Kiev U-turn over claim that Russian tanks, artillery and 1,200 fighters deployed in E. Ukraine

Daily Mail ^ | 8-20-2014 | Will Stewart, Damien Gail

[tcrlaf]

-Ukrainian official claimed troops moved in just as the city was poised to fall -But they have since been forced to deny the allegation after strong rebuttal -If true it would have been tantamount to an invasion of Ukraine by Russia -Putin set to meet Ukrainian president Poroshenko in Belarus on Monday

Muddled security officials in Ukraine were last night forced to deny a huge Russian military convoy had been deployed in the eastern rebel-run city of Lugansk.

The strong rebuttal suggested an earlier claim about an invasion by Vladimir Putin's troops amounted to a crude propaganda move by the pro-Western Kiev government, or deep confusion in its own ranks.

The original allegation of a Russian column arriving in Lugansk came from Lt-Gen Igor Voronchenko, head of the Ukrainian Anti Terrorist Operation (ATO) in the city, and was backed by military analyst Dmitry Tymchuk.

"There are tanks, Grad artillery, APCs, accompanied by about 1,200 men dressed in the army uniform of Russian Federation" the general was quoted saying in an assertion calculated to alarm the West.

Yet there was no confirmation on Wednesday from NATO or other Western sources which was widely reported inside Ukraine.

The claim was also contradicted closer to home by Kiev's National Security and Defence Council spokesman Andriy Lysenko who dismissed it as "strange". "Intelligence is not confirming the existence of this column" he said.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2729647/Tanks-artillery-1-200-fighters-march-east-Ukraine-Russia-days-Putin-set-meet-Ukrainian-president-peace-talks.html#ixzz3B3Ob5XlF Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

[1rudeboy]

Please identify any contemporaneous communication from Putin that he intends to carve a portion of Eastern Ukraine for himself.

Uh, he already has carved-out a portion of Ukraine for himself. There's "pedantic" for you.

[1rudeboy]

I've never managed to do Whataboutism as well as the Russians . . . I think the response would be--but what about the brazen lies of the Russian media? Met with the deafening silence of its commie fellow-travelers.

[RaveOn]

“The only exception is MH17, no U-turn yet, but there is a deafening silence of MSM since August 8.”

One thing happened: Girkin resigned. He was the one who said the plane was full of bodies that had been dead for days.

[1rudeboy]

And we still haven’t found that imaginary air traffic controller from Spain.

[Alter Kaker]

Uh, he already has carved-out a portion of Ukraine for himself.

That's correct, but he hasn't claimed -- and has rejected claims by some rebels -- for Eastern Ukrainian territory. Not to say that Russia policy won't change, but annexing some or all of Eastern Ukraine doesn't seem to be Russia's intention here. Ultimately, to quote Hillary Clinton, "what difference does it make?" Both the US and Russia wanted political power over their respective neighbors. Whether that's by annexation, weakening the government or installing a friendly regime is kind of besides the point. The tactic of creating and supporting a proxy army is where I saw the parallel.

[1rudeboy]

Yes, I'm definitely getting the impression that you do not understand what is "beside the point," and what the "point" is, actually.

[Alter Kaker]

I’m rapidly losing interest in this conversation. Your handle is appropriate. Go troll another thread.

[1rudeboy]

I’ll stay. Thanks for the chuckle. I’m sure the Georgians can rest easy that, in 2008, Russia did not have the “intention” to annex more of Georgian territory than it did.

[FreeReign]

The claim was also contradicted closer to home by Kiev's National Security and Defence Council spokesman Andriy Lysenko who dismissed it as "strange". "Intelligence is not confirming the existence of this column" he said.

Interesting.

Now imagine a Russian Defense Council spokesman contradicting Putin propaganda like Lysenko is contradicting false information from Kiev.

I can't.

And imagine the Russia "press"(lol) contradicting Putin propaganda like the Western press is contradiction the false information from Kiev.

And again, I can't.

And that there is the difference.