The Situation in the Ukraine. #28

Another video from the outskirts of Gorlovka, again near the village of Gagarin's mines. The intensity of the fire increased markedly, the sounds of shelling were heard for about half an hour, after which they subsided.

https://t.me/medvedev_note/1274

Pro-separatist sources inform about casualties as a result of the Ukrainian artillery strikes around Horlivka on February 20.

https://twitter.com/Archer83Able/status/1363842470912667649

I would ignore the casualty count as I have not seen that corroborated by other sources yet. The conflict is obviously escalating the past few weeks.

flamming_python wrote:

kvs wrote:Crimean Tatars have way more of a claim on the lands they live on than any Banderastani.   Funny how the west barks so hard
about "abuses by Russia of Crimean Tatars" but does not actually recognize Crimea as some "-stan" of the Tatars.   It recognizes
the absurd illegal (under both Soviet and international law) occupation of Crimea by Kiev.   The grab of Sevastopol in 1991
is an outright invasion since it was never transferred to Soviet Ukraine by Khruschev like the rest of the autonomous republic
was in 1954.   Imagine Monaco and Liechtenstein just falling into the hands of their neighbours.   That most NATzO residents
are not aware of these facts does not make them irrelevant.   "Ignorance of the law is no excuse" and all that.

Sevastopol was transfered to the Ukrainian SSR as well in 1954, together with the Crimean oblast

That is just some smug dismissal based on nothing.

https://www.kp.ru/daily/24099/326499/

За Севастополем в 1948 году был закреплен особый политико-правовой статус (Указ Президиума Верховного Совета РСФСР от 29 октября). При этом играло определяющую роль союзное подчинение города. А оно вытекает из назначения его - быть главной базой Черноморского флота. Согласно Конституции СССР 1936 года военные дела относились к компетенции Союза ССР.

В текстах постановления Президиума ВС РСФСР от 5 февраля 1954 года «О передаче Крымской области в состав УССР», а также Указа Президиума ВС СССР от 19 февраля 1954 года по тому же вопросу город Севастополь вообще не упоминается. Следовательно, данные документы не затрагивают Указа Президиума ВС РСФСР 1948 года и он сохраняет силу.

Sevastopol had special legal status. Khruschev's gift makes no mention of the city at all, thus it does not override the status
of this city. All the rest is pseudo legal rubbish that does not actually conform to law. It is all about claims and beliefs.

And Yeltsin had no legal right to give away Sevastopol in 1991 just as Khruschev had no right to give away Crimea in 1954.
Commie hacks busy planting their boot on the face of local residents. The 1990 referendum to restore Crimea's autonomy
was officially recognized by the Ukrainian SSR Rada. So it held force when the USSR dissolved (another illegal move BTW).
The passage of Crimea into the hands of post-Soviet Ukraine is 100% annexation.

The ceasefire in Donbass has officially ended

Blood bath

The longest ceasefire in Donbas officially ended on February 20.

The tension at the front has been growing since the end of 2020. Injuries and deaths of servicemen, the use of mortars and artillery has become common again. However, such losses, especially those officially confirmed, did not exist for a long time.

On February 22, the head of the press service of the People's Militia of the DPR, Daniil Bezsonov, made a statement in which he spoke about the clash.

“Much has been said about the results of the military clash near Horlivka on February 20. The real picture is as follows.

In the area of ​​the so-called Chigiri, near Gorlovka, the battle began on the night of February 20, and continued in the morning and in the afternoon, when an attempt was made to evacuate the wounded soldiers under mortar and rifle fire from the enemy.

Our total losses: 7 dead and 6 wounded defenders of the Republic ", - said Bezsonov.

Also, according to Daniil Besonov, the command gave permission to return fire, during which the firing points of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were suppressed. Moreover, the enemy's losses amounted to 11 people.

It is impossible to find out how much this version corresponds to reality - Kiev rarely admits combat losses, especially large ones.

However, the very fact of return fire is confirmed by numerous sources.

Thunderous silence

It is noteworthy that the government of the DPR has not commented on such a large clash to date.

On Sunday, February 21, the head of the DPR Denis Pushilin made a protest note. However, his statement contained completely different figures than Bezsonov's statement.

According to the head of the republic, as a result of the shelling of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, one soldier was killed, and two more were seriously injured.

What is the reason for such a big difference in numbers? Denis Pushilin's lack of awareness? Or attempts by the military to hide losses? In any case, today's silence looks tense, to say the least.

However, something else is much more important. How consistent are the recent statements by Donetsk and Lugansk about their readiness to adequately respond to enemy provocations?

Will the People's Militia fighters receive an order to completely suppress enemy activity? Or will it be about situational decisions of the command, fraught with delay and unnecessary losses?

Considering that the Armed Forces of Ukraine will traditionally respond to any weakness with arrogance, how many lives will be needed for the defenders of Donbass and civilians (including citizens of the Russian Federation) to calm Kiev down?

Indeed, literally on January 21, Colonel Eduard Basurin threateningly declared:

"In case of continuation of provocative actions by the VFU, the DPR will be forced to give an adequate answer!"

Bitter holiday

Probably, at the moment in Donetsk and Lugansk, they are not at all busy solving these issues. And they celebrate February 23, rewarding each other and the "correct" commanders with duty medals (the number of awards on the representatives of the command in the LPNR has long exceeded all reasonable limits).

They are celebrating, although it would be more logical to declare mourning and hold a civil funeral service. Alas, official events and celebrations in the LPR are often valued much higher than the prestige of military service or even human lives.

It is not for nothing that fighters sometimes joke bitterly that the republics are "smart".

Unfortunately, it seems that neither local officials nor local officials still understand that if they do not begin to truly value and cherish every soldier, then in the foreseeable future there will be too few people willing to sign a contract with the People's Militia to fill the trenches. on the front lines.

Author: Egor Makhov (Lugansk)

Say what you want about Trump, but he was no enabler of the Ukr nazis.   Biden the "leftist" is a globalist-imperialist and
is busy propping up all the terrorists from Ukraine to Syria.   Gotta lubricate that global control agenda...

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine decided to start restoring control over the border with Russia in Donbass

As part of the Strategy for Integrated Border Management adopted by the Ukrainian government, which will be in effect until 2025, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine decided to start restoring control over the border with Russia in the Donbas.

The initiator of this decision, adopted at the government meeting, was the head of the country's Interior Ministry, Arsen Avakov.

The Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers decided that it was necessary to begin to prepare to ensure the protection of the border with the Russian Federation on the territory of the former Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which are now independent republics from Ukraine - the DPR and LPR.

The adoption of the Border Management Strategy by the Ukrainian government took place in the framework of the fulfillment of the obligations to the European Union stipulated by the Association Agreement with the EU. Therefore, Kiev hopes that after the government's announcement of its intention to restore long-lost control over the Russian border in Donbas, Ukraine's relations with European countries will significantly strengthen.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke about his intention to take control of the border. His predecessor, Petro Poroshenko, said the same.

Good, hope Russia then hits at Kiev hard.

Interesting (and long) article from the saker

http://thesaker.is/the-ukraines-many-ticking-time-bombs/
I am posting the introduction and the conclusions

the Saker wrote:While the Ukraine has mostly been out of the news, there were bigger stories out there, things have gone disastrously wrong under “Ze” (Zelenskii) and the Ukraine is now looking at several time bombs which could explode at any minute. Here is a partial list of problems which the Ze administration will have to deal with in 2021: (in no particular order)

The strengthening of the internal opposition to Ze’s rule
The COVID pandemic, the vaccine scandal and the crumbling Ukrainian infrastructure
The crackdown on free speech
The persecution of opponents inside and even outside the Ukraine
The (limited) rise of (putatively pro-Russian) OPZZh party
The sharp rise in European rhetoric against Russia which the Ze admin will want to match and cater to
The hardening of the positions of the LDNR
A further increase in US/NATO saber rattling and provocations
The regime in Kiev openly planning for a war against Russia

(...)

Conclusion:

The Ukraine is facing a range of major problems which are unlikely to remain contained to the territory of the Ukraine. Things like crime, or a pandemic, or the rule of the mob are very hard to contain. Sooner or later these inevitably bleed over the border to the neighboring country which then, in turn, has to face the same threats. In theory, Russia, the US and the EU could get together and agree on an international rescue plan, but since the US and EU consider that they are playing a zero sum game against Russia, no western politician will ever openly advocate for a real collaboration with Putin’s Mordor. Putin recently declared that “why does everything revolve around the Nord Stream — 2? They want to make Russia pay for their geopolitical project “Ukraine”, that’s all. In fact, everything is quite primitive, everything is simple, we have long understood this, but this is the world in which we live”. Needless to say, Russia won’t agree to foot the bill for this disastrous experiment russophobic ethnogenesis, if only because she simply does not have the kind of reserves to pay for such a huge program. At most, Russia will continue to help the Donbass, and even in this case Russia (or the LDNR republics) could consider demanding reparations from Kiev and its western sponsors. Again, knowing how western arbitration courts work, that won’t happen either.

I don’t think that anybody seriously believes that the Donbass or Crimea will ever agree to return under Kiev’s rule, not de facto and not de jure. That is a given. Neither do I believe that the rump Ukraine is a viable entity. The only conclusion I can come to is this: a breakup of the Ukraine might be inevitable. In fact, such a breakup might even be desirable for all parties (except the russophobic warmongering ruling classes of the AngloZionist Empire who want to destroy Russia at any and all cost).

As Patrick Armstrong noted, the Saker forget to mention a nuclear disaster.

Hole wrote:As Patrick Armstrong noted, the Saker forget to mention a nuclear disaster.

Indeed the Banderite chimps in Khuyiv are one step away from several Chernobyls.

Rodion_Romanovic wrote:Interesting (and long) article from the saker

http://thesaker.is/the-ukraines-many-ticking-time-bombs/
I am posting the introduction and the conclusions

the Saker wrote:While the Ukraine has mostly been out of the news, there were bigger stories out there, things have gone disastrously wrong under “Ze” (Zelenskii) and the Ukraine is now looking at several time bombs which could explode at any minute. Here is a partial list of problems which the Ze administration will have to deal with in 2021: (in no particular order)

The strengthening of the internal opposition to Ze’s rule
The COVID pandemic, the vaccine scandal and the crumbling Ukrainian infrastructure
The crackdown on free speech
The persecution of opponents inside and even outside the Ukraine
The (limited) rise of (putatively pro-Russian) OPZZh party
The sharp rise in European rhetoric against Russia which the Ze admin will want to match and cater to
The hardening of the positions of the LDNR
A further increase in US/NATO saber rattling and provocations
The regime in Kiev openly planning for a war against Russia

(...)

Conclusion:

The Ukraine is facing a range of major problems which are unlikely to remain contained to the territory of the Ukraine. Things like crime, or a pandemic, or the rule of the mob are very hard to contain. Sooner or later these inevitably bleed over the border to the neighboring country which then, in turn, has to face the same threats. In theory, Russia, the US and the EU could get together and agree on an international rescue plan, but since the US and EU consider that they are playing a zero sum game against Russia, no western politician will ever openly advocate for a real collaboration with Putin’s Mordor. Putin recently declared that “why does everything revolve around the Nord Stream — 2? They want to make Russia pay for their geopolitical project “Ukraine”, that’s all. In fact, everything is quite primitive, everything is simple, we have long understood this, but this is the world in which we live”. Needless to say, Russia won’t agree to foot the bill for this disastrous experiment russophobic ethnogenesis, if only because she simply does not have the kind of reserves to pay for such a huge program. At most, Russia will continue to help the Donbass, and even in this case Russia (or the LDNR republics) could consider demanding reparations from Kiev and its western sponsors. Again, knowing how western arbitration courts work, that won’t happen either.

I don’t think that anybody seriously believes that the Donbass or Crimea will ever agree to return under Kiev’s rule, not de facto and not de jure. That is a given. Neither do I believe that the rump Ukraine is a viable entity. The only conclusion I can come to is this: a breakup of the Ukraine might be inevitable. In fact, such a breakup might even be desirable for all parties (except the russophobic warmongering ruling classes of the AngloZionist Empire who want to destroy Russia at any and all cost).

I'd add to that the utilities bills having been raised again at the start of this year, have now become unbearable for much of the population, as well as the stepped-up Ukrainization policies leading to a sharp rise in dissent. Many in the east who voted for Zelensky are now accusing him of betrayal.

flamming_python wrote:

Rodion_Romanovic wrote:Interesting (and long) article from the saker

http://thesaker.is/the-ukraines-many-ticking-time-bombs/
I am posting the introduction and the conclusions

the Saker wrote:While the Ukraine has mostly been out of the news, there were bigger stories out there, things have gone disastrously wrong under “Ze” (Zelenskii) and the Ukraine is now looking at several time bombs which could explode at any minute. Here is a partial list of problems which the Ze administration will have to deal with in 2021: (in no particular order)

The strengthening of the internal opposition to Ze’s rule
The COVID pandemic, the vaccine scandal and the crumbling Ukrainian infrastructure
The crackdown on free speech
The persecution of opponents inside and even outside the Ukraine
The (limited) rise of (putatively pro-Russian) OPZZh party
The sharp rise in European rhetoric against Russia which the Ze admin will want to match and cater to
The hardening of the positions of the LDNR
A further increase in US/NATO saber rattling and provocations
The regime in Kiev openly planning for a war against Russia

(...)

Conclusion:

The Ukraine is facing a range of major problems which are unlikely to remain contained to the territory of the Ukraine. Things like crime, or a pandemic, or the rule of the mob are very hard to contain. Sooner or later these inevitably bleed over the border to the neighboring country which then, in turn, has to face the same threats. In theory, Russia, the US and the EU could get together and agree on an international rescue plan, but since the US and EU consider that they are playing a zero sum game against Russia, no western politician will ever openly advocate for a real collaboration with Putin’s Mordor. Putin recently declared that “why does everything revolve around the Nord Stream — 2? They want to make Russia pay for their geopolitical project “Ukraine”, that’s all. In fact, everything is quite primitive, everything is simple, we have long understood this, but this is the world in which we live”. Needless to say, Russia won’t agree to foot the bill for this disastrous experiment russophobic ethnogenesis, if only because she simply does not have the kind of reserves to pay for such a huge program. At most, Russia will continue to help the Donbass, and even in this case Russia (or the LDNR republics) could consider demanding reparations from Kiev and its western sponsors. Again, knowing how western arbitration courts work, that won’t happen either.

I don’t think that anybody seriously believes that the Donbass or Crimea will ever agree to return under Kiev’s rule, not de facto and not de jure. That is a given. Neither do I believe that the rump Ukraine is a viable entity. The only conclusion I can come to is this: a breakup of the Ukraine might be inevitable. In fact, such a breakup might even be desirable for all parties (except the russophobic warmongering ruling classes of the AngloZionist Empire who want to destroy Russia at any and all cost).

I'd add to that the utilities bills having been raised again at the start of this year, have now become unbearable for much of the population, as well as the stepped-up Ukrainization policies leading to a sharp rise in dissent. Many in the east who voted for Zelensky are now accusing him of betrayal.

How much does utilities cost now?

Electricity bill pretty much doubled this year from what I have read...

NATO influence growing.

ZOKA
@200_zoka
·
15h
Today Ukrainian army shell Jelenovka with 60mm mortars.
As Russian television says with NATO standard grenades.......

Therefore, Kiev hopes that after the government's announcement of its intention to restore long-lost control over the Russian border in Donbas, Ukraine's relations with European countries will significantly strengthen.

Sounds like they are doing this to improve relations with the EU rather than any attempt to fulfil their commitments and a solution to the situation...

With such poor intentions I doubt there will be any positive progress...

Today Ukrainian army shell Jelenovka with 60mm mortars.
As Russian television says with NATO standard grenades.......

The Soviets never used 60mm calibre weapons... if it was a T-14 tank that was captured that would be a smoking gun, but it seems only Russian interference in this conflict is a problem... HATO influence is part of the solution...

Good articles by Ischenko about the current, increasingly dangerous situation in Ukraine. They are long but very insightful:

https://ukraina.ru/opinion/20210218/1030596339.html
https://ukraina.ru/opinion/20210220/1030625943.html

In Dnepropetrovsk Gennady Gufman, Vice President of the Regional Council,  invented the "Eastern Ukrainian language": it is incredibly similar to Russian with a Ukrainian accent.  This bypasses the Ukrainian law which prohibits the use of the Russian language

https://rusvesna.su/news/1614593997

The situation with the forcible implantation of "sovereign language" in the Russian-speaking environment in Ukraine takes on the features of a tragicomedy.
While ordinary citizens can easily be kicked out of their jobs after being attacked by enraged “patriots”, politicians are looking for ways to avoid breaking their language with an inconvenient “language”.
This time, the attention of society and the media was attracted by a curious incident at a meeting of the regional council in Dnepropetrovsk - in the very city in which the brave  bartender was fired for speaking Russian and claiming that “Dnepr is a Russian city”.
The deputy chairman of the regional council, Gennady Gufman, decided to go for a trick and said that he was addressing the deputies "in the Eastern Ukrainian language."

It was hard not to notice that this, hitherto unknown, language was incredibly similar to Russian with some Ukrainian accent.

Ukrainian Diplomats Arrested For Attempting To Smuggle Gold Into EU

Kiev Continues Censoring Opposition, As Eastern Ukraine Escalation Nears Critical Mass

Kiev Dead Set On Escalating Eastern Ukraine

Added 4th March:
Chaos In Ukraine Is Making An Epic Comeback

There are increasing mutterings that the Ukies are moving heavier gear up to the front. This is the latest

Canthama1 Retweeted
Geo_monitor
@colonelhomsi
·
8h
ukrainian side began to transport massive artillery to the Donbass, in particular, we are talking about 152 mm Howitzers "Msta-S" and anti-tank weapons..


This is a n English speaking journo reporting day to day life from within Donbas. https://twitter.com/DeanoBeano1

I'm a huge Putin fan historically. But I'm starting to wonder, what the hell is he playing at?

1)The Russian majority of the Ukrainain area are clearly being persecuted and attemptedly brainwashed.
2)The most recent incarnation of this garbage started in 2014 with the American coup.
We were all told "Russian soft power will win". Has it happened since Georgia in 2008? What about Armenia which was one of the 5 Eurasian Union states?Even Belarus which was a "foregone conclusion" for reintegrationw ith Russia, is dicking around, despite no real pro-West inclination. Soft power hasn't happened, atleast not so far. It just encourages America to sow more and more evil.
3)What has Russia done back to America or the other Nazis in the EU?
Its like someone blocking the punches of an asssaillant, and copping a few direct hits. Does the attacker stop? Nope the attacker just thinks he's dealing with an idiot or a coward.
Why hasn't Russia supported the blacks, the Hispanics, the Red Indians, Hawaians and armed them in their "struggle for freedom"? Why hasn't Russia supported the Scottish, Welsh, Basques, Catalans etc against the EU's main powers?
Russia hasn't done a SINGLE THING back.

Can someone in the know, or with a good idea, tell me what Russia plans to do here?
Otherwise maybe its time to hand the Kremlin to Zhirinovsky who would happily bomb the Banderites to smithereens.
Its a very sad state of affairs. And I say that as someone who's paternal side are all from Kiev and the Ukrainian area (Russian not hohol BTW).

Firebird wrote:I'm a huge Putin fan historically. But I'm starting to wonder, what the hell is he playing at?

1)The Russian majority of the Ukrainain area are clearly being persecuted and attemptedly brainwashed.
2)The most recent incarnation of this garbage started in 2014 with the American coup.
We were all told "Russian soft power will win". Has it happened since Georgia in 2008? What about Armenia which was one of the 5 Eurasian Union states?Even Belarus which was a "foregone conclusion" for reintegrationw ith Russia, is dicking around, despite no real pro-West inclination. Soft power hasn't happened, atleast not so far. It just encourages America to sow more and more evil.
3)What has Russia done back to America or the other Nazis in the EU?
Its like someone blocking the punches of an asssaillant, and copping a few direct hits. Does the attacker stop? Nope the attacker just thinks he's dealing with an idiot or a coward.
Why hasn't Russia supported the blacks, the Hispanics, the Red Indians, Hawaians and armed them in their "struggle for freedom"? Why hasn't Russia supported the Scottish, Welsh, Basques, Catalans etc against the EU's main powers?
Russia hasn't done a SINGLE THING back.

Can someone in the know, or with a good idea, tell me what Russia plans to do here?
Otherwise maybe its time to hand the Kremlin to Zhiranovsky who would happily bomb the Banderites to smithereens.
Its a very sad state of affairs. And I say that as someone who's paternal side are all from Kiev and the Ukrainian area (Russian not hohol BTW).

So what do you propose? That Russia invade this toilet and "save" it? That sounds nice, but in reality it is a nightmare
for Russia. It would have to sink on the order of $50 billion per year to prop up Ukraine's collapsed economy. If it did not
spend any money on Ukraine's economy, it would just enable the anti-Russian 40% to argue that Russia is a big bad occupant.

The current policy on Ukraine is ideal. It is succeeding in fully discrediting the anti-Russian elements in the country who
are utterly failing to deliver on their promised "prosperity without the Russian yoke". And here is where the critical detail
resides, it is up to the Ukrainian majority who are alleged to be pro-Russian, to clean their own asses. I see little evidence
of true pro-Russian sentiments in Banderastan. There are just people who think that they can restore the old times. These
people are not Russia's real friends. They are leeches who never tried to stop the anti-Russian elements even before the
collapse of the USSR.

Keeping out of Ukraine is also putting that failed state in NATzO's lap. You can hear NATzO officials whine about how Russia
should support Ukraine for its own good. That was stated by at least one German official. Then you have the farce over
Nord Stream 2, which is clearly a pathetic attempt to provide Ukraine welfare at the expense of Russia by forcing Russian
gas transit through Ukraine. NATzO has shown Ukrainians that it can't put its money where its mouth is. Seriously, Russia
is supposed to feed enemy Ukraine billions of dollars per year, but Ukraine's bestest new pals in NATzO can't even give it
some IMF loans? For real?

It seems China is doing a better job in pacifying and promoting its influence among its neighbors, this is despite decades of American dominance in the region. China has successfully persuaded South Korea to drop deployment of THAAD, have installed American skeptic leader in the Philippines, maintained cordial relations among most ASEAN countries, and won the support of Islamic countries in its Xinjiang policies. The only neighbors that seem to continue to hold an unfriendly stance against China is Japan, India and Vietnam.

As in the case of Russia and Ukraine, I still hold the view that Russia needs to seize back its territory that is currently under the occupation of the artificial state of Ukraine. I think there is still hope that people in Ukraine can be reeducated to accept Russian as their real ethnicity, despite the current negative views of its population towards Russia.

I would like to use this 2018 US popularity survey as an example



On the second figure we can see that Vietnam has the highest Positive public opinion towards the US. Now how is this even possible? Did the Vietnamese people completely forgotten the atrocities that have been committed by the Americans to their country?



So, if public opinions can be swayed with the right amount of propaganda, then changing Ukrainian perception of Russia can be achieved.

China is seen as the rich future. Most idiots out there still think Russia is poor. You are describing the same effect that the USA
exhibits. Its power is all about morons thinking it is super rich and thus super powerful.

Russia today is actually better in key metrics than the USA and China.

kvs wrote:China is seen as the rich future.   Most idiots out there still think Russia is poor.   You are describing the same effect that the USA
exhibits.   Its power is all about morons thinking it is super rich and thus super powerful.  

Russia today is actually better in key metrics than the USA and China.  

True and unlike the US, Russia is not trying to perpetuate its past glory (the 50s and 60s) by borrowing more and more.