Prior to the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, Ukraine had the third largest nuclear arsenal in the entire world...
In exchange for nuclear disarmament, the Ukraine was assured territorial sovereignty by the U.S. and Russia.
Fast forward and between 1999 and 2009, NATO had admitted 12 Eastern European countries, including the Baltic states bordering Russia. As recently as August 29th (last Friday), NATO Chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen insisted that Ukraine would eventually become a member of NATO as well.
During this period, Ukraine governments came and went, mostly all stooges of one regime or another (not unlike every other world government at this juncture). That fact seems somewhat irrelevant now, but both sides point to behind-the-scenes political meddling, so I thought I would mention it.
Then, Crimea, home to the Russian Black Sea Fleet since 1783, was "annexed" by Russia in March of this year. Meanwhile, according to Putin, NATO's eastern expansion violates commitments made by NATO to Boris Yeltsin in 1991. I don't know if that's true, but regardless the motivation to annex Crimea is fairly clear.
Meanwhile Putin recently reminded everyone that he controls the second largest nuclear arsenal in the world. So both the U.S. and E.U. indicated that they will not intervene militarily in Ukraine putting that uncertainty to rest. Sane people would call that de-escalation. Neocons call it "appeasement", because apparently every act of sanity is considered a welcome mat to world domination - there can be no other sane motive.
Now, Putin is just playing rope-a-dope to buy time, avoid further sanctions, and further consolidate gains in the Eastern parts of Ukraine. In other words his hand grows stronger every day and he is patient:
Putin Seen Waging Ukraine Shadow War Until Veto Assured [Sept. 3, 2014]
"the Russian president won’t settle for less than broad autonomy for Ukraine’s mainly Russian-speaking regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, including the right to reject key decisions at the national level such as joining NATO"
"After the recent rebel offensive, it’s now militarily possible to gain full control of Donetsk and Luhansk and to create a “land bridge” to Crimea, which is separated from Russia by the Kerch Strait"
"His end goal is a Ukraine that is a buffer state between Russia and the West.”
In other words Neocon-driven NATO expansion led to yet another massive clusterfuck and military confrontation.
To put it another way, imagine if Canada had decided to join the Warsaw Pact back in 1985 at the height of the Cold War. Had that analogous scenario occurred, then the U.S./Canada border which is really nothing more than history's largest Duty Free Shop - would be up around the North Pole. And my parents would stop asking me when am I moving back to Canada.
Not to say that I am not sympathetic to the Western Ukrainian concerns relative to being a puppet state of Russia. Quite the contrary. One doesn't grow up in Canada without feeling like the 51st state. However, the notion that Russia's Navy would be in NATO controlled territory is totally ludicrous.
As far as nuclear non-proliferation goes, however, this was a paradigm shift. In the future, no country will give up its weapons on the basis of signed "promise" made by dedicated puppet-masters.
Mostly I consider this all yet one more diversion from the Freight Train of Economic Reality that is barreling down the tracks and is being ignored by every single government on the face of this earth. Suffice to say, when this deck gets shuffled and the monkeys get hammered, all of the headlines will be "different" to put it mildly.
Not to say that I am not sympathetic to the Western Ukrainian concerns relative to being a puppet state of Russia. Quite the contrary. One doesn't grow up in Canada without feeling like the 51st state. However, the notion that Russia's Navy would be in NATO controlled territory is totally ludicrous.
As far as nuclear non-proliferation goes, however, this was a paradigm shift. In the future, no country will give up its weapons on the basis of signed "promise" made by dedicated puppet-masters.
Mostly I consider this all yet one more diversion from the Freight Train of Economic Reality that is barreling down the tracks and is being ignored by every single government on the face of this earth. Suffice to say, when this deck gets shuffled and the monkeys get hammered, all of the headlines will be "different" to put it mildly.
