Secretary of State Kerry's visit to Kiev is a symbolic and tangible illustration of American support as the White House tries to counteract Russian pressure on the new Ukrainian authorities.
Credit Kevin Lamarque/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
...The United States (click here) will also send technical experts to help Ukraine’s
national bank and finance ministry, provide advice on how to fight
corruption and train election monitors to help establish the legitimacy
of Ukraine’s coming election.
American
officials are offering assistance in recovering “stolen assets,” an
allusion to the billions of dollars that are alleged to have been
spirited out of the country by former President Viktor F. Yanukovych and
powerful businessmen.
The
United States will also provide technical advice so that Ukraine might
lodge complaints with the World Trade Organization should Russia try to
use trade as a political weapon....
The Ukraine needs to learn skills in it's leadership that will empower them against any attack against their economy, not just Russia. How are these nations going to move out of the old world and into the new if they don't have the knowledge and power to do so? They are left to seek advice that can easily lead to corruption.
It is difficult for a country to reach it's potential if there are no allies that wish it for them. I can't state this enough, but, the Ukraine believed in peace and disarmed from very dangerous weapons. Is there any reason to believe they have the capacity to wish harm anyone, yet alone their own people in the Crimea?
There is every reason to believe the Ukraine will be a willing and honest trade broker with any country. Why the delay in providing stability and protections so they can begin their efforts?
They simply want to defend their country, is there something wrong with that? They don't want a civil war, they want unity and peace within that unity.
"The Risk" the Ukraines face is not of their creation, it has been imposed on them because a treaty was broken. At no time did Russia consult with any of the other nations involved in this before it acted. It never sought a consensus. Russia wanted confrontation. It wanted to leverage power. It never wanted a peaceful resolve. There was no chance the Ukraine could ever stand up to a Russian staging of troops and Russia knew it and acted anyway. The Ukraine posses no threat to any other nation and in that reality lay it's vulnerability.
They simply want to defend their country, is there something wrong with that? They don't want a civil war, they want unity and peace within that unity.
"The Risk" the Ukraines face is not of their creation, it has been imposed on them because a treaty was broken. At no time did Russia consult with any of the other nations involved in this before it acted. It never sought a consensus. Russia wanted confrontation. It wanted to leverage power. It never wanted a peaceful resolve. There was no chance the Ukraine could ever stand up to a Russian staging of troops and Russia knew it and acted anyway. The Ukraine posses no threat to any other nation and in that reality lay it's vulnerability.
BELBEK, Ukraine — A tense and dangerous test of wills (click here) took place
Tuesday on a rainy hilltop at a dilapidated Cold War era air field here,
as Ukrainian soldiers confronted Russian troops and demanded to be
allowed to return to their base
Just a few hours after the 5 a.m. deadline issued by the Russia’s
Black Sea Fleet for Ukrainian troops in Crimea to switch their
allegiance from the new government in Kiev to the pro-Russian leadership
in Crimea, the first shots of the conflict were fired into the air here
by a pro-Russia militiaman.
No one was injured in the continuing impasse, but there were
tense moments as the two sides faced off, and Ukraine troops were
forced to choose between their oath to Ukraine and their feelings of
affinity with Russia.
At the Belbek air base, the Ukrainians chose duty....
Ukrainian riot police stand guard around a regional state administration
building in the Black Sea city of Odessa to prevent pro-Russian
activists from storming the building, on March 3, 2014 (AFP, Alexey
Kravtsov)
Adding foreign troops would make matters worse. It would escalate tensions and vastly delay the economic opportunities the Ukraine needs.
Adding foreign troops would make matters worse. It would escalate tensions and vastly delay the economic opportunities the Ukraine needs.
