5 March 2014

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, speaking in Spain before meeting with John Kerry, warned against Western support of what Moscow views as a Ukrainian coup, saying that could encourage government takeovers elsewhere.

Yet, the interim government in Ukraine has never proclaimed itself than more than just that - an interim government. Yanukovych was not removed in an orchestrated coup d'etat as the Russian authorities are claiming.

 Yatsenyuk, who travelled to Brussels today, vowed to keep Crimea as part of Ukraine, but expressed openness to granting it more autonomy. Ukraine's foreign minister, Andriy Deshchytsia, told the AP that pro-Russian citizens in Crimea must be willing to replace armed forces with international observers if they want a vote on more self-rule. (Yatsenyuk travelled economy, which was highlighted by Ukrainian media as being a new way to draw attention, different from the previous government who assumed ‘gold’ was their prerogative).

The EU on Wednesday also froze the assets of 18 people held responsible for misappropriating state funds in Ukraine, echoing similar action in Switzerland and Austria. The list, which likely targeted officials in the ousted government or businessmen related to them, were withheld until Thursday to prevent anyone from withdrawing the funds at the last minute.

Putin continues to say one thing while the reality on the ground, according to various reports and testimonies, is quite different. Russia has suggested that it will meet any sanctions imposed by Western governments with a tough response, and Putin has warned that those measures could incur serious "mutual damage."

How long will the Ukrainian troops and Russian armed forces withstand the tension that they are currently coping with?

Note about the latest arguments from the Russian government.

According to the Russian government Yanukovych was a victim of a coup.

If you look at the timeline of events, Yanukovych fled Kyiv after a day of bloodshed and grieving protesters claimed that they would not leave the square until he resigned from his post. The demonstrations did not begin by declaring a new ruler, or even proposing a new replacement government. People were in Maidan to protest the corruption and corroded leadership that had defined politics in Ukraine for decades.

There was, and still is no, single leader, but rather a Cabinet comprised of Opposition Parliamentarians and leaders who emerged through Maidan.

Russia created the situation that they are now calling a coup. Russian forces ignited a 'crisis' when, firstly, they supported Yanukovych with armed units. Secondly, Russia exacerbated the crisis by occupying Crimea and heightening tensions along the Ukrainian-Russian border when Moscow ordered military exercises along the border.

 Now they blame the interim government for creating a crisis? Yes, there was an upheaval, but Yanukovych is the one who fled. He was not forceably removed. There were no arms, there was no one funding or supporting an armed revolution (people were throwing logs, not grenades).

The documents found after Yanukovych fled show back-room deals of corrupt banking, as well as a document that sanctioned the use of military force against the civilian population in Kyiv.

 This is why the people in Maidan, and the interim government were calling for Yanukovych to turn himself in. There was never a plot to 'take over a legitimately elected leader'. It was a revelation of corruption and violence that Yanukovych cannot deny.

Further note, the United States has only become a player in this in the past two days -- only once the Cold War mythology crept back in and allowed the USA to relive their former glory. A Cold War scenario conveniently orchestrated when Russian troops took up positions throughout Crimea.