Ukraine crisis. News in brief. Friday 22 January [Ukrainian sources]

FRIDAY

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News -
Situation worse - Putin attacks Ukraine 69 times
Update - 2 wounded. Sounds lucky to me, with 69 incidents of Russian aggression.

Weather -
Cold. -11. Will stay around there for the next couple of days, and then hopefully a little warmer next week.
But normal really for January.

7:25
http://censor.net.ua/news/370397/obama_i_merkel_podcherknuli_neobhodimost_uskoreniya_polnogo_vypolneniya_minskih_soglasheniyi
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Putin wants the war to go on. He thinks it gives him a bargaining tool. He is wrong.
He alienates the Ukrainian people more and more, each day that he continues killing them.

http://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2016/01/20/the-exchange-garry-kasparov-forecasts-bloody-regime-change-in-russia/
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Video. via Euan Macdonald twitter. // Personally I think Putin's hold on power is too strong to be broken. Just like Kim in North Korea. A massive climate of fear now in Russia and beyond.
But - Putin is single-handedly destroying Russia. And because of that, I would think that the US and other countries are actually keen for him to stay in power.

https://www.litvinenkoinquiry.org/report
pdf download at link

http://zaxid.net/news/showNews.do?ukrayina_rozrahovuye_otrimati_7_mlrd_vid_mvf__poroshenko&objectId=1380005
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Tymoshenko can buy a lot of handbags with that. Lets hope Poro can keep her hands out of the till.
Reminds me - yesterday - a student told me that Tymoshenko's cleaner gets 150,000 hryvnia a month.
Don't know if true or not, but - remember according to her declaration she earns less than 10k. ?!

8:18
http://delo.ua/ukraine/zamdirektora-zhitomirskogo-bronetankovogo-zavoda-arestovan-za-hi-310847/
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Frankly, normal practice in all state enterprises.

http://24tv.ua/komunisti_proveli_v_kiyevi_skandalniy_miting_n650770
Representatives of the banned Communist Party of Ukraine on January 21 celebrated in Kiev on the Sofia area "unification of Ukraine with Russia."
Yes communists celebrated the [362nd !!] anniversary of the Pereiaslav Council, said on the website of the Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine Natalia Vitrenko, who also participated in the meeting.
At the meeting attended by the head of the Communist Party of Ukraine Petro Symonenko, his deputy Adam Martynyuk, head of the Progressive Socialist Party Natalia Vitrenko and other representatives of the Left. This association called "Left Opposition"....



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Just look at the photo. Average age... 70? How many people? 20?
Photo from mad woman Vitrenko's website http://www.vitrenko.org/article/29067

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/21/alexander-litvinenko-vladimir-putin-russian-exceptionalism
Russia’s sense of detachment from the European mainstream, or to put it another way, its self-created isolationism and separateness, is nothing new. It dates back to the 1917 revolution and the communist era, or even further, to the days of Tolstoy, Turgenev and the tsars.
But there are particular doubts about Putin, his strange brand of paranoid nationalism, and the state that has formed around the president....
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Obviously article not from the pen of S Walker. In fact, quite a brave article for the Putin-leaning Guardian. I wonder if Milne, the Guardian editor, will come up with the "Russian theory" that Litvinenko poisoned himself with plutonium bought from Tesco's? A photo below of Milne shaking hands with his idol -



In fact, Milne rather reminds me of Simonenko in Ukraine. The communist party leader. Both are idiots, both adore Putin, and both are very rich.

http://news.liga.net/news/politics/8607703-zapasa_prochnosti_u_rf_ostaetsya_eshche_na_paru_let_soros.htm
..."Russia is now on the weak positions, even though they have enough reserves, which should be enough for a couple of years", - he predicted.
According to the billionaire, "the year of return" for the Russian economy in 2017 will be the first, because by the time the above-mentioned provisions will be "very little."
Soros believes that due to the current poor economic situation, the Kremlin will have to cut the budget that will harm "agreement with Vladimir Putin's population" and the popularity of the latter. American philanthropist explained that such a "contract" in the Russian Federation is a "financial stability, with a gradual increase in prosperity."..

9:03
http://tyzhden.ua/News/156568

http://lb.ua/news/2016/01/22/326121_samopomoshch_viydet_koalitsii.html
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Looking more and more likely that it will never get that far. Putin won't even admit OSCE observers to the border, never mind Ukrainians!

Nelson wrote:http://zaxid.net/news/showNews.do?ukrayina_rozrahovuye_otrimati_7_mlrd_vid_mvf__poroshenko&objectId=1380005
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Tymoshenko can buy a lot of handbags with that. Lets hope Poro can keep her hands out of the till.
Reminds me - yesterday - a student told me that Tymoshenko's cleaner gets 150,000 hryvnia a month.
Don't know if true or not, but - remember according to her declaration she earns less than 10k. ?!

Universities are well known hotbeds when it comes to rumour spreading / muck raking.

That said, if true, the term, "Tymoshenko's cleaner" most likely refers to one of her launderers!

Good points!

http://en.interfax.com.ua/news/economic/319285.html
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Not sure what it is currently. Maybe 60. But then the pension is very small. And also -
You see very few men over the age of 65 here - the effects of a lifetime of vodka and cigarettes.
A lot more women, however. I think about twice as many women than men by the time you get to 70.

http://en.censor.net.ua/photo_news/370454/44yearold_farmer_balukh_tried_in_crimea_for_hanging_out_ukrainian_flag_photo
...Six months later, they came again. Now he was charged with stealing a car, which again he allegedly told someone in a cafe.
The search of his home revealed no car or its traces. As a result, the case was instituted under article 319 of Russia's Criminal Code (insulting officials). The punishment is not tough - up to one year of corrective labor, while proving your innocence is almost impossible.
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Just like the nazi occupation, but this time Putin is the Fuhrer.

http://en.censor.net.ua/news/370411/ukraine_buys_all_gas_from_europe_says_no_sense_to_change_tactics_minister_koboliev
....Koboliev said that as of Friday morning, the volume of natural gas purchased from Europe made some 40 million cubic meters per day, while the volume of gas withdrawn from storage facilities amounted to about 90 million cubic meters.
Naftohaz CEO recognized that in case of a long spell of very cold weather, Ukraine may theoretically start purchasing Russian gas. ..
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Hopefully it will turn warmer during the next week.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/russians-keep-lips-locked-in-opinion-polls-fearing-backlash/556530.html
...Almost half of those questioned, 49 percent, said they thought most Russians would be reticent to discuss current affairs when approached by pollsters.
The most popular explanation given for the aversion of speaking openly was fear of possible backlash on people's own lives...
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The Russian people are scared stiff. 15 Years of Putin and his dictatorship.

http://www.rferl.org/content/daily-vertical-the-evil-of-banality/27503466.html

Whitmore. Excellent, as usual. Not easy to do - every day - fresh thoughts. Excellent.
Can't the BBC clone him, or something? Anything is better than Rainsford telling BBC World that half of Ukrainians are married to Russians. (complete lie, purposefully made.)
Maybe even Yanukovych as a BBC reporter. At least there would be some humor - "The ostriches just happened to be there". "The polonium just happened to be in the teapot".

http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-litvinenko-report-reaction-vesti/27502140.html
....There were, however, some glaring omissions in its reporting on the findings of a British public inquiry into the 2006 poisoning of Aleksandr Litvinenko.
Vesti FM completely missed the bombshell allegation of the day: that none other than Russian Vladimir Putin had "probably approved" the killing. It also failed to note that British Judge Robert Owen said the poisoning was "probably" part of an "FSB operation," and...
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Good write up. What do you expect from Russian "journalists"? The truth?

http://censor.net.ua/news/370484/memorandum_o_sotrudnichestve_s_mvf_budet_podpisan_v_blijayishie_dni_gontareva
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7 billion dollars - which the bank will use - some to "stabilize" the hryvnia, I read elsewhere. Let us hope they don't burn all of it, handing it out to banks owned by Rada Deputies for their new Mercedes and executive jets.
Personally I think better if the currency floats freely, without intervention. But Ukraine is very much used to intervention, communist style - fixed rates.

Some Ukraine-related sanctions against Russia could potentially be lifted within months, US secretary of state John Kerry said on Friday, reflecting cautious optimism among western diplomats over Moscow’s engagement in the Minsk ceasefire process.

A series of encouraging recent meetings with senior Russian officials have raised hopes in Washington, Paris and Berlin that the President Vladimir Putin is serious about settling the dispute over eastern Ukraine and paving the way to sanctions relief before the year is out..................

To read further go to this link:   Financial Times


As expected, Kerry sells out to the little Kremlin wannabe. There's still time and I doubt Poroshenko's going to cave in on the US demands.

Rest assure, many of us, including myself will ride both Kerry, Obama and the Ukrainian government not to bow to anyone. Ukraine stood strong on demands by the Kremlin to pay $3 billion in which Poroshenko refused, till they adhere to the Minsk agreement, which is worth as much as was the Budapest Memorandum.

A lot can happen in a month. If the Russian troops and armor, including putting down arms by the terrorists, these sanctions will stay in place. The US can ask for all they want, but it's not going to destroy the will and desires of Ukrainains.

Businessman Victor Pinchuk was due to bring a $2 billion dispute against two other oligarchs over the 2004 purchase of a mining company in the Ukraine

Feuding Ukrainian oligarchs who launched what promised to be one of the most expensive court cases in English legal history over a disputed business deal, amid allegations of murder, bribery and political intrigue, have reached an out of court settlement.
Victor Pinchuk, a flamboyant businessman who befriended former prime minister Tony Blair, launched the $2 billion claim against two other oligarchs over the 2004 purchase of a mining company in their native Ukraine.

A spokesman for Mr Pinchuk announced the case has been settled just three days before a marathon eight and a half week trial was due to begin at the High Court in London.

The court heard in a preliminary hearing last month extraordinary allegations that one of Mr Pinchuk's opponents in the case, Igor Kolomoisky, was involved a series of murders and beatings in relation to another previous deal.

Lawyers for Mr Pinchuk, who once owned London’s most expensive house and counts Bill Clinton, Sir Elton John and Damien Hirst among his close friends, argued they should be allowed to introduce evidence about how Mr Kolomoisky made "extremely vulgar and strongly expressed" threats of physical violence to a business contact.

Testimony from a Ukrainian lawyer, Sergei Karpenko, claimed Mr Kolomoisky threatened him at a meeting in 2003.
Four days later Mr Karpenko's assistant was badly beaten in the street and the following month Mr Karpenko himself was attacked with an iron bar and repeatedly stabbed, the court heard.

Mr Pinchuk's lawyers said the gangsters who carried out the attack were linked to Sergei Nikitin, who had been Mr Kolomoisky's personal bodyguard and later ran a private security company, BOG, owned by Mr Kolomoisky and the other defendant in the current case, Gennadiy Bogolyubov.....................

To read further go to this link:   telegraph.co.uk

A Russian militant who fought in the Donbas told why he believed the elimination of rebels’ leaders had started.

Former mercenary named Alexey disclosed some details of terrorist leaders' killings by Russian secret services in an interview to Rosbalt, Censor.NET reports.

He says was surprised to learn that famous warlord Wagner - commander of 'Wagner' private military company (PMC) Dmitriy Utkin - was suddenly announced bandit in the "Luhansk People's Republic" for allegedly holding young girls imprisoned and torturing them, as well as having killed their father.

The news of his death caused universal delirium among rebels. Wagner still was not forgiven for the killing of Alexander 'Batman' Bednov, leader of "LPR" armed gangs, and six more Russians on Jan. 1, 2015; killings of Cossacks in Krasnyi Luch; disarmament of a Krasnodon unit and arrest of its commander Foma. Also, special operatives from Wagner's unit are believed to be behind the blow-up of Cossack leader Pavel Dremov.

Former rebel is certain that Dremov was killed by Wagner's people. "As long as Dremov was silent, he was needed… But as soon as he resented, he found his problems… No one believes that Dremov was killed by 'Ukrop' [derogatory for Ukrainians - ed.] sabotage and reconnaissance group. It was a professional job; experts put the explosive device directly into his car. Wagner's unit included explosive experts. They used to serve in Plotnitskiy's security."

The Russian also commented on weird death of another well-known militant Botsman (Russia's GRU officer Yevgeniy Kononov), who participated in five wars and allegedly died from cold.

The militant expressed his belief that all commanders were killed because "there would be no novorossia, no "LPR" and "DPR"; the brains of everyone will be washed, and everything will return back to Ukraine. Those who are able to gather people against it should be killed. Batman was the loudest one against treachery and Kremlin tricks - he was killed first" by Wagner.

According to the mercenary, Wagner himself was killed after returning from Syria to the Donbas for 'knowing too much.'

"They say, Wagner was ordered the killing of Batman by the Kremlin. Now it's the second wave - those connected to high-profile officials from Moscow are being cleaned up and dismissed. So that no one tells anything," the militant said.

According to him, rebels of killed Batman joined the Cossacks of killed Dremov and are currently dislocated in Luhansk suburbs.

"All of them are against Plotnitskiy! All of the militants are against him! They are waiting for their time. As soon as they are told to, they will point their guns against him…. The sleaze has started. Now their task is to withdraw all rebels with Russian passports from there. After that, they don't care what happens to those who stay - that is Ukrainian land. The border will be closed and the mousetrap locked," the soldier forecasts.

censor.net.ua In Russian

Russia will form four new divisions of ground forces in 2016 in response to "intensified" NATO military exercises.

General Oleg Salyukov told journalists in Moscow on January 21 that the "formation of the new divisions is one of the measures to be taken in response to the intensified exercises of NATO countries that we have seen in recent times."

One of the divisions will be stationed with the central group of forces, while three will be with Russia's western group of military forces. All of them will be assembled on the basis of existing brigades.

Salyukov also said Russia will conduct seven joint military exercises with foreign countries in 2016, including the first-ever joint exercise with Pakistan and one with Vietnam........

rferl.org

Analyst: “We don’t expect the elections and amendments will be approved this month. At least two factions in the coalition, Self-Reliance and Oleh Lyashko’s Radical Party, still confirm they won’t support the amendments, which require a super-majority of 300 votes (out of 450). And we believe it’s unlikely that elections will be held at all.”


KYIV, Jan 21, 2016 (UBO) - The leaders of the self-declared Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics aren’t fulfilling the recommendations of the Trilateral Contact Group on a cease-fire regime and exchanging hostages, Concorde Capital informed its clients today, based on a Jan. 20 statement by former president Leonid Kuchma, as reported by his press secretary.

“It’s not possible to talk about elections or constitutional amendments – let alone resolving humanitarian and economic problems and issues of mine removal – without a cease-fire, without the full removal of heavy artillery and confirmation by the OSCE and without the renewal of our control of the Ukrainian-Russian border,” Kuchma said. Ukraine is also concerned about attacks against OSCE monitors in occupied Donbas, he said, which reflects the deterioration of safe working conditions. The next meeting of the contact group will occur in Minsk on Jan. 27.

Kuchma’s position was repeated the same day by Iryna Herashchenko, the president’s ombudsman to resolve the Donbas conflict and member of the Trilateral Contact Group’s humanitarian subgroup. The vote for constitutional amendments that would set the legal foundation for Donbas de facto autonomy first requires all safety preconditions and the fulfillment of humanitarian points, in addition to the military-related requirements of the Minsk accords, she said on her Facebook page. “Pressure needs to be applied on the country violator and occupier, the Russian Federation,” she wrote.

The Petro Poroshenko Bloc plans to include in the parliament’s daily agenda on Jan. 28 the constitutional amendments for decentralization and creating the legal basis for Donbas de facto autonomy, said on Jan. 20 Parliamentary Deputy Head Ihor Kononenko, as reported by Interfax-Ukraine. The amendments have to be submitted next week because it’s the last week of the current parliamentary session, he pointed out.

Concorde analyst Zenon Zawada added: “Indeed the talk about elections and creating the Donbas de facto autonomy is premature when even the most basic requirements of the Minsk accords aren’t being upheld. It’s possible that when these matters come up for a vote in parliament, the Russian-backed terrorists will be ordered by Moscow to halt their fire and comply with Minsk, as they had done when Russian President Putin embarked for the United Nations in September............

ukrainebusiness.com.ua

Colonel-General Igor Sergun, director of Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency went to Damascus just weeks before his death on January 3 to send a message for Bashar al-Assad: Vladimir Putin believed it was time for the Syrian president to step aside, according to The Financial Times.

“Mr Assad angrily refused,” The Financial Times reports citing two senior western intelligence officials.

However, Assad made clear to Sergun that there could be no future for Russia in Syria unless he remained as president, according to the report.

As UNIAN reported earlier, the head of Russia's military intelligence agency, which is known as the GRU, Igor Sergun,died unexpectedly on January 3, 2016...............

To read further go to this link:   unian.info


This would be a way for Putin to get his ass out of hot water with Russia and the rest of humanity.

As was said today, the Last time the price of oil hit this low, Russia was torn up. Some call the red white line for him a $25 per barrel price and it's getting near. His oligarchs and himself have just so much money to continue to prop-up the RUBble. This must be the way to get out, then smell like a rose, both for him to the Russians and then to the rest of the globe by wanting to look like the savior of Syria. He knows he's in a very bad position and he must do something soon. This might be his exit out of the dog house.

"The delegation of Ukraine staged a diplomatic demarche in light of the start of Russia's chairmanship of the BSEC," Bodnar wrote on his Twitter page on Friday.

The BSEC meeting was held in Istanbul.

Among other matters, it was noted that, by reconnecting with Crimea, "Russia violated both international law, the territorial integrity of Ukraine and the BSEC fundamental principle on 'turning the Black Sea region into a region of peace, stability and prosperity'," the consul general said...........

interfax.com.ua

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday, Alexey Kudrin, Russia's former Finance Minister, said that the price collapse on the oil market had created a new reality and the peak of the crisis could still be ahead, BBC Russian news service reported.

"Neither presidential aides no I expected this kind of oil price collapse, and this has created a new reality. That’s why the peak of the crisis is still ahead," Kudrin said.

Kudrin noted that the year 2016 is carrying risks. Therefore, he expects Russia's GDP to reach even lower values in the current year. In 2017, the country may see a zero or positive growth rate, according to Kudrin.

The Russian authorities have repeatedly stated that the economic downturn may have reached its "bottom" and the economy will begin to recover soon.

Kudrin also said that he expects to see some abatement of international sanctions imposed against Russia due to its annexation of Crimea and military aggression in Donbas in the coming years.................

unian.info

Russia and Ukraine, with the mediation of Germany have discussed the possibility of negotiations on Ukraine's $3 bn debt but have not yet succeeded to agree on specific meetings.

Russian Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak told reporters, Censor.NET reports citing RIA Novosti.

"An informal exchange of views on the possibility of such negotiations took place with the mediation of the Ministry of Finance of Germany. However, we have not yet succeeded to agree upon initiation of talks due to Ukraine's uncompromising stand expressed in the reluctance to recognize the official status of the debt and offer the Russian Federation conditions better than that offered to private debt-holders," he said.

censor.net.ua In Russian

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau, NACB, will soon sign a memorandum on cooperation with FBI in joint investigations, NABU chief Anton Sytnyk told VOA Jan. 22.

The FBI will be especially helpful in tracking down dollar cash flow, Sytnyk said.

“Big corrupt schemes rarely happen within one country. Without the FBI it will be very difficult to track down fugitive assets and return them to Ukraine,” Sytnyk explained.

The Americans will also donate NACB equipment for electronic document flow during criminal investigations.

zik.ua


As we can see, the US is determined that Ukraine becomes very independent and help it get rid of that old soviet skin where corruption was a natural part of life as they knew it.

Many don't understand or don't want to accept that corruption is a MAJOR issue in Ukraine and it's entrenched to the bone throughout Ukraine. It will never be an easy issue to fix, and it'll take quite a long time to get it down to a manageable issue.

We all know how high within the government it's involved in. Many continue with indulging in corruption because it's a way of life. You would think with the heavy smack-down going on currently that they would start learning that the odds are getting higher that soon they'll get caught. But they continue.

I believe the BIGGEST issue they currently have is, the corrupt judicial system which feeds corruption. For starters and I've heard of many judges to be removed/replaced, but it has to be a priority. There should be higher bonds/bails for starters, and to increase the cost of being sentenced. If they get a slap on the hand, they'll repeat it, or pay-off a judge, which some have been caught doing it.

As I said, this isn't going to be easy, and I'm glad the FBI's joining in. Ukraine needs the help.

A major rift between regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran after attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions on Iranian soil in protest at the execution of a prominent Shia cleric "hampers the efforts to settle the Syrian crisis", Putin said. In December, the human-rights organization Amnesty International said Russia's bombing of Syria may amount to a war crime because of the number of civilians its strikes have killed - at least 200 from September to November of 2015.

"Everyone needs to know that", Putin said. According to English translations of the conversation released by both Bild and by the Kremlin, Putin blames much of the tension between Russian Federation and the West on what he plainly views as a betrayal by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Stephen Pifer, a Brookings Institution scholar and former USA ambassador to Ukraine, pointed out that former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev has also said that no such promises were made. On Monday, Putin told German newsmagazine Bild in an interview published this week that it wasn't a power move meant to intimidate, but a simple mistake. Relations between Russian Federation and Turkey considerably deteriorated after the incident. Putin and Merkel speak each other's languages and have managed to keep up contacts despite adamant disagreement over Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014 and an enduring pro-Russian separatist rebellion in Ukraine's east. "For me", Putin replied, "it is not borders and state territories that matter, but people's fortunes". "The dog does not bother you, does she?"................

To read further go to this link:   utcecho.com