Posts
Vladimir
Posner & Oliver Stone Interview 11-2014
*Americans should watch
Oliver
Stone - Famous US Director - Interview in English on Russian TV:
Stone
has been visiting Moscow frequently to work on two movies, one about
Edward Snowden, and one about Ukraine
The biggest threat for Russia and for Putin
9
December, 2014
Putin's
recent speech to the Federal Assembly contained two part: a foreign
policy part which was nothing short of historical,
and an internal economics part which was very disappointing to say
the least. In fact, I would say that it was outright
frightening. I won't post the full text here, but you can
consult if for yourself by clicking here.
But here is my summary of Putin's message:
We will make every effort to aid the Russian business community, we will also make every effort to return much of the Russian money hidden abroad in offshore accounts, and we will create stability and predictability. All this is fine and dandy, except for what was not said.
We will make every effort to aid the Russian business community, we will also make every effort to return much of the Russian money hidden abroad in offshore accounts, and we will create stability and predictability. All this is fine and dandy, except for what was not said.
- Putin did not denounce the work of the Russian Central Bank or its Chairwoman.
- Putin did not promise to sell US bonds and bring Russian money back home.
- Putin did not sack a single Russian official for incompetence or, even less so, sabotage
- Putin did not announce a major change in the status of the Ruble, no "golden Ruble" for example.
- Putin did not reject the western economic model.
- Putin announce no reform or taking over by the state of the Russian Central Bank.
- Most importantly, Putin did not announce any major change in economic policy
I
have no way of knowing whether Putin sincerely believe in the
western economic dogmas, of whether he has no other option than to
pretend that he does, but the outcome is the same: Putin rejects the
western political model while apparently still fully endorsing its
economic model.
I have just listening to an interview of Mikhail Khazin and Evegnii Feodorov on the Russian New Service Radio and both of them are now openly sounding the alarm. Khazin is demanding that the Director of the Russian Central Bank be fired and arrested, while Feodorov wants the Central Bank to be completely shut down. I agree with both.
The Russian economy in general and the Ruble especially are both under direct attack, not only by official sanctions, but also by speculative operations. The price of oil is collapsing probably under a combination of objective reasons (the world recession) and deliberate US operations, yet Putin is not changing economic course in a fundamental way and he is even complimenting the Central Bank for its activities. Does that not remind you of something?
Personally, this reminds me of what happened during the last months of Anatolii Serdiukov when the Russian military was hit by one scandal after another, yet Putin continued to praise Serduikov and his work. Eventually, of course, Serdiukov was sacked and replaced by the truly outstanding Shoigu, but it took a lot of time and efforts to finally get him sacked (and even today Serdiukov has still not been sentenced by any court for his numerous criminal activities).
Does that mean that Putin is hesitant, weak or confused?
I don't think so. I think that this shows that one of the most difficult and dangerous tasks for Putin is to get rid of the saboteurs in the top echelons of power. The same Mikhail Khazin has recently declared that only now did the "Eurasian Sovereignist" group's power roughly match the one of the pro-US "Atlantic Integrationists" (though he did not quite use these expressions which are mine).
I have just listening to an interview of Mikhail Khazin and Evegnii Feodorov on the Russian New Service Radio and both of them are now openly sounding the alarm. Khazin is demanding that the Director of the Russian Central Bank be fired and arrested, while Feodorov wants the Central Bank to be completely shut down. I agree with both.
The Russian economy in general and the Ruble especially are both under direct attack, not only by official sanctions, but also by speculative operations. The price of oil is collapsing probably under a combination of objective reasons (the world recession) and deliberate US operations, yet Putin is not changing economic course in a fundamental way and he is even complimenting the Central Bank for its activities. Does that not remind you of something?
Personally, this reminds me of what happened during the last months of Anatolii Serdiukov when the Russian military was hit by one scandal after another, yet Putin continued to praise Serduikov and his work. Eventually, of course, Serdiukov was sacked and replaced by the truly outstanding Shoigu, but it took a lot of time and efforts to finally get him sacked (and even today Serdiukov has still not been sentenced by any court for his numerous criminal activities).
Does that mean that Putin is hesitant, weak or confused?
I don't think so. I think that this shows that one of the most difficult and dangerous tasks for Putin is to get rid of the saboteurs in the top echelons of power. The same Mikhail Khazin has recently declared that only now did the "Eurasian Sovereignist" group's power roughly match the one of the pro-US "Atlantic Integrationists" (though he did not quite use these expressions which are mine).
Hopefully Putin is setting up a Serdiukov-like sacking of Nabiulina, but this is not sure at all. The pressure is mounting for him to take dramatic action and to finally begin to de-couple the Russian economy from the western economic orthodoxy known as the Washington Concensus, but there is also a lot of resistance.
This is right now by far the biggest threat to Russia and Putin: the 5th column of saboteurs in the top echelons of power, especially the government. As long as these people will remain in power Russia will continue to remain weak and fragile and very susceptible to western economic warfare.
The Saker
Mikhail Khazin's Answer To December 4th Putin Speech to Federal Assembly
Donbass
Asks Russia Not to Supply Coal to Ukraine
Besieged enclave wants to keep its bargaining power against Ukraine government
8
December, 2014
DONETSK/LUHANSK,
December 8 (TASS) - The Donetsk and Luhansk republics have asked
Russia not to supply coal to Ukraine to make Kiev buy it from
Donbass.
“Miners
and all the people of Donbass address miners and the government of
Russia — do not supply Ukraine with coal of the kinds that Donbass
has and Ukraine bought from us before the spring.
It
is necessary to force Kiev to lift the economic blockade, buy coal
from our mines and pay for our work.
Otherwise,
hundreds of enterprises and millions of people will be doomed to be
ruined and to hunger,” the chairmen of the people’s assemblies of
the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics said in
a statement on Monday.
Under
the presidential decree of November 15, the Ukrainian government must
stop operation of state companies and organizations in some
territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and organize
evacuation of workers, property and documents from there.
Special
regulations must be imposed for energy supply to Donbass, and a draft
law must be submitted to the parliament within a month to change
Budget Code regulations for mutual payments between Ukraine’s state
budget and local budgets.
Leaders
of the Lugansk and Donetsk republics have described the decree of
President Pyotr Poroshenko as genocide and an act aimed at ruining
the regions.
Protests flare up in central Ukraine, calls for regional council to resign
:
RT,
9
December, 2014
About 5,000 people in the central Ukrainian region of Vinnitsa took to the streets to demand the resignation of the regional council. Protesters want an investigation into recent clashes, which residents called a provocation.
On
Monday protesters occupied the central square and blocked near-by
roads in the city of Vinnitsa, the hometown of the Ukrainian
president. The activists held banners, saying: “Gather for the sake
of peace!”
The rally participants called for the Ukrainian authorities, including President Petro Poroshenko and PM Arseny Yatsenyuk, to investigate the clashes that occurred in the city December 6-7.
“Due
to the total incapability of the regional council to work and fulfill
their duties towards voters, [we] demand the dissolution of the
regional council of Vinnitsa,” their statement said.
On Saturday about 400 activists stormed the building of the regional council and called for the resignation of Governor Anatoly Oleynik. Oleynik started serving under ousted Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovich in 2010.At least eight police officers were injured during the clashes with the protesters.
The
next day, December 7, about 200 activists again demanded the
resignation of Oleynik. The crowd chose Aleksey Furman from the
nationalist Svoboda party as the people's governor of the region.
On
Monday, Oleynik held a press conference and said that he is ready to
resign only if the situation in the region is stable.
“I
bow in front of all Maidan activists and I am ready for everything,
even to resign next day,” he said, adding that he will only pass on
a stable region to his successor
In
the meantime, the speaker of the Ukrainian parliament called the
events in Vinnitsa merely a provocation.
“Violent
confrontation in Vinnitsa with smoke bombs was a typical provocation,
staged by certain circles which don’t have any support from the
people [of Vinnitsa],” he said, adding that the people should
respect local authorities
On
Monday, the controversial Aidar battalion arrived in the city which
has a population of some 350,000 people. The battalion has been
slammed by an Amnesty International report for its numerous crimes.
“Members
of the Aidar territorial defense battalion, operating in the north
Lugansk region, have been involved in widespread abuses, including
abductions, unlawful detention, ill-treatment, theft, extortion, and
possible executions,”says
the watchdog’s report from September.
Konstantin
Dolgov , the Russian Foreign Ministry's human rights ombudsman,
criticized the deployment of Aidar battalion in Vinnitsa.
“Kiev
continues using chasteners from the Aidar [battalion] instead of
punishing them for multiple atrocities in [Ukraine’s] south-east,”
he wrote on Twitter.
According
to Ukraine’s political scientist and journalist, Vladimir Skachko,
‘new Maidan’ in Vinnitsa proves people in Ukraine are becoming
increasingly disenchanted with the Kiev authorities.
“Nothing,
against which Maidan was protesting, has changed; nothing in the
economy, foreign and domestic policy, social or cultural sphere,”
he said.
11:34 PM - 6 Dec 2014 Сургут, Russia
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