Posted on 09/24/2015 8:08:48 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
A sham conference held in Moscow this week was all about getting Western regions to break away.
Its an open secret that the current Kremlin coterie has an obsession with sovereignty. Moscow may push the oddest version of sovereignty in the international arena. Not only was the country the progenitor of the notion of sovereign democracythe ability to entrench autocracy, disguised as democracy, without foreign interference or pushbackbut Moscows also lobbed recognitions of sovereignty far more frequently than any of its nearest competitors.
Are you a Georgian seaside region tired of Tbilisis demands? Are you a forested stretch of eastern Moldova, grating under Chisinaus Western approach? Are you a landlocked Caucasian enclave, heaving with an independent streak? Then here you are, Abkhazia, Transdnistria, South Ossetiaheres the recognition you wanted, courtesy of your patrons in Moscow. Heres the independence, heres the special status, you desired. Dont worry about Western opposition, about the Westphalian order propping the decades-long streak of peace. If you want recognition, Moscow can provide it in droves.
Of course, theres a double standard to Moscows call to break away. While these enclaves wishing recognition find a Kremlin ready to help, the sovereignty card becomes unplayable the moment they appear within Russias borders.
On Sunday, the Anti-Globalization Movement of Russia hosted the first Dialog of Nations conference in Moscow. Seeking to represent the many small nations that have historical experience of political independence and who think about their revivaland including a shot of shredding the U.S. flag the conference was helmed by Alexander Ionov, a supporter of Western secession with ties to both a fundamentalist Orthodox party, Rodina, and Russias Anti-Maidan movement, a wellspring of pro-Moscow voices seeking to combat anti-Putinist ferment in Russia.
The conference hosted separatists from multiple Western nationsIreland, Italy, Spainin addition to a Western Sahara contingent. The greatest plurality of representatives, however, came from the United States. Russia has prior cultivated relations with separatists in Texaswho are attempting to land the question of secession on Texass GOP ballotbut Ionov and his organization have since expanded their reach among American separatists. (Ionov also lists the U.K.s Stop the War Coalition, linked to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, as one of his groups foremost partners; a representative from Stop the War denied the partnership, saying they have never had any dealings with it.)
While the Texas contingent slotted for the conference did not arrive, and while no Native American representatives originally planned ended up showingalthough Ionov met with a Native American representative this summerthe meeting saw leaders of independence movements from Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the Uhuru black nationalist movements in attendance.
Out of Hawaii, Lanny Sinkin, representing the Independent and Sovereign Nation State of Hawaii, lobbied for the return of the erstwhile Hawaiian monarchy. (The proposed king, as it is, happens to be a felon with some 13 years behind bars.) Out of Puerto Rico, Ramon Nenadich, who had prior threatened to investigate the United States for crimes of war and genocide in its occupation of Puerto Rico, staked his case. (Nenadich has his work cut out for himin 2012, 61 percent of Puerto Ricos populace opted for statehood, and only 5 percent sided with independence.) And representing the Uhuru movement, Chairman Omali Yeshitela called on Russia to push the claim before the United Nations that the United States had committed genocide against African Americans. Weve come to Moscow because it gives us an opportunity to break out of the encirclement that has been imposed on the struggle of African people in the United States, Yeshitela said, before busting out Moscow-inspired rhetoric about U.S. bases encircl[ing] Russia and a U.S. coup in Ukraine.
Suffice it to say, the conference has thus far failed to galvanize any overwhelming separatist sentiment out of Honolulu, San Juan, or Austin. But outright secession isnt Moscows immediate goal.
The separatist conference in Moscow is part of the wider Kremlin strategy to undermine the West through supporting movements and organizations that aim at destabilizing state structures, Anton Shekhovtsov, a researcher on Moscows links to far-right movements, told The Daily Beast. This strategy is anything but newthe Soviet Union adopted the same tactics during the Cold War.
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Further, when Yeshitela, nominally representing the U.S.s African-American population, says that Russia is under assault right now by the U.S. and imperialist powers, Moscows domestic propaganda engine has further fodder to push its message.
Still, while the conference pushed nominal support for international secession movements, its crass geopoliticking shone through. You can tell the conference was a farce not simply because of who attended, but because of who wasnt even invited. No representatives from East Turkestan or Tibet. None from West Papua or Baluchistan. This dearth helps highlight the second parameter for Russias willingness to recognize claims to sovereignty: Such secession movement, if it wants Russias support, exist in the West, or in those nationssay, Moroccothat remain firmly ensconced in the Wests camp. Theres no sense, from Moscows perspective, in supporting movements under the thumb of nations Russia could theoretically woo. In its lack of support for Karakalpak (an Uzbek ethnic group prone to restiveness) or Kashmiri movements, in its avoidance of touching the topics of Cabindan or Anjouan separatists, we can witness the fallaciesfurther hangover from Soviet declamationswithin these claims of supporting sovereignty and secession.
And, of course, theres no sense in looking for any Russian representatives in the conference. None from Tatarstan or Siberia. None from the Crimean Tatar population the Russian government so readily represses. None from Chechnyaodd, considering the pair of wars fought within recent memory to combat Chechen secession. The conference hosted none who would, in any way, call into question the territorial integrity of Russia. Such call would find any individual liable for a prompt, years-long prison sentence.
As such, if youre a secession movement in the West, youll find a ready, willing audience in Moscowbut if you expect to find any Chechens, Tatars, or Siberians seeking their own sovereignty, your disappointment will find a transom of hypocrisy too thick to cross.
Communists never give up, even after they’ve lost.
Well, like we all say down here, if at first you don’t secede,,,, try try again!
Any separatists there representing Washington D.C.? If they were to secede from the U.S.A., most of our problems would go away.
Chechnya, Tibet, and Petoria not invited.
Seems that the Russian leader better understands what us Texans are going through than our ELECTED Republican leaders in DC.
Not really surprised.
As a Texan, I’d like to oblige Russia.
I regard myself a Texan first and foremost. American? Not so much anymore. Not since the country has decayed into such a noxiously faggoty cesspool.
I want Texas to secede as well.
Has Obama turned them over to Russia yet?
Can you imagine Texas and Russia taking on the leftist American Coasts, where they think guns are a bad thing?
There was a thread here on FR yesterday about the last gun shop closing in SF.
I’m all for Texas seceding. Please have immigration laws that allow me to move to Texas, that’s all I ask.
There is a reason Texas is called The Lone Star State.
Well who doesn't want Texas to succeed?! No one is making sense here tonight.
I want New York and California to secede.
I want a divorce. They can join up with Canada and/or Mexico or the EU. We’ll remain the United States in some form. We’ll split the military. Everyone will have three months to decide which country they prefer and then the gates come crashing down.
Hold on there Tex. On the west coast don’t start shooting until ya get about 20 miles from the coast. You’ll be passing through mostly friendly lines until then.
I think Putin is wise enough to stay away from the hostile territory 20 miles inland. :)
PR should definitely secede.
Well given the Constitution is not high on the progressive`s list of beloved documents, why would it then be a suicide pact for us all?
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