With the ongoing ceasefire negotiations in Minsk facing an uncertain outcome, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is threatening to “introduce martial law in all territories of Ukraine” if the talks fail.
The comments are in the context of a war that is going increasingly poorly for the government, which launched an offensive against the rebels last month and is quickly losing even more ground to them.
While Poroshenko warns the situation could quickly spiral out of control, it’s not clear what he hopes to gain by threatening to give the military effective executive control over the entire nation.
After all, the rebels have control over their own territory in Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts, and transitioning alleged control from civilian officials who are using the military and unable to conquer them, or just turning it over to the same military that isn’t winning the war now. The only places the military could practically take control of are the western 3/4 of the country, which are already under government control.
With just 6% of conscripts reporting voluntarily to fight in Poreshenkos war he is in effect dealing with an internal rebellion and a coup may not be that far off. Sounds like the fascist street brigades who allowed Poreshenko to be president have already signaled they now want total control. Poreshenko should let them have it and this war might end. .
I'm always disappointed when I read President Poroshenko said something and I check to see which one he is. To really deliver the full on insane and going down in a ball of flames experience we need a guy who looks like the Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk.
This martial law threat is ENTIRELY directed towards the rest of Ukraine – because the people, no matter which language they speak or what they think about the revolt in the east, have categorically said NO to the government war and conscription. They are also giving a categoric NO to the austerity programme of the same government, and ENOUGH to the rapacious oligarchy in league with EU and US corporate spongers. Whole towns and villages have either kicked out the army recruiters with sore arses or packed up and left their homes until the draft is over. Even within the army itself, soldiers are deserting en masse. And this is in the WEST, never mind Luhansk and Donetsk! In short, the whole country is in a state of disaffection and open rebellion not seen since the mass anarchist uprising in the Ukraine from 1917-21.
Soon the would-be martial law dictators in Kiev will only have the nazi right sector creeps to keep them in power, backed of course by the good ol' US of A. Poroshenko the chocolate president had better read up his history about the fate of WW1 Austro-German puppet 'Hetman' Skoropadsky.
Does this guy know anything at all about how to govern a country?
Where are the protests? Ukrainians come out to protest over irrelevant stuff, but when this jerk wants to blow up the nation few people say anything.
Possibly ordinary Ukrainians took a look at the coalition "victory" at Kobani and decided it wasn't worth it. The biggest losers are people who lived in what is now a rubble strewn wasteland.
There is nothing more fun than smashing stuff that doesn't belong to you and turning a tidy profit to boot. Death and destruction will rule the day all long as the elite can invest in wars without risking their own skin.