Posted on 01/20/2022 7:00:39 AM PST by Kaslin
For nearly fifty years, from the end of World War II until 1992 millions of people in Eastern Europe endured the oppression and brutality of Communism, courtesy of the former Soviet Union.
For decades Soviet Russia maintained control over Poland, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Romania, the Baltic and Balkan countries, and all of the ‘Stans’ with an iron fist. Tolerating no dissent in those countries, and responding brutally if it occurred. Ask the Hungarians in 1956 and the Czechs in 1968.
In 1956 the Soviet Union sent troops and tanks to crush the Hungarian popular uprising, killing and wounding thousands of Hungarians. Roughly twelve years later when Czechoslovakia’s ‘Prague Spring’ offered reforms and a liberalization of government policies and control, the Warsaw Pact under the direction of the Soviet Union once again asserted their control. And once again crushed a freedom movement taking place in Czechoslovakia, killing and wounding hundreds of Czechs.
The United States and the West vocally protested these actions, but did little else. NATO basically stood idly by and watched both the Hungarian and the Czech freedom movements collapse under the might of Soviet Russia.
In 1992 the brutal communist regime in the Soviet Union finally collapsed. The Russian people, as well as the former Soviet Bloc countries had simply had enough. Following the Soviet collapse the former Eastern European countries who had lived under Soviet control for decades chose freedom and the West over maintaining a strategic relationship with the ‘new’ Russia.
In the years since the fall of the Soviet Union most of those former Soviet Satellites have strengthened their ties with the west, including a number of them joining NATO as member nations.
Ukraine, which shares a border with Russia also began to assert its independence from their former masters in Moscow, and reached out more and more to the West. Openly discussing the possibility of joining the European Union and even NATO membership.
To understand what is going on right now with the Russian threats to invade Ukraine one must understand Vladimir Putin. Putin’s former association with the KGB, the brutal Soviet secret police and intelligence agency is well known. But above all Putin considers himself a Russian Patriot. He was severely stung by the collapse of the Soviet Union and what he perceived as gloating on the part of American politicians and others in the West. Putin set it as his primary goal to get pay-back for what he viewed as the insults that were levied against Mother Russia.
I recall at the time commenting that we needed to tone it down, and even extend a welcoming hand to Russia and help them modernize and become a valued ally. Helping Russia transition from communism to freedom and a market based economy wasn’t just in Russia’s best interest, it was also in our best interest.
But we didn’t. We bragged about how we defeated the Soviet Union without firing a single shot. Ignoring the fact that tens of thousands of Americans died fighting in proxy wars in other parts of the world against the Soviets.
So why does it matter to Americans what happens in Ukraine? It matters to me because as Americans we have always tried to portray ourselves as the beacon of freedom in the world. We’ve been willing to go to war to protect and preserve our own liberties, and have fought to spread the message of freedom around the planet.
Ukraine was listening. Do we turn our backs on Ukraine, just as we did Czechoslovakia and Hungary in years past? Do we stand up for freedom, whenever and wherever it tries to break away and rise up from oppression? Or do we simply throw away the decades and lives we invested in defeating the Soviet Union, only to see it rise once again?
While I am certainly not advocating sending our young men and women in the military off to fight in another foreign war, I believe it’s important that we show Ukraine, the rest of the world, and especially Vladimir Putin that as a nation America is still strong. Still determined to promote freedom. And still willing to stand up to Russian aggression.
There should be no limit to the support we give Ukraine with intelligence and military equipment. Whatever it takes short of boots on the ground to help them defend themselves against Russia, and to make Vladimir Putin feel the pain of any invasion.
Why? Because Ukraine matters. If for no other reason than they stand alone against Russia, and they shouldn’t be standing alone.
This is 100 percent about the European pipelines, just like syria. Let Europe save them. Better yet, let them save themselves.
Mostly its important who use them for money laundering and their primary export: prostitutes and strippers.
From his own website:
“Del W. Wilber is a former under cover employee of the Central Intelligence Agency serving overseas in Eastern and Western Europe and the Middle East. He currently does consulting work in counterterrorism and writes columns in addition to appearing as a guest on a number of TV and Radio programs.
“Ask the Hungarians in 1956 and the Czechs in 1968.” [Yes, Wilber, ask them what they got from believing the US would somehow back them up.]
“I believe it’s important that we show Ukraine, the rest of the world, and especially Vladimir Putin that as a nation America is still strong.” [What the author suggests would demonstrate our weakness.]
“There should be no limit to the support we give Ukraine with intelligence and military equipment.” [1) There is a limit; the US is broke. 2) Look at what all our intel and military equipment got us in Afghanistan.]
“Whatever it takes short of boots on the ground to help them defend themselves against Russia, and to make Vladimir Putin feel the pain of any invasion.” [So everything short of what would be required for success. What a plan.]
It’s clear that the CIA and BIDEN plan is to bankrupt the US, enrich corrupt arms merchants, and encourage Ukrainian nationalists to get into a war that will result in massive death, destruction, and further dismemberment of their country. Time to throw ALL the IC Neo-Establishment losers to the curb and start over.
“You need to learn about the Kosovo tin mine.”
You need to learn about logistics.
L
I wonder has anyone talking Budapest memorandum ever read it?
Paragraph 4 regarding guarantees stipulates the involvement of signatories IF THE NUCLEAR WEAPON AGAINST UKRAINE IS USED.
Was it?
Politico.com
By KENNETH P. VOGEL and DAVID STERN
01/11/2017
<>Ukrainian efforts to sabotage Trump backfire; foreign aid billions threatened
<>Kiev scrambles to make amends with president-elect Trump after working to boost Clinton.
Donald Trump wasn’t the only presidential candidate whose campaign was boosted by officials of a former Soviet bloc country.
A Politico investigation found
<><>Ukrainian govt officials helped Hillary and trashed Trump, questioning his fitness for office.
<><>They disseminated documents implicating a top Trump aide in corruption
<><>They suggested they were investigating the matter, only to back away after the election.
<><>They helped Clinton’s allies research damaging information on Trump and his advisers.
A Ukrainian-American operative who was consulting for the Democratic National Committee met with top officials in the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington in an effort to expose ties between Trump, top campaign aide Paul Manafort and Russia, according to people with direct knowledge of the situation.
The Ukrainian efforts had an impact in the race, helping to force Manafort’s resignation and advancing the narrative that Trump’s campaign was deeply connected to Ukraine’s foe to the east, Russia. But they were far less concerted or centrally directed than Russia’s alleged hacking and dissemination of Democratic emails.
Russia’s effort was personally directed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, involved the country’s military and foreign intelligence services, according to U.S. intelligence officials. They reportedly briefed Trump last week on the possibility that Russian operatives might have compromising information on the president-elect. And at a Senate hearing last week on the hacking, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said “I don’t think we’ve ever encountered a more aggressive or direct campaign to interfere in our election process than we’ve seen in this case.”
There’s little evidence of such a top-down effort by Ukraine. Longtime observers suggest that the rampant corruption, factionalism and economic struggles plaguing the country — not to mention its ongoing strife with Russia — would render it unable to pull off an ambitious covert interference campaign in another country’s election.
And President Petro Poroshenko’s administration, along with the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington, insists that Ukraine stayed neutral in the race.
Politico.com
By KENNETH P. VOGEL and DAVID STERN
01/11/2017
<>Ukrainian efforts to sabotage Trump backfire; foreign aid billions threatened
<>Kiev scrambles to make amends with president-elect Trump after working to boost Clinton.
Donald Trump wasn’t the only presidential candidate whose campaign was boosted by officials of a former Soviet bloc country.
A Politico investigation found
<><>Ukrainian govt officials helped Hillary and trashed Trump, questioning his fitness for office.
<><>They disseminated documents implicating a top Trump aide in corruption
<><>They suggested they were investigating the matter, only to back away after the election.
<><>They helped Clinton’s allies research damaging information on Trump and his advisers.
A Ukrainian-American operative who was consulting for the Democratic National Committee met with top officials in the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington in an effort to expose ties between Trump, top campaign aide Paul Manafort and Russia, according to people with direct knowledge of the situation.
The Ukrainian efforts had an impact in the race, helping to force Manafort’s resignation and advancing the narrative that Trump’s campaign was deeply connected to Ukraine’s foe to the east, Russia. But they were far less concerted or centrally directed than Russia’s alleged hacking and dissemination of Democratic emails.
Russia’s effort was personally directed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, involved the country’s military and foreign intelligence services, according to U.S. intelligence officials. They reportedly briefed Trump last week on the possibility that Russian operatives might have compromising information on the president-elect. And at a Senate hearing last week on the hacking, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said “I don’t think we’ve ever encountered a more aggressive or direct campaign to interfere in our election process than we’ve seen in this case.”
There’s little evidence of such a top-down effort by Ukraine. Longtime observers suggest that the rampant corruption, factionalism and economic struggles plaguing the country — not to mention its ongoing strife with Russia — would render it unable to pull off an ambitious covert interference campaign in another country’s election.
And President Petro Poroshenko’s administration, along with the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington, insists that Ukraine stayed neutral in the race.
U.S. Assistance to Ukraine -— US Embassy in Ukraine Overview
U.S. assistance to Ukraine since 2014 totals over $3.7 billion, plus three $1 billion sovereign loan guarantees.
For FY 2020, Congress has appropriated $698 million: $448 million for State/USAI programs and $250 million for USAI, including $50 million for lethal assistance.
The $448 million appropriation for State/USAI programs includes approximately $285 million in the development accounts and approximately $163 million in the security accounts.
To combat COVID, thus far the United States has provided over $26 million in assistance in new and redirected funding.
This funding will prepare laboratory systems, activate case-finding and event-based surveillance, support technical experts for response and preparedness, bolster risk communication, and support water, sanitation and hygiene interventions for the most vulnerable populations in eastern Ukraine.
Assistance will also counter disinformation, bolster media’s health reporting capacity, expand the government’s ability to continue operating under pandemic-related restrictions, and support Ukraine’s economic recovery.
U.S. assistance priorities:
Security: U.S. programs provide technical assistance, training, and equipment to the Ukrainian Armed Forces and security services to defend Ukraine’s territorial integrity and enhance border and internal security.
Countering Russian Aggression: U.S. assistance works to demonstrate the positive effects of national-level reforms for Ukraine, combat the spread of disinformation, and improve Ukraine’s commercial and energy linkages with Western economies.
Anti-Corruption and Rule of Law: Programs support law enforcement and justice sector reform and governance reforms to increase accountability and effectiveness of governance.
Energy Security: Programs improve Ukraine’s energy security by diversifying supply, establishing competitive markets, accelerating legal regulatory reforms to combat corruption, and ensuring compliance with EU standards and commitments.
Economic Growth: Programs support pro-growth reforms such as an improved land market, privatization, increased competition, and transparent corporate governance. U.S. assistance also supports the growth of small- and medium-sized enterprises.
Cybersecurity: Programs help Ukraine protect itself against Russian cyber-enabled attempts to destabilize it. This includes efforts to support Ukraine’s cyber strategy and legal framework, strengthen incident response capabilities, and harden critical infrastructure.
Humanitarian Assistance: Since the conflict began in 2014, the United States has provided nearly $246 million in humanitarian assistance to date for conflict-affected populations.
Assistance includes emergency shelter, provision and distribution of relief commodities, protection of children and the elderly, psychosocial support, water infrastructure repair, and livelihoods and business development support for internally displaced persons.
Election Support:Programs strengthen Ukraine’s election system; increase citizen participation; increase representativeness and responsiveness of political parties; support effective civic oversight; and promote issue-focused media coverage.
The United States is the largest contributor to OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission, a comprehensive source of information on military and humanitarian developments in areas of eastern Ukraine controlled by Russia.
The United States supports the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, an important source of information and advocacy for human rights in Crimea and eastern Ukraine.
Please visit each section/agency’s page for further information.
Let me know when the neocon author storms the D.C. jail to free the Jan 6 political prisoners that our own "beacon of Freedom" government has been holding unconstitutionally for over a year. Until then, he can just STFU.
Well, the Spanish-American war wasn’t fought in Europe, despite the name. Of course, that was an example of certain elements sparking the conflict that the public would not have supported had that ship not been “conveniently” blown up.
As for WW1, I really wouldn’t call that a victory. Given that it led to the overthrow of Czarist Russia and the deposing of the German Kaiser and all the fun that flowed from both. It would’ve been better off had the Germans won in that case and/or led to a stalemate with Britain. In which case, a German win almost would’ve forestalled the rise of the ultraleft evil (both Communist and Nazi) during the disastrous Weimar era.
Now, had the Communists managed to prevail in that situation in Russia, both Germany and the UK would’ve combined forces to put down that menace to humanity and restored either a new Czar or a Republic purged of the Marxist-Leninist element. And, with all of that, there would’ve been no WW2 (and everything else that flowed with the Soviet Communists bankrolling and supporting subversion on a worldwide scale).
Then again, the Germans were stupid enough to lure the Americans into the first war, so that one move led to everything that followed.
In any event, today, it simply is not in our interest to get involved in a Russian-Ukrainian de facto civil war. I don’t harbor the kind of anti-Putin hatred that the Derp State and warmongers do. They want to fight him ? Give them a gun and parachute them over there. Keep the U.S. the hell out of that. Given that we’re almost at civil war level division in our nation, we have our own battles ahead that actually pertain to our very existence.
Your first points are moot, since things happened as they happened, and on balance America reaped some benefits.
But as to the central point, “In any event, today, it simply is not in our interest to get involved in a Russian-Ukrainian de facto civil war,” I totally agree. Give the Ukrainians some weapons. Wish them good luck. Watch it on You Tube or Rumble, as you choose.
And put sanctions on Russia. They should never have been lifted.
Ukraine seems to matter because... muh Russia Russia Russia. Or sumthin.
Good grief. The founders themselves wrote about the dangers of playing globocop. Some idiots never get tired of that game, though. Except it’s not a game.
I'm more concerned about corrupt totalitarian governments here in the U.S. than I am about some sh!t-hole I have no intention of ever visiting.
Well, just making the argument as to why I think the whole 20th century went sideways with these horrific wars. I don’t think the benefits outweighed the negatives.
As for arming the Ukraine, let them get their own weapons. I say not one gun or bomb, and certainly not our servicemen.
As opposed to doing what, exactly?
Yeah, I liked Red Storm Rising, too, but this is planet Earth.
"Why does Ukraine matter to the United States"?
It's because its one of the few places that can precipitate a chain of events that ends with smoking radioactive craters all over our beautiful country, and the thought of a barely American Secretary of State and an incompetent Secretary of Defense advising a senile, angry old man about how to manage the risk fills me with dread.
“Then again, the Germans were stupid enough to lure the Americans into the first war, so that one move led to everything that followed.”
They also foolishly declared war on the US after the Japanese foolishly attacked Pearl Harbor. Japan, however, stayed out of Germany’s conflict with the Soviet Union, but Hitler wanted to uphold German “honor” or some damned thing. So, play stupid games, win stupid prizes. It was a just war, and winning it was a good thing, even though the US foolishly lost the peace, leading to the Cold War.
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