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Moscow Rally Tells Story of Ukraine Invasion
by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700
Copyright
February 22, 2015
All Rights Reserved.
Protesting Ukraine’s Maiden Square revolution that
toppled Kremlin-backed Ukrainian President Yanukovich Feb. 22, 2014, Moscow’s
Red Square activists expressed outrage over Western interference in Kiev. “Maiden is a festival of death . . .
Maiden is the smile of the American ambassador who, sitting in penthouse, is
happy to see how brother is killing brother . .. Maiden is the embryo of
Goebbels [Nazi propaganda minister],” shouted anti-Maiden protesters near Red
Square. Maiden, the Ukrainian name
of square, was the cite where former Ukrainian heavyweight boxing champion
Vitali Klitschko spoke through a bullhorn, encouraging pro-Western demonstrators
to oust duly elected Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich. For all the agony, anarchy and 5,400
deaths in the last year, Russia sees the Feb. 22, 2014 revolution as
orchestrated by the CIA.
When Maiden protesters drove Yanukovich from Kiev, Russian President
Vladimir Putin sat helplessly by hosting the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. When the games ended Feb. 23, it took Putin only a week to annex Crimea, creating the
upheaval that got Moscow booted out the G8 March 24 together with three sets of
U.S. and EU economic sanctions hurting the Russian economy. Today’s protesters near Red Square
shouting, “Die America!” or USA, Stop the War!,” mirror how successfully Putin’s
state-controlled media tells his story. Russians believe Putin’s story that the CIA orchestrated the Ukrainian revolution for the
purpose of encroaching on Russian power in the region. Police estimated crowds at around
35,000, without any way to verify the turnout. What’s clear from the crowd is that Putin enjoys strong backing from the Russian people
for invading Ukraine.
Meeting with Putin Feb. 6, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French
President Francois Hollande hoped to get Moscow to sign back onto the Sept. 5
Minsk ceasefire, imploring the Ukrainian military and pro-Russian separatists to
stop fighting and pullback weapons.
While it’s not clear whether or not Merkel and Hollande expected Moscow to
conform to Minsk or whether they agreed to cede the Donbass region of
Southeastern Ukraine to Alexander Zahkarchenko’s pro-Russian separatists were
told to abandon positions and leave the region.
Judging by the separatists unrelenting attacks on Debaltseve after Putin
signed a new ceasefire in Minsk Feb. 12, it’s clear the Kremlin seeks nothing
short of splitting Ukraine into North and South regions. Merkel and Hollande surely knew that
Putin would not stop the civil war until he had his land bridge to Crimea.
Driving Ukrainian forces out of Debaltseve Feb. 20, Zackarchenko’s
pro-Russian troops look poised for the battle of Mariupols to secure Putin’s
land bridge. Why Merkel and
Hollande believed that Putin would respect the ceasefire and stop
dividing-andconqueering Ukraine is anyone’s guess. Once Yanukovich was evicted from
Kiev Feb. 22, 2014, Putin no longer accepted Ukraine’s sovereignty and borders. Ukrianian President Petro
Poroshenko, while talking tough about defending Ukrainian sovereignty also knew
that the Feb. 12 Minsk peace deal ceded Southeastern Ukraine to the Kremlin. Street protests in Moscow only
confirm that rank-and-file Russians wholeheartedly back Putin’s efforts to
resist U.S. and EU influence.
Putin’s state-controlled propaganda machine has painted the U.S. and European
Union in such a bad light that they give him a blank check.
Betting that Merkel, Hollande and Poroshenko knew exactly what they
were getting with Putin, there’s no way to believe they thought the Kremlin
would honor any lasting ceasefire.
“The United States is the world’s biggest terrorist . . . We believe we can rise up again in
they leave us alone, but they are always trying to teach us how to live,” said 65-year-old Red Square protester
Nina Kishkova, a retired teacher vowing to fight the U.S. if needed. Moscow’s Levada Center found 81% of
Russians think negatively about the U.S., proving Putin has popular opinion on
his side. Over 42% of Russians view
the U.S. as its enemy, following a determined Kremlin propaganda campaign
blaming the U.S. for harming the Russian economy. Putin blames the U.S. for its old
imperialistic ways rather than seeing what’s happening in Ukraine is a clear
sign of Russian expansionism.
White House officials need to find out why Germany and France appeased
Putin for fear of starting another war in Europe. Merkel admitted that supplying
weapons to Ukraine would do nothing more than invite more Russian aggression. But if Merkel and Hollande agreed to
cede half of Ukraine to the Kremlin, then the U.S. needs to take a second look
before arming Poroshenko’s government.
“People have said for a long time that the West is there to harm Russia .
. . Now this sound like a self-fulfilling prophecy because no the West is always
discussing how to punish Russia so that it will hurt more,” said independent
Russian analyst Maria Lipman. Putin
didn’t need to do much to turn Russians against the U.S and EU. Judging pro-Russian separatists
continuing to conquer more Ukrainian land, Putin looks poised to build his land
bridge to Crimea, regardless of all the threats and sanctions.
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