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British measure intensifies tensions in the Black Sea, generating provocations and threatening to international peace.
Written by Lucas Leiroz, research fellow in international law at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Tensions on the rise in the Black Sea. London recently announced that it will be selling warships to Ukraine. The vessels would be allocated in the Black Sea region. The possible deal belies a previous announcement by the British government that it would not sell arms to Ukraine and increases regional frictions between Ukraine, NATO, and Russia. The presence of modern and equipped Western ships in that area will generate a new escalation of instability, unnecessarily undermining international peace.
In a statement this week, UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace gave a positive signal for heavy weapons sales to Ukraine. The equipment to be traded would be focused on modern warships with high destruction power. The aim is to significantly increase Ukrainian naval power amid a regional context of tensions in the Black Sea. To that end, the British secretary also said that Kiev could pay for the ships using the amount received from the loan taken by the Ukrainian government as part of a trade agreement signed between the two countries in early November. As there is a mutual geostrategic interest in this deal – given the UK’s ambitions to weaken Russian presence in Eastern Europe – there appears to be little concern on the part of the British over how the debt generated by this deal will be paid off.
According to the data released so far, the sale includes the negotiation of two mine countermeasure ships and the joint production of eight warships with missiles, as well as a new frigate. Possible aid from London to Kiev for the construction of a naval infrastructure platform, with the modernization of the weapons systems of current Ukrainian ships, is also being negotiated.
Both Ben Wallace and his Ukrainian counterpart Oleksii Reznikov, commenting on the case, emphasized the fact that the agreement is aimed against Russia, which makes the project a real open affront to the stability of Russia-Ukraine and Russia-West relations. However, in a joint statement, they both tried to be delicate in their words and said the aim was not to make the UK and Ukraine adversary to Russia, but that the move comes amid concerns about Russia’s presence in the border region: “Our governments have no desire to be adversarial, or seek in any way to strategically encircle or undermine the Russian Federation (…) We are concerned by Russia’s military build-up and activity around the borders of Ukraine”.
As we can see, once again, the West is trying to arm Ukraine and turn this state – which has an openly anti-Russian political and ideological orientation – into a regional power to face Moscow’s presence within its own strategic environment. The accusations made by Kiev and London – adopting the Washington-born speech – against Russia, pointing to it as a threat to international security due to its actions on the western border, are truly weak and unsubstantiated. Moscow has not only repeatedly denied all accusations, but it has also demonstrated through its actions in that region that it does not plan to start a war or heighten existing tensions. On the contrary, Russian military movements on the western border have been minimal in recent years – at least when compared to NATO maneuvers, which have now become constant and virtually uninterrupted.
The Russian government frequently denounces NATO’s dangerous maneuvers, with the international society remaining silent. Recently, for example, Russian President Vladimir Putin denounced that NATO planes are operating maneuvers just 20km away from the Russian border, which is a real provocative affront – and, as on previous occasions, no action has been taken within the UN in order to investigate the case or demand a more peaceful posture from NATO. Indeed, in the current international arena, it has become commonplace for NATO and Ukraine to conduct aggressive operations against Russia and justify them with defamatory speech about an alleged Russian intention to invade Europe. This has simply been passively accepted by the UN and peacekeeping organizations, with no action being taken.
Now, with this acquisition of new war equipment, the situation becomes even more complicated. The UK is providing heavy weapons to a state that is currently being denounced in international courts for maintaining ethnic persecution against the Russian population and that is openly considering the possibility of attacking Russia. Obviously, such a scenario would be disastrous for Ukraine, but geostrategy is a minor point in Kiev’s geopolitical orientation, which is motivated by a fanatical anti-Russian ideology. This should be reason enough for the international society to intervene in the case, condemning the negotiation and applying sanctions against the Ukraine and the UK.
Previously, several Western governments – including the UK itself – had pledged not to sell heavy weapons to Ukraine amid rising tensions at the border. But the move comes amid recent UK interest in increasing its naval expansionism. Several British military vessels have circled the Black Sea in recent months, with London openly trying to elevate its geopolitical status in a post-Brexit scenario. So, it is possible to say that, in addition to all the factors mentioned here, once again Ukraine is being used by Western powers to secure interests that do not concern it.
It remains to be seen, however, what will be the position of British public opinion. Unlike international society, citizens of Western countries are already tired of seeing their states investing billions in military operations abroad while the Western social rates decline, and state investments are absent. The UK is one of the countries with the greatest popular rejection of partnerships with Ukraine, due to allegations of corruption against the Ukrainian government. Considering this, how will the people react when they see their taxes being once again converted into arms supply for Kiev? Certainly, there will be a negative response.
Like the NATO ships currently in the Black Sea, the life-expectancy of those ships and their crews can be measured in minutes should they even think of preparing to attack Russians. TEP.
If they were modern ships. But ZATO countries are selling rusty junk to Ukraine.
Yes, some are. Thats normal trade. We sell old stuff too, when we buy new stuff.
But there seemes to be new ones too.
So this is not normal trade Miss Minus One?
HMS Rubber duck snd HMS Harry Potter reporting for service… These trolls are totally delusional. Russia doesn’t even have to warm up the engines they could sink the whole toy fleet with the Bastion system in Crimea.
They really are insane,Wallace turned up in Ukraine wearing a camouflaged jacket LOL!
There will be a lot of crying and raging, and it won’t be Russia doing it…
Hopefully Russia sinks all NATO and NATO allies ships soon to show them they’re not to be fucked with.
NATO is dysfunctional. NATO won the Cold War, now they are obsolete. European powers are trying to be independent.
If these rusty boats don’t sink all by themselves! Let’s face it. They are selling shit to Ukraine, just to rob the country of the last remaining drop of money.
But people do buy used cars and houses.
People dont buy used cars and houses?
These people really do talk Bollocks!!
Ah yes, pretending to “promote democracy and freedom” in Ukraine while they’re busy committing Genocide and setting up Soviet style Tyranny against their own people in the UK….George Orwell sure called them out. “Truth is Treason in the Empire of Lies” ehh boys… Jesus was REAL and you’re going to be very unhappy when you discover that as you enter Gehenna. Good Luck with that.
Allah has forbidden suicidebombers to kill others too. No space.
Britain should say instead they will pay for and give Ukraine these ships. Ukraine is broke and heavy in dept and can’t pay for these ships so they have to be given to them!
m sure its partly a donation. Russia do that in Syria very much. Its normal procedure.
Danes bought leopards and upgraded them. They are much better then the old stuff we had and we have more of them and drivers too.
They only had ONE operational ship this summer when they were invading into Russian territory. Kiev will get rafts with guns on them.
can Ukraine buy cheese from jens? only w CIA money
Ukrainians has their own cheese. We dont use money. We have credit cards – AND CREDIT.
Die Ukro Nationalisten führen Krieg gegen eigene Bevölkerungsschichten mit ethn. Säuberung, Völkermord und führen militär. Provokation gegen die RF aus. Der scheindemokratische Westen fördert dies, genauso wie den Maidanputsch. USA und GB liefern die Hardware in Krisengebiete und mißachten Internat. Verträge. Ekelhafte Freund-Feinde haben wir da..
You are in the old days.
How will they pay for this? They even can’t pay for gas. It’s not wise to sell warships to a broke & failed state. Besides, by the time they should be delivered I doubt there will be any Ukraine left. At least not in this shape.
We will see. Russia will be paid back by Assad with Syrian oil, when Assads and the Bad Artists can:)
Thats a facts Miss Minus
Assad is not able to repay all these. Probably Syria will disintegrate also.
I think its the only solution. But Turkey has to decline there as well.
Its very visble, where Assads has more then military control. Im for the old Osman provinces.
Aleppo as one. Raqqa as one. But its very complicated. Everything in north is split inj the middle by the devatstaing Sevres/lausanne treaty. Its the same for northern iraq.
So what do Younpropose as possibilities`?
This is wrong. Personally, I want Syria and Iraq to be united into one because it needs this. A fractured Syria will be America’s dream. Later they may fracture Turkey and Iran also. They want states to break apart.
Syria could have broken into 4 states. One in Aleppo (Turkey), one in Damascus (Russia), one in Raqqa (US) and one in Latakia-Lebanon (Iran).
Some unification has been tryed in Panarabisme with Gamel Abdel Nasser. He fought in yemen as people do today as well.
That area wont be strong as long as its not in a productive way can improve themself.
To me turkey is a mistaken state too. After WW1, there could have been a tribe area being owned by the locals in the narrow vallyes and in the dry land. They should have been left alone.
By thats Syria and Iraq had no Kurds.
To me Turkey with its 80 milions runned as they does in a hard centralized version is not good.
I would rather see some “United States of Anatolia” or “Minor” Asia.
There is an explanation why Syria and Iraq are in this state. Syrians and Iraqis are bordered by Turks to the north and Iranians to the east. These powers are anti-Arab and anti-Semitic. Secondly, Syria and Iraq were allied with Soviet Union which lost the Cold War. These are the two factors.
But Turkey and Iran can have many enemies. Slavs from the north, Europe from the west, Semites from the south, Chinese from the east, Indians from the southeast.
I partly agree even I see an Iraq-Syria as unrealistic.
But the areas where Turkmen and Kurds live was not in that.
It can happen but it is difficult. Syria is in much weaker position now. And Syrians and Iraqis have clashes many decades. Ethnic clashes. You will see Syrians supporting Iranians in a Iraqi-Iranian war and Iraqis support Turks in a Turkish-Syrian war.
Erdogan can easily lure Iraqi Turkmens and even some Iraqi Shias (Sadrists especially) against PKK/YPG and the Assad regime.
Are new ships going to be builtin the UK?
Sky news 4 days ago said so:
On Ukraine’s £1.7billion shopping list are two minehunters, the joint production of eight missile ships and a frigate as well as the purchase of weapons for existing vessels.
3 minus sheep denying facts again. The deep dark state is them and made by tem too, but the rest of the world is blamed for it:(
Im sure the Ukrainins would like to be 100s of kilomters away. They were the last ones to fight the Bolsjevics, they were punished hard for that and after that they were starved to death, they were jailed, they were deported.
Stalin left them, when Hitler arrived too and so manyh was killed the jews included. Now theyare themself again.
It no wonder so many prefare almost nazisme and nationalisme of the worst kind semilar to the Russian one.
I would say, that if the Russians should take their troops away, the Ukraines might do same thing.
We all has seen how teh russians has taken Ukrainian ships too. No wonder they want some relative modern replacements.
Sure Miss Minus. I have not counted the ones in Ukraine myself as well as have asked.
The British leadership is purposefully pushing for some type of war: this would further their Agenda for exterminating as many human beings as possible around the world as quickly as possible. These Fanatics running the show there, not the people who serve in their militaries, should be the ones put onto these warships and instructed to “Go and fight the war you want to create so badly “. There would be no provocations or wars anymore, anywhere on Earth. The real leaders behind the scenes just want death for Humanity. To do anything to destroy any part of Gods beautiful Creation is what they seek, for they are enemies of our Creator, obsessed with fantasies of “becoming gods” themselves, just like every other petty tyrant that has come murdering in history. They push for the war, but being absolute COWARDS themselves, they sit back and count their monies made from it – and they REVEL – and secretly pleasure themselves – in the human deaths, destruction and misery they start. Truly many parts of the world are run by Psychopaths who should be locked in Zoos for public display where people can throw peanuts at them and discuss, Openly and Freely, the Contempt for All Life and the Earth these Losers really share.
Not at them – I hope.
Very nice Lucas Leiroz is worried about Our taxes. Little man, we can decline if its important for us and the world.
Ukraine is a second rate, trash country with a tinpot despot for a ruler. The U.K. military industrial complex is just salivating at all the money they will make, at the expense of the destroy Ukraine economy. If some naval conflict did break out in the Black Sea, the Russians would prevail against stupid Ukraine and their joke of a “navy”, which consists of rusty patrol boats.