The Russian economic alliance rages forward in the face of death of former colleagues. There is no conscience in Moscow or any other former Soviet state that have aligned economically with Russia.
Fighting raged in Ukraine (click here) on Friday (Feb 13), throwing doubts on a ceasefire deal due to take effect over the weekend, as the US said Russia was still deploying heavy arms and Kiev warned that shelling of civilians had intensified....
Where is the voice of reason in any Russia affiliations?
...Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said the continuing bombardment of civilians in eastern Ukraine by pro-Russian separatist rebels was already undermining the peace plan reached in Minsk on Thursday. At least 28 civilians and soldiers were reported killed in the latest upsurge in fighting....
The so called Pro-Russia rebels have no conscience. They continue to kill innocent people for what purpose? This is hatred.
There is no going back to the Soviet Union. Russia hasn't gone anywhere. The economic sanctions by The West were leveraged when the treaty protecting the lives of Ukrainians fell into question. Russia did this to itself.
Russia was accepted as an important member of the international community among many levels of economic opportunity. Russia had power internationally through influence, not just military arsenals. Russia needs to prove they have influence with the rebels to come to a peaceful end. If Russia cannot rein in the rebels it only proves this is about a regime intent on killing because of hate.
If Russia has no influence and a ceasefire doesn't occur, other countries have to make decisions about how to continue to protect Ukrainian lives in the face of rebels of anarchy.
January 29, 2015
The AP
MINSK, Belarus - New cracks emerged (click here) Thursday in a Russia-led economic alliance, with the president of Belarus warning that his nation may opt out of it.
Alexander Lukashenko also sternly warned Moscow Thursday that his nation of 10 million will never be part of the "Russian world," a term coined by the Kremlin that reflects its hopes to pull ex-Soviet nations closer into its orbit.
"Those who think that the Belarusian land is part as what they call the Russian world, almost part of Russia, forget about it!" Lukashenko said. "Belaru=s is a modern and independent state."
Lukashenko, who has been at the helm since 1994, has relied on Russia's economic subsidies and political support but bristled at Moscow's attempts to expand its control over Belarusian assets....
If Russia is unable to stop the rebels in Ukraine, there is no guarantee such forces in neighboring states will manifest to destabilize them as well. Moscow has to stop this. It's reputation as a valid leader to economic opportunity is dissolving. I do not believe any First World leaders wants to dissolve Russia into nothing but a war profile. Russia has to come back into the fold. It is a safe place for citizens of all nations.
Any ethnic hatred anywhere in the world is a crime. Every ethnic nation has a right to exist. Any human rights violation has to be brought out of the shadows to stop it. No major country should look the other way in the face of ethnic cleansing even if it is not globally known. Transparency in the reporting of such heinous acts is heroic.
Destroying an ethnic group cannot be tolerated and should never be viewed as victory in war.
From the Moscow Times:
January 19, 2015By Yulia Zhuchova
...By contrast, (click here) the CSTO was established as a voluntary organization with seemingly clear objectives. But what result do we see now?
Over the last 10 years, the organization conducted more than 15 large-scale joint military exercises aimed at combatting terrorism and extremism, but where was the organization when, for example, Kyrgyzstan came to the brink of a full-scale civil war in 2010?
Did a contingent of CSTO troops deploy to Osh to prevent the massacre of civilians? No. Did the CSTO member states at least formulate and agree on a common position regarding the Kyrgyz problem? Again, no.
In recent years Russia twice deployed its troops to the territory of neighboring states — in 2008 to South Ossetia, then a part of Georgia, and in 2014 to Crimea, then a part of Ukraine. Borders changed, but did any of Russia's allies officially recognize those changes? Not one....
