Russian President Vladimir Putin is once again fueling Western ire by pushing for a negotiated settlement of the ongoing war in eastern Ukraine, calling in the rebels to allow troops to flee the area and calling on Ukraine’s government to enter into negotiations on a final settlement deal.
Even the proposal for talks was subject to considerable spin, for while Putin focused on a call for greater autonomy for the ethnic Russian east, the coverage mostly presented it as a demand for independence.
After the coverage, Russian officials reiterated that they aren’t pushing full sovereignty for eastern Ukraine, but simply increases in the region’s autonomy, as part of an ongoing push for Ukraine to adopt federalism.
Rebel Deputy PM Andrei Purgin confirmed he is en route to Belarus for the preliminary talks on such negotiations. So far, the Ukrainian government has refused any direct negotiations with the rebels, and has been demanding an unconditional surrender and disarmament before they consider any rebel pushes for reform.
How Can You Tell Whether Russia has Invaded Ukraine?
By Dmitry Orlov
September 01, 2014 "ICH" – Last Thursday the Ukrainian government, echoed by NATO spokesmen, declared that the the Russian military is now operating within Ukraine's borders. Well, maybe it is and maybe it isn't; what do you know? They said the same thing before, most recently on August 13, and then on August 17, each time with either no evidence or fake evidence. But let's give them the benefit of the doubt.
You be the judge. I put together this helpful list of top ten telltale signs that will allow you to determine whether indeed Russia invaded Ukraine last Thursday, or whether Thursday's announcement is yet another confabulation. (Credit to Roman Kretsul).
Because if Russia invaded on Thursday morning, this is what the situation on the ground would look like by Saturday afternoon.
1. Ukrainian artillery fell silent almost immediately. They are no longer shelling residential districts of Donetsk and Lugansk. This is because their locations had been pinpointed prior to the operation, and by Thursday afternoon they were completely wiped out using air attacks, artillery and ground-based rocket fire, as the first order of business. Local residents are overjoyed that their horrible ordeal is finally at an end.
2. The look of military activity on the ground in Donetsk and Lugansk has changed dramatically. Whereas before it involved small groups of resistance fighters, the Russians operate in battalions of 400 men and dozens of armored vehicles, followed by convoys of support vehicles (tanker trucks, communications, field kitchens, field hospitals and so on). The flow of vehicles in and out is non-stop, plainly visible on air reconnaissance and satellite photos. Add to that the relentless radio chatter, all in Russian, which anyone who wants to can intercept, and the operation becomes impossible to hide.
3. The Ukrainian military has promptly vanished. Soldiers and officers alike have taken off their uniforms, abandoned their weapons, and are doing their best to blend in with the locals. Nobody thought the odds of the Ukrainian army against the Russians were any good. Ukraine's only military victory against Russia was at the battle of Konotop in 1659, but at the time Ukraine was allied with the mighty Khanate of Crimea, and, you may have noticed, Crimea is not on Ukraine's side this time around.
4. There are Russian checkpoints everywhere. Local civilians are allowed through, but anyone associated with a government, foreign or domestic, is detained for questioning. A filtration system has been set up to return demobilized Ukrainian army draftees to their native regions, while the volunteers and the officers are shunted to pretrial detention centers, to determine whether they had ordered war crimes to be committed.
5. Most of Ukraine's border crossings are by now under Russian control. Some have been reinforced with air defense and artillery systems and tank battalions, to dissuade NATO forces from attempting to stage an invasion. Civilians and humanitarian goods are allowed through. Businessmen are allowed through once they fill out the required forms (which are in Russian).
The rest: http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article3…
Putin is obviously panicking. He first called for negotiations on independence and now seems to be backing off. Equally, the military startegy could easily be a retreat. The crazy "aid" convoy with its half-empty trucks may well have been sent in to bring heavy equipment out and there is now to be an "aid" train to Lugansk. This morning's news is that a battalion of regular Russian soldiers have taken possession of Lugansk ariport. To fly troops out, perhaps? The taking of Novoazovsk and the moves towards Mariuopol suggest an attempt to open a link between Donetsk and the Russian border or to use the port of Mariupol to evacuate troops and equipment. Retreat is one of the most difficult things for an army to do, so the Russians will say nothing until it's over, but, for the moment, things are starting to look hopeful.
"Putin is obviously panicking"
Is that what FOX News is telling you? Even the CIA agrees there is no Russian presence in Ukraine…other than the one that makes up and always has made up part of that fake country: http://en.ria.ru/world/20140831/192510645/No-Sign…
Satellite imagery shows dick in the way of Russian troops, but that doesn't stop Western media from lying to their audiences, nor from said audiences from falling for it. LOL. How can Russian troops retreat if they aren't there? Like the RF should even be afraid of Ukrainian forces, poorly trained, badly equipped, sent out to the field with little rations, who only look tough when shelling civilians? Can you be anymore stupid than you are now?
Obviously his moves are meant to confuse the Hell out of idiots like you and the warmongering sayanim in the State Dept., who clearly are not used to dealing with such a skilled and savvy opponent.
Ukies getting their asses kicked. Their country is broke, winter is nearing, Ukrainian women are protesting the forced conscription of men up to the age of 60!!! Ukraine is run by glorified Oligarch warlords and racist supremos who are now fighting among themselves.
Your comments as usual have little to no basis in reality – just like Amerikan reporting on this whole stupid conflict.
And notice how quiet you are regarding the shot down MH17! Before the dust even settled you and FOX and CNN and practically every idiot in creation (some calling the Russians "Soviets" LOL) had confirmed Russian culpability! Well, where's the evidence? Satellite photos, black boxes, air traffic control recordings? Why's everyone so quiet now? I'll tell you why: Because Western bullsh!t media corresponds less and less with reality everyday. All the brainless sheep-suckers just lap it up. Had there been actual evidence of Russian wrongdoing, the Western lapdog press would have already been trumpeting it, up, down and sideways from here to Zimbabwe.
Wake up and smell the bullsh!t. Your gov't. and your press are lying to you. Stop being a sucker…or at the very least…keep it to yourself.
It is self-evident that you are not exactly playing with a full deck.
Do you write dispatches for the Ukrainian Ministry of Information, or is this part of the resume you are sending them? So if the rebels lose territory, Putin is panicking; if the rebels gain territory (as they just did), Putin is panicking — do I have that right? So tell us, oh wise military strategist — what would keep Putin from panicking?
It should be obvious by now that Kiev cannot militarily defeat the Ukrainian Rebels. With a hard winter just around the corner and just a little help and encouragement from neighboring Russia, the Rebels will eventually drain the last donated dollar from the Kiev regime which will then fall victim to mass protest.