves him from liability. This is our main disadvantage.
The General Staff is not engaged in the formation of permanent readiness units. As in the beginning of the war fighting are separate battalion tactical groups from the teams. Complete audio Brigade General Staff at the front can not send because they do not purposefully engaged in manning. As a result of enemy action of the major parts, and Ukrainian command can quickly focus harmonious connection to achieve superiority in forces and achieve quality advantages.
Level of training is quite primitive. There is no training center, which would provide the learning process of the whole team at the Soviet "SCHOOL".
Despite the fact that we have two huge largest intelligence, vast in number secret service - the SBU, and have for exploration State Border Service and the Interior Ministry, has a very strong support and a large number of information sources is still not there is an effective intelligence system. Actions tens of thousands of security officers with a multi-billion dollar budgets remain fragmented, and do not represent a complete picture, do not allow to take control of every village and every street. Coordination of intelligence is completely absent.
Positive changes:
Ukrainian army has turned into an armed Maidan. In the absence of competent management of each military unit live their lives. The key figures in the Ukrainian Army and the National Guard are the company and battalion commanders. On their personal qualities depends entirely on the course of military operations in a specific sector of the front. Where the commander of initiative and independent, there is an inadequate command can not be put to effective combat missions and combat training. Where there is a good commander - level of combat readiness units conditional and depends on various factors.
But it is important to note - and in the army, and the National Guard and security services among private, junior and middle officers gradually vykristallizirovalas very competent and literate cohort of soldiers and commanders, and their number is slowly growing. The Ukrainian armed forces there is the true backbone of the able-bodied.
If the Ukrainian political elite unite to reform the army and the National Guard, and the task of developing a military doctrine, strategy and tactics of war, recruitment and training, weapons and logistics are fully credentialed professionals and command positions will be filled by the criterion of competence - that now Ukraine have someone to lean on.
FORECAST:
Reflection of enemy attacks in the main sectors will lead to rapid decay of the next phase of the war, and repeat the cycle. Putin again allow the plant itself to the negotiating table and again utter meaningless words to him about the world. Again, for some time, the war fades out. But not for long. Winter - not the most convenient place for the operation of the bare steppe. Keep a good overview of a large detection range and shooting.
How many times predicted "Tsenzor.Net", the most convenient time for action of the enemy - this spring, starting from the second half of April, when there will be "brilliant green." When will the foliage opponent again have the opportunity to use the tactics of infiltration of small groups and short fire raids to attack chained passive standing at checkpoints Ukrainian units.
The next and far more active phase of the actions of the enemy will be in the spring. And Ukraine has to make an effort to change the nature of warfare, and the reforms of the army, which could dramatically improve combat effectiveness and quality control.
Putin did not go to the world, until we become strong enough. It is not about what we need to destroy all Russian troops - Putin will leave, even if his troops suffer quite serious losses. We learn to fight, but we need to learn how to win.
"There are three sorts of conspiracy: by the people who complain, by the people who write, by the people who take action. There is nothing to fear from the first group, the two others are more dangerous; but the police have to be part of all three,"
UPDATE: Lot's of conflicting reports. Strelkov said things are quiet waiting for the UAF to show what it intends to do. Strelkov is famous for putting out all kinds of stuff. Other news is the Delbotsevo boiler is cooking pretty good: UAF deaths, soldiers trying to flee and being shot for fleeing, more UAF surrendering with equipment. More shelling of Donetsk and Gorlovka.
Strelkov reports rumors that there will be false flag attack involving the deaths of many children caused naturally by terrorists on January 29th.
The Ukrainian Rada has now voted to label Russia as an aggressor state. This is just short of declaring war on Russia. If they do that, then Ukraine is not entitled to IMF loans. On the other hand, they are appealing for inflows of investment capital. Just think. If some entity is a sugar daddy, that entity could buy a war with Russia. A false flag could justify NATO boots on the ground.
In the meantime, Americans are going nuts over American Sniper. The blood lust is is filling a bowl of blood from which the world is meant to drink.
"We'll know our disinformation campaign is complete when everything the American public believes is false." --William J. Casey, D.C.I
"We will lead every revolution against us." --Theodore Herzl
In response to US Special Forces in Mariupol? I received an interesting email from "Dan" a 23-year Army veteran with four years in special services.
Dan writes ...
I was a soldier in the US Army for 23 years including four years in Special forces Stationed in Germany. I would agree that there is a strong likelihood that this is a US Special Forces soldier.
I can tell you that we were issued AK 74s and would use them on a mission such as this. That is about all I would really want to say at this point.
It is obvious to me that our strategy is the Balkanization of the various hot spots in the world, Syria, Ukraine, Iraq and so forth.
You can call me if you want I'd be happy to talk with you. All the Best
I did call Dan. We chatted a bit. He pointed out special fireproof gloves on the soldier.
I asked him about the rifles. Dan had high praise for them. "Exceptional" was the exact word. They are widely distributed to special forces units in Europe.
Dan was "disgusted" with US operations stirring up trouble in numerous hotspots including Ukraine.
More English Speaking Soldiers in Mariupol
Over the weekend more videos of English speaking soldiers in Mariupol turned up. Around the 14:40 mark, talk is in English. This time it sounds British rather than US.
24.01 2015 Militants fired on Mariupol. Not for the faint of heart.
Jacob Dreizin comments: "There is absolutely no way that any US or European company could send mercenaries to Mariupol without the knowledge and approval (tacitly or explicitly) of its host government. So whether these are soldiers or "dogs of war" (mercenaries), it is a deliberate Western presence in Mariupol."
$100 Bill
Near the beginning of the video, there's a $100 dollar bill (or replica) hanging from the rear view mirror. What's that all about?
Brit Identified
I wrote the above yesterday. My accent detection appears to be correct.
Troops of the Azov Battalion use the Social-National Assembly (SNA) logo, an inverted Wolfsangel, a widely used symbol in Nazi Germany, on their banner, and some members are openly white supremacists or anti-Semites
In a 2010 essay, Biletsky set forth the ideology of the Social-National Assembly. "From the mass of individuals must arise the Nation; and from weak modern man, Superman...The historic mission of our Nation in this watershed century is to lead the White Races of the world in the final crusade for their survival: a crusade against semite-led subhumanity... The task of the present generation is to create a Third Empire -- Great Ukraine... If we are strong, we take what is ours by right and even more; we will build a Superpower-Empire..."
Foreign membership
In mid-July 2014, the BBC reported that the battalion had recruited the former Swedish Army and Swedish Home Guard sniper Mikael Skillt. Skillt, a Swedish white supremacist, joined the Azov Battalion for ideological reasons.
Ukrainian political scientist Anton Shekhotsov told the Swedes that four Swedish neo-Nazis were fighting with Azov, while the Swedish national police confirmed "several". Azov's leader, Biletsky, states that he has received recruits from Ireland, Italy, Greece and Scandinavia.
The Russian and Ukrainian security expert at New York University, Mark Galeotti, has described groups like the Azov Battalion as magnets attracting violent, fringe elements from around and outside Ukraine, warning that they will continue to play an outsized role in Ukrainian affairs after the war.
Azov with "SS" and Swastikas on Helmets
A news broadcast by German ZDF station on September 8 showed soldiers of the Ukraine Azov Battalion in Mariupol with Nazi symbols on their helmets.
Robert Parry, the investigative reporter who broke many of the Iran-Contra stories for the Associated Press and Newsweek in the 1980s writes "Ukraine's Neo-Nazis Demand Respect".
Historians blame the UIA and other Ukrainian fascist forces for the extermination of thousands of Poles and Jews during World War II as these right-wing Ukrainian paramilitaries sided with the German Nazis in their fight against the Soviet Union's Red Army. Svoboda and the Right Sektor have elevated UIA leader Stepan Bandera to the level of a Ukrainian national hero.
But Svoboda and Right Sektor activists are not just neo-Nazi street protesters. They were key figures in last February's violent uprising that overthrew elected President Viktor Yanukovych and established a coup regime that the U.S. State Department quickly recognized as "legitimate." Many far-right militants have since been incorporated into the Ukrainian military in its fight to crush resistance to the coup regime from ethnic Russians in Ukraine's east.
Though played down by the Western press, the neo-Nazi affiliations of these militants have occasionally popped up in news stories, including references to displays of Nazi insignias, but usually these citations are mentioned only in passing or are confined to the last few paragraphs of lengthy stories or are dismissed as "Russian propaganda."
But this neo-Nazi reality continues to be an inconvenient truth about the U.S.-backed coup regime that seized power in Kiev with the overthrow of Yanukovych on Feb. 22.Several government ministries, including national security, were given to these far-right elements in recognition of their key role in the putsch that forced members of Yanukovych's government to flee for their lives.
German Consultant Says 500 Blackwater US Mercenaries in Ukraine
German political and business consultant Michael Lüders in an interview with the TV channel Phoenix made this allegation: There are 500 mercenaries in Ukraine, all trained experts, requisitioned in cooperation between the United States and Ukraine.
So we not only have Russians who are fighting on the side of the separatists, but also US mercenaries on the part of the government. This is a dangerous trend, and an unhealthy development. For it is quite clear that an escalation is possible. This conflict can spiral out of control when the Russian side or when the Ukrainian side believes there is a certain winner.
The security firm Blackwater, also called Academi, is known for its top-secret orders in war zones. The units are perfectly trained and mostly ex-US military with high-level combat experience. At the same time they are themselves and their corporate boardroom closely intertwined with US military circles and even the presidential administration.
If you can understand German, here is a link to the Michael Lüders Interview on the German Phoenix TV station.
Russian president Vladimir Putin responded "We often talk about the Ukrainian army . . . In fact this is not an army, it is a foreign legion, in this case a Nato foreign legion which, of course, does not follow the national interests of Ukraine."
Ukrainian Military Transport Loading Tanks
I am told this is a recent (within past few days) image of the Ukrainian "Antonov Airlines" An-225 cargo plane picking up surplus Soviet-era tanks at the Prague airport for transfer to Ukrainian forces.
I cannot verify the date, location, or source of the above image, but certainly the plane is correct. It's the only one ever built. Anyone in Prague care to confirm?
The An-225's name, Mriya (МрiÑ) means "Dream" (Inspiration) in Ukrainian. It is powered by six turbofan engines and is the longest and heaviest airplane ever built, with a maximum takeoff weight of 640 tonnes. It also has the largest wingspan of any aircraft in operational service. The first and only built has the Ukrainian civil registration UR-82060. The airlifter holds the absolute world records for an airlifted single item payload of 189,980 kilograms (418,834 pounds).
Disinformation and Outright Lies
Without a doubt, some Russian-made military equipment is in Ukraine in rebel hands. Ukraine also has Russian-made equipment. Some of the rebel equipment was captured from Ukraine, and some came in from Russia.
How much military equipment is directly from Russia since the start of the war? I do not know.
I do know that Ukraine's claim the rebels have 500 Russian tanks is ridiculous. You cannot hide 500 tanks. Claims of 15,000 Russian regular soldiers in Ukraine are also ridiculous.
How many are there? I don't know. Could there be 500 Russian "trainers"? Sure, why not?
The US has "trainers" in Ukraine as well. How many? I don't know that either. Could it be as many as 500? Sure? Why not?
If you wish to change the word "trainers" to sponsored "mercenaries", fine, as long as you do it for both sides.
There are many Russians living in Ukraine. That does not make them "Russian regulars", no matter how many times it is presented that way by Western media.
"It's sheer folly to hope that the country is destabilised and Vladimir Putin overthrown. We've no idea what the outcome would be" says Guardian author Angus Roxburgh.
An Incomplete History of US Foreign Policy Disasters
War reparations imposed by the allies gave way to German hyperinflation and the rise of Hitler.
The War in Vietnam started with an outright lie from president Lyndon B. Johnson regarding the Gulf of Tonkin Incident. A document declassified in 2005 shows the US fired first, on North Vietnam. In a second episode, the US fired on "Tonkin ghosts" (false radar images) and not actual torpedo boats as claimed.
It's pretty clear the US helped foment the overthrow of Ukraine's president Viktor Yanukovych, but the US will probably will not admit that for another 30 years.
Bush's lies led us to invade Iraq with disastrous consequences including the evolution of ISIS.
Finally, Bin Laden's number one reason for the attack on the US was because the US had troops on sacred Arab soil.
Avoiding the Mess
Why are we in Ukraine at all? The answer is we backed a corrupt pack of neo-Nazis that helped overthrow a government the US decided was too friendly to Russia.
When we did not like the blowback, we put sanctions on Russia. And those sanctions harm Europe as much as Russia.
None of this means one has to like Putin. I don't, but I get accused of it, simply because I look at both sides of the story while most believe lies spoon-fed to them by Western media.
All we had to do to avoid this mess was not get involved in the overthrow, then had it happened anyway, encouraged a solution at the ballot box rather than siding with the new corrupt regime.
No Cost to Great
I have a very close friend who thinks this "Russian invasion cannot be allowed to stand at any cost".
Such ideology sounds like the discredited Vietnam War "domino" theory all over again. My friend was against that war, but fails to see this is more of the same "last stand" nonsense.
Note that "any cost" might mean outright war with nuclear-armed Russia over a meaningless patch of land. How asinine is that?
Ironies Abound
The first irony is that Ukraine is not really a single country in the first place. Its boundaries were arbitrarily created with no regard to religion, culture, and language.
A natural split that could have and should have been decided by vote (if only the US went along), is now being decided by war. Supposedly, we need to put "humpty dumpty" back together again at any cost, presumably even nuclear war.
For what?
Putin is not Hitler attempting to conquer the world with a "final solution". Rather Russia has genuine fears and concerns about NATO on its doorstep. Russia has been invaded multiple times by other European countries.
And the second major irony of it all is the US openly supports a bunch of white supremacist neo-Nazis whose leader stated in 2010 "The historic mission of our Nation in this watershed century is to lead the White Races of the world in the final crusade for their survival: a crusade against semite-led subhumanity."
The site Ukraine at War claims the flag was edited it. I blew the image up 400% looking for artifacts around the flag and the hand holding it. If it was edited in, then it was a professional job.
The image appears on the website of Oleg Pyenya (a person in the picture). Oleg has many pictures giving the Nazi salute (and he is not even the one giving the Nazi salute in the picture!)
Oleg is the guy holding the Nazi flag with his fingers. I believe there is roughly a zero percent likelihood that Oleg or anyone in his group was capable of perfect Photoshop editing. Somehow we are supposed to believe Russia did, gave it to Oleg, then he placed it on his site. I
US Hypocrisy
Fake or not, it is 100% clear what AZOV commander, Andriy Biletsy, and his group of thugs stands for. Also it's important to note that Biletsy has been commended and awarded by Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko.
Thus, it's equally clear that your tax dollars support neo-Nazis and white-supremists in yet another example of US hypocrisy and the idiocy of the policy "the enemy of my enemy is my friend".
Mike "Mish" Shedlock http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.comMike "Mish" Shedlock is a registered investment advisor representative for SitkaPacific Capital Management. Sitka Pacific is an asset management firm whose goal is strong performance and low volatility, regardless of market direction. Visit http://www.sitkapacific.com/account_management.html to learn more about wealth management and capital preservation strategies of Sitka Pacific.
The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one can become conscious of the shadow without considerable moral effort. To become conscious of it involves recognizing the dark aspects of the personality as present and real. This act is the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge.
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