War re Ukraine: Thread

[grarpamp]

Russian Diplomats Issue Dire Warnings That War With US Is Close

https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/russian-diplomats-issue-dire-warnings-that-war-with-us-is-close/

https://mid.ru/ru/press_service/minister_speeches/1854365/
https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/russia-programs/2017-12-12/nato-expansion-what-gorbachev-heard-western-leaders-early
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2022/02/15/the-origins-of-the-ukraine-crisis-and-how-conflict-can-be-avoided/
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CREC-2022-02-10/html/CREC-2022-02-10-pt1-PgS632-2.htm
https://archive.ph/LFo4j
https://www.cato.org/commentary/making-ukraine-nato-member-all-name
https://www.newsweek.com/red-lines-crossed-us-russia-ukraine-war-1781413
https://news.antiwar.com/2023/02/09/ukraine-relies-on-intelligence-by-us-for-himars-rocket-strikes/
https://twitter.com/MarioNawfal/status/1626216956218208257
https://seymourhersh.substack.com/p/how-america-took-out-the-nord-stream
https://news.antiwar.com/2023/02/15/russia-requests-un-security-council-meeting-over-new-nord-stream-report/
https://original.antiwar.com/ted_snider/2022/12/12/not-trusting-russia-with-a-ceasefire/

The Kremlin’s top diplomat has warned that Western involvement in
Ukraine is nearing "the point of no return," accusing the United
States and the NATO bloc of attempting to transform the country into a
"Russophobic military stronghold." Meanwhile, Moscow’s UN envoy
declared that all of Russia’s "red lines" have already been crossed.

Addressing lawmakers at Russia’s State Duma on Wednesday, Foreign
Minister Sergei Lavrov outlined the causes of the current conflict in
Ukraine and the deterioration of US-Russia relations, saying
Washington has a "maniacal desire to revive the neo-colonial unipolar
world order."
File image: AP

"An integral part of this policy is the long-term containment of
Russia, including through the expansion of NATO towards our borders,
as well as the transformation of fraternal Ukraine into a Russophobic
military stronghold," he said. "In recent years, this line of
Washington and its European satellites has reached the point of no
return."

After the fall of the Soviet Union, Washington and several other
Western states gave assurances to Moscow that the NATO alliance would
not expand beyond Germany. However, in the years since, Presidents
Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump have each
allowed new members to join the alliance, all of them inching closer
to Russia’s borders.

Starting in 2008, NATO has repeatedly declared its intention to
someday allow Ukraine to become a member, again reiterating that
pledge at a recent alliance summit. The move would cross the
"brightest of all red lines" for Moscow, as was previously noted by
then-State Department official and current CIA Director William Burns,
who penned a 2008 memo warning of the geopolitical perils of extending
membership to Kiev.

Still, President Joe Biden has refused to change course, insisting it
is up to Ukraine whether it would like to join the US-led military
bloc while effectively making Kiev a de facto member in the meantime.
In an interview with Newsweek on Tuesday, Russia’s UN envoy Dmitry
Polyanskiy argued that the West has not respected Moscow’s core
security concerns, and has become directly involved in the conflict in
Ukraine.

    "All the red lines have already been crossed by Western countries.
There is already semi-direct involvement of NATO in the conflict
because it’s not only weaponry but it’s intelligence," he said. "It’s
the situation when the targets of certain artillery systems, in
particular HIMARS, these targets can be hit only with the coordination
with Washington."

Last week, the Washington Post reported that Ukraine relies on
American intelligence for selecting targets. Since the start of the
year, the White House has authorized the shipment of main battle tanks
and long-range rockets to Kiev. Additionally, NATO appears to be
preparing to send Western-made warplanes to Ukraine.

    "It means that NATO is not only providing weapons but also are
choosing the targets for Ukrainian strikes," Polyanskiy continued.

He went on to allege that citizens from NATO countries are already
fighting – as well as getting captured and killed – in Ukraine. "We
know this from the people that we capture and from the bodies that we
see on the battlefield." The ambassador said Western weapons would
only escalate the conflict, even warning that foreign intervention
could eventually trigger a nuclear war.

    🚨#BREAKING: "NATO must be ready for long standoff with Russia" -
Secretary General of NATO

    And remember, in the last few days:

    - Tanks sent to Ukraine
    - NATO considering jets
    - Possible US responsibility re Nordstream attack

    Yet all we are talking about are balloons... pic.twitter.com/w2kMN96Tfw
    — Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) February 16, 2023

"It’s absolutely clear that any deliveries of weapons to the zone of
conflict, of course, is like pouring oil into the fire," he said,
adding "If you are dealing with a nuclear power and if you are citing
the goal of inflicting defeat to this nuclear power, you should have
all the options in mind of our possible response."

In their remarks, both diplomats also pointed to potential American
involvement in the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines. Last
week, investigative journalist Seymour Hersh published a bombshell
report claiming that Washington planned to bomb the pipelines. The
White House has denied that it had any part sabotaging the line,
though Senator Mike Lee later acknowledged that it was possible.

On Wednesday, Polyanskiy said that Moscow requested a UN meeting next
week to address Hersh’s reporting. Lavrov rejected denials from the
Biden administration, saying the West is "lying, hiding the truth
about the terrorist attacks on the Nord Stream and Nord Stream-2 gas
pipelines, just as they lied about the Minsk agreements."

Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel claimed the Minsk agreement,
which ostensibly was meant to end the civil war in Ukraine, was really
intended to give Kiev time to build up its military. In a December 1
interview with Der Spiegel, Merkel said that she believes that during
the Minsk talks, she was able to buy the time Ukraine needed to better
fend off a Russian attack.