Ukraine's European Revolution?

[Syt]

Interfax reports Russian Defense Minister says photos showing RUS military forces in #Crimea are "complete nonsense" and are a "provocation"

"There are no German troops occupying Paris! These are French self defense forces. The uniforms? Why, anyone can go into a shop and buy a Wehrmacht uniform!"

[Tamas]

Infuriating, especially since of course the moment an Ukrainian soldier would fire on a "non-Russian" one, the Russian tanks would start rolling in to answer for the "aggression".

I think it was in a Hungarian comment I read that the Russians may very well be setting a very dangerous precedent, making a fashion out of unidentified military units meddling in wherever.

[Syt]

It only makes sense in areas where you have somewhat plausible deniability, though. Russian speaking goons showing up in a predominantly Russian language area? Somewhat plausible.

Russian speaking soldiers showing up in Northern Turkey, Italy or Finland? Not so much.

[Syt]

US secretary of state John Kerry told reporters that "regrettably" Russia had not appeared for a meeting of the so-called Budapest agreement group, which involves Washington, London, Moscow and Kiev.

The Budapest agreement group was created to assure Kiev's security after it renounced nuclear weapons in the 1990s and the US and Britain had hoped to bring the two disputing parties together.

UK foreign secretary William Hague said that he will make every effort to bring Russia and Ukraine ministers together later today.

The Kiev Post's Christopher Miller has posted a video from Sinferopol in Crimea where he says a group of more than 50 men with Russian flags and shields who had gathered to block a Ukrainian military base attacked a group of peaceful women who came to protest their action and held signs reading "Love, peace for all" and "Do you love Ukraine? Stop this!"

He writes:

The men tore the handmade signs into shreds before shoving the women and some of their husbands and sons into oncoming traffic. Meanwhile, police stood nearby, doing and saying nothing.

    Some of the men attempted to break the cameras of journalists and shoved some of them into the street with the group of women. One man shoved a Kiev Post journalist into the hood of an oncoming car. Asked by the Kiev Post why he had done nothing, despite observing the action, a police officer said only: "We don't have the authority to investigate this."

[Syt]

http://en.itar-tass.com/world/722215

OSLO, March 5. /ITAR-TASS/. Russia's President Vladimir Putin has been nominated for Nobel Peace Prize.

Ok, someone's seriously trolling there ...

[Caliga]

Impossible to tell with those Nobel Peace fuckers.

[Syt]

http://en.itar-tass.com/russia/722188

Shoigu: Media photos of military hardware with Russian numbers in Crimea a provocation

Russia's defense minister also stated that people in military uniform without any insignia are not linked with Russia army at all

NOVO-OGAREVO, March 05. /ITAR-TASS/. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu named photos of military hardware with Russian numbers in Crimea posted in media as an act of provocation.

"Certainly, this is an act of provocation," Shoigu replied to a question how he comments on such media reports.

Shoigu also noted that there was no information that people blocking Ukrainian military facilities in Crimea had received modern weaponry, including Tigr and Rys personnel armored carriers. "I do not have any idea about this," the minister said.

In his words, people in military uniform without any insignia are not linked with Russia army at all. "It is absolutely false," Shoigu said. In reply to a journalist's question whether there were Russian servicemen among these people without any insignia in Crimea, he said, "Absolutely, not. There were none of them."

All a big media hoax, then?

[Tamas]

Russian media is now spreading that the leaked phone call between Catherine Ashton and the Estonian FM included that the Maidan protestors hired Estonian-trained snipers to shoot at both the police and the protestors.

You know when Iran or North Korea goes full retard it is amusing. But when Russia with it's thousands of nukes does the same, it is kind of worrying.

[The Larch]

Apparently the EU is now offering Ukraine over 11 billion euros over the next two years in a reform package deal.

[grumbler]

This blatant and self-evidently doomed Russian attempt at disinformation is probably the most worrisome development of the last ten days or so, IMO.  The Baghdad Bob approach hasn't worked for anyone in half a century, and the Russians must know it.  I can only conclude that these transparent lies are uttered by people who fear Putin's reaction if they don't go through the motions.

[Tamas]

Let's summarize the last few days:

http://coub.com/view/29wr7m0

[Syt]

We cannot independently verify, but there are reports in Russia that the snipers who shot at protesters and police in Kiev were hired by Maidan leaders, according to a leaked phone conversation between the EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton and Estonian foreign affairs minister. Russia Today, the Kremlin-funded news channel made the claim. Baroness Ashton had no comment when approached by Bruno Waterfield, our correspondent in Brussels.

"There is now stronger and stronger understanding that behind the snipers, it was not Yanukovich, but it was somebody from the new coalition," Urmas Paet said during the conversation.

"I think we do want to investigate. I mean, I didn't pick that up, that's interesting. Gosh," Baroness Ashton answered.

[derspiess]

http://www.interpretermag.com/ukraine-liveblog-day-16-russian-provocations/

1450 GMT: Call this the economic H-bomb: Russian lawmakers are drafting a law that will allow them to nationalize the assets of US or European companies if the US or EU pass sanctions against Russia.
This is a draft law, and it may or may not come to fruition, but the fact that it is being debated is chilling. For anyone downplaying the severity of this crisis or the breach between the West and Russia, even the whisper of such a law in the Duma should put things intro perspective.

And we know that this administration has a history of nationalizing the assets of oligarchs and businesses that cross its path, so the threat needs to be taken seriously, even if, for now, it's just a threat.

[Tamas]

They go right ahead and go all Venezuela on the world. See where that gets them.

[Malthus]

http://www.interpretermag.com/ukraine-liveblog-day-16-russian-provocations/

1450 GMT: Call this the economic H-bomb: Russian lawmakers are drafting a law that will allow them to nationalize the assets of US or European companies if the US or EU pass sanctions against Russia.
This is a draft law, and it may or may not come to fruition, but the fact that it is being debated is chilling. For anyone downplaying the severity of this crisis or the breach between the West and Russia, even the whisper of such a law in the Duma should put things intro perspective.

And we know that this administration has a history of nationalizing the assets of oligarchs and businesses that cross its path, so the threat needs to be taken seriously, even if, for now, it's just a threat.

I'm sure that Russia would enjoy all the manifold benefits of economic autarky in the modern world.