THE BRINKMANSHIP that has been played out in recent months over the future and fate of Ukraine seems destined to come to a head, with news Russian President Vladimir Putin has sought parliamentary approval to send troop deployments from the Russian army into Ukraine; such a move would seem to cross a red line marked out by Western governments, and any armed conflict could easily spiral out of control.
This really is a very short post only this morning, although I will post on the subject again later in the day as need be; the situation in deeply divided, conflicted Ukraine — split between seeking its future with the West and the European Union, or being pulled back into Russian control and patronage — is charting a dangerous new course today as Russian President Vladimir Putin seeks to use force to “safeguard Russian interests:” a pursuit that could easily be a euphemism for God only knows what.
Clearly, we haven’t covered off on this issue in this column, although I have been following it closely; readers will know that I have periodically faced greater constraints than usual thus far this year on account of my business activities, and it has unfortunately not necessarily been possible to pay every issue I wish to discuss the attention it might deserve.
Even so, I think everyone knows the drill in Ukraine: an uprising against a pro-Russian leader who sought to defy popular will and take his country back toward Russia rather than in the Western direction his people wished to head in has brought Ukraine to a virtual state of civil war: that President, Viktor Yanukovych, is currently being sheltered in Russia following his overthrow in a popular revolt, and Russia refuses to recognise the legitimacy of either the interim government nor the validity of new national elections that are in the process of being scheduled.
It has been postulated by many that Putin — for years harbouring a vision of a return to Russian prominence as a world power, even a superpower — may use the crisis in Ukraine as the platform from which to launch an audacious bid to subdue Ukraine and bring it back to the fold as part of his dream to recreate the Soviet Union.
World leaders and key figures in their governments — from US President Barack Obama, to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, to British Foreign Secretary William Hague — have, in the past few days, issued increasingly strident warnings to Putin that any invasion of Ukraine by Russia (“euphemistically phrased as a “failure to respect Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty,” and similar formulations) will elicit costs, consequences, and would amount to extremely dangerous military activism that could result in unforeseen consequences.
Obviously, it doesn’t take Einstein to deduce the chillingly clear message behind such utterances.
To date, Putin has failed to publicly acknowledge or respond to any of these warning shots across his bows; on the contrary — and in developments that come as no real surprise — he has simply gone about his business, plotting and scheming and preparing to do exactly as he likes.
I wanted to get a quick post in on the Ukraine situation (at a tick after 2am, Melbourne time) because things now seem to be moving more quickly; unfortunately — packed with penicillin and still only half-recovered from the nasty I was hit with this week, courtesy of my children’s day care disease disseminators — the option to sit up even later to follow developments simply isn’t open to me. For once in my life, I need sleep this week — even with the ominous events in the Black Sea that are unfolding going on.
As promised, I will revisit this issue later in the day if there’s anything exceptional to comment on, and from here on we’ll keep a closer eye on what transpires in Ukraine, and how Russia — and the Western powers increasingly ranged against it — respond to them.
In the meantime, readers may like to access this link from the online portal of Britain’s Telegraph newspaper, which is being updated in real time, every couple of minutes, with the latest developments in Ukraine — and with particular emphasis (for now at least) on the Russian President’s threat to send his military into the country to advance the Russian agenda.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
