Friday, August 22, 2014

I Read This Ukraine Article

I can understand why you did not read my latest post, and hope you can understand why I did not read any of those Globe articles.

"Russian aid convoy advances toward Ukraine" by Nataliya Vasilyeva | Associated Press   August 22, 2014

KIEV — Fierce fighting raged in eastern Ukraine on Thursday in what appeared to be a last-gasp attempt by government troops to snatch back territory from pro-Russian separatists before the arrival of a Russian aid convoy overseen by the Red Cross.

That was when I stopped reading today. Sorry.

Trucks loaded with water, generators, and sleeping bags for desperate civilians in the besieged city of Luhansk began moving through Ukrainian customs after being held up at the border for a week, in part because of safety concerns and Ukrainian fears that the convoy’s arrival could halt the military’s advance.

The trucks in the 200-vehicle convoy were expected to cross into Ukraine on Friday morning on their way to Luhansk, a city with a war-reduced population of a quarter-million people, 12 miles from the Russian border.

At Russia’s urging, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for a cease-fire during the humanitarian mission.

The Red Cross has said it needs assurances of safe passage from all sides to bring in the supplies and set up distribution points, so even without a formal cease-fire, Ukrainian government forces could be severely constrained in their movements once the trucks begin arriving.

Or they could kill some Red Cross workers and blame the Russian-supported separatists who act only upon Russian command, or so the narrative goes.

Ukrainian troops have made significant advances into rebel-held territory this week in a conflict that has claimed more than 2,000 lives and forced over 340,000 people to flee their homes. Ukraine celebrates Independence Day on Sunday, and there are widespread suspicions the government is anxious for a breakthrough by then.

Looking for a diplomatic solution to the crisis, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko will meet on Saturday with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has acted as a mediator, and will sit down with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Minsk, Belarus, early next week.

‘‘We are going to Minsk to talk about peace,’’ Poroshenko said in a statement. ‘‘The whole world is tired of war.’’

There is usually one sentence or phrase within a propaganda pre$$ article that I believe. Just found it.

Ukraine has accused Russia of arming and supporting the separatists since the fighting began in mid-April, a charge Russia denies.

Meanwhile, five troops were killed and two civilians died over a 24-hour period in rebel-held areas, authorities said. That followed over 50 deaths on Wednesday.

Troops fought separatists in and around Ilovaysk near the rebel-held city of Donetsk, and at least two people were killed and an unspecified number wounded in an artillery strike on a Donetsk suburb, authorities said.

Once home to 1 million, Donetsk, the largest city still held by the rebels, has seen one-third of its population flee since the spring.

Heavy fighting was also reported in Luhansk on Thursday, a day after the government said it had retaken much of the rebel stronghold. The city has been under siege for 19 days, lacking such basics as running water and electricity.

Ukraine. The new Israel!

‘‘People hardly leave their homes for fear of being caught in the middle of ongoing fighting, with intermittent shelling into residential areas placing civilians at risk,’’ the Red Cross said.

Just like in GAZA!

Poroshenko said he will seek to negotiate a peace agreement when he meets with Putin and representatives of the European Union next week.

I never, never take talk of peace in a war-promoting paper seriously anymore. Who would?

Earlier this week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov repeated calls for an unconditional cease-fire. Ukraine’s government has said it will declare a truce only if the pro-Russian rebels lay down their arms and Russia stops supplying them with weapons.

They are acting more and more like a bunch of Khazars with each passing minute.

NATO countries preparing for a Sept. 4-5 summit are weighing their response to the events.

So when does the WAR with RUSSIA start?

Estonia, a former Soviet republic that borders Russia, is confident that the military alliance will boost its presence in the country, Prime Minister Taavi Roivas said.

And of course, there will be no screaming from the propaganda pre$$ about troops on the border like there is when Russia moves them around their own country. 

And you wonder why I'm so, so sick of this SHIT?!!!!

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UPDATE: Ukraine (Kiev) suffers heavy losses in counter attack 

What?

Related: Dinner at McDonald's 

Not in Russia:

"Russia checks more McDonald’s after closing 3" AP   August 22, 2014

MOSCOW — Russia’s food safety agency said Thursday that it was checking McDonald’s restaurants around the country, a day after several branches of the chain were shuttered in Moscow.

The pressure on the American chain, which has 435 restaurants in Russia, comes at a time of heightened tensions over the fighting in eastern Ukraine.

After the United States and the European Union slapped sanctions on Russian state banks and major industries last month, Russia responded with a wide-ranging ban on food products imported from those countries.

Inspections took place or were planned in dozens of regions, Russian news agencies reported, quoting regional representatives of the federal regulatory agency, Rospotrebnadzor. It was unclear how many restaurants were affected, and whether any of them were closed down as a result.

On Wednesday, the agency ordered four Moscow restaurants to suspend operations, citing numerous violations of sanitary laws. McDonald’s said only three of those restaurants were closed.

One of those restaurants, on Moscow’s central Pushkin Square, was the first to open in the Soviet Union in 1990, drawing crowds of thousands that circled around the block. The restaurant became a symbol of reform and openness with the West, and today it is one of the company’s most visited venues in Russia.

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