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via twitter:
Posted on 03/01/2014 7:10:27 AM PST by maggief
Simferopol, Ukraine (CNN) -- [Breaking News Update, 10:02 a.m. ET] (CNN) -- Russia's upper house of parliament voted Saturday to approve the use of military force in Ukraine. The vote was unanimous.
[Original Story, published 9:23 a.m. ET]
(CNN) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin has asked the upper house of parliament for approval to send Russian troops into Ukraine's Crimea region to normalize the political situation there, the Kremlin said Saturday.
Due to the "extraordinary situation in Ukraine," Putin said, there are threats to the lives of Russian citizens and Russian military personnel based in the southern Crimean region.
It comes on the same day that the new pro-Russian leader of Crimea, Sergey Aksyonov, asked Putin for help in maintaining peace in the Black Sea peninsula -- where Russia has a major naval base at Sevastopol.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Ha! Obozo should send the homo Olympic delegates again...that will show them!
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via twitter:
8 Steps Obama Must Take to Punish Russia
By MARCO RUBIO March 01, 2014
(snip)
First, President Obama should speak unequivocally and call this what it is: a military invasion. The Obama administration must publicly acknowledge that its “reset” with Russia is dead. The president must now accept that the only way to deal with tyrants like Vladimir Putin is with a clear understanding that they can’t be trusted and that only decisive action will deter their provocative moves.
Second, President Obama should dispatch Secretary of State John Kerry and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel to Kiev to show U.S. support for Ukraine’s transitional government, and urge our allies in the European Union and NATO to send representatives there as well. The United States should convene an emergency meeting of NATO to develop a strong united response from the trans-Atlantic alliance. And we should send high-level delegations to our allies in Central and Eastern Europe to reinforce the fact that we are standing by them. As part of this work with our allies, we should develop a series of economic and security assurance measures to help the transitional government in Kiev remain stable and carry out a democratic transition.
Third, the United States should rally our allies to boycott this June’s G-8 summit in Sochi, Russia. And if Russian troops do not leave Ukraine immediately, Russia should be expelled from this group altogether.
Fourth, any and all discussions and negotiations with Moscow on any issue unrelated to this crisis, including trade and other matters, should be immediately suspended.
Fifth, the U.S. and our allies should put forward a condemnatory resolution in the United Nations Security Council. A Russian or Chinese veto would make clear to the world the hypocrisy of these governments, since they say they oppose foreign intervention into the affairs of sovereign countries—unless of course they are the ones intervening.
Sixth, we should renew a push for eventual membership in NATO by the Republic of Georgia and aim to provide the country with some of the defensive capabilities the Georgians have requested ever since they were invaded by Russia in 2008.
Seventh, the Obama administration should immediately add more Russian officials to the Magnitsky list, which places travel bans and other sanctions on them – something President Obama failed to do in December. Living in Miami, I have seen in recent years the wave of Russian tourists coming to our city and state to spend money and buy property. Many are government officials or allies whose wealth stems from allegiance to Putin, and we should limit their ability to travel here.
Finally, in the Senate, Majority Leader Harry Reid should immediately halt his effort to force a Senate vote on Rose Gottemoeller next week to be under secretary of state for arms control and international security. As I, Sens. John Cornyn and Jim Risch said yesterday, we shouldn’t even be thinking about arms-control negotiations with Russia anytime soon. And especially not negotiations led by a State Department official, such as Ms. Gottemoeller, who has tried to play down and potentially kept information from Congress and our allies about Russian violations of arms-control agreements.
(snip)
WHOA that new twitter report
Move along nothing seen here LOL!
COME ON Freepers move along LOL!
If you really want rub in Obama relationships
Reggie Love is more manly this President LOL!
I see about how many checkmate on this thread LOL!
8.05pm GMT
NATO will now meet at the behest of Latvia and Lithuania. Latvia’s population is almost 30% Russian, rising to more than 40 per cent in the capital Riga. Lithuania’s Russian minority is around 6%.
James Mates @jamesmatesitv
Latvia+Lithuania have invoked NATO art. 4 in response to #crimea NATO now obliged to hold emerg council meeting. Only 4th time in history
1:23 PM - 1 Mar 2014
SENATOR TED CRUZ’S STATEMENT ON THE UKRAINE INVASTION:
EXCELLENT AND STRONG: UNLIKE OBAMA’S PATHETIC, GELDING WIMPOUT
The situation unfolding in Ukraine right now is a harsh lesson that no matter how great the victory, we must never rest on our laurels. After the United States won the Cold War and the Soviet Union ceased to exist in 1991, many on both sides of the aisle believed that the Soviet threat to freedom was a thing of the past and that the new, democratic Russia would be a reasonable partner and even an ally.
The events of the last seventy-two hours demonstrate this is not case. Vladimir Putin barely waited for the flame of the Olympic torch in Sochi to be extinguished before he turned his attention to crushing the most recent attempt of the Ukrainian people to move towards freedom and the West. Despite warnings and expressions of concern from the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the National Security Advisor, the Ambassador to the United Nations and even the President of the United States, Putin apparently feels he can act with impunity in what he considers to be his exclusive sphere of influence.
He has good reason to do so. Over the five years of his presidency, President Obama has done nothing to help the people of Georgia reclaim the some 20 percent of their sovereign territory that was violated by the 2008 Russian invasion, instead instructing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to attempt to “reset” the relationship with Russia in the hopes of pursuing more arms control agreements rather than forcefully defending American national security interests, and those of our allies.
This evening, President Obama spoke about his deep concerns about reports of Russian military action in Ukraine, and urged Putin not to violate international laws. But as the President and his national security team are apparently the last to learn, Putin has scant regard for international norms when they run counter to his goal of re-establishing Soviet-style regional hegemony over unfortunate states like Georgia and Ukraine who have the temerity to want a more free, prosperous future for their people. And Putin is under no illusions that the President’s vague threats mean any more than his infamous ‘red line’ in the Syrian desert.
If we were serious about standing up to Putin’s power grab, we would immediately suspend Russian membership in the Group of Eight (G-8), which should consist of nations that can contribute to a civilized order. And if the Russians persist in this aggressive action, we should look into additional measures such as suspension from the World Trade Organization and even the United Nations Security Council.
The United States stands with Ukraine
http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSBREA200UG20140301?irpc=932
TOP NEWS
Ukraine puts forces on combat alert, warns of war
Sat, Mar 01 14:42 PM EST
KIEV (Reuters) - Ukraine put its armed forces on full combat alert on Saturday and warned Russia that any military intervention in the country would lead to war.
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Twitter:
The #Ukraine spends 2 billion $ on the armed forces, Russia 90.....
8.19pm GMT
Two Russian warships have been spotted near Sevastopol, according to Reuters.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/01/ukraine-crisis-warships-idUSL6N0LY0R720140301
KIEV, March 1 Sat Mar 1, 2014 3:20pm EST
The source said the two vessels, part of Russia’s Baltic Fleet, had been sighted in a bay at Sevastopol, where Moscow’s Black Sea Fleet has a base.
http://www.tehrantimes.com/politics/114404-iran-cautions-against-foreign-intervention-in-ukraine
Iran cautions against foreign intervention in Ukraine
Political Desk
On Line: 01 March 2014 18:15
In Print: Sunday 02 March 2014
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says foreign interference in the internal affairs of Ukraine has not helped improve situation in the crisis-hit European country over the past few months.
He made the remarks during a joint press conference with his Polish counterpart Radoslaw Sikorski in Tehran on Saturday.
“The Islamic Republic is anxious about the recent developments in Ukraine,” Zarif said, expressing hope that the Ukrainian people would determine their own fate.
louis charbonneau @lou_reuters
Inside UNSC meeting on #Ukraine, US, UK & France push for open meeting, #Russia wants it closed; procedural banter - diplomats tell @reuters
1:55 PM - 1 Mar 2014
louis charbonneau @lou_reuters
UN Security Council may hold rare procedural vote on whether to hold an open or closed meeting on #Ukraine - diplomat tells @Reuters
2:01 PM - 1 Mar 2014
I just read two subs also were on the surface in the area.
Funny the Iranian message is stronger that Bambi LOL
Good to have CAww on the thread.
http://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/120872-greek-fm-to-visit-ukraine-on-sunday
Greek Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos, whose country currently holds the European Union presidency, will travel to Ukraine on Sunday, the Italian news agency ANSA reported in an interview with the minister.
Venizelos will first travel to the city of Mariupol on the Sea of Azov near Crimea, where there is a large ethnic-Greek community, and then to Kiev, it said.
“The first thing is to avoid a civil war and avoid a return to the Cold War,” said Venizelos, who is also Greece’s deputy prime minister and was taking part in a congress of European social-democrats in Rome.
“The second is to organize the situation internally with an inclusive government. Inclusive not just in the political and social sense but also in regional and ethnic terms,” he said.
The next priority is “to organize a global plan for the economic and financial situation in Ukraine with the participation of all parties including the EU, U.S. and Russia to avoid an uncontrolled default not just of the economy but of the state and of civil society,” he said.
We'll of course see all the diplomatic chit chats from various nation leaders, both together and seperately...but in the end I think Putin will look like the man of the hour once again.
Obama simply has no clout...other nation leaders simply acknowledge his voice out of political politeness but he welds no respect let alone power....and he's earned this all by himself.
http://rt.com/news/navy-warship-syria-mediterranean-800/
Russia to expand Mediterranean fleet to 10 warships – Navy chief
Published time: September 13, 2013 05:12
(snip)
Russia began military build-up in the Mediterranean in 2012, and starting from December last year the Navy established a constant presence in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea.
On May 1, 2013 all Russian battleships operating in the area were assigned to a single task force under special offshore maritime zone operation command.
Currently there are seven warships deployed in the area: landing craft carriers ‘Aleksandr Shabalin’, ‘Admiral Nevelskoy’, ‘Peresvet’, ‘Novocherkassk’ and ‘Minsk’ from Russia’s Black and Baltic Sea Fleets, as well as the escort vessel ‘Neustrashimy’, and large anti-submarine ship ‘Admiral Panteleyev’.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/173578#.UxJHkHkvvlI
Russia Sends Most Powerful Ships to Mediterranean
In show of force, Russia radically expands Middle East presence by sending ‘aircraft carrier killer’, nuclear battleship to Syrian shores.
By Ari Yashar
First Publish: 11/4/2013, 10:16 AM
Reuters
On Saturday, Russian news agency RT reported that the “Varyag,” flagship of Russia’s Pacific Fleet, and “Pyotr Veliky” (”Peter the Great”), the nation’s most powerful nuclear-powered battleship, were moved into the Mediterranean Sea.
CNN: Obama not in meeting with National Security Team.
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