Ukraine invasion by Russia Discussion and it's impact on Singapore and Asia? (compiled)

[singalion]

On 2/21/2022 at 5:47 AM, Steve5380 said:

 

Have you visited the gay saunas in Seoul?  No?  Then I know more about Korea than you do.  At least the important things. 

 

And please,  read a little about Korea after the defeat of Japan:

 

 

Division of Korea

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Division_of_Korea

 

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Closeup of the Korean Demilitarized Zone that surrounds the Military Demarcation Line

 

The Korean Peninsula was divided along the 38th parallel north from 1945 until 1950 and along the Military Demarcation Line from 1953 to present.

The division of Korea began with the defeat of Japan in World War II. During the war, the Allied leaders considered the question of Korea's future after Japan's surrender in the war. The leaders reached an understanding that Korea would be liberated from Japan but would be placed under an international trusteeship until the Koreans would be deemed ready for self-rule.^[1]

In the last days of the war, the U.S. proposed dividing the Korean peninsula into two occupation zones (a U.S. and Soviet one) with the 38th parallel as the dividing line. The Soviets accepted their proposal and agreed to divide Korea.^[2]

It was understood that this division was only a temporary arrangement until the trusteeship could be implemented. The Moscow Conference of Foreign Ministers in December 1945 resulted in an agreement on a four-power Korean trusteeship lasting up to five years.^[3] However, with the onset of the Cold War and other factors both international and domestic, including Korean opposition to the trusteeship, negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union over the next two years regarding the implementation of the trusteeship failed, thus effectively nullifying the only agreed-upon framework for the re-establishment of an independent and unified Korean state.^{[1]: 45–154}

With this, the Korean question was referred to the United Nations. In 1948, after the UN failed to produce an outcome acceptable to the Soviet Union, UN-supervised elections were held in the US-occupied south only. The American-backed Syngman Rhee won the election, while Kim Il-sung consolidated his position as the leader of Soviet-occupied northern Korea. This led to the establishment of the Republic of Korea in South Korea on 15 August 1948, promptly followed by the establishment of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in North Korea on 9 September 1948. The United States supported the South, the Soviet Union supported the North, and each government claimed sovereignty over the whole Korean peninsula.

 

Please notice the word "trusteeship" in this article.  And if in doubt, google "trusteeship of Korea",  and you will have plenty to read. 

 

I like to use "utmost nonsense" when replying to the person who first used this expression.  That's fair,  isn't it?  😃

 

 

 

But the trusteeship was a plan and never happened.

Also it was merely re-proposed by the countries attending the Moscow Conference in Dec 1945, which were the Soviet, US and UK (Foreign Ministers).

While it was an idea from Roosevelt it was discussed the Yalta meeting on Crimea of the World War II future winning powers in February 1945 (Churchill, Stalin and Roosevelt) and just repeated the content of the Cairo Declaration from without being a matter of discussion at the Potsdam conference in July 1945 (Churchill after 26 July Attlee, Stalin and Truman). 

You need to read more into the details and who will take Wikipedia as a reliable source of reference?

 

By that time of discussion between Soviet, US and UK, Korea had already been divided at the 38th latitude into North and South Korea.

 

In fact you just need to look at the reports of Secretary of State Burns to find the facts:

INTERIM MEETING OF FOREIGN MINISTERS OF THE UNITED STATES, THE UNITED KINGDOM, AND THE UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS, MOSCOW, DECEMBER 16-26, 1945

(a) Soviet-Anglo-American Communique, December 27,1945

The Foreign Ministers of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America met in Moscow from December 16 to December 26, 1945, in accordance with the decision of the Crimea Conference, confirmed at the Berlin Conference, that there should be periodic consultation between-them. At the meeting of the three Foreign Ministers, discussions took place on an informal and exploratory basis and agreement was reached on the following questions:

JAMES F. BYRNES
ERNEST BEVIN
V. MOLOTOV
Dec. 27/45

REPORT OF THE MEETING OF THE MINISTERS OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS, THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, THE UNITED KINGDOM

At the meeting which took place in Moscow from December 16 to December 26, 1945 of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the United States of America and the United Kingdom, agreement was reached on the following questions:

 

Under our agreement at Moscow, the two military commands are to form a joint Soviet-American Commission to solve immediate economic and administrative problems. They will make recommendations to the Governments of the United States, the Soviet Union, Great Britain, and China for the formation of a Korean provisional democratic government. They will also make proposals to these governments regarding a four-power trusteeship to prepare Korea for its independence within five years.

III. KOREA

The proposals of the Joint Commission shall be submitted, following consultation with the provisional Korean Government for the joint consideration of the Governments of the United States, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, United Kingdom and China for the working out of an agreement concerning a four-power trusteeship of Korea for a period of up to five years.

 

 

Deterioration of Soviet-American relations in Europe meant that neither side was willing to acquiesce in any agreement in Korea that might strengthen its adversary. This became clear when the US and the Soviet Union tried to implement a revived trusteeship plan after the Moscow Conference in December 1945. Eighteen months of intermittent bilateral negotiations in Korea failed to reach agreement on a representative group of Koreans to form a provisional government, primarily because Moscow refused to consult with anti-Communist politicians opposed to trustee- ship.

 

There are 3 other evidences that such trusteeship for Korea never was enacted at all:

 

a)

How was Korea carved up?

In August 1945, two young US colonels arbitrarily partitioned the peninsula along the 38th parallel with a National Geographic map for reference. The Soviet Union agreed to the proposed demarcation line as a condition of the surrender of Japanese troops in Korea.

At the Moscow Conference for Foreign Ministers in December 1945, the Allies agreed to place Korea under a four-power trusteeship of up to five years until it became an independent state. After international efforts to achieve unification failed, two separate governments were established in 1948.

 

b)

At the Yalta Conference held in February 1945, U.S. Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed to Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin a four-power trusteeship for Korea consisting of the United States, Great Britain, the U.S.S.R., and the Republic of China. Stalin agreed to Roosevelt’s suggestion in principle, but they did not reach any formal agreement on the future status of Korea, and after the Yalta meeting there was a growing uneasiness between the Anglo-American allies and the U.S.S.R.

In late December the Council of Foreign Ministers (representing the United States, the Soviet Union, and Great Britain) met in Moscow and decided to create a four-power trusteeship of up to five years. Upon receiving the news, Koreans reacted violently. In February 1946, to soothe the discontent, the military government created the Representative Democratic Council as an advisory body to the military government.

 

c)

Establishment of the two republics

The Moscow Conference of December 1945, which called for a four-power trusteeship, created a Joint U.S.-U.S.S.R. Commission of the rival U.S. and Soviet military commands in Korea to settle the question of establishing a unified Korea. When the commission convened in Seoul from March to May 1946, the Soviet delegates demanded that those Korean political groups that had opposed trusteeship be excluded from consultation. The United States refused, and on this rock foundered all attempts by the commission to prepare for the unification of Korea. The commission met again from May to August 1947, but it achieved nothing toward the creation of a unified Korea.

 

Comments and notes:

1) Stupidly, the division of Korea was an act of two US soldiers, who without any much geographical knowledge were tasked to find a proposal for a ceasefire line.

As they did not find any "natural borders" such as rivers or mountains, they only saw the 38th parallel latitude. The background was that the US did not manage to get troops fast enough into Korea and thought a divided Korea would not be wanted by the Koreans as a push to unify the country under a national government.

=> The proposal of the 38th parallel division was a bad idea of the US.

 

2) Historically, it was also an error of the mostly South Koreans who heavily opposed the trusteeship plan and "boycotted" it by all means, they felt that they would enter a new form of "colonialism".  Surely it is speculation, but under the trusteeship there might have been chances to gain a "united" country instead of a division, at least Korea had not been divided into two parts under the trusteeship. However, from the Korean side there was a majority objection to the plan and only communists supported the idea. When Stalin suggested that the Korean trusteeship opponents should not take part in the discussions on Korea, it was clear that he sought to undermine the plan.

=> the rejection of the plan "consolidated" the division into North and South.

 

 

 

Conclusion:

=>

The trusteeship for Korea was a plan that never materialised.

Korea was never placed under any such trusteeship.

 

 

[Steve5380]

On 2/21/2022 at 1:20 AM, InBangkok said:

 

You have never been to South Korea!

 

 

Oh,  I made a mistake.  I went up the 101 skyscraper in Taipei,  not in Seoul.  My mistake!  Besides looking for cute Koreans, I didn't find much in Seoul to visit but some cultural landmarks, and a temple if I remember correctly.  It has been some time...

 

Still not such an incredible mistake like after reading that I was in Seoul,  to write that I have never been in South Korea! 

 

On 2/21/2022 at 1:20 AM, InBangkok said:

 

How true. The laugh is absolutely on you for expecting anyone to believe such ridiculous nonsense.

 

 

You get it wrong.  I don't believe your ridiculous nonsense,  I laugh over it. 

 

On 2/21/2022 at 1:20 AM, InBangkok said:

 

1. Who destabilised Iran? The USA by toppling the duly elected Prime Minister. Why? Because the USA wanted cheap oil and Mossadegh had said he would nationalise Iran's oil for the benefit of the Iranian people. End result? The USA returns the corrupt murdering Shah to power. Result. The advent of the Khomeini revolution. The result? Once America's ally, Iran becomes its bitter foe. Responsibility? The USA's.

 

 

Both the US and Great Britain helped destabilize Iran because their government had opened their door to Russia's influence.  This was during the years of the Cold War, when the NATO nations did their best to protect themselves from the advances of communism.  

 

You can swallow all your favorite brain foods of an US only interested in oil, and paranoid of communism.  I don't care what you think.  I am not exposed to your products of digestion, yuck!   All I care is about today's world where the Soviet Union disappeared, leaving only Russia and a couple of nations that want to stay away from it as much as they can.  "Communism" has been so discredited, now only some old tool by totalitarian governments.

 

About the rest of your 'questionnaire'?  I will paraphrase some important person:  "I now have your questionnaire in front of me;  soon I will have it behind me"  

[Steve5380]

On 2/21/2022 at 1:39 AM, singalion said:

 

With our civility in discussion you aim to call me a troll?

 

I am not in any way disrespectful to you but just setting things straight or sharing our point of views or also correcting all your errors you post at BW.

 

That is surely not trolling.

 

Have you ever seen any post where I called you any expletive or started saying that you act emotional because you are a submissive femboy?

 

Have you ever seen any post from me at BW with a starting line such as "this is nonsense" , "this is the worst bullshit" or something of that sort?

 

Have you ever seen that I went down to take any Guest troll's post at BW to hit out at anyone else?

 

 

When your posts are challenged then this is disgusting to you and you need to resort joining and reposting of troll posts or resort to trolling yourself?

 

You should be ashamed of yourself Steve5380 for needing to go down to such means.

 

 

Oh!  You have called me worse than 'troll'.  

 

And I don't consider you very disrespectful to me,  and even if you have called me some strong words, I have no ill feelings for you.  And even if you had called me strong words,  this would not lead to my feelings, but my opinions about you.

 

I don't remember you calling me an expletive,  but this does not mean you haven't done so.  I simply don't remember. 

And I don't remember having called you an expletive.  This is not my usual way of communicating with you.

 

I am becoming less and less inclined to find Guests at fault in comparison to Members.  After all the latest trolling I am getting from you and InBangkok in my thread "for gays who plan to become seniors",  and the need of the Moderator to make a special thread of 'tenors' for us to argue,  I am finding that Members can be as vicious as Guests. 

 

The situation is different with @InBangkok,  the tenor who has called me all kind of ugly thinks,  starting with calling me a liar. Again, this does not hurt my feelings, but it removes any reason to limit my responses to him.   If he throws shit, he should expect to get some back.

[Steve5380]

On 2/21/2022 at 5:45 AM, singalion said:

 

But the trusteeship was a plan and never happened.

 

Conclusion:

=>

The trusteeship for Korea was a plan that never materialised.

Korea was never placed under any such trusteeship.

 

 

 

Please read back my post of Feb 19, where I wrote:  "it was the anti-colonialist sentiment of America which proposed to place Korea under a trusteeship until it could govern itself. "

 

I never wrote that Korea was actually placed in a trusteeship.  But simply that America had proposed this. 

 

What a pity!  IF you would read more carefully,  you would save yourself so much work trying to contradict or correct me!

[Guest Guest]

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/02/21/world/ukraine-russia-putin-biden

 

LIVEUpdated 

Feb. 21, 2022, 7:52 p.m. ET5 minutes ago

5 minutes ago

Live Updates: Putin Orders Forces to Ukraine’s Breakaway Regions

President Vladimir V. Putin signed a decree that allowed for troops to enter Donetsk and Luhansk for “peacekeeping.” The U.S. and E.U. said they would begin imposing limited sanctions.

 

RIGHT NOW

The U.S. said it will impose sanctions on the breakaway regions, but not for now on Russia.

[InBangkok]

On 2/20/2022 at 11:03 PM, Steve5380 said:

Where did you get that I have never been in Korea?  I had so much fun in Seoul getting up on the 101 skyscraper and visiting the Equus and Hyundai saunas, with many cute Koreans...

 

On 2/21/2022 at 2:20 PM, InBangkok said:

You have never been to South Korea!

 

On 2/22/2022 at 3:19 AM, Steve5380 said:

Oh,  I made a mistake.  I went up the 101 skyscraper in Taipei,  not in Seoul.  My mistake!  Besides looking for cute Koreans, I didn't find much in Seoul to visit but some cultural landmarks, and a temple if I remember correctly.  It has been some time...

 

As I stated - you have never been to South Korea or Seoul. You LIED. No one makes "mistakes" about having "so much fun getting up the 101 skyscraper" in Seoul. You picked up the information somewhere on the internet and just assumed it was in Seoul. There is no 100+ floor skyscraper in Seoul apart from Lotte World Tower and that opened after your Asian gay sauna tourism ended. You only realised you had lied when I tackled you on never having been to South Korea. Besides, no-one uses the term 101. The building in Taipei is always called "Taipei 101". And you have not been to Taipei to enjoy the saunas there either. Or are you claiming that the views from the 95th/96th floors in Taipei 101 are so stunning you found lots of Korean boys there? 

 

And the other reason is you LIED about Equus in Seoul. That's another piece of inaccurate information you picked up on the internet. You never had "so much fun" there. Equus is not a sauna - it's a bathhouse. It was tiny before it closed in 2008. It reopened in a different location towards the end of your sex tourism trips but it was equally tiny and all on one small floor. And in case you forgot, it does not allow those aged 50 and over. You were 62 when your sex tourism started.

 

Don't lie when you can get caught out so easily.

[Steve5380]

On 2/21/2022 at 8:06 PM, InBangkok said:

 

 

 

As I stated - you have never been to South Korea or Seoul. You LIED. No one makes "mistakes" about having "so much fun getting up the 101 skyscraper" in Seoul. You picked up the information somewhere on the internet and just assumed it was in Seoul. There is no 100+ floor skyscraper in Seoul apart from Lotte World Tower and that opened after your Asian gay sauna tourism ended. You only realised you had lied when I tackled you on never having been to South Korea. Besides, no-one uses the term 101. The building in Taipei is always called "Taipei 101". And you have not been to Taipei to enjoy the saunas there either. Or are you claiming that the views from the 95th/96th floors in Taipei 101 are so stunning you found lots of Korean boys there? 

 

And the other reason is you LIED about Equus in Seoul. That's another piece of inaccurate information you picked up on the internet. You never had "so much fun" there. Equus is not a sauna - it's a bathhouse. It was tiny before it closed in 2008. It reopened in a different location towards the end of your sex tourism trips but it was equally tiny and all on one small floor. And in case you forgot, it does not allow those aged 50 and over. You were 62 when your sex tourism started.

 

Don't lie when you can get caught out so easily.

 

What a bunch of utmost nonsense!

 

I understand that you feel embarrassed by having said that I was never in South Korea after I wrote that I visited Seoul.  For your information, Seoul is the CAPITAL of S. Korea.

 

But you are right that Equus sauna is or was tiny.  All it had was a few lockers at the entrance and a corridor with two tiny rooms on the right. But the two times I went there it was packed with super cute Koreans,  and no one asked for my age,  ha ha.

Now...  how come you know about these saunas?  Maybe YOU LIED when you said that you don't frequent saunas,  and made a Huge Tantrum to support you lie?  But no, no one would have paid attention to an overweight older man in Equus sauna, who WAS a sauna when I visited it.  I even chatted with the owner there, whose name was Paul. 

 

YOU seem to be an authentic LIAR.  I won't give up one cent of my integrity to lie about the trivialities here,  but you many consider your posting here very important.  I remember wondering about the odd shape of the 101 skyscraper, so different from other ones I had visited.  

 

I visited Seoul in July 2006, and Taipei in January 2007.  Very close together in time, easy to confuse where the 101 building was.  Had I remembered the name Taipei 101, this would have made it easier to place it correctly, ha ha.

.

 

 

Edited February 22, 2022 by Steve5380

[Neh Neh]

I can see US and NATO are using Ukraine to start a possible world war 3 with Russia. Either way Ukraine will be devastated after the war. Only the Ukrainians will suffer the same fate like Afghanistans.

[Guest 滥贱 冰冰]

Its about water resources. 

 

Water is precious.

 

 

[InBangkok]

On 2/22/2022 at 10:57 AM, Steve5380 said:

For your information, Seoul is the CAPITAL of S. Korea.

As one who has visited Seoul on more than two dozen occasions since the early 1980s when martial law was still in force, it's nice to know that you know this vital piece of information.

 

On 2/22/2022 at 10:57 AM, Steve5380 said:

But you are right that Equus sauna is or was tiny.  All it had was a few lockers at the entrance and a corridor with two tiny rooms on the right. But the two times I went there it was packed with super cute Koreans,  and no one asked for my age,  ha ha.

Now...  how come you know about these saunas? . . . But no, no one would have paid attention to an overweight older man in Equus sauna, who WAS a sauna when I visited it. ]

And how come you say Paul was the owner since it was and always has been owned by a Korean with no English name? Only Koreans ran gay businesses. Further, Equus was not and has never been a sauna - always just a small bathhouse where a lot of older Koreans went to bathe and spend the night. The area which you say is on the right had mattresses on the floor and no partitions. You also forgot that the ceiling height was very low like most bathhouse accommodation - around 4 feet or thereabouts. As you were there in 2006, on the cruisingforsex website there is a post from December 2005, "Some Asian gay places advertise Equus as a sauna. It is not! It is a place to crash and get some sleep overnight." I guess you must have dreamt in your bed in Houston you had a good time there!

 

I have gay friends in Seoul and get a lot of information from them. But I have never been to any gay facility in Seoul other than a gay bar that they took me to many years ago just off Eulji-ro by the park there - very far from the main gay area. I wonder what you made of the sight of Seoul as your aircraft landed? It's quite amazing!

 

On 2/22/2022 at 10:57 AM, Steve5380 said:

Maybe YOU LIED when you said that you don't frequent saunas,

 

That's bullshit and you know that perfectly well. I wrote many times I had not been to any gay sauna in the last 15 years - now more than 16 years. Unlike you I have a partner with whom I have a happy exclusive relationship. you and your partner decided you would have an open relationship. I have nothing to say against that at all. We are all different. But do not lie about what you read in several posts I had said! It becomes a very bad habit!

 

On 2/22/2022 at 10:57 AM, Steve5380 said:

I visited Seoul in July 2006, and Taipei in January 2007.  Very close together in time, easy to confuse where the 101 building was.  Had I remembered the name Taipei 101, this would have made it easier to place it correctly, ha ha.

Easy to get the totally wrong location when you have never been there, haha! No information on the saunas you visited there,  since that was the whole purpose of your Asian trips? By early 2007 Taipei had quickly developed a thriving gay culture with many gay facilities.

Edited February 22, 2022 by InBangkok

[Steve5380]

On 2/22/2022 at 12:33 AM, InBangkok said:

 

And how come you say Paul was the owner since it was and always has been owned by a Korean with no English name? Only Koreans ran gay businesses. Further, Equus was not and has never been a sauna - always just a small bathhouse where a lot of older Koreans went to bathe and spend the night. The area which you say is on the right had mattresses on the floor and no partitions. You also forgot that the ceiling height was very low like most bathhouse accommodation - around 4 feet or thereabouts. As you were there in 2006, on the cruisingforsex website there is a post from December 2005, "Some Asian gay places advertise Equus as a sauna. It is not! It is a place to crash and get some sleep overnight." I guess you must have dreamt in your bed in Houston you had a good time there!

 

I have gay friends in Seoul and get a lot of information from them. But I have never been to any gay facility in Seoul other than a gay bar that they took me to many years ago just off Eulji-ro by the park there - very far from the main gay area. I wonder what you made of the sight of Seoul as your aircraft landed? It's quite amazing!

 

 

What an IDIOTIC observation that the name of the owner of Equus could not have been "Paul"!   Do you think that when I spoke with him I asked to see his document of identity to check on the veracity of his name?   Maybe "Paul" was the translation from the Korean name.  Maybe he had the name "Paul" for the Caucasian visitors.  What an idiotic criticism to make!  So typical of you.

 

You say you were never at Equus yet you want to argue with me about what and how it was?   Are you insane?  I was there TWICE, and I remember gay saunas better than I remember my visits to skyscrapers.  Equus was definitely a GAY SAUNA,  with very nice young Korean gays.  NOT a place to crash and get some sleep overnight  ( although I cannot know this since I never was there overnight.  Maybe the crashers came overnight, ha ha ).  Ceilings are low in many places in Korea.   The small room on the right I mentioned HAD partitions left and right, with mattresses on the floor and...  nice bodies on the mattresses... including mine!   

 

How strange that you received so much information on gay saunas from your  'friends' if you didn't have any interest in them....   some little lying here?  😃

 

I don't remember watching the city as my airplane landed there. But what I remember is some raining there, and on the last day of my visit there were news of a big flooding in Seoul.  Fortunately the area where I was staying didn't flood, and I made it to the airport without problems.  My good luck!

[Steve5380]

On 2/21/2022 at 10:01 PM, Neh Neh said:

I can see US and NATO are using Ukraine to start a possible world war 3 with Russia. Either way Ukraine will be devastated after the war. Only the Ukrainians will suffer the same fate like Afghanistans.

 

You can SEE that America and its allies WANT TO START WW3?   Where did you buy your glasses,  in Moscow? 

[InBangkok]

On 2/23/2022 at 12:35 AM, Steve5380 said:

What an IDIOTIC observation that the name of the owner of Equus could not have been "Paul"!   Do you think that when I spoke with him I asked to see his document of identity to check on the veracity of his name?   Maybe "Paul" was the translation from the Korean name.  Maybe he had the name "Paul" for the Caucasian visitors.  What an idiotic criticism to make! 

All of which illustrates that you have never been to Seoul and never been to a bathhouse in Seoul. Koreans do not use western first names - even for western visitors who attempt to persuade readers of this forum that they have been to a bathhouse (which he conveniently calls a sauna which it never has been) - or even that they have been to Seoul when why have not!

 

On 2/23/2022 at 12:35 AM, Steve5380 said:

I remember gay saunas better than I remember my visits to skyscrapers. 

Well at least that is a a grain of truth! No one who has allegedly been to both cities mixes up Taipei 101 with a skyscraper in Seoul. You read the wrong wikipedia page LOL.

[Steve5380]

On 2/22/2022 at 10:09 PM, InBangkok said:

All of which illustrates that you have never been to Seoul and never been to a bathhouse in Seoul. Koreans do not use western first names - even for western visitors who attempt to persuade readers of this forum that they have been to a bathhouse (which he conveniently calls a sauna which it never has been) - or even that they have been to Seoul when why have not!

 

Well at least that is a a grain of truth! No one who has allegedly been to both cities mixes up Taipei 101 with a skyscraper in Seoul. You read the wrong wikipedia page LOL.

 

Go and get a life,  you dumbo!  Your bashing with pure lies are ridiculous.  

[InBangkok]

On 2/23/2022 at 11:32 AM, Steve5380 said:

Go and get a life

OMG! Now you have used this ridiculously childish schoolyard comment no less than FOUR times in less than one hour. Get your brain in order!

Edited February 23, 2022 by InBangkok

[InBangkok]

On 2/22/2022 at 11:01 AM, Neh Neh said:

I can see US and NATO are using Ukraine to start a possible world war 3 with Russia. Either way Ukraine will be devastated after the war. Only the Ukrainians will suffer the same fate like Afghanistans.

I do not agree with your comment about starting World War 3. But as the leader of NATO, I find the US actions incomprehensible. I was impressed watching the interview of Ukraine's President recently with CNN's Christiane Amanpour. He stated basically - if the US and NATO plan to adopt sanctions against Russia, why did they wait until the Russians have acted militarily? Why not impose sanctions first as a deterrent on the understanding that these will be quickly withdrawn PROVIDED the Russians pull back from Ukraine's borders.

 

By allowing Russia to make the first move, the US and NATO have basically given Putin the green light to go ahead with an invasion. And that's what he is doing! Sanctions have hardly ever worked, and Putin knows that. The US and NATO are now on the back foot.

 

I wrote in an earlier post - watch what China does. China and Russia are hardly the best of friends but they have an interest in getting together to make life difficult for the USA. But China is also one of the largest investors in Ukraine. Watch this space!

[singalion]

Here some analyst's article on impact on Singapore

 

Rising prices and volatility: How the Ukraine crisis could impact Singaporeans

 

 

Published 23 Feb 2022

 

SINGAPORE - Russia's recognition of and ordering of troops into two separatist regions in Ukraine has led Western governments to retaliate with sanctions on the likes of those in Russia's defence, banking and financial sector.

 

Oil prices rose to nearly US$100 a barrel on Tuesday (Feb 22) - its highest level since 2014 - after Moscow ordered troops into the breakaway regions, before edging lower on Wednesday, but there could be further price volatility if the conflict continues to worsen.

A spokesman for Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Tuesday that all parties involved in the crisis must pursue dialogue to reach a peaceful settlement and avoid any action that would further raise tensions.

 

Earlier this week, several European airlines suspended flights to and out of Ukraine, citing safety concerns amid the escalating conflict. The International Air Transport Association previously noted in January that most airlines already avoid the airspace around the affected regions in Ukraine following earlier tensions.

The Straits Times looks at the impact of the Ukraine crisis on prices and how Singaporeans could be affected.

 

1. Higher food inflation

Analysts have cautioned that developments in Ukraine could impact the outlook for inflation, and prices of food staples such as wheat and corn could rise sharply.

 

Ukraine is the world's third-largest exporter of corn and the fourth-largest exporter of wheat, while Russia is the world's top wheat importer.

 

Any disruption of food supplies out of the region could further fuel food inflation - world food prices jumped 28 per cent in 2021 to their highest level in a decade.

Invesco chief global market strategist Kristina Hooper in a note said that the prices of wheat and corn, alongside other commodities such as palladium, are expected to rise.

Food inflation was one of the main drivers of higher consumer prices in Singapore in January, rising 2.6 per cent year on year on the back of higher inflation for both non-cooked food and prepared meals.

 

2. Increase in electricity costs

High energy prices have been plaguing global markets, with gas reaching record prices in recent months.

With Europe heavily reliant on Russian gas transiting through Ukraine - Russia provides Europe with around 40 per cent of its natural gas supply - the energy markets may also be hit.

 

European gas benchmarks and electricity prices in major European cities have been higher since the beginning of the year as the Ukraine crisis worsened.

Singapore largely relies on natural gas for electricity generation, and any impact on global gas prices could mean higher electricity prices for the Republic down the road.

Electricity and gas inflation in Singapore hit 17.2 per cent in January due to a steeper increase in electricity and gas tariffs.

 

3. Higher pump prices

Oil traders are vigilant about a potential escalation in conflict that may lead to restrictions on Russia's oil exports, adding to supply constraints in an already tight market, said DailyFX strategist Margaret Yang in a research note on Wednesday.

 

Russia is the second-largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia, shipping about five million barrels of crude oil per day.

"If the Ukraine crisis deepens further, it may spiral into an energy crisis, and push oil and gas prices higher," she wrote.

In recent weeks, pump prices have been on the rise in Singapore, driven by higher crude oil and product costs.

 

For example, the price of 95-octane fuel has gone up from around $2.65 a litre in mid-January to around $2.80 a litre as at mid-February.

With the price of Brent crude oil reaching a multi-year high and the possibility of further increases should tensions worsen, this could mean higher diesel and petrol costs for motorists here.

 

4. Supply chain disruption and further inflation risks

Global supply chains, already battered by Covid-19-related challenges, could be further dislocated by the geopolitical tensions.

Singapore's Ministry of Trade and Industry and Monetary Authority of Singapore, in a joint release of consumer price developments for January 2022, noted that while ongoing external supply constraints should ease in the second half of the year, leading to some moderation in imported inflation, there remain upside risks to inflation due to pandemic-related and geopolitical shocks that could further disrupt global supply chains.

 

Sanctions imposed by Western nations could hurt the Russian economy and possibly its trade partners which rely on its energy reports.

Escalating tensions and sanctions could also result in energy supply disruptions and potentially hamper the already burdened supply chains further, contributing to further inflation risks.

 

 

[Steve5380]

Now it has started already.  And it is difficult to predict how it will end.

 

Being so helpless and unable to do anything about it,  how about trying to find something positive in this calamity?

 

Could some help to the environment be such a positive?   Russia is a major oil producer, and imposed sanctions against it will worsen the sources of energy in Europe.  Here is one article that predicts that this shortage will motivate a greater push for clean energy sources:  "Good riddance Nord Stream 2. Now Europe has a golden opportunity "

 

https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/23/opinions/nord-stream-2-germany-putin-gas-energy-hockenos/index.html

 

At long last, the gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 has been suspended – a terrible idea from its conception and now, with Russia on the brink of a second invasion of Ukraine, finally ground to a halt.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’ suspension of the gas pipeline’s approval is one of the first sanctions that the West has imposed on President Vladimir Putin for Russia’s blatant breach of Ukraine’s sovereignty. Scholz made good on a threat the Germans were hesitant to invoke, given what they see as its far-reaching implications for the economy.

While the energy implications for the rest of Europe – some of which intended to rely on Russian gas to heat its homes for decades to come – are far-ranging, they aren’t tragic. On the contrary, this is a blessing in disguise.

Europe may rely on Russia for around 35% of its natural gas – Germany over 50% – but there are green alternatives that can step in and at the same time serve the purpose of addressing the ever more urgent climate crisis.

In fact, the pipeline was wildly controversial from the get-go, over a decade ago. Natural gas after all is a fossil fuel, the combustion of which emits high quantities of methane, a potent greenhouse gas. In Germany, natural gas is responsible for 20% of carbon emissions – in other words, it’s not in the least bit climate friendly.

The pipeline, which would have constituted Europe’s largest fossil fuel project, flew in the face of the 2015 UN Paris accord by ignoring Europe’s commitment to lower greenhouse emissions and keep global temperatures from rising less than 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Also, it committed western Europe to Russia for an ever greater share of its energy supply – obviously an miscalculation given Putin’s geopolitical weaponization of energy since 2009 when it first cut gas deliveries to eastern Europe. Had the Europeans seen alternative energies as a cornerstone of geopolitical energy security 15 years ago, Russian gas would have much less muscle to flex in western Europe today. But that’s spilled milk now.

So now Europe has to jump to its feet and act decisively.

Fortunately, the continent is already in the thick of transitioning from fossil fuels to electricity-based renewable energy. There are plans in place, strengthened last year at the COP26 summit in Glasgow and driven by the EU Green Deal, as well as pledges galore, though most countries have been much too slow in acting upon them. These plans have to be put into fifth gear, understood now as the solution to two crises.

Transportation, industry, and buildings can and will one day run on green electricity – nations have agreed upon this at climate summits. Gas was already, at best, a short-term “bridge technology” that was meant to hold Europe over between phasing out coal and oil (the dirtiest fossil fuels) and the full adoption of renewables. We can now ditch gas sooner than we had planned.

Of course, to power this electrified world, the massive expansion of renewable energy, storage technologies, hydrogen technologies, and smart grids is crucial, which now has to happen several times faster than it is now – a point that climate activists and experts have made for years.

Although hydroelectric, bioenergy, geothermal and even, in some countries, nuclear power, will play a role, the central technologies the world will rely upon are solar and wind power. Solar photovoltaic energy, namely turning sunlight into electricity, is the “cheapest energy source in history,” according to the International Energy Agency. Wind power, both onshore and offshore, are close on its heels, and in the midst of a massive worldwide roll out.

The EU intends to have renewables account for 40% of its energy supply by 2030, which means more than doubling wind power and solar energy production. Germany’s new government has pledged to quadruple solar power by installation of solar panels and more than double wind power production, largely by cutting red tape.

--------- etc.

 

Even if accelerated installations of solar and wind power plants will alleviate the situation,  maybe the other side, the consumer side, should help too.  Society should consume LESS energy.   Maybe more numerous and modern nuclear power plants, like the one proposed by Bill Gates, could become a big help.  Ultimately,  I would bet on two revolutionary advances by humanity:  nuclear fission power plants, and room-temperature superconductivity.   But I don't have much hope to ever live to see this, even if I life to 120 years!

 

To live with LESS energy has so much potential in America.  But for this to happen,  my fellow spoiled Americans would need a local calamity,  and i don't wish it to them.

[Steve5380]

On 2/23/2022 at 10:48 AM, singalion said:

Here some analyst's article on impact on Singapore

Rising prices and volatility: How the Ukraine crisis could impact Singaporeans

 

 

The impact on Singapore should not be much different than the impact on most other countries.  It could be even lesser, since Singapore is a rich country, and the millions of Singaporeans are concentrated in a small place.  So the needs for energy are not so acute.  No need to travel long distances,  not need for much heating in the tropical climate, telecommuting helps with this too.  The price of oil had reached $100 a barrel and higher in the past,  yet the world survived. 

 

"A spokesman for Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Tuesday that all parties involved in the crisis must pursue dialogue to reach a peaceful settlement and avoid any action that would further raise tensions." ...    What a idle hollow statement that fits so well the blabber of a politician!  As if intense dialogue had not been pursued already!  Such a sanctimonious nonsense!  

 

A gas price of $2.80 a liter in SG is already quite high. About twice as high as in Texas.  But what is the need to drive far?  Maybe the city should switch over to mopeds instead of cars, like it is so convenient in other Asian cities.   It is very different in Texas.  Are there already any plans to procure solar power in SG?   You have plenty of sun...

 

Wheat and corn are not the best foods.  This rise in food costs could be somewhat compensated by staying away from processed foods.  But you Asians already eat healthier than westerners. 

 

One fringe benefit of higher prices could be that it will reduce consumerism, something favorable for the environment.  But I hope that my good fellow gays in BW don't start throwing rocks at me for saying this... 

 

 

[InBangkok]

On 2/24/2022 at 8:39 AM, Steve5380 said:

The impact on Singapore should not be much different than the impact on most other countries . . .  No need to travel long distances,  not need for much heating in the tropical climate . . .

How true! But @Steve5380 clearly forgets that air conditioning is required by businesses and most homes in tropical countries. And does not air conditioning require energy?

[Sub femboy]

Well noted now once again how the toothless tigers in Zionist US are quite prepared to supply armaments to Ukraine but rules out military intervention.

Just a repeat of events leading up to both World wars.

No wonder the puppet Govt Ukraine authorities are now saying America and NATO have abandoned us

[singalion]

 

Russia invades Ukraine as Putin declares war to ‘demilitarise’ neighbour

Russia appeared to be targeting military infrastructure in early strikes with explosions reported at airfields, military headquarters and military warehouses

 

Thu 24 Feb 2022 04.49 GMT

 

 

Russian forces have unleashed an attack of Ukraine on the orders of Vladimir Putin, who announced a “special military operation” at dawn, amid warnings from world leaders that it could spark the biggest war in Europe since 1945.

Within minutes of Putin’s short televised address, at about 5am Ukrainian time, explosions were heard near major Ukrainian cities, including the capital Kyiv.

 

The scope of the Russian attack appears to be massive. Ukraine’s interior ministry reported that the country was under attack from cruise and ballistic missiles, with Russia appearing to target infrastructure near major cities such as Kyiv, Kharkiv, Mariupol and Dnipro.

 

 

Explosions from artillery rockets lit up the night sky as shelling began near Mariupol, video showed. A senior adviser to Ukraine’s interior ministry said that it appeared Russian troops may soon move on Kharkiv, which is about 20 miles from the border. Locals in Kyiv sought safety in bomb shelters as explosions were heard outside the city.

 

Air raid sirens sounded over the capital and residents of Kharkiv sheltered in the city’s metro, scenes that haven’t been seen in those cities since 1941.

“Putin has just launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine,” said Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba. “Peaceful Ukrainian cities are under strikes.

 

This is a war of aggression. Ukraine will defend itself and will win. The world can and must stop Putin. The time to act is now.”

 

In a bid to justify the attack, Putin claimed “A hostile anti-Russia is being created on our historic lands.”

 

“We have taken the decision to conduct a special military operation,” he said, in what amounted to a declaration of war. He claimed it was for the “demilitarisation and denazification” of Ukraine, echoing a theme of Kremlin propaganda, the false claim that the Kyiv government is controlled by the far right.

 

“We do not intend to occupy Ukraine,” he said, and he had a chilling warning for other nations.

 

“To anyone who would consider interfering from the outside: if you do, you will face consequences greater than any you have faced in history. All relevant decisions have been taken. I hope you hear me,” he said.

 

As Putin was speaking and the first detonations were being reported, the UN security council was holding an emergency session, chaired by Russia itself, which holds the rotating presidency. It was begun by the UN secretary general, António Guterres, who made a direct appeal: “President Putin – stop your troops from attacking Ukraine. Give peace a chance. Too many people have already died.”

 

Joe Biden issued a written statement saying: “The prayers of the entire world are with the people of Ukraine tonight as they suffer an unprovoked and unjustified attack by Russian military forces.

 

 

Russia-Ukraine crisis: Putin orders military operation in Ukraine – video

 

“President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering,” Biden said. “Russia alone is responsible for the death and destruction this attack will bring, and the United States and its allies and partners will respond in a united and decisive way. The world will hold Russia accountable.”

Other world leaders also condemned the invasion. “I am appalled by the horrific events in Ukraine and I have spoken to President Zelenskyy to discuss next steps. President Putin has chosen a path of bloodshed and destruction by launching this unprovoked attack on Ukraine. The UK and our allies will respond decisively,” said Boris Johnson.

 

“We will hold the Kremlin accountable,” wrote Ursula von der Leyen, the head of the EU Commission, which had announced new sanctions against Moscow just hours before the attack.

 

The stage for the offensive was set on Thursday night, after the leaders of the two Russian-controlled territories in east Ukraine sent an official request to Moscow for military aid to “help repel the aggression of the Ukrainian armed forces in order to avoid civilian casualties and a humanitarian catastrophe in the Donbas”.

 

In response, Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, used a video address to appeal to the Russian public for help after an attempt to speak to Putin was unsuccessful.

 

“Do “Russians want wars? I would very much like to answer this question. But the answer is up to you,” he said.

 

He also vowed to defend the country, saying: “If someone attempts to take away our land, our freedom, our lives, the lives of our children, we will defend ourselves. By attacking, you will see our faces, not our backs, but our faces.”

 

Military analysts said they expected that Putin will send his forces in order to capture or surround the capital, Kyiv. There were reports on Thursday evening in Russian state media that airborne troops had captured the airport in Boryspil near Kyiv.

 

Some of the first explosions after Putin announced the operation were heard near Kramatorsk, the headquarters of the Ukrainian army’s operations centre near the Russian-controlled territories in southeast Ukraine. Russia appeared to be targeting military infrastructure in its early strikes on Thursday morning. Explosions were reported at airfields, military headquarters, and at military warehouses.

 

 

“#Russia’s airborne forces are attempting to take control of the airport in #Kyiv to… fly in forces to occupy” the city, wrote US Senator Marco Rubio, a member of the senate’s select committee on intelligence. “An amphibious assault on the key port city of #Mariupol is now underway Ground forces now moving in from Belarus,Crimea & from #Russia.”

 

 

The dramatic escalation marks the second time that Moscow has launched a significant military incursion into Ukraine since the country gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. In 2014, Putin ordered undercover Russian soldiers to seize the Crimean peninsula, which Moscow then annexed.

 

Thursday’s attack was preceded by a massive, continuous cyber-attack that targeted Ukraine’s ministries and banks, a form of hybrid warfare to sow confusion.

In previous weeks, Putin built up an estimated 190,000 troops close to Ukraine’s borders while European leaders shuttled between Kyiv and Moscow, seeking a diplomatic solution.

 

The Russian military claimed it was not targeting population centres. “High-precision weapons are disabling the military infrastructure, air defence facilities, military airfields and aviation of the Ukrainian army,” the Russian Defence Ministry said in a statement carried by Ria Novosti.

 

But military analysts questioned whether Russia could sustain the bombardment and believed a ground invasion was likely.

 

“Russia has a very effective aerial, naval, and ground fires capability but it lacks large stockpiles of precision-guided munitions, which is why a ground offensive appears to have begun soon after the first strikes. Russia has every incentive to move as fast as possible,” wrote Rob Lee, a Senior Fellow in the Foreign Policy Research Institute’s Eurasia Program.

 

 

The Russian ruble fell to a record-low level since 2016 as Putin announced the military operation. Trading has been halted on the Russian stock market.

 

The US will likely announce new sanctions against Russia on Monday, using tools to punish Russian banks and its larger financial system that Washington had so far held in reserve. Biden said: “I will meet with my G7 counterparts in the morning and then speak to the American people to announce the further consequences the United States and our Allies and partners will impose on Russia for this needless act of aggression against Ukraine and global peace and security.”

 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/24/russia-attacks-ukraine-news-vladimir-putin-zelenskiy-russian-invasion

 

 

 

To watch the videos you need to click on the link.

 

 

Edited February 24, 2022 by singalion

[Guest Guest]

On 2/24/2022 at 1:28 PM, Sub femboy said:

Well noted now once again how the toothless tigers in Zionist US are quite prepared to supply armaments to Ukraine but rules out military intervention.

Just a repeat of events leading up to both World wars.

No wonder the puppet Govt Ukraine authorities are now saying America and NATO have abandoned us

 

You are right. US is only interested in encouraging wars cos they can make lots of profit selling their  arms in wars while at the same time touting their reputation as world leader waging wars on countries. Gross!

 

Overwhelming of the US politicians and numerous US residents  including Steve5380 have no qualms seeing wars orchested by USA destroying lives and families.  They dun blink an eye or shed any tears watching US soldiers shooting civilians or bombing houses of innocent civilians.. They gave ridiculous reasons such as wrong intelligence info for the wrong bombing and killing of civilians to cover their grave mistakes so that they can sleep peacefully at night. Americans are never peace living people. They always have been blood thirsty from day one.

 

Former US president Jimmy Carter have said the US has been at peace for only 16 of its 242 years as a nation. Counting wars, military attacks and military occupations, there have actually only been five years of peace in US history—1976, the last year of the Gerald Ford administration and 1977-80, the entirety of Carter’s presidency. Carter then referred to the US as “the most warlike nation in the history of the world,” a result, he said, of the US forcing other countries to “adopt our American principles.”

 

Well said Mr Carter, you are oh so right ! USA will receive karma for its actions which we are already seeing  now of it's high covid deaths.. May more karma come to this war mongering nation !!

 

 

[Sub femboy]

US expansionist and warlike policies have contributed to endless humanitarian suffering in their endless pursuit of arms selling and profits gained from misery. 

[Guest Guest]

On 2/24/2022 at 2:28 PM, Sub femboy said:

The MSM very careful not to show the Russian flags being waved from buildings in Kiev

 

You are so damn right !! US media and western media are partners in the war agenda.  We already seen it in Iraq, Libya, Syria, Afghanistan wars to name... What a bunch of liars,  creating war propaganda to justify western countries' military actions in the Ukraine war. The western media absolutely have no morals or credibility in their reporting. 

 

 

 

[singalion]

On 2/24/2022 at 1:28 PM, Sub femboy said:

Well noted now once again how the toothless tigers in Zionist US are quite prepared to supply armaments to Ukraine but rules out military intervention.

Just a repeat of events leading up to both World wars.

No wonder the puppet Govt Ukraine authorities are now saying America and NATO have abandoned us

 

Unfortunately, there are clear rules by the UN, when a country can enter into a conflict or defend freedom.

 

The Ukraine does not have any military pact with the US. In that reading, the US is not obligated to defend Ukraine.

 

The US supports to defends NATO member states of any attack from outside.

 

While I admit, the last days I felt the same that the US should have sent troops into Ukraine in a "who can save the Ukrainians feeling"

but you need to look at certain factors also:

 

- Ukraine is not a member of NATO and has no treaty with NATO to defend the country in any attack.

- There has never been any military pact between the US and Ukraine also.

 

Does anybody here think, the US would risk entering into a war against Russia to defend a country with which the US does not have any

military defence treaty?

 

It is easy to always call the US to play the world police and later complain if there had been any civil causalities.

Just look at Afghanistan.

People (later) saw the US as the attacker and not as the country that tried to stop the Islamist terror and attacks on the world.

 

The biggest issue and unresolved problem is in the UN.

Take a look at Syria. With the veto of Russia and initially China in the UN security council to take action or call for action against human rights violations and the war of Assad against his people. The UN due to the veto by Russia did not even permit any actions against ISIS in Syria.

 

The UN provisions are outdated. Countries have been trying to reform the UN and weaken the veto powers. But so far there is no movement.

The problem is that such countries that repeatedly violate human rights and do not have any serious human rights provisions for their own countries (Russia, China etc) are forcibly against amending the UN constitution. (Because they fear that the UN would call their own countries to violate certain principles.)

 

Some of the past actions by countries had already been critical and were taken out in violation of the UN convention.

(Jugoslavia 1999, Syria April 2017).

One of the last actions that had been approved by the UN Security Council was Libya in 2011.

 

What I dislike is that posts here prefer to start to attack the US without looking at the situation.

Do you want the US to play the world police for every conflict?

Those here claiming on the absence of military troops by the US in the Ukraine will be the first one to cry foul later on violations of the UN convention by the US or the civil causalities.

 

The sending of any US troops into Ukraine had been a severe military escalation of the situation and had provoked an outright war between US and Russia.

 

It might have changed Putin's view to launch an attack on the Ukraine, but it might have started a full brink war between Europe/ NATO and Russia.

 

 

We should look here at those who are the real violators, instigators, aggressors and war lords and those violating the international principles.

It is not the US.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 24, 2022 by singalion

[NE-STR]

what I am surprised is that the sneaky neighbor also come down and invade. Completely an opportunist for the land grab

 

 

 

 

 

[singalion]

On 2/24/2022 at 2:28 PM, Sub femboy said:

The MSM very careful not to show the Russian flags being waved from buildings in Kiev

 

In all the ex Soviet republics there are Russian minorities.

 

Where did you see Russian flags being waved in buildings in Kiev?

 

Are you watching the Russian propaganda channels?

 

 

[singalion]

Most of the videos are fakes...

 

‘Dumb and lazy’: the flawed films of Ukrainian ‘attacks’ made by Russia’s ‘fake factory’

Bellingcat founder Elliot Higgins says Russia’s propaganda films have got worse but that Russian viewers, especially the older generation, tend to believe fake TV footage

 

 

The Guardian Mon 21 Feb 2022

 

 

he video shows a ghostly scene. A night-time battle is taking place in a forest. There are flashes and mysterious bangs. An unidentified figure cries out in pain. The wounded man is wearing a helmet. Otherwise there are few clues as to where the footage was shot, or what exactly is going on.

A TV report by Russia’s state-run channel one gave the answer. The man seen in eerie silhouette was a Ukrainian saboteur, it said. He was part of a diversionary team sent across enemy lines into pro-Russian separatist territory. His mission? To blow up a local chlorine plant in the rebel-held town of Horlivka, the channel said.

 

During the firefight two infiltrators were killed, it added. By happy coincidence, representatives of the Donetsk People’s Republic – one of two pro-Moscow entities in the east of Ukraine – retrieved the video from the wounded man’s head camera. He had chucked it away, channel one told its viewers.

Anatomy of a Russian Seperatist False Flag - On February 18th the Telegram channel of the press service of the People's Militia of the Donetsk People's Republic published the following video, claiming to show a sabotage operation targeting chlorine tankshttps://t.co/Syk8NG2zKx pic.twitter.com/R4mfggxbPg

— Eliot Higgins (@EliotHiggins) February 20, 2022

There was only one problem with the Kremlin’s dramatic account of the incident. It was entirely fake. The soundtrack of shooting and explosions was actually more than a decade old. It had been recorded in April 2010, according to open source researchers, during a Finnish military exercise.

Ukraine’s intelligence service believes the video is the work of the GRU, Russia’s military spy agency, which has worked actively in Ukraine since the 2014 annexation of Crimea and the shooting down of the MH17 passenger plane. The film’s creators appear to have lifted the original Finnish video from the internet.

 

 

 

They spliced its soundtrack on to new video content made two weeks ago – editing out a few excited “ooohs” from Finnish recruits.

“Russia has a long record of doing this. It isn’t surprising,” Elliot Higgins, founder of the investigative website Bellingcat told the Guardian. He added: “What’s surprising is they haven’t got any better at doing it. In some ways they have got worse. It’s really dumb and lazy.”

 

Higgins said international audiences were mostly impervious to Kremlin disinformation. But he said domestic Russian viewers tended to believe fake TV footage, which was “theatrically” created for state propaganda purposes. This was especially true of the older generation, he said.

Over the past week Russia has churned out numerous false stories from what Ukraine’s foreign ministry Dmytro Kuleba called a “fake producing factory”. They include claims Ukraine is planning to attack separatist enclaves, and that it on Monday smuggled armoured vehicles and saboteurs across the border – supposedly recorded by helmet cam.

 

The Kremlin’s media goal is to create a pretext for invasion, Higgins suggested. As part of this strategy Russian TV has begun actively promoting information which suggests a vast humanitarian crisis is unfolding in eastern Ukraine. It has claimed residents have come under heavy Ukrainian shelling – something Kyiv says is not true.

 

The information has ranged from reports on increased bombardment to more outlandish “provocations” such as an attempted car bombing on Friday outside the separatist administration building in Donetsk. The same day the territory’s pro-Moscow leader, Denis Pushilin, released a video saying the situation had become so grave civilians had to be bussed out to safety and Russia.

 

Pushilin’s evacuation order was released on 18 February. Bellingcat, however, discovered from the video’s metadata on the channel Telegram that it had actually been filmed two days earlier – last Wednesday. “It’s incompetence,” Higgins said. At the time the situation across the line of control between the Ukrainian military and separatists positions was calm.

 

A large part of Russian efforts to lay the groundwork for a Kosovo-style intervention in east Ukraine is to claim that the Ukrainian efforts to regain control of the territories in 2014 amounted to “genocide”. Putin has used the word on several occasions. He has also made comparisons to the massacre at Srebrenica in Bosnia.

 

“What is happening in the Donbas today is genocide,” Putin said last week. Russian diplomats circulated a document at the United Nations claiming Ukraine is engaged in “exterminating the civilian population” in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. Late on Sunday night Russia’s embassy in Washington sent a similar document to US journalists.

 

The “genocide” theme was also repeatedly mentioned during Putin’s extraordinary security council meeting on Monday in Moscow. It has featured extensively in state media bulletins, leading up to the request by the separatist authorities for military and economic help from the Kremlin, as well as legal recognition, granted by Putin on Monday evening.

 

In 2014, during the peak of the conflict, numerous mass burials were carried out, particularly in Luhansk, where the bodies of many of those who died in the war could not be buried immediately due to the intense fighting. During a visit to Luhansk in September 2014, the Guardian saw stacks of simple wooden coffins at the morgue, which were later buried in hastily dug mass graves.

 

However, to describe the deaths in Luhansk and other parts of the current separatist areas as “genocide” is grossly misleading. Both sides used artillery on civilian areas during the gruesome battles of 2014, but there was never any mass programme to execute civilians based on ethnicity, language or political preference.

 

Starting last summer, separatist authorities began exhuming bodies from graves, to perform DNA analysis and identify the remains of people they said had been “victims of Ukrainian aggression”. At the time, the move caused alarm among some of those monitoring the region, with a sense that the exhumations might be later used politically. Now, that seems to be happening.

 

Meanwhile, top Russian propagandists have openly accused western leaders of warmongering. In a recent segment, Dmitry Kiselyov, who runs a primetime weekly news show, asked: “who needs war?” The answer was a list of foreign leaders and dignitaries: Boris Johnson, Prince Andrew, Joe Biden, Recep Erdoğan, Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Ukraine’s embattled pro-western president.

 

For some pro-Kremlin opinion-makers, the turn toward war has been marked by a quick change in message. Margarita Simonyan, the head of RT, spent weeks mocking US and European officials for their warnings that Russia was preparing for war. But early last week, she changed her opinion: “Russia cannot but stop this war. What are we waiting for?” she asked.

 

The video editing technology may be new, but the message is an old one. Finnish media pointed out that the Soviet Union in November 1939 used a similar excuse to start the winter war against Finland. The day before the Soviet invasion Moscow claimed that Finnish troops had launched “an attack”.

 

 

 

Edited February 24, 2022 by singalion

[singalion]

On 2/24/2022 at 2:26 PM, Sub femboy said:

US expansionist and warlike policies have contributed to endless humanitarian suffering in their endless pursuit of arms selling and profits gained from misery. 

 

That might be right, but is the US the aggressor in the Ukraine conflict???

 

Had the Ukraine (even if equipped with US weapons) any plans to attack other countries or Russia?

Did the Ukraine infringe with any rights or anything referring to Russia?

 

Russia has accepted Ukraine in 1994 as an independent country in the territory as in 1994 with the Budapest Memorandum.

 

 

Please do not lose the sight who is the aggressor in this conflict.

 

 

 

 

 

On December 5, 1994, leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Russian Federation met in Budapest, Hungary, to pledge security assurances to Ukraine in connection with its accession to the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as a non-nuclear-weapons state. The signature of the so-called Budapest Memorandum concluded arduous negotiations that resulted in Ukraine’s agreement to relinquish the world’s third-largest nuclear arsenal, which the country inherited from the collapsed Soviet Union, and transfer all nuclear warheads to Russia for dismantlement. The signatories of the memorandum pledged to respect Ukraine’s territorial integrity and inviolability of its borders, and to refrain from the use or threat of military force.

The Budapest memorandum

 

Although the Budapest Memorandum was not a treaty, it included a restatement
of legally binding UN Charter commitments, notably in the clause in which
Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States chose to ‘reaffirm their obligation
to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or
political independence of Ukraine, and [promised] that none of their weapons
will ever be used against Ukraine except in self-defence or otherwise in accordance
with the Charter of the United Nations’.
The standing and significance of the Budapest Memorandum were underscored
when the four parties submitted it to the United Nations Secretary General with
a request that it be circulated as a document of the General Assembly and the
Security Council. Furthermore, the four heads of state and government attached
a joint declaration to the Budapest Memorandum reaffirming the paramount
importance of CSCE (Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe)

principles, including the following:
The leaders confirmed that CSCE commitments in the area of human rights, economics
and security represent the cornerstone of the common European security space, and that
they help ensure that countries and peoples in this space are not subjected further to the
threat of military force or other undesirable consequences of aggressive nationalism and
chauvinism.

In 2009, in a joint statement regarding the expiration of the original START
Treaty, Russia and the United States reaffirmed the validity of the Budapest
Memoranda signed in 1994 with Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine. ‘In this
connection, the United States of America and the Russian Federation confirm
that the assurances recorded in the Budapest Memoranda will remain in effect
after December 4, 2009.’34 In 2010, in the preamble to the New START Treaty,
Russia and the United States reaffirmed their appreciation to Belarus, Kazakhstan
and Ukraine for their ‘contribution ... to nuclear disarmament and to strengthening
international peace and security as non-nuclear-weapon states’ party to
the NPT—in other words, for fulfilling their commitments under the Budapest
Memoranda

In the Budapest Memorandum, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United
States reaffirmed ‘their commitment to Ukraine, in accordance with the principles
of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, to
respect the independence and sovereignty and the existing borders of Ukraine’.
Furthermore, they confirmed ‘their obligation to refrain from the threat or use
of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of Ukraine, and
that none of their weapons will ever be used against Ukraine except in self-defence
or otherwise in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations’.

 

 

Edited February 24, 2022 by singalion

[Guest Wonder]

On 2/24/2022 at 3:08 PM, singalion said:

 

Where did you see Russian flags being waved in buildings in Kiev?

 

Are you watching the Russian propaganda channels?

 

 

 

The pot calling the kettle black. As if the western media is very objective and unbiased in their reportings. Wonder who really is the one who's reading the propaganda..

 

 

[Neh Neh]

Will handsome Ukranian guys move to Singapore? This concern us more

[Guest Lol]

On 2/24/2022 at 5:25 PM, Neh Neh said:

Will handsome Ukranian guys move to Singapore? This concern us more

Hahahah this really makes me LOL. Some ukranian guys are really yummy.

[singalion]

 

 

China avoids calling Russia's attack on Ukraine an 'invasion' and says trade with Russia will continue as normal

 

• In its first comments since Russia's attack on Ukraine, China's foreign ministry sidestepped questions on whether it viewed Russia's actions as an invasion.
• China called for all parties to exercise restraint.
• It also stressed that trade with Russia will continue as normal.

China has avoided calling Russia's attack on Ukraine an "invasion" and has called for restraint from all parties, according to multiple news reports.

 

In its first comments since Russian forces attacked Ukraine early Thursday morning, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson referred to the term "invasion" as "preconceived wording," per The New York Times. The spokesperson, Hua Chunying, was responding at a news conference to a foreign journalist's question that described Russia's actions as an "invasion," Reuters reported.

Hua also said the US had "hyped" the prospect of war, Bloomberg reported.

"We still hope that the parties concerned will not shut the door to peace and engage instead in dialogue and consultation and prevent the situation from further escalating," the Associated Press quoted Hua as saying.

Hua said trade between China and Russia would continue as normal, per Bloomberg.

 

 

 

So it was the US now that launched the war?

Did the US media send tanks into Ukraine or rockets this morning?

 

3 European Prime Ministers and the even Bolsonaro, the Brazil President did not try to resolve the issue by diplomatic means without resorting to war?

 

I guess I watched a different movie or tv channel...

 

MOSCOW, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro said on Wednesday that he spoke with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Moscow about the Ukraine crisis, but said he did not deliver any specific message other than that Brazil supported a peaceful resolution.

"I told Putin that Brazil supports any country that seeks peace. And that's his intention," Bolsonaro told reporters after his meeting with the Russian leader.

 

He added that Russia's insistence that it has begun withdrawing troops from around Ukraine's border - a claim disputed by the United States and NATO - was a sign that "a path to a peaceful solution has presented itself."

 

 

Yesterday from China:

 

新华社北京2月23日电（记者 董雪、马卓言）外交部发言人华春莹23日在例行记者会上就乌克兰问题、美俄关系等回答了记者提问。

“中方一贯反对任何非法单边制裁”

 

“中方将继续以自己的方式劝和促谈”

有记者问，个别美国媒体认为，中方现在在乌克兰问题上的表态立场同中方一贯奉行的尊重国家主权和领土完整原则相矛盾。你是否同意这种看法？

“中方在乌克兰问题上的立场是一贯的，没有变化。”华春莹说。

华春莹表示，中方表态符合中方一贯坚持的推动对话协商解决地区热点问题的立场。中方始终秉持客观公正，站在和平正义的一边，按照事情本身的是非曲直决定自身立场，主张各国都要根据联合国宪章的宗旨和原则和平解决国际争端。“个别人指责中方有关乌克兰问题的立场违背尊重国家主权和领土完整原则，这要么是别有用心，要么是故意歪曲误解。”

她说，乌克兰问题有其复杂历史经纬，局势演变至今是各种因素共同作用的结果。要想正确客观认识并寻求理性和平的解决方案，有必要了解乌克兰问题的来龙去脉，在平等和相互尊重的基础上，妥善解决彼此合理安全关切。

华春莹表示，当前形势下，和平解决乌克兰问题的大门并没有完全关上。中方希望有关当事方保持冷静和理性，致力于根据联合国宪章原则，通过谈判和平解决有关问题。“中方将继续以自己的方式劝和促谈，欢迎并鼓励一切致力于推动外交解决的努力。”

在应询介绍中方为解决乌克兰问题发挥的作用时，华春莹说，在地区热点问题上，中方一向致力于劝和促谈，为推动和平解决地区热点问题发挥建设性作用。

她介绍，16日，习近平主席同马克龙总统通话时强调，有关各方应该坚持政治解决的大方向，充分利用包括诺曼底机制在内的多边平台，通过对话协商寻求乌克兰问题的全面解决。近日，国务委员兼外长王毅通过视频出席慕尼黑安全会议中国专场时也强调，各方应该切实负起责任，为和平而努力，而不是一味推高紧张，制造恐慌，甚至渲染战争。

来源： 新华社

 

 

Today:

 

中国外交部：不认同西方媒体称俄乌局势为俄“入侵”

针对乌克兰危机，中国外交部发言人华春莹今天（24日）称，中国正密切关注乌克兰局势，她并称，要基于事实来判断，不认同西方媒体称之为俄罗斯“入侵”。

综合路透社和澎湃新闻报道，华春莹今天在例行新闻发布会上说，“乌克兰局势发展到今天是我们不愿意看到的”，乌克兰问题有非常复杂的历史背景，希望各方做出共同努力，给和平一个机会，通过对话协商和谈判能够尽快把局势缓和下来，不要让局势进一步升级。

But then:

另外，针对俄罗斯对乌克兰采取军事行动令全球能源形势紧张，中国是否会释放战略储备，华春莹说，各国应避免地区紧张影响全球能源安全，只有当局势稳定下来才能防范溢出效应

 

来源： 新华社

 

Means military action into another country is not an invasion?

Sending tanks and military into another country is resolving issues by peaceful or diplomatic means?

 

[Guest Bigger fish to fry]

Good, now that China agrees that sending troops to support independence is not an invasion but peace keeping.

 

India can send troops to Tibet, Afghanistan can send suicide bombers and weapons to Xinjiang, Russia can send troops to Mongolia

All in the name of peace keeping.

[InBangkok]

On 2/22/2022 at 3:19 AM, Steve5380 said:

Both the US and Great Britain helped destabilize Iran because their government had opened their door to Russia's influence.  This was during the years of the Cold War, when the NATO nations did their best to protect themselves from the advances of communism. 

The bulk of that comment is not true. You need to check your history more accurately. The USA through the CIA and the UK wanted to restore the Shah for the very simple reason that the duly elected Prime Minister Mosaddegh had stated he planned to audit the books of the British run oil company and then nationalise Iran's oilfields. Both the USA and the UK wanted cheap oil. So they got rid of Mosaddegh and restored the Shah to power. The reason was oil.

 

The reason Russia had no influence on the decision is that in 1952 the USA had actually taken the decision to back Mosaddegh unilaterally by supporting him against the Shah, even without UK assistance. Having been persuaded by the British that it should switch sides, the USA joined the plan to restore the Shah by means of a coup d'etat. This took place in late 1953. As declassified US documents prove, some of the most feared mobsters in Teheran were hired by the CIA to stage pro-Shah riots that August. Other men paid by the CIA were brought into the city to take over the city's streets.

 

Once the Shah was back in power, he realised only too well that he could make a great deal of money out of the USA and the west by siding with it later in the Cold War. As a result - as it was later to do in so many countries in which it got rid of inconvenient governments and which it then invaded - the USA happily provided the corrupt, murdering megalomanic Shah with huge amounts of cash and armaments. The deposing of Mosaddegh was the first CIA action on behalf of the USA. That coup was to become the template for so many others.

[Guest Please]

On 2/24/2022 at 10:08 PM, Guest Bigger fish to fry said:

Good, now that China agrees that sending troops to support independence is not an invasion but peace keeping.

 

 

Nice try. Did China mention anything about sending  troops to support independence is for peace keeping ?? Or is it a figment of your bigoted imagination ? They only disagreed it's  an invasion due to complex issues of surrounding Ukraine. For you to misquote them reveals your ulterior malicious intentions.

 

[Steve5380]

On 2/24/2022 at 4:20 AM, Guest Lol said:

Hahahah this really makes me LOL. Some ukranian guys are really yummy.

 

I cannot wait to meet them, yumm.  But I am not planning to travel to Ukraine any time soon.

[Guest Bigger fish to fry]

On 2/25/2022 at 12:31 AM, Guest Please said:

 

Nice try. Did China mention anything about sending  troops to support independence is for peace keeping ?? Or is it a figment of your bigoted imagination ? They only disagreed it's  an invasion due to complex issues of surrounding Ukraine. For you to misquote them reveals your ulterior malicious intentions.

 

Wow, wumao propaganda is everywhere.

 

Russia says it's for peace keeping, you didn't disagree but you use that flimsy excuse of complex issues of surrounding Ukraine.

 

Tibet, Xinjiang and Mongolia also have complex issues.

So we all agree it's not an invasion If we copied Russia's action.

[Guest Bigger fish to fry]

On 2/24/2022 at 11:50 PM, InBangkok said:

The bulk of that comment is not true. You need to check your history more accurately. The USA through the CIA and the UK wanted to restore the Shah for the very simple reason that the duly elected Prime Minister Mosaddegh had stated he planned to audit the books of the British run oil company and then nationalise Iran's oilfields. Both the USA and the UK wanted cheap oil. So they got rid of Mosaddegh and restored the Shah to power. The reason was oil.

 

The reason Russia had no influence on the decision is that in 1952 the USA had actually taken the decision to back Mosaddegh unilaterally by supporting him against the Shah, even without UK assistance. Having been persuaded by the British that it should switch sides, the USA joined the plan to restore the Shah by means of a coup d'etat. This took place in late 1953. As declassified US documents prove, some of the most feared mobsters in Teheran were hired by the CIA to stage pro-Shah riots that August. Other men paid by the CIA were brought into the city to take over the city's streets.

 

Once the Shah was back in power, he realised only too well that he could make a great deal of money out of the USA and the west by siding with it later in the Cold War. As a result - as it was later to do in so many countries in which it got rid of inconvenient governments and which it then invaded - the USA happily provided the corrupt, murdering megalomanic Shah with huge amounts of cash and armaments. The deposing of Mosaddegh was the first CIA action on behalf of the USA. That coup was to become the template for so many others.

It's people like you who think you're "so clever" with your ½ baked logic that indirectly helped those tyrants to divert attention from their raw aggressions.

 

You waste everybody's time and energy with showing off your "cleverness" while war is coming.

[Steve5380]

Now that the invasion started, and we can see in the news the Russian armored vehicles rolling into Ukraine,  there is suddenly some new vibe in the world.

 

I can feel it in my bones.  Something obscure and fatalistic.  It is like a survival instinct that crossed in my mind the idea of going to the bank and withdraw more cash to keep at home, even if  I already have plenty of it. 

 

This alarmist feeling may appear absurd to you lucky Singaporeans which may have the intercontinental missiles only fly over the island at high altitude.  But living in the fourth largest city in America which is also an important energy center, makes one think of how many Russian H bombs it would take to convert it into a moon landscape.

 

This vibe may also be in my genes,  coming from a family that was persecuted and escaped from Germany during WWII.  And it may also come because I never, ever have been involved in a war.  Why should I have been so lucky?   But don't worry,  I am a good survivor.

[Steve5380]

On 2/24/2022 at 2:18 PM, Guest Bigger fish to fry said:

It's people like you who think you're "so clever" with your ½ baked logic that indirectly helped those tyrants to divert attention from their raw aggressions.

 

You waste everybody's time and energy with showing off your "cleverness" while war is coming.

 

Yes, you are right.  The world is full of expert PhDs in International Affairs that want to promote their speculations.  Of course the MEDIA is also full of it.

 

The regrettable truth is that human nature has not changed.  And the relevant individuals don't learn from the past, from history.  They ride their High Horses full of fantasies of their unique importance and abilities that will keep them from making mistakes like other leaders did.  Surely Hitler didn't think that he would end worse than Napoleon.  And Putin is surely certain that he will do better than Hitler and Stalin.    Isn't Putin as small a guy as Napoleon was?   Hmmm... the same mental complexes, damn!

[Guest Guest]

 

https://news.yahoo.com/donald-trump-chinas-going-next-232516191.html

 

Donald Trump: 'China's going to be next,' will ‘absolutely’ invade Taiwan following Russia-Ukraine crisis

 

Jane Nam

Thu, February 24, 2022, 7:25 AM·2 min read

 

 

Referring to the Russia-Ukraine Crisis, Trump praised Putin as a “genius” and stated that “China is going to be next” under Biden’s watch.

In a recent interview with the conservative talk radio program “The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show,” former U.S. President Donald Trump confidently stated that “China is going to be next” and would “absolutely” be going after Taiwan.

He accused the Biden administration of being weak and assured the hosts that an invasion would “never have happened” under his own presidency. Trump also praised Putin as a “genius” for sending Russian troops into Ukraine under the guise of “peace keepers.” He stated, “Here’s a guy who’s very savvy.”

The hosts mocked President Joe Biden’s tweets from two years ago in which he wrote: “I’m the only person in this field who’s ever gone toe-to-toe with [Putin].” They claimed Russian invasions also took place under the Obama administration, suggesting the two leaders had weak positions on foreign policy.

As president, Trump was involved and invested in several Taiwanese affairs, especially in regards to military expansion. As an NPR article from 2020 pointed out, Trump made many efforts as president to forge a stronger partnership with Taiwan, including accepting a congratulatory call from Taiwan’s president on his win and dealing a multi-billion dollar arms sale with the Taiwanese military. Under his administration, a brand new $255 million dollar representative office was also opened in Taipei, the capital. Simultaneously during this time, Trump had continued to take an aggressive stance against trade with China by imposing tariffs.

China and Taiwan have had separate governments since 1949, when communists overtook the Republic of China in a civil war. They went on to set up the People’s Republic of China, whereas the members of the Republic of China fled to Taiwan to establish their own separate government. Taiwan continues to declare its independence, while China continues to claim it as its territory under its “One country, two systems” stance.

In response to comparisons of the Russia-Ukraine Crisis to the situation between China and Taiwan, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hya Chunying firmly reiterated China’s “One-China” sentiments by noting that “Taiwan is indeed not Ukraine” and would always remain an “inseparable” part of China’s territory. “This,” Hya continued, “is an irrefutable historical and legal fact.”

Tensions are on the rise as Taiwan’s need for military defense comes into question amidst an already strained relationship between it and China. China’s air force has been spotted circling Taiwan’s skies.

[InBangkok]

On 2/25/2022 at 3:18 AM, Guest Bigger fish to fry said:

It's people like you who think you're "so clever" with your ½ baked logic that indirectly helped those tyrants to divert attention from their raw aggressions.

 

You waste everybody's time and energy with showing off your "cleverness" while war is coming.

You have made your point. But you have written absolutely nothing that contradicts the historical facts posted in the post you queried. Since you clearly know about that period in history, perhaps you will now explain to members what you believe really happened. It will be appreciated.

[Guest Reasonable?]

On 2/25/2022 at 4:32 AM, Steve5380 said:

Isn't Putin as small a guy as Napoleon was?   Hmmm... the same mental complexes, damn!

Putin has done a better job in uplitfting the Russian livelihood as compared to all his predecessors.   The only thing I hated Putin, he is not very gay friendly but in a country filled with orthodox churches, what else can he do?  If Ukrain is not a gay friendly country too,  then let them fight.   Because I am very gay conscious more than who is right or wrong.  

[InBangkok]

On 2/25/2022 at 1:14 PM, Guest Reasonable? said:

Putin has done a better job in uplitfting the Russian livelihood as compared to all his predecessors.   The only thing I hated Putin, he is not very gay friendly but in a country filled with orthodox churches, what else can he do?  If Ukrain is not a gay friendly country too,  then let them fight.   Because I am very gay conscious more than who is right or wrong.  

I suggest it is important to remember that Putin was a KGB agent before the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since then he has always regarded the end of the Soviet Union as a gross error by his predecessors Gorbachev and Yeltsin. His overriding aim, according to many Russia-watchers, is to return Russia to its glory days.

 

I have been several times to Moscow and St. Petersburg. In Leningrad (as it was then named) in early 1988 it was horribly depressing to see mostly elderly women lining the streets hoping to sell their few possessions laid out in front of them. The food shops had little food. The department store was equally barren, apart from lots of pairs of shoes. Young university students came up to me and offered to buy my jeans and fur-lined jacket. The city was horribly depressing.

 

Back in St. Petersburg in 2014 it was like a totally different city. It looked wealthy. Shops were full, some with designer label boutiques. Residents actually smiled at us, a few wishing us a happy stay in their city. The old mansions lining many of the streets like Nevsky Prospekt had been recently painted in bright colours reminiscent of the previous century. We saw lots of University students as we took the subway passed a Technical University. They were well dressed and many looked handsome. In other countries some would be gay. I suspect that some probably were, but afraid to be known openly as gay.

 

For Putin's anti-gay propaganda law had been enacted the year before. I honestly don't think that law reflected the desire of the Russian Orthodox Church - but that's only my view. I think it was Putin's view and that he knew it was also the view of his wealthy oligarch friends who had become mega-rich under his Presidency. It was also to suck up to the nation's large ultra-nationalist right wing citizens. When he signed the Bill into law, Putin continued the old false argument that he had to protect Russia's youth from pedophiles! The Russian Sports Minister went further. He said that without the Bill Russia's youth would be unprotected from alcoholism and drug addiction. Idiots!

 

If as now seems likely he makes Ukraine a province of Russia, I'd expect the same law to be implemented. Ironically by 2013 Russia had been awarded the 2014 Winter Olympics and the 2018 World Cup. Both organisations have charters prohibiting infringement of human rights. Apart from pressure from individual countries, Russia was bombarded with complaints from the worldwide sponsors of both events. No doubt those were reasons why there were no effects regarding gay sports men, women and spectators. No doubt, also, as a result of the invasion of Ukraine, Russia will be banned from hosting international sports events for a long time.

Edited February 25, 2022 by InBangkok

[singalion]

,

Edited February 25, 2022 by singalion

[singalion]

.

Edited February 25, 2022 by singalion

[InBangkok]

On 2/25/2022 at 11:19 AM, Guest Guest said:

He accused the Biden administration of being weak and assured the hosts that an invasion would “never have happened” under his own presidency. Trump also praised Putin as a “genius” for sending Russian troops into Ukraine under the guise of “peace keepers.” He stated, “Here’s a guy who’s very savvy.”

It's interesting to speculate - how emboldened was Putin as a result of Trump letting him get away with so much, Trump's absurd criticising of his own Security Departments and instead praising Putin at their summit in Helsinki, and generally calling him a great leader at every possibility. How much preparation for the invasion took place towards the end of the Trump Presidency? An invasion on the lines of what is happening in Ukraine takes a vast amount of preparation. And did the Russians interfere with the US Presidential elections hoping that their pal Trump would be re-elected and thereafter turn a blind eye to the Ukraine invasion?

[singalion]

It seems Russia captured the area around the former atomic reactor Chernobyl.

 

Probably, the Russian FBI (= FSB) will find evidence that Ukraine was building atomic bombs... to spread new false propaganda against Ukraine later.

 

 

I found that sentence from Putin about "Denazification" of the Ukraine noteworthy.

 

here the quote from Putin's speech

“Its goal is to protect people who have been subjected to abuse and genocide by the regime in Kyiv for eight years. And for this we will pursue the demilitarisation and denazification of Ukraine, as well as bringing to justice those who committed numerous bloody crimes against civilians, including citizens of the Russian Federation.

 

This is just twisting the facts...

 

for those interested you can find the whole speech here:

 

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/24/putins-speech-declaring-war-on-ukraine-translated-excerpts

 

I m surprised Aljazeera is doing this effort in reporting on Ukraine...

 

 

No other option’: Excerpts of Putin’s speech declaring war

Before launching the biggest attack by one state against another in Europe since World War II, Putin addressed his nation.

 

24 Feb 2022

 

In the early hours of Thursday, February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed his nation, announcing a “special military operation” against Ukraine.

The speech came on the heels of his decision to recognise the Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic on February 21 and the signing of mutual cooperation agreements between Russia and the two breakaway regions.

 

Below are highlights translated by Al Jazeera staff based on the transcript, released by the Russian presidency:

Watch the moment Russia's President Putin announced a military operation in Ukraine’s Donbas region, warning other nations of consequences if they interfere ⤵️

🔴 LIVE updates: https://t.co/e7XVFng5Gu pic.twitter.com/C1966pOHsX

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) February 24, 2022

 

“Respected citizens of Russia! Dear friends!

“Today, I again consider it necessary to come back to the tragic events taking place in the Donbas and the key issue of ensuring Russian security. Let me start with what I said in my address of February 21. I am referring to what causes us particular concern and anxiety – those fundamental threats against our country that year after year, step by step, are offensively and unceremoniously created by irresponsible politicians in the West.

 

“I am referring to the expansion of the NATO to the east, moving its military infrastructure closer to Russian borders. It is well known that for 30 years we have persistently and patiently tried to reach an agreement with the leading NATO countries on the principles of equal and inviolable security in Europe. In response to our proposals, we constantly faced either cynical deception and lies, or attempts to pressure and blackmail, while NATO, despite all our protests and concerns, continued to steadily expand. The war machine is moving and, I repeat, it is coming close to our borders.”

 

---

 

“After the collapse of the USSR, the realignment of the world began, and the norms of international law that had been developed – the key, basic ones being adopted in the aftermath of World War II and largely consolidating its outcome – began to get in the way of the self-proclaimed winner of the Cold War.

 

“Of course, in practical life, in international relations and the rules that regulated them, it was necessary to take into account changes in the state of affairs in the world and the balance of power. This should have been done professionally, smoothly, patiently, taking into account and respecting the interests of all countries and understanding one’s own responsibility. But no, the euphoria from having absolute superiority, a kind of modern-day absolutism, and the low level of general culture and arrogance of decision-makers [led to] decision prepared, adopted and pushed through that were beneficial only for themselves. The situation began to develop according to a different scenario.

 

“You don’t have to look far for examples. First, without any approval from the UN Security Council, they carried out a bloody military operation against Belgrade, using aircraft and missiles right in the very centre of Europe. [They carried out] several weeks of continuous bombing of cities and critical infrastructure. We have to remind of these facts, as some Western colleagues do not like to remember those events, and when we talk about it, they prefer to point not to the norms of international law, but to the circumstances that they interpret as they see fit.

 

“Then came the turn of Iraq, Libya, Syria. The illegitimate use of military force against Libya, the twisting of all decisions taken by the UN Security Council on the Libyan issue led to the complete destruction of the state, to the emergence of a major hotbed of international terrorism, to a humanitarian catastrophe and a civil war that has not ended to this day. The tragedy, to which they doomed hundreds of thousands, millions of people not only in Libya, but throughout this region, gave rise to a massive migration wave from North Africa and the Middle East to Europe.

 

“They ensured a similar fate for Syria. The Western coalition’s military activities on the territory of this country without the consent of the Syrian government or the approval of the UN Security Council are nothing but aggression, intervention.

 

“However, there is a special place for the invasion of Iraq, which was carried out also without any legal grounds. As a pretext, they put forward supposedly reliable information from the United States about the presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. As proof of this, publicly, in front of the eyes of the whole world, the US secretary of state shook some kind of a test tube with white powder, assuring everyone that this is a chemical weapon being developed in Iraq. And then it turned out that all this was a hoax, a bluff: there were no chemical weapons in Iraq.”

 

---

 

“In this context, there were promises to our country not to expand NATO even one inch to the east. I repeat – they deceived us, in other words, they simply conned us. Yes, you can often hear that politics is a dirty business. Perhaps [that is so], but not to this extent. After all, such cheating behaviour contradicts not only the principles of international relations, but above all the generally recognised norms of morality. Where is justice and truth here? Just total lies and hypocrisy.

 

“By the way, American politicians, political scientists and journalists themselves write and say that in recent years, an actual “empire of lies” has been created inside the United States. It’s hard to disagree with that, as it’s true. But let us not understate: the United States is a great country, a system-forming power. All her satellites not only dutifully agree, sing along to its music, but also copy its behaviour, and enthusiastically accept the rules they are offered. Therefore, with good reason, we can confidently say that the entire so-called Western bloc, formed by the United States in its own image and likeness, all of it is an ’empire of lies.'”

 

---

 

“Despite all of this, in December 2021 we once again made an attempt to agree with the United States and its allies on the principles of ensuring security in Europe and on the non-expansion of NATO. Everything was in vain. The US position did not change. They did not consider it necessary to negotiate with Russia on this important issue for us, continuing to pursue their own goals and disregarding our interests.”

 

---

 

“As for the military sphere, today, modern Russia, even after the collapse of the USSR and the loss of a significant part of its capacity, is one of the most powerful nuclear powers in the world and possesses certain advantages in some of the newest types of weaponry. In this regard, no one should have any doubts that a direct attack on our country will lead to defeat and horrible consequences for any potential aggressor.”

 

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“As NATO expands to the east, with every passing year, the situation for our country is getting worse and more dangerous. Moreover, in recent days the leadership of NATO has been openly talking about the need to speed up, force the advancement of the alliance’s infrastructure to the borders of Russia. In other words, they are doubling down on their position. We can no longer just watch what is happening. It would be absolutely irresponsible on our part.

 

“Further expansion of the NATO infrastructure and the beginning of military development in Ukraine’s territories are unacceptable for us. The problem, of course, is not NATO itself – it is only an instrument of US foreign policy. The problem is that in the territories adjacent to us – territories that were historically ours, I emphasise – an “anti-Russia” hostile to us is being created, placed under full external control; [it] is intensively settled by the armed forces of NATO countries and is supplied with the most modern weapons.

 

“For the United States and its allies, this is the so-called policy of containment of Russia, [which brings] obvious geopolitical benefits. And for our country, this is ultimately a matter of life and death, a matter of our historical future as a people. And this is not an exaggeration – it is true. This is a real threat not just to our interests, but to the very existence of our state, its sovereignty. This is the very red line that has been talked about many times. They crossed it.

 

“About the situation in the Donbas. We see that the forces that carried out a coup in Ukraine in 2014, seized power and are holding it through sham electoral procedures, have given up on the peaceful settlement of the conflict. For eight years, for eight long years, we have done everything possible to resolve the situation by peaceful, political means. All was in vain.

 

“As I said in my previous address, one cannot look at what is happening there without compassion. It is simply not possible to stand all this any more. It is necessary to immediately stop this nightmare – the genocide against the millions of people living there, who rely only on Russia, only on us. These aspirations, feelings, pain of people are the main motivation for us to take the decision to recognise the people’s republics of Donbas.

 

“What I think is important to emphasise further is that the leading NATO countries, in order to achieve their own goals, support extreme nationalists and Neo-Nazis in Ukraine, who, in turn, will never forgive the Crimeans and Sevastopol residents for choosing reunification with Russia.

“They, of course, will crawl into the Crimea, just like in the Donbas, in order to kill, just as the gangs of Ukrainian nationalists, Hitler’s accomplices, killed defenceless people during the Great Patriotic War. They openly lay claim to a number of other Russian territories.

 

“The course of events and the incoming information show that Russia’s clash with these forces is inevitable. It is only a matter of time: they are getting ready, they are waiting for the right time. Now they also claim to acquire nuclear weapons. We will not allow this to happen.”

 

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“We have been left no other option to protect Russia and our people, but for the one that we will be forced to use today. The situation requires us to take decisive and immediate action. The people’s republics of Donbas turned to Russia with a request for help.

 

“In this regard, in accordance with Article 51 of Part 7 of the UN Charter, with the approval of the Federation Council of Russia and in pursuance of the treaties of friendship and mutual assistance ratified by the Duma on February 22 with the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Luhansk People’s Republic, I decided to launch a special military operation.

 

“Its goal is to protect people who have been subjected to abuse and genocide by the regime in Kyiv for eight years. And for this we will pursue the demilitarisation and denazification of Ukraine, as well as bringing to justice those who committed numerous bloody crimes against civilians, including citizens of the Russian Federation.

“Our plans do not include the occupation of Ukrainian territories. We are not going to impose anything on anyone by force. At the same time, we hear that recently in the West there is talk that the documents signed by the Soviet totalitarian regime, securing the outcome of World War II, should no longer be upheld. Well, what is the answer to this?

 

“The outcome of World War II, as well as the sacrifices made by our people on the altar of victory over Nazism, are sacred. But this does not contradict the high values of human rights and freedoms, based on the realities that have developed today in the decades following war. It also does not cancel the right of nations to self-determination, enshrined in Article 1 of the UN Charter.”

 

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“In this regard, I appeal to the citizens of Ukraine. In 2014, Russia was obliged to protect the residents of Crimea and Sevastopol from those whom you, yourself call “Nazis”. Crimeans and Sevastopol residents made their choice to be with their historical homeland, with Russia, and we supported this. I repeat, we simply could not do otherwise.

“What is happening today does not come out of a desire to infringe on the interests of Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. It is related to the protection of Russia itself from those who took Ukraine hostage and are trying to use it against our country and its people.”

 

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“I also need to address the military personnel of the Ukrainian armed forces.

“Dear comrades! Your fathers, grandfathers, great-grandfathers did not fight the Nazis and defend our common Motherland, so that today’s Neo-Nazis can seize power in Ukraine. You took an oath of allegiance to the Ukrainian people, and not to the anti-national junta that plunders Ukraine and abuses its people.

“Don’t follow its criminal orders. I urge you to lay down your weapons immediately and go home. I want to make clear that all servicemen of the Ukrainian army who do so will be able to freely leave the combat zone and return to their families.

 

“Once again, I emphasise, all responsibility for possible bloodshed will lay on the conscience of the ruling regime in Ukraine.

“Now a few important, very important words for those who may be tempted to intervene in the ongoing events. Whoever tries to hinder us, or threaten our country or our people, should know that Russia’s response will be immediate and will lead you to consequences that you have never faced in your history. We are ready for any turn of events. All necessary decisions in this regard have been made. I hope that I will be heard.”

 

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“Dear compatriots!

“I am confident that the soldiers and officers of the Russian Armed Forces devoted to their country will professionally and courageously fulfil their duty. I have no doubt that all levels of government, the experts responsible for the stability of our economy, financial system and social sphere, the heads of our companies and all Russian business will act in a coordinated and efficient manner. I count on a patriotic consensus position of all parliamentary parties and public forces.

“As it has always been the case in our history, the fate of Russia is in the reliable hands of our multinational people. And this means that the decisions made will be implemented, the goals set will be achieved, the security of our Motherland will be reliably guaranteed.

“I believe in your support, in that invincible strength that our love for the Fatherland gives us.”

 

Source: Al Jazeera

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