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Today, the dangers of military escalation are beyond description.
What is now happening in Ukraine has serious geopolitical implications. It could lead us into a World War III scenario.
It is important that a peace process be initiated with a view to preventing escalation.
Global Research condemns Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
A Bilateral Peace Agreement is required.
Wars are never a solution to resolve a conflict. They only escalate misery and the killing of innocent people. But the West should not hypocritically forget when it condemns Russia, that it accepted, even supported, or at best, remained silent, when the US directly or via proxy invaded and devastated — unprovoked – Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen, Syria, Libya, Yugoslavia, Haiti, Somalia, Vietnam and many more…
One might argue that Russia is fighting for self-preservation, after 8 years of relentless US/NATO-led western aggressions since February 22, 2014 (the US-organized Maidan coup and massacre against a democratically-elected Ukrainian president and his regime), with steady threats of establishing yet another NATO base on Moscow’s doorsteps.
War is not the Solution. But What is? Negotiations
President Putin had numerous times proposed talks, negotiations and set out Russia’s conditions, the first and simplest one is NO NATO base in Ukraine. The current US Biden Administration as well as all the previous ones have rejected that simple condition.
Just imagine, Russia setting up a military base in Mexico or in a Central American Country or, God forbid, in the Caribbean!
What has the West done for Ukraine other than organized the bloody Maidan Color Revolution in February 2014? Nothing.
The West never had an interest in Ukraine other than using and abusing this richest of all former Soviet Republics for its own Western/NATO purposes. Building one or several NATO bases on Ukraine’s grounds to get closer to Moscow’s doorsteps and exploiting the countries enormously rich natural resources and her fertile agricultural land.
Maybe this latest crisis will be the trigger for Ukraine’s true leaders to see the light and depart from its ties to NATO and assert its political independence.
After eight years of western abuse, stopping and reflecting may yield plenty of not even far-fetched reasons for such a move.
Not for nothing Ukraine was called the Soviet Union’s Bred Basket.
In addition to making Ukraine as a key NATO base in front of Russia’s doorsteps, Ukraine may also be useful for Europe’s food supply and territory for minerals and other natural resources exploitation.
Belonging to “The West” seemed to be an easy sell to the Kiev government, embedded by Nazi elements.
With the future prospective to become a European Union member, and, in the meantime being protected by NATO from evil Russia.
Since the Maidan coup, the vast majority of Ukrainians got poorer and poorer and more and more indebted, and so did the entire Ukraine, and ever increasingly dependent on western lies and promises, thereby losing ever more of her sovereignty.
For eight years the West has used Ukraine to provoke Russia, to threaten Russia, and within Ukraine, especially the eastern Donbas Region, the Donetsk (pop. 2.0 million) and Luhansk (pop. 1.5 million) Provinces, representing about 8% of Ukraine’s total population (41.65 million, 2021). More than 90% of the Donbas population is Russian.
Ever since the 2014 western planned and executed Maidan coup – remember Mme. Nuland, Deputy Secretary of State …”F*ck the EU”? – Donbas declared independence from the Nazi-dominated Kiev government. The region’s independence was however not recognized by anyone, until on 22 February 2022, when President Putin passed a Resolution through Duma (the Russian Parliament) to officially recognize the Donbas region as independent from the Kiev Government.
This was ultimately a move to save lives. The western NATO countries armed Ukraine and provided them with “technical military advisors”. All for the west’s own purpose, none to help the Ukrainian population that was cut off by Russia, after having allowed and facilitated the western led Maidan coup in February 2014. Russia’s intervention was a natural consequence to Kiev’s missile and rockets aggression on the Donbass region that resulted in several casualties.
After numerous warnings and failed attempts to dialogue with Kiev, Russia launched its ‘special military operation’ with the stated aim to “demilitarize” Ukraine on February 24. It means primarily, no NATO base, EVER. No western military intervention in Ukraine. Period.
The western-funded Kiev puppet government did not comply and was not interested in a dialogue. To the contrary, its unprovoked aggressions towards Donbas escalated to the point, where a Russian action was necessary to hopefully prevent an all-out war.
Similarly, in May 2020 western / NATO organized infiltrations in Belarus attempted, but failed, to prevent President Alexander Lukashenko from running again for reelection. The idea was to replace Lukashenko with a pro-western leader to gain access to Belarus for yet another NATO base at Russia’s doorstep. Despite all the high-paid propaganda through corrupted western news media several months of attempts and protests failed. President Lukashenko was reelected in August 2020.
In Ukraine, western aggression through the Nazi-led puppet Kiev Government amassed some 150,000 Kiev-Ukrainian troops at the eastern Russian and Donbass border. But western media reported only on the Russian response to post some 100,000 troops in the area, to be prepared, if necessary for an intervention in the Russian populated Donbas area.
“Recognition of the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics and ratification of treaties on friendship, cooperation, and mutual assistance should stop the slaughter, the death of our citizens and compatriots living there,” the speaker of the lower house, Mr. Vyacheslav Volodin, wrote in his Telegram channel.
The Kiev shelling of Donbas targets continued after Moscow’s declaring recognition of the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR), had caused at least four deaths and many injured, plus destruction of the infrastructure. It was a stark provocation of the Bear.
Clearly, without Russia’s intervention, the situation for Donbas was fast becoming a humanitarian crisis.
This was the moment the West was waiting for to scream about Russia’s intervention in Ukraine, as usual, of course, without providing any precedents to this event. The western anti-Russia lie-propaganda was and still is – now ever more – running on overdrive and on steroids.
An entire western sanctions program has been put in place, led of course, as always by Washington, the zombie-empire, followed by its European puppets, who seemed rather wanting to commit suicide, than recognizing that it is high time to see reality and ally with the east, with Eurasia, the huge contiguous continent, where the future lays.
The sanctions are sheer propaganda for the ignorant western population. For example, blocking President Putin’s and Foreign Minister Lavrov’s assets in the west. It’s ridiculous to even think that they have assets in the west. Or to block them from traveling to the US. Why would they want to travel to the heartland of their aggressors?
The latest sanction is – which is still being considered at the time of this writing – taking Russia off SWFT. SWIFT is the privately out of Belgium managed international monetary transfer program. If the west is hesitant to make that decision, it is for their own interests. For example, how would Russia be able and willing to settle outstanding obligations to western creditors or suppliers?
Russia has longstanding and close relationships with China and with other members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) which controls about 30% of the world’s GDP. Other than that, foreseeing this type of ultimate western “sanctions” aggression, Russia has fully dedollarized her economy and reserves.
Russia’s central bank has reoriented her economic activities towards the east, primarily China and the SCO; and in a larger sense throughout Eurasia, comprising about 55 million km2 – with some 70% of the world’s population and controlling about two-thirds of the world’s GDP. In addition, Eurasian countries are the first beneficiaries of the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). See this.
One of the most incredible sanctions, includes the stop or non-acceptance by Germany under pressure from Washington, of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline from Russia to Germany which is close to 70% dependent on Russian gas for her energy requirements.
Incredible, because Germany accepts the imposition of such Washington / NATO imposed sanctions.
Germany may suffer at least temporary energy shortages and eventually be supplied with gas from the US at about double the price and from possibly other sources.
Russia, on the other hand has plenty of takers for her gas, not least China, with whom there are already vast energy trade agreements in place.
Back to the Ukraine conflict, President Putin has offered and maintains his offer to negotiate and talk with Ukraine’s leadership.
As reported by RT (26 February), the latest news is that after having first declined the Russian offer, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday (25.2.2022) that he was ready to sit down for talks with Russia in order to end hostilities between the countries.
The same day, President Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters that Moscow was ready to hold talks in Minsk, Belarus. He later claimed that the Ukrainian side first offered to move the meeting to Warsaw, Poland, and then stopped responding.
Russian-Ukrainian relations went downhill after the 2014 coup in Kiev. The Russian leader said Moscow aims to defend the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, as well as to carry out “demilitarization and denazification” of Ukraine. President Putin further asserted that Ukraine must never join NATO, whose military infrastructure Moscow sees as a threat..
An interesting and logical thought is – what if a sovereign thinking, forward looking Kiev Government would decide to “surrender” – meaning to rejoin the Russian orbit?
After all, it is obvious that being associated with the east and being an ally of Russia, offers almost an illimited array of opportunities for growth and development, for recovery after the 8 years under the wests exploitative knell. The west would and could never offer Ukraine anything of the sort.
Just considering the measures and actions, including military, Russia is taking to protect Donbas from western-led Kiev aggressions, an enlightened Ukrainian Government might opt for the promising future associating with Russia and Eurasia, with the opportunity to benefit from the Belt and Road, rather than with an almost dead empire and its European allies.
Just a thought to reflect about which will also be to the benefit of the European Project which is being undermined by Washington.
A peaceful solution with a bright future.
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Peter Koenig is a geopolitical analyst and a former Senior Economist at the World Bank and the World Health Organization (WHO), where he has worked for over 30 years on water and environment around the world. He lectures at universities in the US, Europe and South America. He writes regularly for online journals and is the author of Implosion – An Economic Thriller about War, Environmental Destruction and Corporate Greed; and co-author of Cynthia McKinney’s book “When China Sneezes: From the Coronavirus Lockdown to the Global Politico-Economic Crisis” (Clarity Press – November 1, 2020)
He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG). He is also is a non-resident Senior Fellow of the Chongyang Institute of Renmin University, Beijing.
