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“The Deep State [the billionaires]...considers global conflict as the price to pay for maintaining its largesse from the US taxpayer. Continuous warfare is its only business product."…11/7/2019, Philip Giraldi
1/14/22, “The Case for Neutrality to Defuse Crisis With Russia," Consortium News, Scott Ritter
“Faced with the certainty of the destruction of their country, most Ukrainians would settle for peace through neutrality, writes Scott Ritter.”…
“The U.S. and NATO are hell-bent on containing and rolling back Russian influence and power, at the cost of the very security they claim to be promoting and defending. The nations that will bear the brunt of the cost of this hubris-laced adventurism—Moldova, Georgia, and Ukraine—are but an afterthought to NATO, little more than useful pawns in a greater game of geopolitical dominance.
If offered the choice between peace and war, if the cost was neutrality, I am certain where most Moldovans, Georgians, and Ukrainians would vote. This is, of course, why the U.S. and NATO will never give them such an option....Michael McFaul…served as the U.S. Ambassador to Russia from 2012-2014.”…
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Added: “Russia’s economy is about the size of Italy’s or Spain’s limiting its imperial ambitions, if they actually exist. Its alleged transgressions against Georgia and Ukraine were both provoked by the United States meddling in Eastern Europe, something that it had pledged not to do after the Soviet Union collapsed. Ukraine is…a welfare case...bilking the [US] taxpayer to support a foreign deadbeat.”...11/7/2019, Philip Giraldi
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Two among comments to Consortium News article by Scott Ritter:
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“rosemerry, January 14, 2022 at 12:50…
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Added: “NATO” is everywhere, eg, Iraq, Colombia, meaning it’s not about “the North Atlantic.” To US elites, Enemy #1 by far is annoying US taxpayers who don’t understand that the US political class should be treated as royals. To elites it’s an outrage that US taxpayers should have a voice in anything including US crimes against humanity. Global treaties like NATO allow US elites to create more barriers between US taxpayers and their own country with the excuse that wishes of global treaty “partners” must come first.
2/18/2021, “NATO boosts Iraq mission with thousands of personnel,” AP
8/1/2018, “Colombia joins NATO,” FortLauderdaleAviation.com, “the first Latin American country to officially be a part of the intergovernmental military alliance.”
Why does the USA choose “ambassadors” who are the most virulently haters of the countries they are sent to? Perhaps diplomacy is for sissies. McFaul’s “tweet” is a pathetic joke pretending the 25 years of NATO expansion over 600 miles is nothing, while a few skirmishes in bits of Georgia are equivalent. Russia has already given up too much and is at the end of its patience. “Russia is almost certain to make an example out of Ukraine to intimidate the rest of Europe.” Why on earth would that be??? Russia wants security, wants it for itself and for Europe, and the present situation with NATO does not allow either. That is why Russia is acting now.
The Minsk agreement in 2015 is still waiting for Kiev to negotiate with the Donbass republics, but Kiev is refusing. Doing that and following its guidelines already agreed to (special status for Donbass, ceasefire, new constitution) would lead to peace and neutrality.
It is NOT Russia that is the problem but the Kiev government (remember the overthrow of the elected one in 2014 helped by [“Yats is the guy” US selected Ukraine Prime Minister] F***the EU Nuland?) before the “annexing of Crimea” to stop it being transformed into a US base as planned under Obama.”
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but they build and we bomb.
Our “aid” never ends well for our pawns.”
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Added: Since 2014, Ukraine oligarchs have only increased their power:
”On average, Ukrainian MPs [Parliament has 450 members] keep $700,000 at home. Those who have a lot of wealth transfer it to offshore havens, where the money is safe.…The banks’ primary problem is that their biggest clients do not pay…consider themselves too superior to pay, and unfortunately the Ukrainian judiciary agrees.”…”Since 2014 [through 10/3/2017] there has not been much change [in Ukraine]. Business people continue to hold leading political roles….After the Euromaidan protests [and US regime change], the political influence of some oligarchs increased even further.“…10/3/2017…Ukraine oligarchs controlled 80-85% of the country’s GDP as of 4/30/2015….After 2014 Ukraine “democracy revolution,” the new government led by US-selected Yatsenyuk (“Yats is the guy“), immediately called in the oligarchs and brought them into the “new, democratic” government: 3/2/2014, “Ukraine Turns to Its Oligarchs for Political Help,“ NY Times, Andrew E. Kramer, Kiev, Ukraine: “The interim government…is recruiting the country’s wealthy businessmen, known as the oligarchs, to serve as governors of the eastern provinces.”…Two years later in April 2016, “Yats” resigned as Ukraine Premier, having been unable to wean himself from oligarchs: “He couldn’t abandon the former practice of consulting the oligarchs before making decisions,” Yuri V. Lutsenko, the head of the president’s faction in Parliament, said in a telephone interview.”