As Ukraine’s fight against Russian-supported separatists continues, Kiev faces another threat to its long-term sovereignty: powerful right-wing ultranationalist groups.
Ukraine move to cede powers to pro-Russia rebels sparks deadly melee
A bill granting autonomy to Ukraine’s restive eastern regions cleared its first parliamentary hurdle on Monday but sparked a violent right-wing protest that left a national guardsman dead and more than 120 people injured.
Sorting Out Ukraine Conflict’s History (James Carden)
Edmund Wilson once wrote that “it is all too easy to idealize a social upheaval which takes place in some other country than one’s own.” And this is an illusion that has plagued the mainstream narrative regarding the Ukrainian revolution from the start.
Exclusive: U.S. weighs sanctioning Russia as well as China in cyber attacks
The United States is considering sanctions against both Russian and Chinese individuals and companies for cyber attacks against U.S. commercial targets, several U.S. officials said on Monday.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said no final decision had been made on imposing sanctions, which could strain relations with Russia further and, if they came soon, cast a pall over a state visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping in September.
Russian-Style Diplomacy Can Break the Middle Eastern Impasse (TNI)
Moscow has many potential partners in the region, and no ideological constraints.
Ukraine: Going underground to escape the conflict
Donetsk, Ukraine – On the front lines of war-ravaged eastern Ukraine, Svetlana Alexandrovna, 64, has spent the last 12 months sheltering in the basement of her home on the outskirts of Donetsk.
Life is tough underground with poor ventilation, and the constant artillery shelling above is nerve-wracking. But with not enough money to start a new life elsewhere, Alexandrovna cannot leave her house, and she said she wouldn’t move even if she could.
PODCAST: John Batchelor Interviews Stephen F. Cohen and Oliver Stone
Russia’s leader may be the most vilified foreign leader in recent US history, but until now Americans have never had an opportunity to see, hear and evaluate him for themselves.
Deadly cheering for war in Ukraine by Western politicians and newspapers editors
Two weeks ago, the Washington Post published an editorial saying that the governments of the NATO military alliance are being too soft on Russia over the crisis in Ukraine. The editors want even more aggressive support to the governing regime in Kyiv than what is already being given.
In particular, the newspaper objects to the ceasefire agreement that it says beleaguered Kyiv was pressured to sign in Minsk, Belarus on February 15, 2015.
Putin, Ukraine and What Americans Know (Robert Parry)
In an interview with Oliver Stone, Russian President Putin explained his take on the Ukraine crisis, one that contrasts with what the U.S. mainstream media has allowed the American people to hear, writes Robert Parry
Russia, NATO need new rules to cut risk of war, ex-ministers say
Russia and NATO must agree common rules to handle unexpected military encounters to reduce the risk of inadvertently triggering a war between Moscow and the West, a group of former foreign and defence ministers said on Wednesday.
With both Russia and NATO intensifying military exercises because of the crisis in Ukraine, incidents such as mid-air face-offs between rival military jets are on the increase.
Conflict in Ukraine enters fourth year ‘with no end in sight’ (UN report)
Warring parties in eastern Ukraine have repeatedly failed to implement ceasefire agreements, allowing hostilities to escalate and the cumulative death toll to exceed 10,000 as the conflict entered its fourth year, a new United Nations report reveals.
The coming war with Russia
David Pugliese writes on the growing concern “among some in the United States and Europe about the possibility that the standoff in eastern Europe between Russia and the West could somehow end in war. Political and military analysts don’t believe that either side would deliberately start such a war. But with large numbers of military forces operating in such close proximity, anything could happen, they warn.”
America Needs to Recall Reagan’s Approach to Russia (Edward Lozansky)
Witnessing the unprecedent anti-Russia hysteria in Washington one feels a real danger that it may end badly for everyone as the poisonous rhetoric from politicos and the media gets more out of hand.
For Whom the Bell Tolls, Really – The Impact of the Sanctions Against Russia
An interesting take on the current sanctions regime against Russia by Dr. Dan Steinbock who observes that “the West continues to rely on the idea that “Putin is the problem, Russia is with us.” In reality, Putin’s actions reflect the wishes of the Russian people, including the moderate majority and the emerging middle classes.
Punishing Putin Mostly Means Punishing His Foes (Leonid Bershidsky)
Washington wants more sanctions. But they would further strangle a pro-democracy movement on life support.
Ukraine, separatists to strive for full ceasefire from September 1
Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists, in a gesture to shore up a tenuous ceasefire, agreed on Wednesday to strive for an end to all truce violations from next Tuesday, the OSCE and rebel representatives said.
Oliver Stone Talks to ‘The Nation’ About His New Documentary ‘The Putin Interviews’
As the intelligence community, Congress, and the press investigate alleged Russian tampering with the US presidential election, Stone shows Putin’s side of the story.
Ukraine’s largest lender PrivatBank investigated for diverting $1.8bn of IMF funds
PrivatBank, Ukraine’s largest lender partly owned by controversial oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky, is under criminal investigation by the authorities for fraudulently diverting around what was then about $1.8bn, the bank has confirmed.
“We are aware of the existence of criminal proceedings. PrivatBank fully cooperates with the investigators and provides all the information and documents necessary to establish the objective truth of the case,” a bank spokesperson told bne IntelliNews on August 20.
Is the Old NATO Dead? (Salvatore Babones)
In the twentieth century, NATO served its purpose admirably. The twenty-first century may feature the same old challengers, but the challenges have changed. Germany is no longer the fault line of Europe. Ukraine is the new fault line, and Ukraine is unlikely to gain NATO membership anytime soon.
Russia’s Lavrov says U.S. signals it wants to mend ties
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday the United States has been sending “signals” that it wants to start mending ties with Moscow, badly strained over the past year and a half by the conflict in Ukraine.
The United States and European Union slapped economic sanctions on Russia last year after its annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula and support for a separatist rebellion in eastern Ukraine.