The international community mobilises to recover stolen assets for the people of Ukraine

Lancaster House, London

A high-level international meeting to support the Government of Ukraine in recovering stolen assets began on 29 April 2014 in London. The gathering is a landmark for Ukraine in underscoring the rule of law and international cooperation. The international community and the Government of Ukraine are united in their commitment and determination in returning stolen assets to the people of Ukraine. 

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Police in eastern Ukraine controlled by Yanukovych, Lutsenko says

Yuriy Lutsenko

In eastern Ukraine, Russian special services are relying on security forces that are still directly controlled by the former government of the country, says Yuriy Lutsenko, the former minister of internal affairs of Ukraine and leader of the “Third Ukrainian Republic” party. Lutsenko shared his views on Channel 5 on Sunday, April 13.

Action plan for separatists in Eastern Ukraine repeats Crimea scenario

A document found by someone in Donetsk (local journalists?), translated from Russian by William Risch. Source: twitter @govDonbass

ACTION PLAN:

1. Don’t give up buildings, reinforce them. There should be no less than 1,000 people for the night in them, in each building-camp, reinforced and armed. Men in platoons (otriady), women to get food and medicine. Organize a 24-hour guard duty, form armed rapid reaction groups.
2. In the regions, “lop off” the local SBU units. Take the buildings, cut off communications, rid them of their ability to function. The SBU in Kiev should lose its local connections. The SBU is Enemy Number One, and we need to behead it and uncover its agents by any means necessary.
3. Take over regional TV studios and begin our own broadcasts. The main thing is to preserve technical connections to television networks, and if journalists run away, you can do what you want – show clips from Youtube, read the news. The main thing is to present our own information.
4. Don’t “demand” referendums, but carry them out. Set up electoral commissions, demand voter lists from official electoral commissions, make arrangements with printers, and print ballots. Let official authorities in Donetsk who also were for a referendum help, but don’t give them the initiative.
5. Go to mines and factories and agitate. For the time being, it’s a revolution by young people and the elderly. The rest shoot up drugs and drink beer. The mines should go over to strike mode until the situation has become completely clear – when it is certain that rejoining Russia will produce its rewards.
6. Make connections with the “Legitimate One” (Yanukovych – translator). Let him do something useful – officially appoint representatives from the people governors of Donetsk and Lugansk.
7. Among the police, promote the propaganda of non-interference and not enforcing orders for the “defense” of institutions of authority that are under the Junta. Don’t even allow them to defend them passively. Don’t hold back.
8. Block riot police bases. Call on draftees mobilized to go over to the side of the people in organized fashion.
9. Unblock the border with the Russian Federation (RF) at least in some sections. Do the opposite for the western borders of southeast Ukraine, set up border posts and don’t let anyone from western Ukraine in.

Ukrainian authorities believe Yanukovych is financing separatist activity in Ukraine

Viktor Yanukovych is personally financing separatist activity in southeastern Ukraine, said First Deputy Prime Minister Vitaliy Yarema at a press conference, Friday, April 4, as reported by Ukrainian News.

“According to our information, Viktor Yanukovych and his supporters had removed very large sums of money from Ukrainian territory. We don’t know the exact sums, but it appears they’re in the billions of dollars. These sums, according to our information and the information from our intelligence services, are being used right now to incite separatist sentiment among the population of Ukraine,” he said.

The Right Sector: An Inside View

Right Sector Leaders: clockwise, Dmytro Yarosh, Andriy Stempitskyy, Andriy Tarasenko

 

Mustafa Nayem, Ukrainska Pravda, April 1, 2014

The Right Sector (Pravyy Sector) appeared on the front pages of world mass media after the first clashes on Hrushevskoho street on January 19. Within days, the fighters in balaclavas with Molotov cocktails in their hands became the face of the Ukrainian protest. The Maidan ceased to be peaceful, and the first news reports on casualties began to appear.

In fairness, it must be admitted that these very actions by the Right Sector in response to the adoption of the “draconian” laws forced the presidential administration to make concessions: to abolish the laws adopted on January 16 and adopt the law on amnesty.

Yanukovych and Azarov expelled from the Party of Regions

Delegates at the Party of Regions congress in Kyiv on Saturday, March 29, expelled from their ranks the former president Viktor Yanukovych and several members of his team, reports Dzerkalo Tyzhdnya.

ANOTHER RUSSIA-ORCHESTRATED ROGUE STATE?

By Robert van Voren

So it seems the next steps are becoming clearer. Yanukovych, propped up health-wise by his mentor Putin, will gloriously return to Eastern Ukraine with well-armed and – of course – unmarked “self-defence forces”, set up his own government in “liberated territories” and claim to be the sole legal representative of the Ukrainian people. Putin, totally surprised by this extraordinary move, will feel compelled to respond to the heartfelt cry for assistance from Russian brethren and fulfil his obligations according to international law. As Yanukovych is according to Russia still the only legitimate President of Ukraine Russia sees no alternative than to recognise his government and there you are – another rogue state on the border of Russia. And with a little bit of luck the “self-defence forces” (unmarked, of course) will manage to occupy the whole east and south of the country and link Russia with its other rogue state, Transdniestria.

My worry is what Kyiv will do. It seems to have sunk into apathy and lack of ability to take any concrete steps. If you see how Ukrainian troops were “pulled back” from Crimea, in total disarray and without even receiving proper orders from Kyiv, my fear is Yanukovich will indeed be successful.

For Russia is is the next step towards isolation, patriotic ecstasy and neo-fascism. It is also one step closer to its demise, but why do so many people have to suffer before it reaches that stage?!

Faces of Ukrainian corruption: former Minister apartment search reveals treasures

Prosecutor General of Ukraine together with the Department of Combating with Organized Crime of Ukraine and MIA of Ukraine carried out a search of 3 Kyiv’s apartments, as well as offices, belonging to the former Minister of Energy of Ukraine Eduard Stavytskiy.

@EvgenyFeldman

They have found $5 million in cash, 42 kg of pure gold, jewellery and a dozen of expensive watches. As an example, the price of the watch belonging to the former Minister of Energy of Ukraine Eduard Stavytskiy (photo below), is MUCH higher than his salary.

Philosophical thoughts from Kyiv – 20 March 2014

By Mychailo Wynnyckyj, Associate Professor of the Department of Sociology and Kyiv-Mohyla Business School,  Director of the Doctoral School, National University of “Kyiv-Mohyla Academy”

Today is a noteworthy day. Exactly 120 days ago a few hundred people set up a tiny protest camp on Kyiv’s Independence Square. On November 21, this small group of people was outraged at the sudden about-face of the Azarov government, and its refusal to sign the EU-Ukraine Association Treaty. I returned to Kyiv on Sunday November 24 (after a short teaching assignment in Lviv) to participate in a fairly substantial demonstration: the first Sunday “viche”. We were pleased that upwards of 50 thousand came out to protest on that day. How far we’ve come since!

Looking back on the past 120 days, I feel like I’ve lived 5 years! I suspect many others feel the same…

Frontline against authoritarianism

By Robert van Voren, Feb. 16, 2014

A recent cover of a main Dutch newspaper said it all: on top of a photo of a street demonstration the word “Ukraine” had been crossed out and next to it was written “Bosnia!!” The message was clear: Bosnia was where the real action was, where the real demonstrations against the government took place, in Ukraine things were slowly withering away.

However wrong that impression might be, many people in the West indeed think that only little has been left of the force of the opposition against Yanukovych and his regime. And it is a stiff competition: Putin is having his Sochi-show in full galore, Britain is under water, and then there are the occasional other mishaps on the international scene. And thus Ukraine is sharing the position of Syria, where barrel bombs keep on falling from the air creating immeasurable destruction and human misery, but where the eyes of the West have turned away because it is ‘old news’ and the international community does not know what to do or how to behave.