Putin and his German "Putinversteher" Walter Steinmeier, and that 'leaked' letter

Finally it has come out  in the open.

"In Leaked Letter, Steinmeier (left) Urges EU To Ease Russian Concerns On Ukraine Deal".

So ran the headline today (Sunday, April 26, 2015) in an RFERL article written by Rikard Jozwiak.  He informs us that,

"In the letter addressed to European Commission President Jean-Paul Juncker, which was made available to RFE/RL, Steinmeier called for a resumption of three-way talks between the EU, Ukraine, and Russia in order to identify "practical solutions."

Russia has voiced opposition to the creation of a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), the economic core of a wide-ranging Association Agreement concluded in March 2014 by the European Union and Ukraine."(ibid Rikard Jozwiak) (my emphasis)

Yet again is the  "Putinversteher" mentality of Steinmeier bubbling to the surface, in support of Putin attempting to scupper an agreement that has already been ratified between Ukraine and the EU.

As Rikard Jozwiak informs us,

"Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned Ukraine that changing national legislation to prepare for the agreement would trigger "an immediate response from Moscow." (ibid Rikard Jozwiak) (my emphasis)

To which, quite rightly, Poroshenko has stated that,

" ..... Russia is not a party to the Association Agreement and has no right to interfere."(ibid Rikard Jozwiak) (my emphasis)

Yet Steinmeier himself is proclaiming that,

" ...... Germany strongly supported the swift implementation of the DFCTA, adding that "time is running short." (ibid Rikard Jozwiak) (my emphasis)

But what, exactly, does Steinmeier mean by "time is running short"?

 At the 17th EU-Ukraine summit to be held tomorrow (27 Apr. 2015), a critical item on the agenda is the,

" ....opportunity to discuss:

• the implementation of the Association Agreement and the political and economic reforms in Ukraine including EU financial and other assistance" (European Council)

The FULL implementation of the DFCTA between Ukraine and the EU is scheduled for January 1, 2016.

By implementing the DFCTA between Ukraine and the EU, Ukraine will be subject to the rules and regulations that define trade between members of the EU. In particular, Ukrainian industry will be subject to EU rules and conditions that define trade with non-EU countries.

An example of these rules and conditions is outlined in,

".... harmonised standards, freer trading regulations and reduced paperwork make the 'single market' of the EU attractive to importers and exporters."

"The following are some of the measures which EU countries have introduced to make it easier to trade with each other:

• reduced bureaucracy and paperwork - for instance, trade with the EU can be recorded on your VAT form in the same way as any of your sales and purchases in the UK
• harmonised standards - EU-wide technical and safety standards ensure that if you meet UK standards you’ll also meet the standards of other EU countries" 

It is this which Putin fears since once Ukraine implements these EU standards and regulations, Russian trade with Ukraine will have also to CONFORM to them. 

Even more frightening for Putin and his kleptocratic 'siloviki' is the fact that the goods and services that Russia will want to sell to Ukraine will have to conform to EU harmonised standards - EU-wide technical and safety standards. 

This will blow wide open not only the poor standard of Russian-made goods, but also just exactly how CORRUPT Putin's Russian economy is.

Is it this that Steinmeier is wishing to protect Putin from? 

But even more important, where does Merkel stand in all of this? Could Steinmeier have written that letter to Jean-Paul Juncker without the 'blessing' of Merkel?

We should bear in mind that from Putin's days in St. Petersburg he favoured making deals with Germany.

Furthermore, whilst Germany buys lots of gas and oil from Putin, German industry sells an enormous amount of EU-standard goods to Putin, besides being given favourable treatment for investing in Russia.

Is it therefore any wonder that  former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder (left) during Putin's time in St Petersburg now works for Gazprom?

And whilst Steinmeier is trying to pre-empt the discussion tomorrow about the implementation of the Association Agreement (DFCTA) between the EU and Ukraine,

Pavel Polityuk and Jason Bush inform us that Denis Pushilin (right), one of Putins proxy 'rebel-representatives' has said that,

".....the rebels were not opposed to the deployment of international peacekeepers in eastern Ukraine - a long-standing demand by Kiev.... " (Reuters : Sat Apr 25, 2015)

Pushilin then went on to,

".....[accuse] Ukraine of violating the Minsk deal by failing to discuss constitutional changes with the rebels." (ibid Pavel Polityuk and Jason Bush)

 Against the backdrop of Putin flooding eastern Ukraine with lethal military equipment and Russian soldiers in preparation for his imminent assault against Mariupol; Pushilin's statements are simply empty and vacuous and intended, no doubt, to support Steinmeier's call for Putin to be included in discussions about the implementation of Ukraine's Association Agreement (DFCTA) with the EU.

It is to be hoped that these 'diplomatic' deceptions of Putin will not be lost on the EU leaders tomorrow.

However, it is to be expected that they will serve to influence Putin's supporters amongst the EU leaders. And this is precisely what Putin wants.

 Some of Putin's EU supporters

The 'fragrant'  Mogherini             (Italy)  Renzi                  (Greece) Tsipras          (Germany) Steinmeier

(to be continued)