View Full Version : Opposition takes Kiev
midnight rambler
22nd February 2014, 04:31 PM
This would appear to be a major turning point -
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-26299670
midnight rambler
22nd February 2014, 06:39 PM
The way is being cleared for the IMF to loot Ukraine.
BrewTech
22nd February 2014, 06:41 PM
This would appear to be a major turning point -
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-26299670
Protesters want a deal with the EU... govt wants closer ties with Russia... that's the conflict?
midnight rambler
22nd February 2014, 06:44 PM
Protesters want a deal with the EU... govt wants closer ties with Russia... that's the conflict?
Superficially - that's what's being presented as the conflict. The unseen part of it is ultimately the looting of Ukraine by the banksters - it's Ukraine's turn in the barrel (according to the money powers).
palani
22nd February 2014, 06:44 PM
Putin and 'Bama talked for over an hour.
This is not a sign that portends well for the Ukraine.
Cebu_4_2
22nd February 2014, 06:47 PM
So basically it's Russia vs the western bankers with Kiev being the pawn?
midnight rambler
22nd February 2014, 06:47 PM
the Ukraine.
Where does 'the' come from?? ???
BrewTech
22nd February 2014, 06:49 PM
Superficially - that's what's being presented as the conflict. The unseen part of it is ultimately the looting of Ukraine by the banksters - it's Ukraine's turn in the barrel (according to the money powers).
So, one side is OK with the looting... I would imagine it's the .gov side?
This event is obviously going to be a history maker, and I'm not up to speed...
palani
22nd February 2014, 06:55 PM
Where does 'the' come from?? ???
Ukraine
from Russian Ukraina, literally "border, frontier," from u- "at" + krai "edge."
The Ukraine = The Border
Ares
22nd February 2014, 07:18 PM
Look What Was Found In Yanukovych's Compound
Among the items plundered from Yanukovych's compound (after he fled to Kharkov)...
More than a handful wanted in...
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user3303/imageroot/2014/02-overflow/20140222_ukr1_0.png
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user3303/imageroot/2014/02-overflow/20140222_ukr8_0.png
and soon they were all in...
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user3303/imageroot/2014/02-overflow/20140222_ukr2_0.png
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user3303/imageroot/2014/02-overflow/20140222_ukr3_0.png
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user3303/imageroot/2014/02-overflow/20140222_ukr4_0.png
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user3303/imageroot/2014/02-overflow/20140222_ukr5_0.png
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user3303/imageroot/2014/02-overflow/20140222_gold1_0.png
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user3303/imageroot/2014/02-overflow/20140222_gold2_0.png
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-02-22/look-what-was-found-yanukovychs-compound
Cebu_4_2
22nd February 2014, 07:20 PM
Look What Was Found In Yanukovych's Compound
Among the items plundered from Yanukovych's compound (after he fled to Kharkov)...
More than a handful wanted in...
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-02-22/look-what-was-found-yanukovychs-compound
Looks like Disneyland!
midnight rambler
22nd February 2014, 07:22 PM
The Ukraine = The Border
Only the uninformed use that term any more, it was abandoned entirely like 24 years ago. I cringe whenever I see someone using that long obsolete term.
midnight rambler
22nd February 2014, 07:26 PM
So, one side is OK with the looting... I would imagine it's the .gov side?
This event is obviously going to be a history maker, and I'm not up to speed...
No, the unrest by the 'protesters'* was fomented (and the useful idiots exploited) and funded by the usual suspects.
*professionals brought in for the task
Hatha Sunahara
22nd February 2014, 08:31 PM
Both sides in this conflict are as corrupt as can be. The people should not be taking sides in this conflict. Instead they should treat both sides as their enemies. This is where the illusion of 'authority' is sustained only by the ignorance of the people. Unfortunately, the people have no leadership with integrity. Anyone who qualified for that has been eliminated by both corrupt competitors for power. The media exists to exploit the people--not to help them or inform them. As usual, the people are offered a choice between the lesser of two evils, which is no choice at all. It's like slaves watching people fighting to determine who will be their masters. It will be like this everywhere in the world. We will all be ruled either by our own corrupt masters or by corrupt foreign masters. The only thing that will save humanity will be that the corruption will get so bad it will be unsustainable and collapse from its own lack of viability. It will be the collapse that saves us. We just need to survive until that happens. There won't be any revolutions. There will be a collapse. Sit back with both middle fingers extended and don't help anyone who is competing for power.
Hatha
midnight rambler
22nd February 2014, 08:35 PM
Both sides in this conflict are as corrupt as can be. The people should not be taking sides in this conflict. Instead they should treat both sides as their enemies. This is where the illusion of 'authority' is sustained only by the ignorance of the people. Unfortunately, the people have no leadership with integrity. Anyone who qualified for that has been eliminated by both corrupt competitors for power. The media exists to exploit the people--not to help them or inform them. As usual, the people are offered a choice between the lesser of two evils, which is no choice at all. It's like slaves watching people fighting to determine who will be their masters. It will be like this everywhere in the world. We will all be ruled either by our own corrupt masters or by corrupt foreign masters. The only thing that will save humanity will be that the corruption will get so bad it will be unsustainable and collapse from its own lack of viability. It will be the collapse that saves us. We just need to survive until that happens. There won't be any revolutions. There will be a collapse. Sit back with both middle fingers extended and don't help anyone who is competing for power.
Hatha
I think that's a reasonably accurate observation.
Stop Making Cents
22nd February 2014, 08:45 PM
Its so hard to tell who the good guys are and who the bad guys are in all this. Is there even a remote possibility of ukraine sparking an aryan revival? I just dont see how they could ally with russia after what they did to them in ww2. And we all know what will happen to Ukraine if they allybwith the west. Its genocide either way. National socialism is the only answer for Ukraine.
Jewboo
22nd February 2014, 09:36 PM
National socialism is the only answer for Ukraine.
http://polpix.sueddeutsche.com/bild/1.1054156.1355713590/860x860/merkel-israel.jpg
http://media.worldbulletin.net/news/2014/02/21/merkel.jpg
http://www.vosizneias.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/50611586.jpg
:rolleyes: .....and Germany
willie pete
22nd February 2014, 09:54 PM
http://polpix.sueddeutsche.com/bild/1.1054156.1355713590/860x860/merkel-israel.jpg
http://media.worldbulletin.net/news/2014/02/21/merkel.jpg
http://www.vosizneias.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/50611586.jpg
:rolleyes: .....and Germany
ironic........her grand-daddy probably barbecued his grand-daddy :D
palani
23rd February 2014, 05:32 AM
Only the uninformed use that term any more, it was abandoned entirely like 24 years ago. I cringe whenever I see someone using that long obsolete term.
I think of it as a region rather than a political society. Here are two examples of uses of 'the' in a state name
The Stile of this Confederacy shall be
"The United States of America".
Style of process. SEC. 8. The style of all process shall be, "The State of Iowa", and all prosecutions shall be conducted in the name and by the authority of the same.
Libertarian_Guard
23rd February 2014, 05:58 PM
And don't forget 'The Bronx'
Sparky
23rd February 2014, 07:41 PM
So, one side is OK with the looting... I would imagine it's the .gov side?
This event is obviously going to be a history maker, and I'm not up to speed...
This does seem to be shaping up as a historical puzzle piece in the chain of events leading up to potential SHTF. People should be paying attention.
So many pieces going on right now: Turmoil and political havoc in Ukraine, Syria, Iran, Korea. Russia, China, and U.S. position themselves to exploit resources in Africa, while trying to maintain an air of diplomacy. Debt issues in Europe and Americas. A lot going on.
Sparky
23rd February 2014, 07:44 PM
Both sides in this conflict are as corrupt as can be.
Who is the "opposition" side that is corrupt? Do you mean the opposition leadership that alleges to represent the protestors? Is Yulia Tymonshenko corrupt, or does she have the best interest of Ukraine in mind? I haven't figured her out yet, but she's going to be an important player going forward.
Horn
23rd February 2014, 08:18 PM
Isn't like every 100 years or so someone takes Kiev (loosely) , then it is retaken.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwrqAipON2w
Horn
23rd February 2014, 08:33 PM
Ukrainian Jews urged to leave Kiev as Yanukovych is ousted by Parliament
Posted on February 22, 2014 by JNS.org (http://www.jns.org/news-briefs/?author=512951cde4b02a3bb2487459).
(JNS.org) In the wake of an escalation in clashes between Ukrainian protesters and government forces that has claimed the lives of more than 120 people in the past week, the Ukrainian Parliament voted Saturday to remove President Viktor Yanukovych from office and hold a new election on May 25. The Parliament also voted to free jailed former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who was then released Saturday from a prison hospital, Reuters reported. Yanukovych fled his Kiev office.
On Friday, Ukrainian Rabbi Moshe Reuven Azman asked Kiev Jews to leave the city and, if possible, the country, due to fears that Jews might be targeted in the ongoing chaos. Israel National News reported Friday that some Jewish shops have been vandalized.
"I told my congregation to leave the city center or the city all together and if possible the country too…I don't want to tempt fate...but there are constant warnings concerning intentions to attack Jewish institutions," Rabbi Azman told Maariv.
http://www.jns.org/news-briefs/2014/2/22/ukrainian-jews-urged-to-leave-kiev-as-yanukovich-is-ousted-by-parliament#.Uwq9VM6oYWk
Cebu_4_2
23rd February 2014, 09:25 PM
Perhaps they do know more than we think.
osoab
28th February 2014, 06:26 PM
Ukrainian Jews urged to leave Kiev as Yanukovych is ousted by Parliament
Posted on February 22, 2014 by JNS.org (http://www.jns.org/news-briefs/?author=512951cde4b02a3bb2487459).
(JNS.org) In the wake of an escalation in clashes between Ukrainian protesters and government forces that has claimed the lives of more than 120 people in the past week, the Ukrainian Parliament voted Saturday to remove President Viktor Yanukovych from office and hold a new election on May 25. The Parliament also voted to free jailed former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who was then released Saturday from a prison hospital, Reuters reported. Yanukovych fled his Kiev office.
On Friday, Ukrainian Rabbi Moshe Reuven Azman asked Kiev Jews to leave the city and, if possible, the country, due to fears that Jews might be targeted in the ongoing chaos. Israel National News reported Friday that some Jewish shops have been vandalized.
"I told my congregation to leave the city center or the city all together and if possible the country too…I don't want to tempt fate...but there are constant warnings concerning intentions to attack Jewish institutions," Rabbi Azman told Maariv.
http://www.jns.org/news-briefs/2014/2/22/ukrainian-jews-urged-to-leave-kiev-as-yanukovich-is-ousted-by-parliament#.Uwq9VM6oYWk
Yeah, she's chosen.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yulia_Tymoshenko
Her mother, Lyudmila Telehina (née Nelepova), was born on 11 August 1937 in Dnipropetrovsk.[30] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yulia_Tymoshenko#cite_note-mak-info-30) Her father, Volodymyr Abramovych Hrihyan, abandoned Lyudmila Telehina and his daughter when Yulia was three years old.
Found a site through jewgoogle looking for "Hrhyan Jewish" that looked promissing. Site is taken down. http://www.tymoshenkocase.com/the-biography-of-yulia-tymoshenko-chapter-one-before-the-beginning/
You can however find this through the "way back machine". The below makes even more sense with the Yushchenko poisoning.
http://web.archive.org/web/20131208143300/http://www.tymoshenkocase.com/category/the-life-story/
And then, the story turns, for Tymoshenko was sacked from Government, arrested and imprisoned – and then joined the Opposition, threw away the designer Gucci and transformed herself into a blonde-braided girl in national costume, the “peasant girl” look, making use of her image as a modern Joan of Arc for the first time. It tells the story of her single-minded determination to bring down the President who had imprisoned her, and how she truly began to manipulate facts.
The tale picks up speed as it moves into the prelude to the Orange Revolution, the revived charges against Tymoshenko, and the coalescing of the Opposition into the force Tymoshenko would ride into power. It follows her through the Orange Revolution and the street protests – and riots – she initiated, and exploited, and the early signs of her fallout with her Orange Revolution comrades. A manipulator who lost the battle with her own allies because of her autocratic ways.
http://web.archive.org/web/20121027021919im_/http://www.tymoshenkocase.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Viktor-Yushchenko-and-Yulia-Tymoshenko.jpg (http://web.archive.org/web/20121027021919/http://www.tymoshenkocase.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Viktor-Yushchenko-and-Yulia-Tymoshenko.jpg)
Viktor Yushchenko and Yulia Tymoshenko: united during the Orange Revolution and political opponents after it
It then begins its descent, with her disastrous premiership. It tracks the in-fighting that led to her dismissal from a second government; her time in Opposition, again; and her return to the premiership. It tells how the financial crisis and the recession of 2008 began unwinding all of the hard work Tymoshenko had done to rise to the top, and how she could not stop battling the President who appointed her his Prime Minister long enough to save Ukraine.
Horn
28th February 2014, 06:40 PM
Yeah, she's chosen.
Oh the drama, is a place where bi-polarism is part of nature.
Serpo
28th February 2014, 07:05 PM
The Ukraine = The Border
Nukraine .................
osoab
28th February 2014, 08:06 PM
Israeli militia commander fights to protect Kiev (http://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-militia-commander-fights-to-protect-kiev/)
http://cdn.timesofisrael.com/uploads/2014/02/Delta-in-Kiev-earlier-this-month.-Courtesy-photo-e1393616158855.jpeg
EE_
28th February 2014, 08:26 PM
Celente - Putin, Ukraine, World War III & Einstein’s Warning
“We now have violence going on between pro-Russian secessionist Crimean citizens and the ethnic Tatar protesters. Now you have the new Ukraine leader warning the Russians to put down the protests going on in the Crimea. Who is this guy? He’s a nobody. But this was who the West wanted to lead the Ukraine.
So now the US has announced that they are going to be giving at least a billion dollars to the new Ukraine government. The US has also said they would consider additional direct assistance for the ‘former Soviet Republic.’ That’s what they call it. The Russians have responded by parking a Russian intelligence ship in Cuba.
But the Russians will not let the Ukraine fall into the hands of the EU and the US. This latest attempt has all been part of a move for the EU and the US to keep gaining more and more of eastern Europe that was formerly under the Soviet bloc. This is all designed to further isolate Russia.
The bottom line is the Russians are not going to give up the key port of Sevastopol on the Black Sea. But when we hear the United States warning Russia not to get involved, this is complete hypocrisy. The US has already spent $5 billion destabilizing Ukraine.
We are telling Russia not to intervene in a country next door to them, where they have military bases, a strategic area for pipelines and other strategic assets? Us telling Putin not to get involved is ridiculous.”
Eric King: “Gerald, as you know the price of gold has been virtually frozen, even with the conflict in Ukraine taking place.”
Celente: “Let’s suppose that you lived in Ukraine and now you are worried about a run on the banks -- they have no money. Ukraine is looking at an immediate $35 billion bailout just to keep the country going. Would you feel safer having gold in that situation?
And as we look at gold, let us not forget that with the markets fluctuating wildly, gold has been climbing steadily. But it is not in the interest of the Western central banks, particularly at this time, to view gold as a safe-haven in a time of geopolitical turmoil and economic uncertainty. And as we well know, markets are rigged.
Regardless, as we are seeing more and more global destabilization, whether it is in Ukraine, Turkey, Thailand, or the protests raging in Venezuela, gold is a safe haven asset and this is what puts gold in a class all its own.”
Celente added: “If anybody is stupid enough to consider fighting Russia, they should just remember what happened to both Napoleon and Hitler. The Russians are not going to be defeated. This isn’t Iraq. This isn’t Colonel Gaddafi in Libya. These are the Russians.
They are armed to the teeth, they are technically savvy, and they are not going to give an inch. I don’t believe the politicians or the military would dare threaten to go into any kind of an armed conflict with Russia because if they did, it would be the beginning of World War III. And as Albert Einstein said, ‘I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.’”
http://kingworldnews.com/kingworldnews/KWN_DailyWeb/Entries/2014/2/27_Celente_-_Putin,_Ukraine,_World_War_III_%26_Einsteins_Warni ng.html
mick silver
1st March 2014, 08:37 AM
Crimea's leader cements power, asks Moscow's help
http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/oXh_6AJBHy_uEbdrklkymA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9Zml0O2g9Mjg-/http://l.yimg.com/os/152/2012/04/21/image001-png_162613.png (http://www.ap.org/)By Associated Press | Associated Press – 1 hr 53 min
RELATED CONTENT
http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/tdrTj0bMcHiO7nI3cNVv5w--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTEwNjtweG9mZj01MDtweW 9mZj0wO3E9ODU7dz0xOTA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/video/video.associatedpressfree.com/d9b036e09d16c6162b5861afd5e072e3Play Video
Ukraine Says Russia Moves in on Airports, Base
(http://news.yahoo.com/video/ukraine-says-russia-moves-airports-192502152.html)1:42
http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/6dFy_SOKt4TPEZjcb7ddXQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTEwNjtweG9mZj01MDtweW 9mZj0wO3E9ODU7dz0xOTA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/video/video.associatedpressfree.com/0cf09d04efabbc44df89d9e64a3f8316Play Video
Obama Warns Russia of 'Costs' in Ukraine
(http://news.yahoo.com/video/obama-warns-russia-costs-ukraine-231348307.html)1:00
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — The pro-Russian prime minister of Ukraine's Crimea region claimed control of the military and police there Saturday and appealed to Russia's President Vladimir Putin for help in keeping peace, sharpening the discord between the two Slavic neighbor countries.
Ukraine's acting president questioned legitimacy of the Crimean leader, saying his election by the regional parliament on Thursday, when the building was occupied by pro-Russia gunmen, violated the country's constitution.
It was the latest escalation following the ouster of Ukraine's pro-Russian president last week by a protest movement aimed at turning Ukraine toward the European Union and away from Russia.
Armed men described as Russian troops took control of key airports and a communications center in Crimea on Friday. Ukraine has accused Russia of a "military invasion and occupation" — a claim that brought an alarming new dimension to the crisis, and raised fears that Moscow is moving to intervene on the strategic peninsula where Russia's Black Sea fleet is based.
Ukraine's population is divided in loyalties between Russia and Europe, with much of western Ukraine advocating closer ties with the European Union while eastern and southern regions look to Russia for support. Crimea is mainly Russian-speaking.
Crimean's prime minister, Sergei Aksyonov, declared that the armed forces, the police, the national security service and border guards in the region will answer only to his orders.
Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk opened a cabinet meeting in the capital, Kiev, by calling on Russia not to provoke discord in Crimea, a peninsula on the Black Sea.
"We call on the government and authorities of Russia to recall their forces, and to return them to their stations," Yatsenyuk was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency. "Russian partners, stop provoking civil and military resistance in Ukraine."
Russian lawmakers have urged President Vladimir Putin to take steps to stabilize the situation in Crimea and protect Russians there.
Upper house speaker Valentina Matviyenko said Saturday that Russia could deploy additional troops to Crimea to help protect the local population from the new Ukrainian authorities.
Russia put pressure on Ukraine from another direction when a spokesman for state gas company Gazprom said that Ukraine owed $1.59 billion in overdue bills for imported gas. Sergei Kuprianov was quoted by the RIA-Novosti agency as saying the gas arrears would endanger a recent discount granted by Russia. The discount lowered the price to $268.50 per thousand from other $400. The Russian payment demand and loss of the discount would accelerate Ukraine's financial crisis. The county is almost broke and seeking emergency credit from the International Monetary Fund.
Crimea only became part of Ukraine in 1954 when Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev transferred jurisdiction from Russia, a move that was a mere formality when both Ukraine and Russia were part of the Soviet Union. The Soviet breakup in 1991 meant Crimea landed in an independent Ukraine.
President Barack Obama warned Moscow on Friday "there will be costs" if it intervenes militarily.
Russia has taken a confrontational stance toward its southern neighbor after pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych fled the country. Yanukovych was voted out of office by parliament after weeks of protests ended in violence that left over 80 people dead.
Demonstrators sought his resignation after he backed out of signing an agreement to bring Ukraine closer to the European Union instead of Russia. Yanukovych took refuge in Russia and still says he's president.
Aksyonov, the head of the main pro-Russia party on the peninsula, appealed to Putin "for assistance in guaranteeing peace and calmness on the territory of the autonomous republic of Crimea." Aksyonov was voted in by the Crimean parliament on Thursday after pro-Russia gunmen seized the building and as tensions soared over Crimea's resistance to the new authorities in Kiev, who took office this week.
Obama called on Russia to respect the independence and territory of Ukraine and not try to take advantage of its neighbor, which is undergoing political upheaval.
He said such action by Russia would represent a "profound interference" in matters he said must be decided by the Ukrainian people.
"The United States will stand with the international community in affirming that there will be costs for any military intervention in Ukraine," he said. He did not say what those costs might be.
Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt wrote on Twitter that it was "obvious that there is Russian military intervention in Ukraine. Likely immediate aim is to set up puppet pro-Russian semi-state in Crimea."
At the United Nations, the Ukrainian ambassador, Yuriy Sergeyev, said Friday that Russian transport aircraft and 11 attack helicopters had arrived in Crimea illegally, and that Russian troops had taken control of two airports in Crimea.
He described the gunmen posted outside the two airports as Russian armed forces as well as "unspecified" units.
Russia has kept silent on claims of military intervention and has said any troop movements are within agreed rules, even as it maintained its hard-line stance on protecting ethnic Russians in Crimea.
Meanwhile, flights remained halted from Simferopol's airport. Dozens of armed men in military uniforms without markings patrolled the area. They didn't stop or search people leaving or entering the airport, and refused to talk to journalists.
___
mick silver
1st March 2014, 08:42 AM
Putin asks parliament to use military in Ukraine
http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/oXh_6AJBHy_uEbdrklkymA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9Zml0O2g9Mjg-/http://l.yimg.com/os/152/2012/04/21/image001-png_162613.png (http://www.ap.org/)By DAVID McHUGH and VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV | Associated Press – 39 mins a
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Ukraine Says Russia Moves in on Airports, Base
(http://news.yahoo.com/video/ukraine-says-russia-moves-airports-192502152.html)1:42
http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/pU9V6HndTNGR83fcswQDCg--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Y2g9ODg2O2NyPTE7Y3c9NzQ2O2R4PTA7ZH k9MDtmaT11bGNyb3A7aD0yMjY7cT04NTt3PTE5MA--/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/c1d79c6573da2c084d0f6a7067006d58.jpgView Photo (http://news.yahoo.com/lightbox/map-shows-ukrainian-russian-region-latest-news-developements-photo-065331468.html)Map shows the Ukrainian Russian …
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin asked parliament Saturday for permission to use the country's military in Ukraine, moving to formalize troop deployments that Ukrainian officials have described as an ongoing invasion of the strategic region of Crimea.
Putin's motion loosely refers to the "territory of Ukraine" rather than specifically to Crimea, raising the possibility that Moscow could use military force in other Russian-speaking provinces in eastern and southern Ukraine where many oppose the new authorities in Kiev. Pro-Russian protests were reported in the eastern cities of Kharkiv, Donetsk and Odessa.
Ukrainian officials and some Western diplomats said that a Russian military intervention is already well underway after heavily armed gunmen in unmarked military uniforms seized control of local government buildings, airports and other strategic facilities in Crimea in recent days.
Ignoring President Barack Obama's warning Friday that "there will be costs" if Russia intervenes militarily, Putin said the "extraordinary situation in Ukraine" was putting at risk the lives of Russian citizens and military personnel stationed at a naval base that Moscow has maintained in the Black Sea peninsula since the Soviet collapse.
"I'm submitting a request for using the armed forces of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine pending the normalization of the socio-political situation in that country," Putin said in a statement released by the Kremlin.
Putin sent the request to the Russian legislature's upper house, which was expected to rubber-stamp it in a vote Saturday.
In Crimea, the pro-Russian prime minister who took office after gunmen seized the regional Parliament claimed control of the military and police there and asked Putin for help in keeping peace, sharpening the discord between the two neighboring Slavic countries.
Ukraine's acting president Oleksandr Turchynov said the election of the election of Sergei Aksyonov as prime minister of Crimea was invalid.
It was the latest escalation following the ouster of Ukraine's pro-Russian president last week by a protest movement aimed at turning Ukraine toward the European Union and away from Russia.
Ukraine has accused Russia of a "military invasion and occupation" — a claim that brought an alarming new dimension to the crisis, and raised fears that Moscow is moving to intervene on the strategic peninsula where Russia's Black Sea fleet is based.
Ukraine's population is divided in loyalties between Russia and Europe, with much of western Ukraine advocating closer ties with the European Union while eastern and southern regions look to Russia for support. Crimea, a semi-autonomous region of Ukraine, is mainly Russian-speaking.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk opened a Cabinet meeting in the capital, Kiev, by calling on Russia not to provoke discord in Crimea.
"We call on the government and authorities of Russia to recall their forces, and to return them to their stations," Yatsenyuk was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency. "Russian partners, stop provoking civil and military resistance in Ukraine."
Russia put pressure on Ukraine from another direction when a spokesman for state gas company Gazprom said that Ukraine owed $1.59 billion in overdue bills for imported gas. Sergei Kuprianov was quoted by the RIA-Novosti agency as saying the gas arrears would endanger a recent discount granted by Russia. The discount lowered the price to $268.50 per thousand from other $400. The Russian payment demand and loss of the discount would accelerate Ukraine's financial crisis. The county is almost broke and seeking emergency credit from the International Monetary Fund.
Crimea only became part of Ukraine in 1954 when Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev transferred jurisdiction from Russia, a move that was a mere formality when both Ukraine and Russia were part of the Soviet Union. The Soviet breakup in 1991 meant Crimea landed in an independent Ukraine.
Russia has taken a confrontational stance toward its southern neighbor after pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych fled the country. Yanukovych was voted out of office by parliament after weeks of protests ended in violence that left over 80 people dead.
Demonstrators sought his resignation after he backed out of signing an agreement to bring Ukraine closer to the European Union instead of Russia. Yanukovych took refuge in Russia and still says he's president.
Aksyonov, the Crimea leader, appealed to Putin "for assistance in guaranteeing peace and calmness on the territory of the autonomous republic of Crimea." Aksyonov was voted in by the Crimean parliament on Thursday after pro-Russia gunmen seized the building and as tensions soared over Crimea's resistance to the new authorities in Kiev, who took office this week.
Obama called on Russia to respect the independence and territory of Ukraine and not try to take advantage of its neighbor, which is undergoing political upheaval.
He said such action by Russia would represent a "profound interference" in matters he said must be decided by the Ukrainian people.
"The United States will stand with the international community in affirming that there will be costs for any military intervention in Ukraine," he said. He did not say what those costs might be.
Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt wrote on Twitter that it was "obvious that there is Russian military intervention in Ukraine. Likely immediate aim is to set up puppet pro-Russian semi-state in Crimea."
At the United Nations, the Ukrainian ambassador, Yuriy Sergeyev, said Friday that Russian transport aircraft and 11 attack helicopters had arrived in Crimea illegally, and that Russian troops had taken control of two airports in Crimea.
He described the gunmen posted outside the two airports as Russian armed forces as well as "unspecified" units.
Russia has kept silent on claims of military intervention and has said any troop movements are within agreed rules, even as it maintained its hard-line stance on protecting ethnic Russians in Crimea.
Meanwhile, flights remained halted from Simferopol's airport. Dozens of armed men in military uniforms without markings patrolled the area. They didn't stop or search people leaving or entering the airport, and refused to talk to journalists.
mick silver
1st March 2014, 08:50 AM
Ukraine defence chief says Russia has sent 6,000 troops to Crimea
Kiev (AFP) - Ukraine's defence chief accused Russia on Saturday of sending 6,000 troops and 30 armoured personnel carriers into Crimea as the restive peninsula tries to gain broader independence from new pro-EU leaders in Kiev.
Defence Minister Igor Tenyukh told a cabinet meeting that Russia began sending these reinforcements on Friday "without warning or Ukraine's permission, in defiance of the principle of non-infringement of state borders."
Ponce
1st March 2014, 09:11 AM
No wonder the Russians don't want for the US to take over Crimea, I took a look at a map and Crimea is at a very strategic place in the world with a outlet to many different places......I know that the US would love to "rent" a piece of land in that country (as they did with Cuba) and stay there for ever (as they are doing in Cuba)......the Russians already have a naval and army base there and have all the right in the world to defend it, specially when most of those living there are pro Russians.
V
palani
1st March 2014, 12:12 PM
...most of those living there are pro Russians.
V
Negatory. They are RUSSIANS. Ethnic like. Colonials.
Horn
1st March 2014, 01:06 PM
Negatory. They are RUSSIANS. Ethnic like. Colonials.
suggesting Russian pros, not pro-Russian?
palani
1st March 2014, 01:14 PM
suggesting Russian pros, not pro-Russian? Russian BLOOD.
Mainline media is offering a bit of history from the 30s where 25,000 Ukrainians were starved to death every day under Stalin. Food assistance from the west was turned away at the border.
mick silver
1st March 2014, 02:13 PM
Saudis and their Middle East partners, who have invested billions to prevent that very thing from happening. Have you noted how the upheaval in the Ukraine has coincided almost to the day, with the media generated push to renew efforts to combat “climate change”? Again, there are no coincidences here, and certainly far beyond the paltry sum of Mr. Steyer, who is nothing more than a foolish pawn. What is the saying about a fool and his money? Rather, it is all part of a plan, now being orchestrated, with pertinent players intact, very much including the Man Calling Himself Obama. http://theulstermanreport.com/2014/02/27/ukraine-upheaval-result-of-fight-over-natural-gas-reserves-wsi/ We are in the third act of this Saudi funded play. Years earlier, it was the Deepwater Horizon disaster which initiated this latest curtain to rise. Deepwater and the current chaos in Ukraine are words from the very same script. Did you note the delay in Mr. Rainey’s trial today? His defense has proven an equally adept offense, as Holder’s DOJ considers the implications of what they are attempting. A well funded defense will provide such a counter attack, and a well funded defense Mr. Rainey has most certainly been afforded. Often times, criminals discover the real truth was better left unsaid, and there is currently no greater criminal in these United States, than one Eric Himpton Holder.Despite my own personal challenges, I fight on, and very much enjoywatching you doing the same.
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