Paris, February 22 – France Soir is reporting Sunday morning that a cease fire is expected in Ukraine in the coming days. The news is encouraging because it comes from opposing military officers of the two sides. Not Angela Merkel and François Hollande who brokered the Minsk Agreement with Vladimir Putin.
General Oleksandr Rozmaznine of the Ukraine army and Edward Bassourine of Russia’s proxy army made the announcement: the agreement for the cease fire was made on Saturday 21. Military officials from both sides said heavy weapons would be withdrawn from the front line.
On Saturday, 139 Ukraine and 50 Russia sponsored POWs were exchanged.
This past week fighting continued after the Minsk Agreement armistice deadline of 15 February because Russia was determined to take the strategically located town of Debaltseve.
Not surprisingly, there was pretty much silence on the part of Angela Merkel and François Hollande during the past week as Russia consolidated her acquisition of territory in and around the strategically located town of Debaltseve.
The two jet set leaders allowed the Euro Zone negotiations with Greece to take center stage from Brussels. On the American side, there was a simple copy paste readout from the State Department of concern.
For all concerned in Europe there is little surprise at this outcome in East Ukraine. Moscow has effectively redrawn the map of Ukraine. Militarily, Moscow’s Novorossiya – New Russia territorial project appears to be completed.
From the beginning, Vladimir Putin has condemned Kiev’s hopes to join NATO which has shown itself in Europe to be either unwilling – or unable – to muster a ground force to confront the only European enemy it has – Russia.
The completion of Moscow’s Novorossiya territorial project from the Donbas Basin to the Crimean peninsula is meant to:
- sever the industrial regions of East Ukraine from Kiev.
- enhance Moscow’s ability to influence Kiev’s political decision making.
- demonstrate the Russian’s army’s ability to deter opposition.
- challenge the willingness of NATO to counter-act Russian aggression.
- consolidate Russia’s control of gas pipeline distribution into Europe.
- enhance Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin party elites’ standing with the Russian public.
Most likely on the American network news chat shows and the PBS Newshour they’ll busy themselves with just how to ensure the cease fire prevails.
Senator John McCain will tell an empty Senate Chamber it’s all Obama’s fault: “We’ve lost all credibility with the world!”
But that’s hardly the point. The only timetable that really matters is the one Moscow is about to spring from the Soviet Playbook – reshaping the political landscape of Novorossiya in her own image.
Vladimir Putin isn’t about to put in place a Moscow Plan to rebuild the Donetsk he has psychologically brutalized. They’ll simply rename the county council of Donetsk some sort of Parliament and let it go at that.
Secretary of State John Kerry is said to be mumbling something about additional sanctions. That just leaves Kremlin party members to game who won’t be shopping in Paris anytime soon.
At least now the 6,000 dead won’t have to watch John Kerry shake Sergey Lavrov’s hand anymore.
Related:
Is the Soviet Union alive and well?
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