While his Vodka may be good I am not sure that he will ever invite a definite supporter of Chechnyan and Dagestani Independence. If Russia breaks apart and Turkey takes over the Krim, there of course will be shots, but then a peaceful happy future. Chechnya, Dagestan and the Republic of Azerbaijan may then decide also to join the Turkish Republic

You were asking about corruption (in eastern ucraine). I was showing, at the very best, huge conflicts of interest in US government in an attempt to demonstrate that when it comes to corruption, perhaps, we should focus more on the west rather than the east.

How is that a conflict of interest? It looks more like an alignment of interests. Board of directors are hired for the value they can bring into a corporation, not the value they take out.

Also, no balance of facts to Yanukovich's 180 degree turn to Russia, after first promising the people to work towards EU, accepting EU funds, and then despotically betraying his people? This is the democracy you claim the West overthrew, right?

So you do not believe it is good to investigate people who take from the Russian humanitarian aid convoys and then sell in the marketplace instead of distributing for free?
You do not have much sympathy for the people who still try to live in Donetsk and around!

In short, YANUKOVICH was/is a crook

It is called petty crime and there will always be profiteers YES, people in East Ukraine are suffering and are to suffer in the future to come

Russia has lost Ukraine but stolen Crimea.

According to the USSR constitution, Ukraine and Russia were two different Repulics BUT many Russians still see Russia in the old borders

Another view of the situation (and possibly food for thought).

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/ar...armongers.html

In short, any Ukrainian politician in office was/is a crook.

I understand that an empire subject might reason like in this article, but from my perspective it is all based on wrong assumptions.
His assumptions are that whole nations are pawns to benefit the owner. Mine are that people and nations must be free to prosper.
His argumentation could as well justify slave trade or colonialism. It is calling right the wrong.
And the author calls all wrong reasons regarding the causes of inflation in Russia - it its economy wasn't so indebted in the first place there would be no problem. And why is it so indebted? Because these loaned billions were, among others, spent in most fancy neighborhoods of London.
That looks like a Russian propaganda piece and it is just that.

I've got some unicorns for sale. Which colour would you prefer?

Like most articles on this topic from all sides it is very biased.

About "calls for war", I heard Putin talk several times about nuclear weapons whereas from the Western side the talk is all about diplomacy and sanctions.

The comparison between the Scottish referendum and Ukraine is not fair. Scotland was/is part of the UK whereas Ukraine was not part of Russia for 60 years.
Ireland would be a better example but who would care if they voted to join Russia?

I do not see the Western actions as "saving Ukraine" but more to stop Russia doing the same to other ex-Soviet republics.

Also I find the argument that Ukraine was always part of Russia and has many Russians to be weak, imagine the reactions if Britain marched back into India or Hong Kong, Egypt or Baluchistan.

I also have a problem with the portrayal of NATO as an occupying power; they do not control foreign policy and NATO countries are free to act against NATO policies. Example Turkish support of ISIS.

'Tis funny that the article tries to picture together Russia and Middle East - I actually could draw a different parallel - similarly to some strains of political culture in ME, also in Russia there is a particular variety - see Putin’s Kleptocracy by Karen Dawisha. It is basically a class society that hails from czarist times. That's why its rule is so despised and why it is suffocates its own people.

The claims of the article for helping Russia to move over a self inflicted crises is even more bizarre as it is exactly the wealth they accumulated during high-oil prices period that gave them the leeway to move into Georgia, Transnistria and now Ukraine. They couldn't do it when Yugoslavia broke up because they had no many. In the same way the eastern Europe could get out from their grip when they collapsed in the eighties - again due to low oil prices. Is effectively the article author arguing the iron curtain what actually fine? Let him go to hell.

The article is all wrong. What's interesting is also that some authors in German press write in similar tone. It is dangerous. Not to Germany or UK (directly), but to the Eastern Europe for sure. And the only think I might say is that either the Western Europe can have this Eastern Europe as a loyal ally, or, were it too fell into grip of Russia again, a black hole.

only slightly exaggerated

I've got it! Please name a country which performs nuclear and rocket tests to get food aid and money to survive the next winter?

Pro-Russian rebels control broad swathes of eastern Ukraine and a fragile ceasefire with government forces could end at any time and return the region to deadly conflict.

Ukraine's Western allies accuse Russia of sending in troops and armour to help the rebels - an allegation repeatedly denied by the government in Moscow.

Some 4,000 people have already lost their lives in a crisis that few saw coming.

Will war return ?

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Sanctions and low oil prices made Russia switch to plan B - shape Ukraine into a federal country where Russia controlled republics would hold the whole country from "Westernization".

Last Friday Ukraine’s energy ministry temporarily cut off power supplies to Crimea for the second time in a week.

Ukraine also has suspended all train and bus services to Crimea. The suspension of bus and train services has created a Ukrainian transport blockade -- Ukraine has already banned sea and air traffic with Crimea. It is still serviced by Russian airlines.

The reason for the transport suspension is said to be the Russian military build-up on the border in Crimea. The Ukrainian official said that they worry that Russia will attack Ukraine from Crimea on the New Year's night. What the train services have to do with this is unclear, maybe the Russians were planning to attack Ukraine by purchasing the tickets and getting on the train? But the situation is getting more serious..

By the way the US is taking safety measures as well -- the US flights are not allowed over Simferopol and Dnepropetrovsk from December 29
https://www.federalregister.gov/arti...sk-ukdv-flight

About "Ukraine also has suspended all train and bus services to Crimea."
So far as I understand they were little used in the past few months?

It is not only Crimea that is suffering from blackouts also other parts of Ukraine.

As I wrote in this post, Russia has a problem to keep Crimea supplied with fuel and energy over the winter.
This part of the Crimea takeover was not well thought out.

Best solution for Russia would be to capture a land bridge to Crimea but who knows what sort of hell that would unleash?