Did they expect us to treat them with any respect?
Roger Waters (The Final Cut)
Long ago, I learned the hard way that what I call “professional ideologues” count every damn penny and I sure do NOT want you to post a full article of theirs, lest they threaten me with lawsuits (already happened twice): to them, money is far, far, more important than propagating any truths, believe me. So I won’t post the full thing here, just a link to it. You can read it there:
What I do want to ask you, dear readers, do you think that these two clowns want their country to be treated with respect, or do they simply don’t care at all about things like dignity, respect, or honor? How about the people who voted for these kind of governments? Can’t they see how utterly pathetic it makes them look?
I met a lot of Poles and Ukrainians in my life and, if anything, I tend to find them mostly completely irrational about things pertaining to their national pride. The Ukies, apparently, even rather die than accept a Russian-made vaccine (ask yourself, in the Soviet era, how many bad vaccines did the USSR export to eastern European countries? The answer? Zero). As for the Poles, they fancy themselves as the future “Intermarium superpower”! And then they ask Trump to build them a US base for which they are even willing to pay for the military presence from a country which tries hard to blackmail Poland into paying for “Holocaust reparations”!
Dignity anybody?
And now this: their foreign ministers get together to beg Uncle Shmuel to protect them from North Stream 2. Just look at this great quote from the said article:
“We call on U.S. President Joe Biden to use all means at his disposal to prevent the project from completion“. (but do read the full thing, it is quite amazing).
Also, notice a typical “Polish wisdom”: seek out the protection of a (already agonizing) “ally” located thousands of miles away overseas, but do go directly against your two most powerful neighbors. Genius! Pure Polish genius!
To be fair, this could be seen as “progress”. After all, the biggest Polish hero, Jozef Pilsudski, was hoping to occupy Moscow with Nazi Germany. Asking Joe Biden for help against the accursed Russians is probably a tad smarter than asking Adolf Hitler. But not by much, not by much… (the outcome will be the same though).
The Polish and Ukrainian government have tried to turn total prostitution into a form of “resistance” against a “resurgent Russia”. Don’t they know how that makes them look in the eyes of the Russian people (most of whom don’t even want to use the Russian military to liberate Novorussia, nevermind “invading” 3B+PU!)?
To be honest, this further convinces me that Russia should simply forget about both these countries and deal with the many mentally sane countries on this planet (I explained that in some details here). On a personal level, I find most Poles very nice people, and I still do wish them (and the non-Nazi Ukrainians) well, but I also want my country to stop wasting *any* time, effort, energy, resources or patience with these countries. They want to be left alone? Great! I agree.
The Ukraine is a different problem: most Ukrainians are, basically southern Russians, and it is pretty clear that those in the East and the South will have to, sooner or later, liberate themselves from the (truly) Nazi Banderastan which came to power in 2014. I do believe, firmly, that Russia owes the Russian people of the Ukraine protection. But once the East and the South are free again, Russia should simply reduce her diplomatic presence in the Ukraine and Poland and bring to the absolute minimum, or even terminate, all deals, agreements, treaties, etc.
Oh sure, Russia will loose some markets and some money. Not that much though, not compared with the riches Russia has found in the South, the East and the North. Furthermore, if you look at the benefit/liability ratio from a Russian point of view, it is the entire “West” which is not worth the effort, especially the spineless and clueless EU. The USA, being a nuclear superpower, will remain an important interlocutor for Russia, agreed. But the rest of them? The UK? Canada?
I say, let Russia begin with the 3B+PU, sever ties with them first. Then, if Germany caves in and blocks the completion of NS2, I would server ties between Russia and Germany too. I would keep ties with southern European countries like Italy, Spain, Serbia, but even those really ought to be conditional on some kind two-way mutually beneficial outcome for both parties.
Bottom line: Russia owes nothing to her neighbors or, for that matter, to any country on the planet. She needs to always remember that.
I realize that the above might seem excessive to some, but judging by this interview of Lavrov (see below), I am inclined to think that even the most moderates of moderates are getting mighty fed up with the Europe, old and new.
The Saker
***
Vladimir Solovyov: Good afternoon, Mr Lavrov. Why was the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell “buried?”
Sergey Lavrov: Nobody “buried” Mr Borrell. He carried out the will of the EU member states. They determine EU policy. This is a lengthy and controversial process. On several occasions, some EU member states have told us in private that they are against sanctions and that they do not believe that Russia should be “punished” with sanctions. They know this is futile, but they act out of “solidarity,” or the consensus principle. I have said several times that as far as I understand it, the principle of consensus means that if someone disagrees, that means there’s no consensus. So far, I haven’t received an answer to this question.
Back to Mr Borrell, he was visiting us mindful of the complex environment surrounding his plans. Many were against his visit and publicly stated that he should not be going to Russia unless we “put right the wrongs.” In the end, they agreed upon the approaches that Mr Borrell was supposed to make known to us.
This is not the first time – and this applies not only to Mr Borrell, but to his predecessors as well (before him there was Federica Mogherini, and before her there was Catherine Ashton), they were unable to discuss things. When Mr Borrell read out the position regarding Mr Navalny, I put forward our counterarguments. The EU’s position is that we have made him a political prisoner, and this is unrelated to accusations against him. And that all of that constitutes a violation of human rights and Russia, as a party to numerous conventions on human rights, including the European Convention on Human Rights, must release him and respect his rights. But Russia has laws that must be respected. By the way, I notified the High Representative that if he presents this matter from this angle during a news conference, I will respond by mentioning the Catalans sentenced to 12 years or more in prison for organising the referendum on Catalonia’s independence. We were accused of organising this referendum, but no one presented a single piece of evidence, nothing even remotely close to the facts. So it happened.
With regard to human rights, I reminded Mr Borrell that we expressed our willingness to conduct a substantive dialogue on this matter a long time ago. However, first, it must be based on facts and, second, it needs to be a two-way street. If human rights are a recognised topic without borders, and states cannot hide behind their borders when discussing human rights, let’s agree on what human rights are. There’s a list of these rights, which are primarily socioeconomic rights. The right to life is the most important one. But the West strongly opposes the idea of discussing socioeconomic rights.
Vladimir Solovyov: Why do you deny Navalny and his brother the right to rip off the French company Yves Rocher?
Sergey Lavrov: This is what I told High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell. I said that we did not pledge to protect those who did commercial damage to an EU company, Yves Rocher. There is factual information about this, about how the French company was lured to accept transportation and logistics services at 30 percent above the prices it had paid before, and how this was done by a one-man firm, which hired a subcontractor and transferred the money to the accounts of another company whose stakeholders are well known.
Vladimir Solovyov: And he did not give any response to that? Was he pretending not to understand you?
Sergey Lavrov: Mr Josep Borrell definitely has a clear understanding of the matter. But I would like to repeat that the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, however serious his title may sound, has no room for manoeuvre. He is acting within very tight limits.
Vladimir Solovyov: Did he make any positive suggestion, or was it just a call for surrender?
Sergey Lavrov: We ultimately found a constructive agenda. The High Representative himself proposed focusing on the subjects where we can help each other and find a balance of interests. These subjects are climate change, protecting the interests, economies and population of our countries to the best of our ability in the context of this natural hazard, as well as the issues of healthcare, science and technology. I believe that this is enough to make headway. I reminded him that we have been marking time for over two years on the extension of the Russian-EU intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in science and technology. The problem is that the EU wants the agreement to mention that Crimea is not part of the Russian Federation. The choice is between addressing the current aspects of our economic relations and promoting cutting-edge technology, and being stuck on this problem.
Vladimir Solovyov: Why has Europe decided that it can pose as a moral leader with a right to lecture us? Have they forgotten about the tragedy of Yugoslavia? And, speaking about Navalny, we can remind them about Julian Assange whom nobody is discussing any longer. You mentioned the three political prisoners in Spain, to which they have replied arrogantly that there are no political prisoners, only imprisoned politicians in Spain. Immediately after that, Carles Puigdemont remarked that there are not three but nine of them in Spain.
Sergey Lavrov: Incidentally, when all this happened, Carles Puigdemont and his associates were in Belgium, and several others were in Germany. The Belgian and German law authorities said the charges brought against them were politically motivated, but the Spanish authorities replied that they have their own laws, which must be respected. When I cited this argument during the meeting with High Representative Borrell, adding that we have our own laws as well, he started saying again that Navalny had been sentenced illegally, for political reasons, and that his rights had been infringed upon. We also talked about the rallies which Navalny and his team members, who are currently living abroad, organised actively and with provocative goals. Mr Borrell complained that a thousand people have been detained and many of them have been prosecuted, and that the right to peaceful protest is being rudely trampled on in Russia. He was especially concerned about the three expelled diplomats. His team told him about them while we were having lunch.
Vladimir Solovyov: He didn’t express his concern immediately, did he?
Sergey Lavrov: He told me when we were leaving the room that he was seriously concerned.
Vladimir Solovyov: Did you know that the diplomats were being expelled?
Sergey Lavrov: Yes, we knew this.
Vladimir Solovyov: It was not timed for Mr Borrell’s visit?
Sergey Lavrov: No, of course not. The decision was made when the identities of the diplomats who took part in protest rallies were established. And then they started wailing that the diplomats, who were just doing their job and carrying out their professional duty, had been detailed illegally and accused of what they did not do, that is, that they did not take part in the illegal rallies. We reminded them that the rally was not just unapproved and uncoordinated, but that its organisers did not even plan to request permission for it. Moreover, Leonid Volkov said publicly many times that they would not request permission but would simply take to the streets. In itself, this is more than just a breach of the law; it is an action designed to humiliate the state. If you believe that taking to the streets in this situation is your professional duty, you are not diplomats but provocateurs.
Vladimir Solovyov: Plus, no one has canceled the pandemic restrictions yet.
Sergey Lavrov: International conventions, including Vienna conventions of 1961 and 1963 on diplomatic and consular relations, bilateral conventions and, by all means, our conventions with Estonia and Sweden, firmly stipulate the fundamental truth that diplomats enjoy immunity and privileges, but must respect the host country’s laws and rules. The law was violated in the first place when the permit to hold a rally was not requested. The rules were violated as well since there is a presidential executive order and Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin’s order on epidemiological restrictions that remain in effect. The same restrictions apply in St Petersburg and other cities. That is, both laws and rules have been violated.
Vladimir Solovyov: You also gave them a USB flash drive to keep them in the loop of what’s happening in Europe, didn’t you?
Sergey Lavrov: This flash drive can be updated literally daily. There’s a wave of protests in Poland now that are being brutally suppressed with batons and water cannons. The EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy said that he did not have the chance to watch the contents of the flash drive before his talks in Moscow, but promised to do so afterwards.
Vladimir Solovyov: Did you send it to him before the talks?
Sergey Lavrov: Yes, a couple of days in advance. I’m sure they watched it. The fact that he declined to discuss it saying he didn’t watch it goes to show that they realised they didn’t stand a chance in a candid dialogue with us. This awkward narrative from an arrogant standpoint, which was imposed on Mr Borrell in order for him to let it be known here, is being put into a certain philosophical and political context of the same geopolitical dimension. This is what happened when Josep Borrell was reporting back to the European Parliament and came up with the statements that Russia failed to live up to the expectations, a modern democratic society failed, economic ties with the EU collapsed, and we do not respect human rights and the like.
Vladimir Solovyov: Well, they are demanding that sanctions be imposed on us, aren’t they?
Sergey Lavrov: Yes, they are.
Vladimir Solovyov: I’m one of those who they want to see included on the sanctions list.
Sergey Lavrov: You are in good company.
Vladimir Solovyov: A good company, indeed. I will be the first journalist in history to be sanctioned against.
Sergey Lavrov: Not necessarily. That depends on what you call sanctions. RT and Sputnik correspondents cannot get an accreditation in Paris. I found out recently that one of our media outlets filed a lawsuit against the state for not being allowed to attend a news conference by President Vladimir Putin. Their argument was that, according to the law, if all the requirements are met, the accreditation must be provided. I’m not aware of these subtleties, but I know that this year’s news conference is being held in compliance with the pandemic requirements. It’s a fact that, without any coronavirus, RT and Sputnik, despite direct requests to the French government, were denied access to the Elysee Palace. Of course, we should also bear in mind the situation with Sputnik in Estonia, where criminal cases were opened against the journalists.
Vladimir Solovyov: Yes, our guys find it hard to work in the United States as well. Recently, White House press secretary Jennifer Psaki came up with a boatload of god-knows-what…
Sergey Lavrov: Yes, but getting back to the allegation that we disappointed the EU, failed to live up to their expectations and are moving away from Europe, having adopted a deliberate course on self-isolation… Well, this is some kind of a kingdom of crooked mirrors.
The problems between us and the EU began a long time ago. They were testing our patience and good will. When the Baltic states and other East European countries were admitted to the EU in 2004, we asked them if they were sure those countries were mature enough to be admitted as responsible members of this progressive association. We were told that, of course, they still have some holdover phobias from their past in the Soviet Union, but rest assured that as soon as they become EU and NATO members, they will calm down and no longer have reasons for these phobias. Nothing of the kind. The exact opposite happened and they became the most zealous Russophobes and are pushing the EU to adopt Russophobic positions. On many issues, the EU position dictated by solidarity is determined by an aggressive Russophobic minority.
Vladimir Solovyov: Why did they choose Germany and why Navalny?
Sergey Lavrov: I think he just came their way. It if was not Navalny, it would be something else. Clearly, he was being prepared for that quite seriously, if you think about preparations for the notorious film, which wouldn’t have been possible without the German authorities’ consent.
Vladimir Solovyov: Are you talking about personal data from the Stasi archives and Vladimir Putin’s photograph?
Sergey Lavrov: Yes, that too.
Vladimir Solovyov: But Maria Pevchikh, who had come from London to Moscow to accompany Navalny on his trip, during which she gave him his shirts, as Navalny said, and who allegedly brought back a certain water bottle, later disappeared.
Sergey Lavrov: She brought back more than one water bottle.
Vladimir Solovyov: In the process, they have either forgotten about the bottle or it has grown to the size of a whole water tank. She has openly accused you, saying that even the foreign minister doesn’t know that these documents are available in open access, that it is enough to write a letter.
Sergey Lavrov: She has even said, if I remember correctly, that she has filed such a request.
Vladimir Solovyov: Not so simple. She said that only a German citizen can do this. This makes one wonder who Maria Pevchikh is.
Sergey Lavrov: I have heard debates on this issue on the Rossiya channel.
Vladimir Solovyov: Thanks for watching us.
Sergey Lavrov: I can’t go to sleep otherwise.
Vladimir Solovyov: So much for the secret of ratings: dropping off with your TV set on.
Sergey Lavrov: To begin with, Maria Pevchikh has surrounded herself with mystery. Our German colleagues are helping her to keep up that mystery. First of all, nobody has seen her after she left on board that plane. The Russian Prosecutor General’s Office has bombarded its German colleagues with requests to honour their commitments under the agreements on assistance in legal matters. In particular, we also requested a meeting with Maria Pevchikh, to which our German colleagues replied that they don’t know her whereabouts. However, she wrote herself in social media that she had met with Navalny in Germany.
Vladimir Solovyov: She gave interviews.
Sergey Lavrov: Yes, she did. Navalny had several German security agents with him round the clock. We told the Germans about this, that she had been among the people at Berlin airport who came to see Navalny off before his flight to Moscow on January 17, 2021. But they don’t even allow us to talk with the doctors who provided medical treatment to Navalny and found traces of toxic agents in his samples.
Vladimir Solovyov: But the doctors didn’t find anything.
Sergey Lavrov: No, I mean the Bundeswehr doctors. They are doctors as well. We have pointed out on numerous occasions that if the Omsk doctors did not find anything, and the Charité doctors didn’t either, then the Charité doctors can also be accused of concealing evidence of Navalny’s poisoning.
A great deal has been said about the Bundeswehr. This does no credit to Germany as a country with a responsible attitude to its international commitments. First, they said there was one water bottle, and the request of the Prosecutor General’s Office mentioned it. Suddenly, they forgot about the bottle and started talking about clothing. Then they brought up the bottles again, this time three of them, claiming that traces of a toxic agent had been found on two of them. But the Germans, just as the French and Swedish experts who were allegedly asked to double check the results of German tests, and the Technical Secretariat of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) have not provided any information to us. They have refused to do this.
Vladimir Solovyov: I have read the OPCW’s report. It said plainly that they did not find any traces of a toxic agent but only “biomarkers of the cholinesterase inhibitor” in Navalny’s samples, which are not identical but “have similar structural characteristics” with certain toxic chemicals. And the report further says that this cholinesterase inhibitor is not on the list of toxic agents. Why do they keep saying “Novichok” and “toxic agent” then? The OPCW report doesn’t say so.
Sergey Lavrov: We have been told since the Skripal case that only the Soviet Union, and hence Russia, has the Novichok production technology. They completely disregard the facts which we provide and which are available in open access to the effect that over a hundred inventions related to the so-called Novichok formula have been registered in the United States.
Vladimir Solovyov: If I remember correctly, Hillary Clinton has confirmed this.
Sergey Lavrov: Yes, of course.
Vladimir Solovyov: This has also been confirmed by the Czech President.
Sergey Lavrov: True. Moreover, during the story with the Skripals’ poisoning, Germany was one of those who pointed the finger at us, saying that no other country could have the Novichok production technology. When the Bundeswehr found the traces of a substance similar to Novichok in Navalny’s samples, we asked them how they had been able to determine this if they told us themselves that they had never conducted such research. No reply.
Just note that the point at issue is not Navalny. This is not just a coordinated Western campaign of deterring Russia, but a campaign of aggressive deterrence.
Vladimir Solovyov: Why?
Sergey Lavrov: Because they don’t like it that we have our own views on global developments and that we openly express them and take practical actions to uphold them, unlike a huge number of other countries who have their own views as well but keep mum. I have talked with many ministers and other officials, as well as with members of civil society, who say that they don’t like what the West is doing.
Vladimir Solovyov: Are they afraid to say so?
Sergey Lavrov: Of course, they are. They are tied to the dollar, investments, and the children whose studies abroad are paid for with the money they keep there. It is a major damper on the elite’s ability to speak their minds. But we have no right to remain silent. Our history, our ancestors and our genetic blueprint do not allow us to stomach insults or unilateral attempts to dominate all and everything.
Vladimir Solovyov: I’m aware of what you personally think about this, so I can imagine your indignation caused by Navalny’s behaviour in court with regard to the veteran and this act of bullying … But the West turned a blind eye to this, too. After all, their emissaries were sitting in the courtroom and watching their underling do his thing.
Sergey Lavrov: Representatives of the embassies of Great Britain and France attended this particular court session. They were our allies during World War II. I will not even comment on this. Any decent person can clearly see what is going on. Returning to why it’s Navalny and not anything else, this “case,” in today’s parlance, is a deliberate act. The date of his return and the date of releasing the film make it all too obvious. But, look, now that there’s a wave of attacks on Russia, no one is talking about the “poisoning.” What they are saying is that Navalny has been illegally convicted and must be set free.
Vladimir Solovyov: This has already become imprinted in the public consciousness. This is a lie that has already taken root, same as with the Skripals.
Sergey Lavrov: That is why we will keep asking them questions. Recently, I received an open letter from Mr Kozak, a researcher, a biologist who lives in Switzerland. I answered him.
Literally today, we will be sending an official inquiry to the OPCW, Germany, France and Sweden with a request for them to comment on his findings made on the basis of the publications substantiating and analysing what happened to Navalny, the biomaterials that were obtained from him and tested in the West. From a purely scientific standpoint, he raises a number of questions related to biological and chemical science.
Vladimir Solovyov: I have read Mr Kozak’s papers and your answer. Interestingly, the Lancet documents show a blood test with lithium in it. I started looking closely at various papers on lithium and talked with the professionals. Interestingly, there have been several studies reporting the effect of excess lithium intake on cholinesterase inhibitors. It’s complicated. I’m not even talking about the diseases that are treated with lithium. Clearly, we need to consult psychiatrists about this. However, the complete silence from the other side is surprising. I don’t think Germany is a random choice. At one time, George Friedman from Stratfor wrote that the alliance between Russia and Germany represented an existential threat to the United States. The goal is to prevent an improvement in relations between our two countries. No one expected Germany to be part of this direct attack on Russia. After all, Navalny wasn’t taken to Porton Down in the UK. Germany was their first choice.
Surprisingly, this film, if we are talking about Gelendzhik, managed not to tell a single word of truth. Everything is 3D imagery. But the West got infected with this lie. They are doing their best not to see this debunked.
Sergey Lavrov: I’m sure that the United States does not need us to have good relations with Germany. The same goes for European countries. Britain doesn’t need this either. Just like the West didn’t need a united Germany at one time. The Soviet Union was the main proponent of a unified Germany.
Vladimir Solovyov: First, the preservation of Germany.
Sergey Lavrov: Yes. I’m already talking about modern times. The West was very worried back then and reluctantly agreed on reunifying Germany. We operated on the belief that the German people have the right to be one nation which is its historical destiny as a nation. Here’s something (which is funny) about double standards. When I mentioned this at the Munich Security Conference in 2015 and said that we were doing it then deliberately, understanding the German people’s aspirations, and stressed that it would be important for other countries to treat Crimea’s reunification with Russia in about the same vein – as a manifestation of the people’s will. There was a referendum in Crimea, but there was no referendum in Germany. The audience had a fit of hysterics. The German deputies yelled things like “How dare you compare these things!?” I can see this arrogance on the part of the Germans in recent years. You know, there is such a subtext. They are not saying it out loud, but the message is clear: “Dear friends, we have paid our bills, and we owe nothing to anyone anymore.”
Vladimir Solovyov: Hence, the revision of WWII outcomes and the attempt to equate the Soviet Union to Nazi Germany.
Sergey Lavrov: That’s true. A fairly large portion of their elite is pursuing this policy. There are people who want Germany to lose its every chance to enjoy normal cooperation with us. At the same time, there are still voices of sanity there. Recently, President of the Federal Republic of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier said it was always better to discuss things, to be mindful of the future and to operate based on national interests when tackling the most challenging issues. So far, he has been the only foreign politician to mention our past. He said that 2021 marked 80 years since Nazi Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union. This is nothing short of political courage in modern Germany.
There are a number of public organisations, such as Potsdam Meetings, or the St Petersburg Dialogue forum. This date cannot go unnoticed. When Vladimir Putin was elected President for the first time, we declared the historic reconciliation of our nations. Now, when they are trying to pit us against each other (there are people who want to do so within Germany and outside it), this date could serve as an important psychological message to the effect that confrontational logic must be abandoned and everything should not be seen as an opportunity to impose more sanctions on Russia.
Speaking in the Bundestag, my German colleague Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said that Nord Stream 2 must be preserved, but only in order to have a lever to control Russia. Here again comes the logic of “who has an influence on whom.” It seems to me that the Soviet and Russian energy projects in Europe have always been a material foundation for positive interdependence. It’s always good when the countries depend on each other in terms of the economy. It makes overcoming many other issues easier. Mr Maas then said that Germany should consider sanctions against Russia over the case of Navalny, and “it’s okay” that they failed to achieve their goal earlier. Most importantly, a signal would be given that Moscow’s actions would not go unnoticed. Sanctions are imposed in order to feel satisfaction from the act of meting out “punishment.” But sanctions lead nowhere and cannot result in a change in our course on upholding our national interests.
Vladimir Solovyov: They lead to consolidation of our society.
Sergey Lavrov: What I’m saying is that they are not conducive to achieving the goals that the West has set for us.
Vladimir Solovyov: They do not understand our logic, our society. For example, Yulia Navalnaya suddenly flies to Germany, despite the coronavirus restrictions.
Sergey Lavrov: I’ve read about it. We could ask the Germans if they know anything about the special rules created for her. But they won’t answer. I think there is no need to ask until this story acquires a dimension that affects our legitimate requirement of the Germans to explain what exactly they found in Alexey Navalny’s tests.
Vladimir Solovyov: They do not even bother to enter into a dialogue with us.
Sergey Lavrov: They have no arguments, but we will not leave it at this.
Vladimir Solovyov: In this whole situation, I am most concerned about Donbass. Russia, as one of the guarantors of the Minsk Agreements, has no other choice but to maintain dialogue with our German and French colleagues. Apparently, they have lost sight of their role in this dialogue, and no longer know why they are even there. The war in Donbass has been going on for seven years. This is not a direct function of the Russian Foreign Ministry, but it’s a tragedy for those people. And you have to look your colleagues in the eye all this time. They don’t seem to want anything there, just waiting for a change of government in Russia. They think we are oblivious to it, and will play their game.
Sergey Lavrov: This is a sad story, and every day it is taking on a more and more perverse nature. Paris and Berlin now almost unquestioningly demand that issues be resolved in the Normandy format only, which means without Donbass. We argue that the Minsk agreements say that the Contact Group formed under those agreements should resolve issues directly between Kiev, Donetsk and Lugansk. They tell us no, the Contact Group plays a supporting role, while everything will be decided in the Normandy format, and Donetsk and Lugansk will be given ready-made solutions. It is a lousy position with regard to the people who were declared terrorists, although they never attacked anyone. They are still considered terrorists only because they have expressed dissatisfaction with what was happening in Kiev, and declared its moves unconstitutional, and asked to be left alone. They were actually attacked by the illegal regime that came to power as a result of a coup d’etat.
The West stomached it all: the coup itself, and its instigators’ new Russophobic approach to the Russian language in Ukraine, or their banish-everything-Russian-from-Crimea rhetoric. In response to this, the people revolted, on a political plane. Donbass said it wanted to be independent, and later agreed to negotiations, and Crimea voted for reunification with Russia. The Russophobic wave that brought with it the geopolitical changes in Ukraine and Crimea had been approved by the West, or at least the West did not object to it and even encouraged it to a certain extent. But Russia has been punished for it.
Vladimir Solovyov: But we put up with this for some reason. For some reason, we cannot just tell them that if they are not going to fulfil the Minsk agreements, then we will decide the fate of the Russian people there. It is our legitimate right to protect the interests of our compatriots.
Sergey Lavrov: We are protecting them. Not only in Ukraine, but also in the Baltics, and in other countries. This is not even helplessness on the part of the EU. I think it is a conscious policy of turning a blind eye to Russians being persecuted, be it the media or the Russian-speaking population. In the Baltics, they are denied access to information in their native language, contrary to what is guaranteed under the local laws and international conventions. This attitude to the Russian language problems in the European Union, as well as their stories that they have their own mechanisms and will use them to influence the situation, it is all lies. They will not do anything, will not lift a finger to bring the Baltics to their senses and make them stop their Russophobic hysteria. I could not even imagine this.
But let’s go back to Ukraine. We are interested in keeping the Minsk agreements on the table. They were approved by the UN Security Council and contain arrangements that are very difficult to abandon.
Vladimir Solovyov: They are not complying.
Sergey Lavrov: They are not. This means that Donbass is living the way it does now. As you may recall, with regard to the Minsk agreements and the compliance mechanism in the Contact Group and the Normandy format, we have repeatedly accepted a compromise, such as the Steinmeier formula. Originally, the Minsk agreements required that Donbass be given a special status and then the election be held. The Steinmeier formula stipulates gradual provision of this status.
Vladimir Solovyov: Why go meet them halfway if they take it for granted and never reciprocate? I know you are a diplomat, and I’m a proponent of forceful solutions.
Sergey Lavrov: I’ll give you an example. Take, for instance, the repeated and gross violation of the UN Charter by the United States and its allies. However, no one is suggesting that we leave the UN and tear up our signature under the UN Charter. If there’s a completely “unkillable” document and someone is trying to justify their non-compliance with ludicrous assurances, we benefit from it diplomatically.
Vladimir Solovyov: We can stay. But maybe we need to act in a completely different way.
Sergey Lavrov: How? Life takes its own course. Donbass has learned to live in a situation of illegitimate blockade, which the French and the Germans “refuse to see.” Instead, they pester us with a demand to open two more checkpoints. But this is not about lifting the blockade. The Minsk agreements are not talking about the checkpoints, but complete unblocking of economic ties.
Vladimir Solovyov: Why talk to them at all? They themselves do not decide anything. We need to talk directly with the Americans.
Sergey Lavrov: I think it would be the wrong thing to do. We exchanged views with the Americans on Ukraine when they had a special representative for this conflict. I don’t think we should call on the United States to influence their “underlings” and say that we have no use for the Minsk agreements.
Vladimir Solovyov: They themselves do not decide anything. There’s even no point in memorising the name of yet another of their foreign ministers.
Sergey Lavrov: The process that we are now observing with it being mandatory that the Minsk agreements are kept on the table means that the discrediting of the Ukrainian leadership is in full swing.
Vladimir Solovyov: You are playing chess with them, and they are playing checkers with you.
Sergey Lavrov: We are not playing chess with them. We are not talking to them altogether. Here are the Minsk agreements. Go ahead and comply with them. Period.
Vladimir Solovyov: I like that. No extra motions. What if they don’t comply?
Sergey Lavrov: Let them explain to their own public why they are not doing so.
Vladimir Solovyov: In their own country, they explain that it is normal to close three channels, with sanctions imposed on one of their own citizens, a deputy of the Verkhovna Rada.
Sergey Lavrov: The Americans said that this was the right thing to do. Europe mumbled something (sorry for this non-diplomatic term) to the effect that they will look into it. What is there to look into? Freedom of speech is either there or it is not.
Vladimir Solovyov: There is no freedom of speech.
Sergey Lavrov: Ukraine wants the Minsk agreements to cease to exist. Let them say so themselves. President Zelensky says that the Minsk agreements are bad, but they help keep sanctions on Russia in place. We are telling the Germans and the French: you wrote down that you would resume normal communication with Russia once it fulfilled the Minsk agreements, even though there’s no mention of us there. They talk only about Kiev, Donetsk and Lugansk. So, if they keep intact their five principles requiring Moscow to fulfil the Minsk agreements, President Zelensky will respond that way. He is not doing anything. They say Russia must comply, but the sanctions remain in place which makes him happy.
Frankly, I’m even happy with that sanctions situation. Not fully yet, but we have realised that we must rely only on ourselves. No, we do not want to self-isolate. We want to take advantage of the international division of labour, but if someone is saying that there will be competition, but we will be “cut off” here, here and also there… As Minister Maas put it, they will impose sanctions just to make sure our actions don’t go unnoticed. What kind of a reliable partner are you then?
Vladimir Solovyov: This phrase hurt their feelings.
Sergey Lavrov: First, we said this not one year ago, but a couple of years ago, when the sanctions were being imposed and import substitution was discussed. Then, they began to wail about why we were responding to the sanctions, meaning that they had good reasons to impose them, while we didn’t. It was stunning to see them act like schoolchildren rather than politicians.
I read excerpts from the foreign press. The German Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote a couple of days ago that it is necessary to think twice before acting emotionally and imposing “sanctions for the sake of sanctions,” because the punishing side must understand that they also pose a threat to it, as it ceases to be a reliable partner. So, we are not alone in drawing such conclusions, which I put my name down for.
Vladimir Solovyov: Are we heading for a breach with the EU?
Sergey Lavrov: We believe we would be ready for this. We are neighbours. Speaking collectively, they are our largest trade and investment partner. Many EU companies operate here; there are hundreds or even thousands of joint ventures. When a business benefits both sides, we will continue. I am sure that we have become fully self-sufficient in the defence sphere. We must also attain the same position in the economy to be able to act accordingly if we see again (we have seen this more than once) that sanctions are imposed in a sphere where they can create risks for our economy, including in the most sensitive areas such as the supply of component parts. We don’t want to be isolated from the world, but we must be prepared for this. If you want peace, prepare for war.
Vladimir Solovyov: It should be said that our coronavirus vaccine has come as a blow to them. They never expected this to happen. It turns out that they don’t know anything about Russia and don’t understand it. They are shocked to see that our economy is not in tatters, and that we have [advanced] research and scientists.
Sergey Lavrov: It was Barack Obama who said that Russia’s economy was in tatters. They haven’t learned from others’ mistakes. And it appears that they are unable to learn from their own mistakes either.
Vladimir Solovyov: Will you miss President Donald Trump?
Sergey Lavrov: He is an outstanding person. I remember my two meetings with him, once when I was on a visit to Washington, and also the talks he had with President Vladimir Putin, which I attended.
Donald Trump is a remarkable politician acting from his own experience. Where there is benefit, everything must be done to maximise it; where there is no benefit, let things take their course.
As for respect for our, Spanish or American laws, I am shocked by the impeachment proceedings. The charges brought against him… You can watch and listen to Trump’s video addresses again and again…
Vladimir Solovyov: And find nothing criminal in them?
Sergey Lavrov: Yes. Just compare them to what Leonid Volkov or Vladimir Ashurkov are saying. As many people say, have they ever urged young people and children to take to the streets? No, they have not. But I have heard them say, “What’s wrong with this?”
Vladimir Solovyov: Right. This is exactly what Volkov said.
Sergey Lavrov: They believe that if children want to join a protest rally, there is nothing wrong with it. This means that they are becoming part of civil society.
Vladimir Solovyov: During his meetings with foreign secret agents, Vladimir Ashurkov asked for $10-$20 million and offered to share information about a Russian bank [allegedly involved in corruption].
Sergey Lavrov: We have exposed this. But it’s like talking to a brick wall. The West doesn’t see this, just as it pays no attention to our arguments on the alleged poisoning at this point. They just want our repentance.
Vladimir Solovyov: But we have changed as well, haven’t we? We no longer react as nervously as we did before. I am concerned about you. The newly appointed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is the ninth US Secretary of State you will be working with. You said that you have to recite the history of Russian-US relations to every new appointee.
Sergey Lavrov: This reminds me of an old phrase, “You are my first.” I have had a conversation with Antony Blinken. I believe it was a normal conversation. We agreed that there are many problems between us.
Vladimir Solovyov: Have you agreed not to agree?
Sergey Lavrov: Yes, we can hardly agree on the majority of these problems. But it is clearly inevitable that we must continue our dialogue on strategic stability and try to mend the damage done by the “disarmament experts” of the previous US administration. An agreement has been reached on extending the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START).
Vladimir Solovyov: But our position remained unchanged, didn’t it? It was the Americans who hesitated, not us?
Sergey Lavrov: Yes, it is unchanged.
As to how our foreign policy activities are being covered by some media, a few neoliberal journalists wrote that as soon as US President Joe Biden snapped his fingers, Russian President Vladimir Putin immediately signed a deal to extend the New START Treaty. The problem was resolved that same day, although before that, the Russian Foreign Ministry had said that it required a lengthy procedure under our laws (several weeks). So it was all a lie, they concluded.
I will not reveal any big secrets. I will just say we hoped common sense would prevail with the President of the United States Joe Biden. A few weeks before his inauguration, we made all the preparations required under our legislation to conclude an agreement to extend the New START Treaty.
Vladimir Solovyov: Joe Biden said last summer that this was one of his top priorities.
Sergey Lavrov: It was not 100 percent guaranteed.
Vladimir Solovyov: But he talked about it.
Sergey Lavrov: In other words, we simply prepared beforehand for an optimistic scenario to avoid time trouble. It is just that sometimes our commitment to extension of the Treaty is shown in a perverse way – like they say, Joe Biden proposed it, and Vladimir Putin agreed.
Vladimir Solovyov: Care for a conspiracy theory?
Sergey Lavrov: Go on.
Vladimir Solovyov: How about Vladimir Putin helped replace Donald Trump with Joe Biden because Trump did not agree to extend the New START?
Sergey Lavrov: Possibly. I am sure this is what happened. I can say just one thing to all those who are looking for an intrigue in who is more important, or whether Russia is doing America’s or someone else’s bidding. In fact, Russian President Vladimir Putin does not really care who will take all the credit later. If we reach an agreement that will be good, useful, and important for us and for the whole world – be it on disarmament or on something else – it’s our pleasure.
Vladimir Solovyov: Mr Lavrov, where does your freedom end? And where does it begin? The Constitution says that the President determines the country’s foreign policy.
Sergey Lavrov: My freedom ends where another’s begins. This is not from the Constitution, though.
Vladimir Solovyov: How free are you in foreign policy matters?
Sergey Lavrov: There’s the Foreign Policy Concept of the Russian Federation which was updated several years ago. It was approved by the President. We have doctrinal documents covering regional geographic areas. They are classified, just like in any other country, but are based on the publicly available Foreign Policy Concept.
In addition to geographical areas, whose doctrinal documents are also approved by the President, there are areas such as strategic stability, arms control, etc. This is also reported to the President collectively by all departments involved, such as security services, the Defence Ministry and the Security Council. Once a common policy is coordinated, that’s what guides action.
Vladimir Solovyov: Your every step isn’t supervised?
Sergey Lavrov: No. The President trusts me. If we have a directive that he approved, be it in foreign policy or elsewhere, you must act independently to achieve the goals it sets. Whether you succeed or not is a separate matter.
In case of unconventional situations that are not covered by the established approaches, we have weekly, or more frequent, meetings of the Security Council permanent members where we openly discuss these matters. It is always a collegial decision.
Vladimir Solovyov: Is there enough time for FC Spartak?
Sergey Lavrov: The winter pause is about to come to an end… I miss it.
Vladimir Solovyov: Do you still play football?
Sergey Lavrov: Yes, on Sundays. Last Sunday, we played outdoors despite the fact that it was 15 degrees below zero.
Vladimir Solovyov: Did you score?
Sergey Lavrov: I’m embarrassed to say … yes! But I like assists better.
Vladimir Solovyov: Like Lionel Messi?
Sergey Lavrov: Messi is a great scorer too.
Vladimir Solovyov: Yes, but he also likes to pass the ball.
Sergey Lavrov: True.
Vladimir Solovyov: Rafts? Rafting?
Sergey Lavrov: Well, not in winter… In summer, yes.
Vladimir Solovyov: Poetry?
Sergey Lavrov: Honestly, no real poetry for a very long time now. For now, I make do with epigrams for my friends’ birthdays. The elevated stuff isn’t coming as easily.
Vladimir Solovyov: The current Russian Government has a quite a few talented writers.
Sergey Lavrov: Do they write poetry? Or…
Vladimir Solovyov: Poetry. Not writing each other up.
Sergey Lavrov: I didn’t know that. I know that Arkady Dvorkovich wrote poetry when he worked in the Government, and he continues to write, probably. Prime Minister Mishustin wrote lyrics for many popular pieces of music. It’s a romantic way to escape. However, it shouldn’t create the impression that we are romantics in practical matters. We are realists.
Vladimir Solovyov: Hard-nosed?
Sergey Lavrov: You could say that. A healthy dose of cynicism has never been a bad thing in politics.
Vladimir Solovyov: Do you prepare your memorable quips in advance? Or do they just come out on their own and “kill” on the spot? Some have become legendary, although you deny authorship.
Sergey Lavrov: The words were accurate but a different order. If you are thinking what I’m thinking.
Vladimir Solovyov: You said to former British Foreign Secretary David Miliband: “Who are you to lecture me?”
Sergey Lavrov: Well, how do you prepare jokes in advance? I’m not saying that I take after Viktor Chernomyrdin, who never prepared his jokes in advance. With him it was like a force of nature. No, I do not prepare my jokes in advance.
Vladimir Solovyov: Do you ever make friends with your international colleagues when you feel like you get each other?
Sergey Lavrov: There are quite a few of them. I am afraid to list them.
Vladimir Solovyov: So they won’t be hounded?
Sergey Lavrov: Many of them hold very high posts in the European Union. They are good guys. I don’t want to give them up.
Vladimir Solovyov: Has it really become that bad?
Sergey Lavrov: I think so. We are “toxic” after all. I mean for them.
Vladimir Solovyov: Us? I think it’s the other way round: we are the only ones who follow their principles.
Sergey Lavrov: They think we are “toxic” but we don’t care. If they want cordial working relationships (President of Russia Vladimir Putin and the Foreign Ministry have said this many times), the foundation has to be mutual respect, not interfering in each other’s internal affairs, and cooperating on issues of mutual interest. Striking a balance between our interests is the only possible outcome of such talks, not merely our consent to their proposals.
Vladimir Solovyov: Do the personal attacks, insults and attempts to smear your family members get to you?
Sergey Lavrov: I don’t read about it myself. Sometimes, a well-meaning person will draw my attention to it. For example, six or seven months ago I was shown a report (anonymously sourced as always) about an illegitimate son of mine who works in the Foreign Ministry’s facilities department.
Vladimir Solovyov: What a pleasant surprise!
Sergey Lavrov: But he doesn’t come to see his dad. Apparently, he makes good money.
Vladimir Solovyov: You are really fortunate to be able to take such a light and ironic attitude to it all. So, they don’t succeed because you don’t let it get to you?
Sergey Lavrov: I don’t think any member of the Government, not to mention the Foreign Minister, should let themselves get rattled. To be honest, I find it easy to deal with. But those who take it harder must keep their perfectly justified feelings to themselves.
As the old Hollywood saying goes, “Never let them see you sweat.”
Vladimir Solovyov: Thank you, Mr Lavrov.
Sergey Lavrov: Thank you for a very interesting conversation.
My old university professor in East European history classes (British gentleman) always said that the Poles always took their political and military decisions that went against their best interests. So, are we surprised by this latest stunt? I’m not.
Anonymous
The reason the Poles took political and military decisions that were against their interests is because of the Vatican influence, as well as due to the influence of various Western states. As for Ukraine, the Vatican (and others) used Poland to separate Ukraine from Russia. One method was to subvert the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine and place it under Vatican control, creating the so-called ‘Unionist Orthodox Church’. What is bizarre is that Ukrainian neo-Nazis hate Poles, even though it was the Poles who were primarily used for subversion in Ukraine, religious, political and cultural, so that an independent Ukraine would subsequently be created.
One method the West used to subvert Russia and create Ukraine was to falsify history. As we all know, the original Russian state was created in Kiev. It was known as “Rus’ or ‘Russia’. However, Western historians changed the original name, calling the state ‘Kievian Rus’, even though in it’s day it was never called that, only ‘Rus’ or ‘Russia’.
Saker, you hit it early on. Prostitutes.
The Empire’s vassals are like ‘battered women’. They cower in the presence of the Hegemon. They will do anything they are told because they know a punch or kick or some disfigurement will strike them if they don’t obey and conform.
They give up their children’s needs to satisfy the bully in their life.
They turn to drugs, liberal cult behavior, dogma that shreds their society and culture, and further shatters any self-esteem.
The only time they feel some sense of power in their miserable existences is when they attack Russia with outlandish propaganda, join in the sanctions imposed by the Hegemon or make asinine military comments like the daily sewage from Brussels.
They aren’t nation-states any longer. They are colonized entities that are supplicants of the Hegemon.
Russia is preaching and acting toward sovereignty as the test of true nationhood, large or small, old or new.
The Eurasian World that is forming under Russian and Chinese tutelage is about Sovereign nations cooperating with none able to dominate the others. Everyone was invited. The “battered sisters” have a long rehabilitation before they can stand up as unique sovereign nations.
Russia should reclassify them all and downgrade their diplomatic status.
Don’t allow embassies and use deputies not ambassadors as contacts.
If they balk, delete them as “partners”.
Treat them as they deserve. They are second rate. Deal with them as such.
The Empire’s vassals are like ‘battered women’. They cower in the presence of the Hegemon.
Beautifully put!!! I love how you write and the metaphors you use!!
Thanks brother :-)
Cheers
Спасибо, брат
He stole my metaphor “battered wife”
regarding Putin/Lavrov and the EU
Okay everybody, the above metaphor belongs to… … Anon!
;-)
@Anon
Brilliant, as usual (not).
It’s quite funny to hear somebody lamenting about other people ”stealing” a formulation. Firstly, your supposed ”example”: two words don’t exactly imply any plagiarizing. Secondly, there is no intellectual ”property rights” pertaining to what is being written in the comments. Thirdly, a much less contrived reaction would be happy satisfaction, maybe even pride, recognizing one’s own writing style to have inspired others. Case in point If and when I come across my pet slur ”Euro-trash” in somebody else’s submission, the very last thing I would do is muttering over that person ”stealing my formulation”. On the contrary, it would make me rejoice.
Speaking of Euro-trash: The Psheks and the Ukros actually don’t qualify as any genuine specimina thereof. Psheks and Ukros belong to the honorary Euro-trash. Feel free to ”steal” the concept, LOL.
However we must remember that not all people within these countries agree with being vassals, and these people need acknowledgement and support!
https://www.transcend.org/tms/2014/04/voices-of-ukraine-kiev-people-are-not-cattle/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDeS0Q3D3xM
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
Margaret Mead
The article from Transcend.org is from 2014. The author has since died, and the situation, far from turning around as those interviewed wanted, has become dramatically worse.
We keep hearing “Ukraine will collapse…Ukrainian people will return to Russia” But 7 years have passed and there is no overt sign of this, Ukraine keeps stumbling along and the anti Russia actions are acquiesced to by the people in Ukraine.
@subhuti37
“We keep hearing “Ukraine will collapse…”
sure the annual “Ukraine will collapse…”- articles are just there to
uphold the narrative West-bad/East-good and keep the gaslighting going…
as this is an information war, they try to keep you in THEIR respective camp
thus West says East is bad, East says West is bad, but ultimately you have to wear
your mask anywhere you are… not much different as the Dems-Reps divide
during this plan-demic, i grew out of this mental prison, and now i am free
i will do business with the East and the West, but i wont fight for either the East or the West
Sorry Putin/Russia, you could have had the whole world with you if you didnt go along with
this con-vid and just f@cking told the truth. But you didnt. An immense opportunity lost, especially
that you lost any good-wishes and prayers other nations had for you**. From now on, you will have
to fight all battles alone*
*which shouldnt be a problem now that you have super-duper hypersonic weapons and master class
politicians and diplomats – as you claim.
**sure many will dismiss this as nonsense but on a more cosmic level this helped Russia win before,
because Russia had the divine grace, not anymore
this con-vid was the Battle of Stalingrad, the turning point, but this time Mother Russia, the divine Russia,
lost and disappeared – the soul is gone – sold out – and it wont matter how many churches they build
we all know church going folks arent necessarily divine or carry a divine civilization, just look at USians
oh well, c’est la vie
This is how it is. It is not unique to Ukraine. I know, people in US and Europe are tired of war. They do not want war, however the government is not listening, unfortunately. So much for “freedom and democracy”!!!!! In America, for example, hunderds of billions, trillions is being wasted on war and world (as wall as space) dominion, and yet cities are crumbling, in some cases even worse than in a poorest third world countries. Feces on the streets of San Francisco, and let us not forget millions of children in US are going hungry, and yet there is investment in a “Hunderd billion” nuclear weapon. One has to ask a question: how can this happen in supposedly wealthiest nation in human history, and most powerful?
The recent crackdown of opposition is telling. The sign that Kiev junta is afraid. People are getting restless. Otherwise there would no crackdowns. This is a long process, Roman Empire, after all did not come to an end on September 4, 476 A.D at 2 o’clock in the afternoon. It is also a process with bumps along the way. If Kiev junta had massive support, we would already had WWIII by now. In Ukraine, it is under the surface, although it is invisible, it is still there. The opposition and dissatisfaction with the situation, the same as in US, for example. The MSM tries to hide it as best as it can, but there is a massive rage against the ruling elites. Sometimes things are stagnant for a long time, and then suddenly everything changes in a short matter of time. Only time will tell.
There is a Word in spanish, not very ussed… sure you like it Saker
“Palanganero” wich defines a professional occupation that it is the lowest of the low.
A “Palangana” is like a Basin to hold water… that the Prostitutes uses to clean or wash their “Job Tools”
once ended with a client, to be prepared for the next one waiting on line.
the “Palanganero” is the guy who handles the Basin, bring new water, etc.
That is what they are, not even Whores, that is too much for them
(a Whore have something to offer, and get paid for, there is still some dignity in the process if doing it willingly)
They are the “Palanganeros” of the Hegemon.
Good grief above.
We really do need other languages sometimes to find the absolute word – often from a more down to earth people who never did call a spade a”n augur for obtaining pot holes” :-)
Definitely one for the ‘\”save ” box.
Did you know “palang” in Hindi (possibly other languages like Farsi/Urdu/?) means bed. Just wondering about the origin of these words. After all the deed is mostly done on a bed.
“Second rate”suggests that they can still fulfill some aspects of their role as Foreign Ministers. Both of them are water boys for NATO. Don’t give them that much credit.
Russia’s strength would permit her to behave that way if she chooses to. and I don’t see why not! there is nothing to gain by supplication to whores. but Russia’s must remain strong and growing. Russia was always important to the world now even more so.
Russia was IT for me and my crowd in our early leftist days. then it waned as we came to understand the Soviet Union and we were not unhappy it collapsed but were hurt as Russia evolved into a western satrapy however brief.
Russian reconstitution under Putin has been marvellous, stupendous, although there has always been niggling worry about Putin and the circumstances of his rise…the Zionist connection, such of it that has been apparent. there has been the worry that there may be more, deeper Zionist influence and control over Russia/Putin still, that would emerge to dash all hopes of a progressive Russia, as example, support and guide to help lead the human species to safety
The re-rise of Russia, its cooperation with the Chinese has been great for the human species, just at the time when such rise was crucial for human chances. I love the Russia I see currently and do all in my trace power in support, despite my little jibes at Putin every now and then that apparently have made some unhappy. but they were not negative at all, sent out to gather information as to the true state of Putin, relative to the Zionists.
Russia and those who work in support to the same goals of nationalist independence in cooperation with like states in mutuality is fine by me, perfect! that is indeed the way forward. the continued growth of Russian strength which is a strength that has mostly been in concert with the interest of humanity is crucial. those whom Russia must cut away from will fail. the lessons of the failure of nationalist whoring could be learned and they may or could reconstitute themselves positively. A strong Russia would be exemplary, an example to emulate
I am using google translate, if there are any errors, sorry.
Borrell is a morning singer, as we say in Spain, for most of his life he was called Jose, but he called himself Josep, to make his name seem more Catalan; This man was Pedro Sánchez’s minister, but when he saw the quality of scoundrels that were there, he went for legs or Usain Bolt and went to Brussels, so that shit would not splash him when the scandals began, they take 20 euros from you in taxes, to pay you 20 euros that were yours; This thing of taking money from you, to pay you what they owe you, they took 11,000 million from the Spanish Self-Employed, and they don’t even know where to get the money, to pay yourself.
This government of insane and amoral, does not differ much from the Ukrainian Svidomo.
The European Union wants to give Spain 140,000 million euros to rescue Spain, but they don’t trust this Coalition of Government of egomaniacs squared. The demonstrations in Catalonia are promoted by Pablo Iglesias, the thing about the run-down rapper, a sad excuse, is that Brussels tells him, we give you this money that you send to shit and you get rid of Iglesias. Iglesias has the streets burned to blackmail Pedro Sánchez and not to be kicked out of the Coalition Government. Those of Podemos won 35 seats and going down, if there are new elections, to know if they disappear or with an almost marginal presence in the Congress of Deputies.
Putin should not be trusted or the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers Party), a party with a very long criminal history, Corruption during the Republic, Spanish Civil War, its corruption scandals in the governments of Felipe Gónzalez, the client network during 40 years in Andalusia, the Corruption of the Eres of Andalusia. Neither of the PP (Popular Party), which more than one is called the Blue Veletas and the Cowardly Right; Nor of Podemos, one of the newest parties and the one that has become the most corrupted; Many of its founders were political scientists, Robert Michels, in his work The Political Parties, formulates the “iron law of the oligarchy”, with which he affirmed that “both in autocracy and in democracy a minority will always rule”; the basic idea is that every organization becomes oligarchic. Well, those of Podemos, founded the Party of Podemos, and Pablo Iglesias, purged all the founders and only he remained and also calls himself Alpha Male. In just 5 years or 6 years, for his lies contradictions
The party of Citizens who go in free fall and without brakes, Albert Rivera, went from 60 seats to 10, in the last elections and passed the potato to Inés Arrimadas, that Inés, honoring her surname, wants to get close to Sánchez and get a position that allows him to get a few crumbs of power.
Those of VOX, it is a newer party and does not have scandals yet.
Political leaders and their nicknames:
PP: Pablo Casado: Paul Married
Pablo Fracasado: Paul Failed
PSOE: Pedro Sánchez, alias Falconetti, uses the plane, the Falcon, as if it were his car.
His Sanchidad, like his Holiness. Pedro I of Spain. Pedro the Gravedigger for the dead of the pandemic.
We can: Pablo Iglesias, hunchback,the pigtails, the Marquis of Galapagar, said that he was not leaving Vallecas and went to one of the most exclusive areas of Madrid, the Ceaușescu, because of his partner who made her minister, it is not a joke.
Irena Montero: Ireno to the masculine, mounted, Irene Mentiras (lies), the Ceaușescu, Irene “Mamadas” (“blowjobs”. In an electoral debate, Pablo Iglesias said blowjobs). Irene Knees.
Ines Close-up, the close-up, when using her surname
The media in Spain are desperate for money, they are zombie companies, they need money from the Government in the form of subsidies, they are prostitutes, on May 30, 2020, 5 million were spent buying covers, messages on social networks, cartels , radios.
There is a program called Todo es Mentira, Everything is a Lie, by presenter Risto Mejide, who rose to fame for being a bad copy of Simon Cowell.
This is how we call television networks and networks, with puns, with their name in Spanish and their equivalent in English.
La Sexta: The Sixth
The Sect: The Sect
The Risto Mejide is called, the Mejode. The Mejode (It fucks me)
Televisión Española: Spanish Television
Televisión Espantosa: Scary Television
hideous
El Mundo: The world
El Inmundo: the Unclean
El País: The Country
Lo País: It Country
Telecinco: Tele Five
TeleCirco: Tele Circus
A mercenary, is Antonio Maestre, who invented a false journalist, Miguel Lacambra, seek information about Michael Lacamberg and Fritz Gerlich, was the laugh of social networks and televisions.
“And now this: their foreign ministers get together to beg Uncle Shmuel to protect them from North Stream 2.”
Aside from the main point of this article, that nations like Poland and the Ukraine are completely insane when it comes to Russia and Germany, you also acknowledge correctly that the USA is controlled by Zionists no matter who might be president or which party is in control. “Uncle Shmuel” has been a dual-citizen of the USA and Israel since forever. If it isn’t Likud, the Kosher Nostra, and the crazy Christian Zionists who controlled Trump, it’s AIPAC and neocons like Victoria Nuland and her husband Robert Kagan who will push Biden to again engage in so-called color revolutions that have encircled Russia and continue the assault on Syria and Iran that Trump started.
ReTrumplicans on this site forget that he first killed the Iranian nuclear deal, then murdered General Soleimani, and would have attacked Iran like his Christian Zionist followers wanted, but he simply ran out of time. For them, he was their ticket to the Rapture so of course he “won” the election. Like the chairman of the Republican Party of New Mexico said back in December, “Trump is our president FOREVER and no one can take that away from us.”
I’m from Poland. I’m almost sure that our government have zero power and all this is because their US masters told them to do so.
Also in my country 99,5% people have zero knowledge about geopolitics. There is 0 website with decent knowledge. Even alternative outlets are bunch of bullsh..
People here are mostly decent but propaganda have done its job.
I’m even thinking to translate your articles to polish language so some people could maybe open their eyes. Would you mind?
No, of course not! I would be even grateful.
But here is what I have to question:
You cannot say that there is no good info in Polish or that the Polish people are not informed, when these very same people turn out to vote for the kind of governments Poland has had.
What about the rabid russophobia?
What about the “heroization” of masonic thugs like Pilsudski?
All the actions of the Polish government are public. In fact, they give them special visibility because they are proud of these actions.
So, tell me, what am I missing and is there ANY chance in the world that Poland and Russia could be, no, not the best friends in the universe, but simply good neighbors? Is there ANY chance at all that Poland will stop serving whatever russophobe happens to be in power in the West?
Will Poland EVER become a normal country and not just a transition zone for wars against Russia?
Tell me! Really! IF there is hope, than I want to have hope.
But, frankly, Poland, the 3 Baltic statelets and the Ukraine are countries which Russia can only ignore.
Yes, this is sad, but this is the sad reality, at least I think so.
Sincerely
The Saker
So much truth weights in these words you said: “a transition zone for wars against Russia.”
This is exactly what it is.
With all due respect, I feel that it is combination of propaganda, as well as the sad reality that in “Democracies”, people have little say, and there are no real choices it seems. Explain to me something: you live in United States. How come, in spite of the fact that most Americans do not want endless wars, do not want mass surveillance, in 2008, for example, the calls were 100 to 1, against bailout of the banks on Wall Street, the bailout passed anyways. In addition in Germany, polls say that most Germans want better relationship with Russia. And wars continue, surveillance continue, hostility to Russia continues. Why? During the Cold War, United States, and the West in general prided itself on “Democracy and freedom”, in contrast to the Soviet Union, which is authoritarian, as well as other so called “Dictatorships” Where is this “Democracy”? Where is this “Freedom”? What happened to holding government to account? Why is it that in the United States and European Union, despite the fact that do not want wars, do not want austerity, why is it continues, like peoples will does not matter. Why?
And also why have Russians did not protest, back in the year 1996, when United States blatantly interfered in Russian election and put Yeltsin to power? And Americans not only openly interfered in Russian election, they openly bragged about it, by publishing the article in Time magazine. Why hasn’t millions of Russian back then did not come out onto the Red Square to protest the fact that their Democratic choices have been taken away?
The sad truth in so called “Democracies”, there is not much of a choice. And it seems, once in power, leaders break their promises. In 2008 as well as in 2016, Americans voted for peace candidates, and see how it played out. The West has brilliant propaganda system, and is very good at divide and conquer. There are more people in Eastern Europe who do not like what is going on, and are beginning to realize that something is not right. However, the governments do not listed to the will of the people. The democracy is a joke. There are no real choices,unfortunately.
Capital needs democracy for it’s growth, when it grows enough it needs totalitarianism.
Andalusian Musician:
You ask very important questions, applicable to almost all if not all so-called “democracies!”
I am an American and I have seen/observed/experienced almost zero influence or input (or less than zero) on very important decisions; where does the power reside? with the big money and we all know what that means: neo con/zionists/israel, prostituted press, MIC, banksters.
Congress is owned by the aforementioned entities, admin is owned by aforementioned entities, judicial “system” is owned by aforementioned entities.
Congress does not write legislation and prob does not even read the legislation prior to its approval. Lobbyists and/or “think” (sic) tanks work the process and the system. They also control the govt appointments, political or bureaucratic.
So where is the so called ‘democracy?’ The answer is that it does not exist, it is a fraud, it is a sick farce. Bottom line is elections do not matter, the proper term is they are selections and there is nothing the sheeple can do about it, selections are decided. What about major decisions, war, bombing, sanctions, etc. Those decisions are already made, no input needed or wanted.
If anyone tries to dispute this assessment, just take a look at what has occurred in the past 20, 30, 40 years and state, short of mass indoctrination or manipulation by the aforementioned entities, where was the support that was freely given for major decisions. It did not exist or was purchased, bribed, manipulated, or worse yet, passivity dominated amongst uninformed citizenry.
Very important questions, indeed, Andalusian Musician, at a time when we see the totally corrupted/incompetent “senior military leadership” in the us and nato cranking up the threats for nuclear war, spending billions on nuclear upgrades, and we see the kammie/biden admin zionists cranking up the threats on almost all previous targets but particularly against Russia, China, Iran, Syria.
Well put, Saker. Gównopolska and Ukraine are total rubbish for all the world to see with the latter entity being of no real use to anybody. Poland at least has some CIA torture dungeons to show for it.
As a more humorous aside: In the proud spirit of Anon above, isn’t Alex about to ’steal’ your formulations? You should demand compensation!
CIA Torture dungeons is not something to be proud of!
”CIA Torture dungeons is not something to be proud of!”
Try explain that to Gównopolska 😀 On second thought, it could actually be that people even there are feeling unhappy about this. Sure, to the Poles the US regime torturing people is all well and good, but what they are dearly yearning for in particular amounts to beautiful, tender Catholic inquisition meted out against Russian people. This isn’t what’s taking place; nor will it ever. And the US doesn’t share the Poles’ religious obsessions. Polish jokes are appreciably more popular, which seems quite justified.
The current PiS government in Poland has won elections because their very conservative social policies appeal to old people and their fairly generous welfare policies that subsidize families with children appeal to many of the middle aged people.
The majority of people are not russophobic, but they are also not geopolitically aware…this lack of awareness is exploited in Poland by the government just like it is in the US and other Western countries. Meanwhile, the russophobic hysteria by the US government and media is probably greater in the US even though they are thousands of miles away. Like other the other US vassals in NATO/EU, the Polish government takes its cue from the US and russophobia is easy to promote because unlike most other Western countries, Poland has fought wars against and been occupied by the Russians several times over the past centuries, so there is a reason for having some anxiety.
The “heroization” of Pilsudski is easy to understand if you compare it to the heroization (by some people) of Stalin after WW2. Both had similarities in that they were strong personalities that had saved their countries with military victories that gave them a notable presence on the world stage. Poland has had no strong leaders since then. Even if Poland was to elect their own Putin, Poland does not have the resources that Russia does to withstand being economically destroyed by the US.
I wish that Poland would be less obsequious in their relationship with the US and more pragmatic in their relationship with Russia, but the powers that be will not allow it. When someone emerges in Poland who would like to do this, like Mateusz Piskorski, these people are crushed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mateusz_Piskorski
So unfortunately, until US influence in Europe wanes considerably, Russia will have to contend with countries like Poland, Ukraine and the Baltics doing things against their own best interests because the US will not allow them to do otherwise.
Can’t agree with you. Most poles have a somewhat mystical antagonism against everything Russian. I have, similar to what the Saker describes for himself, a somewhat ambiguous attitude towards Poles. Even my experience within the Church point to an irrationality the Poles have even against Russian-Germans. Of all places that place should be free of politics, but it wasn’t. Still always liked their “conservative” stance on matters of society. A ridiculous peak among many was the notion of a Polish delivery guy, I briefly worked with, that Russians are incomprehensible “asiatic” people. Far away from Europe.
P.S.: It was also quiet peculiar to observe an incomprehensible “pride” Poles have for themselves while also always trying to prove they weren’t Eastern Europeans.
I agree with you. I am from the Carraibean Island (Hispagnola) I grew up in US and I have been debating about Geo-politic on Social media for 15 plus years and I have been living here in Poland for 14 years now..I am a self educated and I can tell you… When it comes to Politic it is almost non existent, Poles are really great people great culture but most poles have no clue about politic let alone discussing politic with them…Russophobic is so strong here that even if a few agree with me on certain issue, they would not even come forward to admit it. Since I am part of the Polish society, I have an obligation to do my best so that my kids don’t fall into the same circle of hatred against Russia.
Nordstream 2 will be completed. To much money has already been spent by the west for no result. Germans watch the pennies and it is a big bag. Lots of bluster and the pipe is still sliding off the back of the vessel. Bottom line, Germany needs the juice and this is the cheapest and most secure option. Saker your disgust is warranted, but the gas will flow.
Nordstream 2 will be completed.
Maybe. But if it is, it will be for the wrong reasons.
I want a NS2 because I want a Europe capable of looking for its own interests.
But if NS2 is built, it will only be because Europeans are cheap/greedy/broke/corrupted.
Seeing NS2 built for these reasons will give me exactly zero joy.
The Saker
Yes, on Sundays. Last Sunday, we played outdoors despite the fact that it was 15 degrees below zero.
Texans, eat your hearts out )
Now, some people may say this is petty and useless, but I do not believe so…
When at sites like those linked to above, the politico dot eu article (note that they conveniently do not allow comments!!!) I always type something into their search bar to send them a message. For example, “people see through your propaganda”. Yeah, yeah, wasting time, ok, 5 seconds, big deal. But the more who people send them a message telling them that we see through their lies, the more heat they will feel that they are not succeeding in their primary job to control our minds. It is clear to many that this third world war is an informational one, and as long as they (deliberately) block any feedback they will keep going as though nothing is wrong. No matter how insignificant it might seem, send them feedback. They sift through the search terms, so let them know that we caught them out. It is also significant that sites such as this one link to their articles so they can see that their propaganda is the very thing that is used against them to expose them.
We have to think like Uncle Vlad (sorry, I admire the guy!) in multiple dimensions, if we want to chip away at this insidious enemy and eventually take them out. Even tons of tiny pin pricks can add up to a whole lot of hurt.
What a gem of an interview, thanks so much for directing our attention to it, dear Saker!
Long gone are the days when western countries, let alone my own, produced public officials and journalists of that high caliber! Love the sense of humor, if I am allowed to even as a german..
Also, the “battered sisters”- comparison by Larchmonter445 is really priceless in its truth.
The condition afflicting western elites concerning Russia can only be described as some sort of collective insanity. They see that the west is past its “best by”- date in every way, and that historically they won`t stand a chance.
And it drives them crazy..
Say that Russia disconnects from the west. In retaliation, the USA and EU impose money and technology transfer embargo. Russians abroad cannot send money to their families and Russians no longer can buy the latest computers, phones, etc.
I think the Russian opinion would quickly turn against Putin. Because while Russia as a country is a fortress against direct aggression, its society, like any western one, is not. This is why Putin does not retaliate harsher.
Maybe once China can produce semiconductors and can fill the consumer space independently… Maybe then.
There are always alternatives. Money can be transferred via cryptocurrencies. Hopefully Russia and China get off the SWIFT soon and create their own alternative accessible to all. As for purchasing the latest computers, phones etc, it’s about time Russia started producing their own high quality products. They certainly have the know how and resources. Anyway, do you really need to buy an Apple phone? Huawei phones are just as good if not better.
The best situation would be for Russia and China to team up with other friendly nations and start creating alternatives that can make them self-reliant away from the West, and innovate where their products are equal to it superior to a thing found in the West.
There was a supercar company in Russia called Marussia. It produced this amazing sports/super car that really held its own against anything made in America or Italy etc. It went bust because the state would not help assist the company financially. I just don’t understand why. Here’s a Russian company producing a sports car that was absolutely top class and could have been sold around the world bug there was no incentive by the government to invest in it. No wonder the Russian youth want Western products.
I think Russia’s problem is that of scale not of potential. Scientists and engineers are fantastic and there is a culture of excellence in Science and sport and literature. Can they build whatever the west builds? Yes. But unless they have access to a large market, they cannot benefit from economies of scale. Can they produce anything that appeals to the other big markets: India and China? Chinese would rather buy German and India… I actually don’t know much about India!
You are victim of the liberal delusion of “markets”, “economies of scale” and other such nonsense.
Please gents, once and for all, in modernity, a particular human social order is manufactured. It’s like an addon to the thermodynamic machine of civilization or a valid solution to multiple independent non linear equations.
All Russia needs is: proficient labor, energy and material resources. Russia has all of these ingredients. “Economics” is the ideological justification to make / get you to work. Kind of an illusion written in the code of a particular language. Naked biology is behind all of it, and metaphysics for some.
It’s the job of the political technologist or high priests to come up with the supposedly necessary illusion.
You are dreaming. In fact, you are confusing the Russia of the 90 with modern Russia.
That is why literally every thing you say is wrong.
Why do you comment about a country you obviously know exactly *nothing* about?
The Saker
Dear Saker
While I may know certainly less than a native, Russia is a country I have followed and loved for a long time.
Why I still comment? Because I care and I want to understand. I care about Russia and how its people would handle another big crisis should it happen. I have family and friends there. I also believe that a multi-polar world is better than what we have now. And I know nothing about China, so I prefer that Russia remains relevant/strong.
You say everything I say is wrong. Let me state my facts and please state yours:
The most modern Russian CPU is Elbrus 8S, built by TSMC on 28 nm. Russian home production however is on 65 nm. That’s respectively 2011 and 2006. China however is struggling with 14 nm and was still hurt by US recent sanctions.
I also know Russian buy most things using credit. Phones and cars and ….I also know that appearances matter a lot more than in the 90s. I do know however that Russians are no longer starstruck by the west, though they still like its brands and apparent riches.
So where did I go wrong? when I commented, I expected that you would ignore me or give me (reassuring?) answers. But to say that I am dreaming? I think you’re dreaming if you don’t think such sanctions would not deeply hurt Russia, and that the Navalny videos did not upset Russians, though I do pray you are right and I am wrong.
Respectfully
China and Russia are two very different cases:
1. China exports largely consumer items to the West. Russia exports up to 85% raw materials. The particular sanctions you have in mind, disrupts its sourcing of components. As China depends on its export markets (btw 25% government investment rate -> massive non-amortized, unproductive debt. Khazin makes great analysis on this topic) and has to compete with other producer in the high-tech arena, it is much more vulnerable to technological “backwardness”. Russia simply doesn’t have this problem, the worst case scenario being potentially slightly worse consumer products – if it would decide to produce everything on its own. It also would take time if it was to insist on its current economic order.
2. Buying everything on credit is a consumer capitalism thing. The US is worst in this regard. As long as aggregate private and public debt is not denominated in a foreign currency (ask Poles or Zimbabweans, they have ample experience with that) it will depend on the domestic economy. Currently Russia has the MIR system as a replacement for payment processors and as far as I know works on bilateral payment facilities. Conspicuous consumption is not a unique Russian thing, albeit a more culturally accepted way of increasing of social status. Again it depends on the social order and on which ideology it is based on. The government hesitates to make any major steps; as with any state you have real power players in the background playing to increase their wealth. This is why change in the cultural sphere is slow as they will only change when every avenue of ascending to Western elites is blocked. Simply said, it’s already in progress.
3. Russia as still a strong analytical base. True many institutions have been almost demolished and you hear the occasional alarm signal, that its intellectual base is eroding. The biggest advantage is that there is a general AWARENESS of incoming disaster. Big radio / tv / internet programs exist that allot their entire airtime to this problem. Many excellent analysts and academics who discuss all aspects of our discussion with excellent outreach.
4. There are enormous myths out there, about why the Soviet Union collapsed. Let me just say, that if your material well being would decide if your country exists or not is fallacy. Russians suffered greatly in the past with far worse conditions but still managed to stay on top – with a real bloody civil war (not like this joke of a cw in the US) 2WW (28 Million) and the liberal pogrom of the 90s (also like WW in Putin’s terms). Nothing remotely except for WW3 and natural disaster are on the horizon. Russia’s biggest threat is internal division and becoming victims of psycho-historic war again. Russians thought of Glasnost, Convergence and capitalism as a liberation and ascending to “civilized” countries. Large parts of the population was convinced the West would help and become a good friend, because there was no more ideological conflict. They swallowed it Hook, Line & Sinker. The culture was also conducive to that (how can one lie to me straight to my face and smile?). There was also a vote to stay in the Union – in the beginning the “Commonwealth of Independent States ” was also meant to have its shared currency and army btw…
To say nothing of this shit will go down again is an understatement. At least not with adults. Yes education (EG) etc. is disaster, but again there is awareness, opposition and progress on this front.
It’s like a continental drift into the opposite direction has begun.
My thoughts also, Saker. There´s nothing todays Russia needs from the West.
“But unless they have access to a large market, they cannot benefit from economies of scale. Can they produce anything that appeals to the other big markets: India and China?”
What a nonsense! Mentioned large markets are rapidly sinking by lockdowns etc. West has been in a self-destructive mode for a long – and this collective psychosis here(I`m from the EU-country) is dividing folks more and more.
What many don´t want to understand, is that social and cultural divisions destroy also economy.
Mother Russia can produce anything she needs – much because of the sanctions – which have been blessings in a disguise. And I firmly believe that in the future her products will appeal also to others.
What comes to pipeline, maybe it would be better for Russia if US manages to destroy the project. Then EU has very little means to blackmail Moscow.
Regarding the last bit, the US has been wanting to destroy this Russia-Germany agreement – the NS2 pipeline, that is – for years. Preventing Russian-German rapprochement has been the goal of the US, UK, the Baltics and Poland, as it also was of the British Empire pre-WWI. Or so I have been told for the whole past year. By this assumption, wouldn’t cancelling NS2 be an act of capitulation to these forces, especially the US?
This is my interpretation of events. The U.S. is capitulating to Germany, and, by extension, the EU.
The question I have now watching all of this play out is the following:
“Who is really driving the wedge between Germany and Russia right now? The U.S. or Germany herself?”
It’s become clear to me that the U.S. is becoming subordinated to the EU’s policies rather than the EU being ‘at the mercy’ of Uncle Schmuel, as The Saker puts it. The people of both regions (The U.S. and the EU) are being sold out to the power growing in Brussels, which has no interest in playing nice with anyone else, while playing the victim card everywhere. The Biden administration is completing the work started by Obama, and interrupted by Trump, who himself saw the problem but was too inept to actually do anything about it.
If Germany had any intention of rapprochement with Russia Merkel wouldn’t be using Navalny this way. She wouldn’t have backed the overthrow of Lukashenko in Belarus and frozen the Ukraine situation while still tying every single issue back to Crimea.
For the record, I think they are all delusional in Europe, but it’s clear to me there is something not right with the theory that the Atlanticists in Europe are the victim of anything other than their own hubris.
It may do us well to reframe our arguments on this dynamic and see where it leads us.
As always, a fantastic discussion folks.
Hmm, I’m not sure how I can tie your interpretation – that the US is capitulating to the EU/Germany – with how the US (even under Trump) has thrown sanctions at either Russia or Germany in an attempt to stop Nord Stream 2 and to force expensive and dirty USian gas on the EU.
This would be another Western blessing in disguise. Russian liberals (more like satanists) stand against the wall. More and more “liberals” a feeling the heat in Russia. bogomolov suddenly speaking of eco-psychos etc. Little shits like posner whining about the distance of him to Russia, while cashing in gov contracts and waiting to leave. Former untouchables like serebnikov getting familiar with the intolerant Russian prison system. Talks of returning to very uncomfortable people like Feliks Dzierżyński…much more fun surprising stuff waiting for clueless drones.
All this would do, is more rapid sovereignization. If Russians sense a real immediate threat they transform from iron fillings into a very unpleasant sword, which has the habit to win any contest in participates in.
***Navalny not serebnikov (suspended sentence)***
@Nave: “[Suppose] Russians abroad cannot send money to their families and Russians no longer can buy the latest computers, phones, etc. I think Russian opinion would quickly turn against Putin.”
Naive, viewing Russia through U$ tinted spectacles.
“Life is not a jaunt through a shopping mall” — Dr.Zhivago
I never wore (past the age of 25 that is) US-tainted spectacles and it’s wishful thinking like yours that lead good countries (Lebanon, Venezuela, …) to suffer disproportionaly from US sanctions by ignoring the risks.
” Russians no longer can buy the latest computers, phones, etc.”
this is exactly the reason why the soviet citizen didnt resist dismantling the SU
this is exactly why they felt inferior and why they let the western specialists – “hardvard boys” in
Yeah, that was more than 30 years ago. But Putins Russia is completely and fundamentally different than the last days of the Soviet Union – and overally also the western world has changed much from those days.
People are growingly suspicious in every corner of the world about “latest computers, phones, etc.” – partly because of the well documented connections between intelligence operators and big tech.
That stuff is not the symbol of the “freedom” anymore, instead something a bit suspicious. What comes to Russia, my gut feeling is that Russian youth are more aware in this sense, than their western counterparts.
Because they are lucky enough to live under the responsible and very capable leadership, as also shown in above interview of Lavrov.
But to say the same about the leaders of the West – – – well, you all know what a madhouse EU has become.
Spot on
Russians can by cars (German, Russian, Chinese and Korean) and computers (consumer from China; professional from the Russian MIC) which a way BETTER than one you can get from the USA.
My 2cts
The Saker
Regarding computers, there’s also operating systems, CPUs and GPUs to keep in mind.
Windows will definitely be out of the question, after all those licensing fees to Microsoft as well as all the monopolistic bully tactics it has done towards any competitors not named Apple. Linux may be USian*, but some of its distributions are not (e.g. Astra Linux), and overall, at least it’s free.
(*Now it begs the question of what possessed Linus Torvalds to leave his native Finland and what he sees in the USA, aside from pro-USA propaganda, but that could be a whole other story.)
Manufacturing the CPUs and GPUs is one thing; licensing the architecture (e.g. Intel 80×86) is another. Do manufacturers in China pay any licensing/royalty fees to Intel for every computer built and sold?
They’re is no such thing as an independent EU country. They have all surrendered all or most (those that still retain a national currency) of their economic sovereignty. Without economic sovereignty there can be no political sovereignty. The majority that are also part of NATO – these days EU membership seems to come with NATO membership as a compulsory attachment – have also surrendered their military sovereignty. In other words they’re all slaves and helots to be ordered around by their master. What’s the point of negotiating with slaves, when they can do nothing except jump to the whim of their owner?
In “these countries” respect does not mean approve, honor, trust, or any of those things. In “these countries” respect means, fear, obey, pay-up, and such.
Wonderful interview! Refreshing and a relief that there are still statesmen like Lavrov around.
Thanks for posting.
That interview with the greatest diplomat of the twentieth (and thus far, twenty first century) was brilliant. Russia is blessed with the triumvirate of Putin, Lavrov and Shoigu!
Dear Saker,
you mention in passing that Marschall Pilsudski was eager to cooperate with Nazis to occupy Moscow, – he died in 1935 or in 1936, after a long illness. Nazis did not go to war with SU until 1941. How come you make this assertion? From what I know, he was aware of the precarious position Poland was in, between two powerful nations and he tried his best to maneuver. Please, correct me if I am wrong. Thank you.
bystander04
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J%C3%B3zef_Pi%C5%82sudski
Thank you for replying, but your reference actually seems to contradict the claim that Pilsudski was working with Nazis – I looked into the chapter of Foreign Policy and there is this:
” Hitler repeatedly suggested a German-Polish alliance against the Soviet Union, but Piłsudski declined, instead seeking precious time to prepare for potential war with either Germany or the Soviet Union. Just before his death, Piłsudski told Józef Beck that it must be Poland’s policy to maintain neutral relations with Germany, keep up the Polish alliance with France and improve relations with the United Kingdom.[146]. ”
I appreciate your blog for being straight and allowing dissenting voices.
“Hitler repeatedly suggested a German-Polish alliance against the Soviet Union, but Piłsudski declined…”
The God above sky, Russia on Earth!
“Pure Polish genius”.
The same Polish diplomatic genius shone bright in 1938, when Poland rejected Stalin’s offer of an anti-Fascist alliance and accepted Britain’s advice to join with Germany in carving up CzeckoSlovakia.
The main goal of 3B + PU, and the Empire by the way, is precisely to stop the NS2 and the reaproachment between Russia and Western Europe (Germany) that is why it must be completed. The majority of Germans want it but they are obviously prudent, remember that there are about 100,000 US troops stationed over there
The ‘Governments’ of almost all European States are under the thumb of US imperialism. Europe is a US occupied zone which was swallowed up in two operations, first 1945, and second in stages since the early 90’s – no question. The level of these occupations ranges from bad/pathetic/grotesque. At one level Austria, Switzerland, Serbia, and the mini-tax havens are the exceptions. At the extreme edge of the empire lie the comic opera farce of the Baltics, Ukraine and Poland. Then the other ex-soviet satellites: Bulgaria, Romania, Czechia, Slovakia, Slovenia, rubbish states going nowhere. Then come the next tier of the middle to north including the UK, France, Belgium, Holland and Scandinavia, all only too willing to do Uncle Sam’s bidding.
Finally Germany. Germany has got to choose its own future. The German business class wants trade with Russia, but the political class wants NATO and American over-lordship. If Germany does secede it will take a number of euro-states with it. At this stage the eurozone will collapse since the euro meant different things to different states.
But with reference to this unprepossessing cringing crowd it was the 18th century philosopher, Joseph De Maistre, who coined the famous lines: ”Every nation gets the government it deserves.” How right he was
The crux of the problem seen emanating from countries like Poland & Ukraine is exemplified in the following, quote from Lavrov:
“The West was very worried back then and reluctantly agreed on reunifying Germany. We operated on the belief that the German people have the right to be one nation which is its historical destiny as a nation.”
I would ask Lavrov this – had Russia invaded Germany & killed 20% or more of their population, what would the general German attitude be toward Russia. Well, Germany today, the foreign policy establishment, would gladly see Russia obliterated. Why is it important to Russia that Germany has the right to exist as a country? What I am getting at here is that the rabid Russophobia & servility to the West coming out of Poland & Ukraine, Baltics etc. is not the real problem. The real problem lies in the attitudes expressed by Lavrov here: he & others like him refuse to accept the fact that the West, the entire West, US, UK, France, Germany – all of them, are mortal eternal enemies. What will it take for the Russian establishment around Putin to finally accept that this is how it is, Lavrov thinks he can have friends in the EU, it is pathetic. Russia wants to see a unified Germany – & how did that work out? The first thing that unified Germany did was destroy Yugoslavia & resurrect its Nazi relationship with Croatia – which it is totally unapologetic about. At the heart of this lies a very deep sense of inferiority within certain sectors of the Russian populace, the same can be said about Serbia as well. It is totally self-destructive.
Lavrov is skilled but I’m shocked that he saw anything good in Trump….the guy who sent nuclear capable bombers to Russian borders, who expelled Russian diplomats based on lies, etc. People listen to what their adversaries, wolves in sheep’s clothing, say, and not give nearly enough credence to watching their Actions!
And as you say, it looks like Lavrov pays more attention to the gentlemanly and ladylike manners of diplomats, rather than their actual evil intent.
I think what went wrong post-reunification was the continuation of NATO. NATO after all was supposedly created as a bulwark against the USSR, and that it is still existing in the present day raises an eyebrow.
Poland in particular seems to have made it a habit to make enemies out of both Russia and Germany simultaneously.
You may also want to ask Stalin the same question(s) as well. He was okay with reunification back in 1952. May have been surprising at first until you find out about the amount of support Hitler received from the Anglosphere, to say nothing of Allied bombing of civilian cities/towns such as Dresden.
Ah… but….
PACE or not PACE
MOSCOW, February 28. /TASS/. The future of the Council of Europe will depend on whether it will be able to stay independent and step away from bloc approaches, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in his message to Council of Europe Secretary General Marija Pejcinovic Buric on the 25th anniversary of Russia’s membership in the organization. “I am convinced that the future of the Council of Europe depends on its ability to preserve independence and its genuine common European nature, not to be a hostage to bloc approaches and thinking, to work without double standards in the interests of all countries of the continent. The experience of the recent years demonstrates that how important it is to keep the Parliamentary Assembly from slipping into an arena for settling accounts, to refrain from imposing non-consensus documents, to see to it that the activity of the European Court of Human Rights is free from political and ideological bias,” he stressed. The minister also noted that the organization’s potential is especially needed amid the anti-coronavirus campaign to consolidate efforts of countries in the sphere of public health and to exchange advanced experience. “Neither geopolitical nor economic considerations should be above the interests of protection of health of own citizens,” he pointed out. The Russian top diplomat emphasized that the authority of the Council of Europe is being shattered because of the lack of due reaction to such human rights violations as discrimination of the Russian and Russian-speaking population in Ukraine and the Baltic countries. “The organization that emerged from the ruins of World War II must not be indifferent to the manifestations of historic revisionism and glorification of Nazi collaborators,” he added. Lavrov congratulated Pejcinovic Buric on the jubilee and wished the Council of Europe “unity, stability and persistence in its drive towards the goals set in its charter in the interests of all Europeans.”.
Does not sound that Russia will walk away from Europe at all….and another diplomat says they will keep their membership of the Council of Europe. But 27 EU ambassadeurs announce sanctions due to N.
BRUSSELS, March 1. /TASS/. Ambassadors of 27 European Union nations have agreed further anti-Russian sanctions over the situation around Russian blogger Alexey Navalny, a source in one of the delegations told TASS on Monday. “Permanent representatives imposed sanctions as part of the human rights sanctions regime against individuals responsible for verdict to Alexey Navalny,” the source said.
“Does not sound that Russia will walk away from Europe at all…”
exactly. Lavrov the “battered wife”
first he says: there is nothing to talk about…
then he says: lets not take sides… lets keep doing everything together
btw, it is tiresome to keep hearing russia complaining about nazis
same as russia didnt help armenia, why should anyone help clean up
the nazis. if you wanna get rid off them, you have to do it by yourself, russia!
Relax. Don’t react like a child. Lavrov is an adult. He tried his best with the miserable wretches representing the EU, who want their bread & butter for the price of their own decency: List of ambassadors of the European Union, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ambassadors_of_the_European_Union
Guess until their children, wives, and parents are mugged or murdered by “vibrant diversity” and such, the EU ambassadors will be cognitively blind and deaf to the idea of the rule of law. However, the ambassadors are really good at exposing western hypocrisy. The exposure of western rot and corruption has been helping to unify decent Russians against the profiteering scum like “Navalnichok”, Ms. Pevchikh, Ms. Sobol, the traitor Ashurkov, and the aged ladies of PussyRiot. The recently disclosed documents showed that the Russophobic Anne Appelbaum, as well as “Navalnichok”, Ms. Pevchikh, Ms. Sobol, Mr. Ashurkov, and the aged ladies of PussyRiot have been paid by either Integrity Initiative (staffed with Russophobic propagandists) or by the UK Foreign Office that enjoyed millions of pounds dedicated to spreading hatred and lies about Russians and the Russian federation.
As for the questions about the resurrection of Nazism in “liberated” Ukraine (thanks, Kagans’ clan), the questions make an excellent weapon against the sanctimonious ZUSA and the HolyCost business in general. Long overdue.
And It is really good that Russia repeatedly speaks about the supression of human rights in Ukraine and the Baltic stateless. The louder the better.
The puppeteers at the MIC and FedReserve/City worked hard to weed out all honest people from the positions of influence in the EU and the US. Let the puppeteers work with fools and crooks.
More PACEor not PACE
MOSCOW, March 1. /TASS/. European countries should not test Russia’s patience in matters of cooperation in the council of Europe, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said at a roundtable in the Federation Council Monday. “We are ready to work in the Council of Europe, but only on the basis of its statute. One should not test our patience, it is not unlimited,” Grushko said. “Today, it is the Western community who bears the Council of Europe’s historical responsibility for the future of legal and humanitarian space on the continent.” The deputy foreign minister pointed out that all international organizations depend on their member states’ interest in them for implementation of their national interests. The Council of Europe has future, the diplomat said, if the organization preserves its independence and multidimensional character, and forms a uniting agenda. “An aspiration to turn the Council of Europe into an appendix of the EU, in a human-right tool for processing of dependent periphery will not end well. Without Russia, this organization will lose its pan-European quality, which means it will lose the point for its existence,” Grushko said.
Eu announced sanctions against 4 people in Russian legal services they hold responsible for N going back to jail.
So the EU “flopped” with Ukraine….maybe it is still trying….has EU followed the same plan mark 2 for Armenia
info from Patrick Lancaster via his facebook post out there…. the PM refused to resign despite protests….President refused to agree to PM sacking of Head of Army…but PM now asking the President to resign……citizens supporting President facing off PM supporters…..
🔥📣Armenia and the European Union to a new partnership TODAY🔥📣
Today the Armenia-European Union Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement will fully enter info force.The agreement, which was signed in the framework of the Eastern Partnership Summit held in Brussels on 24 November 2017, takes the bilateral relations between Armenia and the European Union to a new, partnership level and regulates the dialogue in the political and economic spheres, as well as sectoral cooperation and trade relations.The CEPA is an inclusive document, which creates a solid legal basis for the Armenia-EU partnership, outlining cooperation in various spheres, spanning from justice, security, economy, agriculture and infrastructures to environment and climate, education and science, culture, health, etc.“The effective implementation of the Agreement will bring tangible results to our citizens by promoting democracy, political, economic and social stability through extensive reforms, thus improving quality of life of our citizens,” the Foreign Ministry says.The CEPA addresses the issue of the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, reaffirming the EU’s stated commitment to support the efforts and approaches of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, particularly on the basis of equal rights and self-determination of peoples.The Government of Armenia has constantly reaffirmed its commitment to the effective implementation of the Armenia-EU Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement, which is fully in line with Armenia’s broad reform agenda. who has fallen for it???
Correction not head of military
Pressure had escalated on the embattled leader after he requested the dismissal of a top military chief, Tiran Khachatryan, when the general contradicted his criticism of the Moscow-made rockets. Pashinyan had told journalists that the Iskander missiles had failed during bloody fighting with neighboring Azerbaijan, or had “exploded only by 10 percent.” “This is impossible,” Khachatryan then told journalists. “Sorry, but this isn’t serious.” ALSO ON RT.COM
Etc
JJ,
For all the fanfare, this particular deal between the EU and Armenia is a watered-down version of the Association Agreement from 2013.
Back then, Armenia walked away and decided to join the Eurasian Union instead.
The EU’s persistence is interesting. I guess they want to do to Russia what they did to Serbia: surround it with EU/ NATO until the country has no option but to cooperate. Of course Russia being so huge they will not succeed, but they can act as disruptors at key geopolitical junctions.
as i recall, the poster Biswapriya Purkayastha predicted exactly this will happen:
Nikol Pashinyan taking Armenia into Western hands, blaming Russia for selling out Armenia
(which they did, no matter how you spin it)
Biswapriya was stop on, so kudos to him
To me, this “deal” looks like Pashinyan is trying to pacify & distract his population who are now in the process of storming government buildings…
https://www.euronews.com/2021/03/01/protesters-storm-armenia-government-building-calling-for-pm-pashinyan-s-resignation
Soros and his puppet Pashinyan didn’t sell out Armenia — Putin did. Touching, yes — convincing, nah.
For all those talking about NS-2, keep this fact in mind.
Germany wants to go completely Green. That means Hydrogen.
NS-2 is built for blue (natural gas) and green (hydrogen).
So, it isn’t just about the near term, price differential or Ukraine.
Germany is hell-bent to go Green.
That is impossible without Russian NS-2.
If there is to be a Germany, it must have Russian natural gas and NS-2.
I am a UK citizen resident in the UK and I have to say that I heartily agree with this article, written as it is from a Russian perspective.
My country elects its ‘Representatives’ using a ridiculously archaic ‘First Past the Post’ system which amplifies the ‘representation’ of parties with concentrated areas of support and actively discriminates against minority parties with often more votes but spread rather thinner.
Our whole Parliamentary theatre is at the level of a Punch and Judy show for rather immature children. You only have to see the total lack of ‘Representatives’ in the House of Commons if a serious debate is actually taking place over the minutiae of bills which makes the difference between good legislation and useless stuff. But organise a theatrical punch up and they are all in there, braying and salivating almost as much as if they were about to shag Miss World. Well, that is how they were before they suspended Parliamentary democracy and started ruling by Ministerial Decree.
As a result, our ‘Representatives’ rarely represent true public opinion and thus there is a never-ending campaign of deception to try and befuddle the public into accepting what are actions directly contrary to the interests of those they have been elected by.
Although the UK and Russian countries are almost exact opposites in geographical terms (one is a smallish island with a temperate maritime climate; the other is a vast expanse of continental steppe with a few significant mountain ranges, with climate ranging from cool to frigid), in temperamental terms, both the British and the Russians have one trait in common: they don’t like being told by foreigners how they have to run their own affairs.
The British tried unsuccessfully to join in in post-war Europe, but fundamentally, the history of the UK and mainland Europe are sufficiently different that Britain was always the ‘odd man out’. Although the politicians wanted to assimilate and indeed the Civil Servants arguably reached almost treasonous levels of Europhilia since 2016, the people had simply had enough. They saw the EU as basically a stitch up between France and Germany and nothing was going to change it. So they voted to leave.
The Russians, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, saw themselves becoming rapidly vassalised by incoming foreign financiers and indiginous oligarchs in the 1990s and the emergence of Vladimir Putin as leader in effect said ‘Nyet!’ rather too publicly for the West’s palate. Russians value their autonomy, their right to choose, their right to live in the space their ancestors lived in 1000 years ago. They don’t want to become Americans, they don’t want to become Germans and they don’t want to become Chinese. Shocking!!
Britain made a strategically fatal decision several decades ago that they had to choose between Europe and the USA. The British people have also been saying ‘Nyet’ to that for a long while, the problem is that their representatives don’t listen to them. There is a vast global hinterland where the UK has traded for centuries and quite frankly, almost none of those nations want to rule the world, tell the UK what to say in the UN or order them to yap at the Russians every day of the week. That is an extremely attractive proposition to British citizens, but it isn’t to the bought mouthpieces, mountebanks and gofers who parasitise the whole London-centric political process.
So if Russia wants to say ‘We’d rather not deal with you lot in London’, we the people would not complain too much about that. What we would say though is that if there were to become ways to allow trade without having to deal with the professional prostitutes in Westminster and Whitehall, then the British people have no issues in developing mutually beneficial trading links between our two nations.
I don’t know anyone who thinks Russia is guilty of anything the past 10 years that justifies sanctions. I absolutely know for a fact that no sane person in the UK thinks we want to go to war with Russia. And absolutely none of us give two hoots about Navalny.
I know that to change the party affiliation of the MP representing the constituency I live in, the current incumbent would need to be outed as a paedophile, a massive fraudster and/or a bigamist for any other party to get a look in. 80%+ of the UK populace are not to blame for election outcomes because the constituencies they vote in have absolutely rock solid majorities for one party or another. So all we can do to try and change anything is to campaign for Proportional Representation. We know full well that seeking Russian support for that would guarantee no change is possible….
We are a smallish nation, so I would not expect Russia to waste much time on us.
But trust me, if you think that the UK politicians are a bunch of vacuous non-entities, then your opinions will find considerable support for that viewpoint across large parts of the UK countryside…..
https://www.rt.com/russia/516896-latvia-ethnic-homeland-russians/
Latvia is for Latvians….and will be a top tier country in the EU…….never mind 25% citizens are ethnic Russians….most people speak that language. Duh. Ethnic cleansing to come?
https://www.stalkerzone.org/report-the-persecution-of-russian-human-rights-defenders-in-the-baltic-countries/
Details….if only something could be done re this persecution.
🌿🌿
*’No Man is an Island’*
No man is an island entire of itself;
every man is a piece of the continent,
a part of the main;
if a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less,
as well as if a promontory were,
as well as any manner of thy friends
or of thine own were;
any man’s death diminishes me,
because I am involved in mankind.
And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls;
It tolls for thee.
MEDITATION XVII Devotions upon Emergent Occasions
– *John Donne*
☘☘
“do you think that these two clowns want their country to be treated with respect, or do they simply don’t care at all about things like dignity, respect, or honor? ”
You see, I think the problem is, that they have no idea what these things are.
We as humans have a natural tendency – all of us, all the time unless making a specific effort – to act and think on an assumption ; this is that what we hold, see, know, so do others.
I have a vivid imagination. I always assumed everyone did. I cannot grasp how a mind works without it. So it was a huge shock to me to discover that there are those who have none. Who, when I have said ‘well just imagine so and so ” to be looked at in blank disbelief and told “I have no idea what you are talking about. What do you want me to do? ” {this when I was a Uni lecturer trying to help students}.
When you talk of things like honour, respect, Saker, it tells me about you. .It tells me you have these characteristics, that you value them.
But these you refer to? I dont think they would even know what you are referring to. They literally would fail to “get it”.
They truly are “empty vessels.” Oh – and lack of imagination is also a hallmark characteristic of psychopaths!!!
Unfortunately it’s not exclusively a Ukie or Pole thing when it comes to lacking honor, let alone, respect. Look at the EWE, doing everything possible to please Washington DC, even if it means suicide.
Cybor_ikua
Do you know what’s insane?
Elevating one person, one insignificant human amongst the the rest on the world, falling in love with a tiny ant that is called Alexei Navalny. The multitude of people in this world, many unknown, who do real (genuine) good go about their business without so much of an appreciation.
Why would anyone respect cretins who act with false pretension?
Regardless if you’re a normal person, criminals or any other sorts. The basic fundamental where human self-preservation instinct kicks in when it detected falsehood, only the truly insane do not possess this trait.
Interesting. Saker advocating war.
A mistake.
not a mistake, a fake. I never advocated for war. The Saker
There is only ONE inherent power which acts against the eternal jungle-mode conflicts. Trade.
At present, these countries WANT Russia to withdraw from all agreements with their western neighbors. That will give them the exact argument they are missing to be able to say to the countries to the west of them (think Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, but also Germany etc.) who are currently ignoring their anti-Russian posture for the most part:
Hey! See! We told you so! The only way to deal with the Russians is from the position of power! Lets get an expedition going to force them to comply!
Now, they will inevitably fail. BUT. They can do a LOT of damage both to themselves as well as to Russia.
Advocating an unprovoked breaking of relations just because “there is a common neighbor between you who is insane” is advocating for a path to an inevitable military conflict.
BTW, Nord Stream is exactly designed to PREVENT the crazy neighbor to be able to continue poisoning the other relationships. That is why they are screaming to begin with. They understand this is the endgame. For them.
Noble members of this site, i have a question, Mister Lavrov mentioned a publicly available form of the Russian foreign policy concept.
Would anyone please share a trustworthy english version of that?
I did my homework of googling it up, but the only results i got were western assumptions and filtered opinions, like thorough, but imo rather misleding divinations of subversive pipedeams. (no pun intended)
In my eastern/central european country it’s only accessible on government level.
Thanks in advance!
Love Lavrov and his sense of satire and humour. There is something very Russian about such an attitude that once existed in the UK but has died and in the US has had the last rites read and been cremated never to be heard of again. The US is such a barren landscape of arts and culture that it competes with the Sahara for the search of a drop of moisture. History however teaches us that such are the signs of a dying empire if it could be called an ’empire’. Where are the painters, writers, poets, musicians and creators in modern America?
Recently I have investigated the cultural advances in China and am suitably impressed. Regarding Russia it has a long history of culture and in folk like Lavrov it will not die.
Lin Yutang said: ‘when small men cast long shadows it means the sun is setting’
In the West the lights are going out.
@ Andalusian Musician
‘ However we must remember that not all people within these countries agree with being vassals, and these people need acknowledgement and support! ‘
I entirely agree with your statement. These are truly ‘smutnoye vremya’, and, as the famous Serbian writer and Nobel prize literature winner, Ivo Andric, has so exactly stated once: ‘Kad dodju mutna vremena, pametni ucute, budale progovore, a fukara se obogati’ [When smutnoye vremya arrive, clever people shut up, fools speak up, and lowlives get rich]
Those people, both in Poland and Ukraine, who feel bonds with Russia, are really not in a position to speak openly for many reasons, and, speaking of Ukraine, they may even fear for their lives
Russia should pause relations, stay quite and keep things at arms length for a while. Just to see if there is any courage in their breaths.