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On April 6th, three former US Ambassadors to Ukraine expressed their opinion that the COVID-19 crisis, as well as the oil price war, both provide a unique chance to solve the end the conflict in Eastern Ukraine.
Three of them are as follows:
- William B. Taylor, who is currently the Vice President, Strategic Stability and Security, United States Institute of Peace;
- Steven Pifer, who is currently a William Perry Research Fellow at Stanford University;
- John Herbst, who is currently the Director of the Eurasia Center at the Atlantic Council.
According to them, Washington, with its allies – Berlin, Paris and Kiev – should come forward with a proposal to lift international sanctions against Moscow if the conflict in Ukraine ceases.
Moreover, if Russia returns Crimea, “it will be possible to lift other sanctions,” the ex-ambassadors said.
“Now more than ever Russia needs a break from sanctions. Indeed, Putin used his speech to last week’s Group of 20 virtual summit conference to urge a halt to all international sanctions. He called sanctions relief “a humanitarian issue” in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
However, an end to the conflict in Eastern Ukraine is apparently the only way to end sanctions, and returning Crimea even more so.
“While years of diplomacy to end the Ukraine war have stalled, a high-level push now from the United States could break that deadlock. The coronavirus crisis could provide the Kremlin a rationale to agree.”
Still, the former ambassadors do mention that the essential parts of a deal had been set out in the Minsk agreements: a cease-fire, OSCE-verified withdrawal of Russian-led forces, return of the border to Ukrainian control, local elections and some measure of decentralized decision-making for all Ukrainian administrative regions.
“To ensure security in Donbas during the process, one idea is to have joint patrols by national Ukrainian police and local police still now working in occupied Donbas. That arrangement could be overseen by the OSCE and — to help ensure fair, secure elections — should be buttressed by an international peacekeeping mission. That peacekeeping force would be authorized by the United Nations Security Council and led by a neutral nation. A key requirement would be for the Ukrainian international border with Russia to be controlled by the peacekeepers rather than, as now, Russia’s military.”
The entire article entirely disregards any actions by the Kiev side, constantly being carried out to undermine any attempts to actually establish peace, and the constant Ukrainian calls that the Minsk Agreements are impossible, unless it is allowed to first clear Eastern Ukraine from unwanted elements, which is Russians and Russian-speaking individuals, which in that case is the majority of people living there.
Moscow has maintained that such a scenario, with persecutions of people simply because they’re Russian in Donetsk and Luhansk wouldn’t be allowed. As typical for opinions and arguments such as these, the entire conduct by the Ukrainian side is entirely ignored, and the entire blame is shifted on Moscow, as they also assume that the local militias in the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics are “Moscow-controlled forces”.
Separately, the European Council plans to invest 2 million euro in a project to support the EU’s mission in Russia and to promote its policies.
“The purpose of the contract is to strengthen the potential of EU public diplomacy by supporting the European Union’s representation in Russia for effective interaction with certain groups of the population, to increase the level of trust and mutual understanding between the EU and Russia, to provide a better understanding of the European Union and its policies, as well as to facilitate future cooperation,” the document which RT reviewed said.
“The focus of the contract will be on the implementation in Moscow and other cities of Russia of various activities in the field of public diplomacy, educational events and the organization of international exchange,” the document explained.
Earlier it became known about the plans of the European Commission to allocate 3.5 million euro to promote EU initiatives in Ukraine. In particular, it was planned to create communication campaigns designed for the Ukrainian audience, as well as to analyze their impact on citizens.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
- US Armed Forces To Construct Additional Facilities In Ukraine For NATO Coordination
- Ukrainian Radicals, Once Again, Sabotage Attempts At Reconciliation In Eastern Ukraine
- Kiev Forces Suffer More Casualites In New Escalation In Eastern Ukraine
- Ukraine To Receive MK VI Missile Boats From The US: CNN Report
- Ukrainian Infantry Fighting Vehicle Destroyed By Own Landmine In Eastern Ukraine
Sanctions are useless vs Russia!….Crimea is part of Russia and the base of Russian naval forces of the black sea…..USA and EU should return Kosovo to Serbia!
Being former US Ambassadors to Ukraine, carries no weight whatsoever, but does give an insight as to their calibre. These neocon dinosaurs are dreaming, or just producing nonsense in an attempt to stay relevant with all the other creatures in their swamp. We have heard all their US bullshit before, as it has been leveled against many countries.
Russia will survive quiet easily with or without US sanctions, which are becoming less and less effective as the US tinpot and corrupted empire slowly dies by its own hand.
Same retards whom tried to impeach Trump. If anything they should avoid trying to stop the CIA, demonrats and papa soros exploiting the U.S., trying to kills the whole economy. Russia will be fine. Dont worry;)
CIA trolls and ukropnazis will cry and rage as Always.
Glory to Mother Russia.
And down with Globohomo!
Amen.
Papa Putin dabest.
In Russia we trust.
Russia is Love, Russia is Life.
…Russia is Light, Russia is the Truth.
Amen. King of the North. Protector of Mankind.
My view at this time with the information that I have is that the Jews and Zionists are preparing to mass murder Russians and Chinese as payback for defeating them militarily and economically. And if the SCO doesn’t identify, locate and mitigate the perps. That’s probably what they’re going to do.
Judaism should be outlawed worldwide, and the planet dejudified so that Jews go extinct and the planet is Jew free.
LMFAO…and you try to present yourself as the Virus expert. Quit sick and sad, AH.
When you can’t debate the issues with facts and evidence. You spam the threads with lies and stupidity.
More of the same insane nonsense pimped by scums of this earth about something that I know never will happen, forget Crimea, and also the same rat packs dont bother to ask the people in Crimea what they want, so their premisses are just another fart in the wind, to the second issue about Oil, again, Russia like Norway, the oil isnt that vitale anymore, for the regions where they have the bases etc to the maintenance or building equimpents etc, it will have an impact, but even there the slow decline have been for years, since most of it, sub sea drilling is done on the bottom, not by platforms anymore, than this few platforms are more as an way point and controlling stations for the was region of sub sea equimpents, and I guess this goes for land based drilling as well, times change, productions evolve and that have made the industry decline to, and as far I know, oil and gass stands not for more than what 15% of the budget, but of course its stil wast, but vitale, no way, forget that, this morons are two decades behind the curve and so far, I cant find anything that points the Russian economy in any other direction than upward, the sactions as I have said before, was an gift sent from heaven.
Its simply to late, Russia and China is rising, while the EU as an org is in decline, all done by them self, with an policy against Russia witch I would define as self-mutilation and now whines because they have sawed their own feets off, and what comes in the future regarding the Imperial banana republic, yeah, thats infact more intresting, forget the rest, the Yankikes cant help them self, but is stuck in an world that was, and refuses to see the world that comes. Bloody morons.
Europa should start to focus on them selfs, not been an stupid bitch for the Yankikes, witch have cost us trade and human lifes.
So far, despite some few downsides and issues regarding foreign policy, Russia is on the right path, since I have seen it my self, and if this continues, Russia will be what it always was, an rich nation, with an intellegent people, but I sincerly hope you dont end up as an idiotic copy of the banana republic, I would never go to Russia just to eat at an MCdonald stand, since the Russian nation have much, much more by them self and I am an fan of Russian food and even more regarding Caucasian/Black sea region food, incl wine. The western/UssA idiots are living in the past, where its like talking about Russia to day with Norwegians whom stil drools something about Stalin, and I have to tell them that was eons ago, and Russia have moved on since, and I look forward to go there soon, but not to Moscow, maybe a day or two because of people I know of, but I like to go to Volga, Yaroslav is my ” home town”. But the Ukrainians problem isnt Russia, but the EU, the vassals to the Imperial banana repiblic Moronika. I just cant wrap my head around this, are the Ukrainians that bloody stupid, get an gripp and move on, or you will be raped and plundered to oblivion by the western scums of this earth, and to be frank, they have by now, evaporated everything of symphaty, because of been so blind, nobody is hopelessly bilnded than those that refuses to see.
peace
John Herbst is one seedy looking character.