Putin's 'maskirovka' strategy in eastern Ukraine, and the EU and Obama

Nataliya Vasilyeva (left) informs us that,

"On a recent spring morning, an important visitor watched Russian-backed rebels conduct infantry maneuvers in eastern Ukraine (right).

"The general is very pleased," rebel commander Ostap Cherny told his troops, referring to the figure in camouflage encircled by guards.

The man — almost certainly a Russian military officer — became alarmed when he saw two journalists approach. His entourage shielded him — forbidding photos — and the group sped off in a motorcade, the "general" safely inside a black Toyota SUV with no license plates." (AP [Associated Press] : Yahoo News : 3 April, 2015)

She goes on to report that,

"...there has been a tactical shift apparently aimed at minimizing Russia's military presence, part of an effort to persuade the West to lift economic sanctions." (ibid Nataliya Vasilyeva) (my emphasis)

But is this 'tactical' shift aimed at 'minimizing' Russia's military presence in eastern Ukraine? 

Or is it a deceptive 'maskirovka' strategy of Putin to intermingle Russian soldiers with rebel-forces so that he can now claim that there are 'no Russian soldiers' in eastern Ukraine.

Is it any wonder that Putin's Kremlin mouthpiece, Dmitry Peskov (right), last Tuesday yet again said that,

"Russia "firmly denies" reports of a Russian military presence in Ukraine." (ibid Nataliya Vasilyeva) (my emphasis)

This 'maskirovka' deception of Putin is squarely aimed at Western audiences, and we can expect to see RT and his 'Ministry of Truth' churn out a veritable avalanche of  propaganda pushing this deception upon an unsuspecting world.

Meanwhile, as reported by Nolan Peterson (left),

"Pro-Russian separatists and the Ukrainian Azov Regiment have been battling over the town of Shyrokyne for weeks.

The small town on the Sea of Azov is only about nine miles east of Mariupol, an industrial port city on the sea that is considered by some Ukrainian military officials to be the last obstacle before a separatist breakthrough that could advance all the way to Crimea." (Newsweek : 2 April, 2015) (my emphasis) 

Adding to the military pressure that Putin is exerting upon those defending Mariupol, RT informs us that,

"Russian Communists are preparing a bill that would ban state-owned corporations from any economic presence in Ukraine. The measure is being considered as a reply for Kiev’s planned nationalization of Russian property." (RT : April 03, 2015)
 
The absurdity of this call from communist MP's in the Russian Duma illustrates just how deep the nationalist fascistoid propaganda of Putin has seeped into the minds of the Russian public.

For how long the Russian public will be held captive to the imperialist ambitions of Putin remains to be seen. Putin may be infused with his KGB  Pavlovian conditioning to double down, fight his way out, turn up the pressure, never admit, never retreat, but the deteriorating economic situation in Russia will not disappear when his proxies and Russian soldiers attack Mariupol.

The Russian people will still experience rising inflation, rising food prices, a depreciating rouble, crippling bank interest rates and, most important of all, a steady flow of body-bags from eastern Ukraine.

Added to which, the Iranian nuclear talks in Lausanne, Switzerland, have come to an end, and Obama can no longer use these talks as an excuse to vacillate over supplying Ukraine with the necessary arms to counter Putin's continuous buildup of sophisticated weaponry into eastern Ukraine.

Putin's invasion of Mariupol is imminent.

What will be spurring him on to set up his forces for an imminent attack on Mariupol is the fact that,

"A summit between EU and Ukraine has been scheduled for April 27 in Kyiv. President Petro Poroshenko confirmed the meeting date on Saturday, after a conversation with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.

The deployment of European peacekeepers to monitor the ceasefire agreement brokered in Belarus in mid-February is expected to make the agenda." (Ukraine Today : Mar. 29, 2015) (my emphasis)

What will be decided at this upcoming summit in Kiev, as well as the pressure that will now be put on Obama to start sending defensive weaponry to Ukraine, will be determining factors that will decide the fate of Ukraine.

Putin's cheerleaders in the EU, especially the 'fragrant' Mogherini, are no doubt deciding on their strategy to scupper any talk of increasing EU sanctions against Putin.

Putin's recent threat to use nuclear bombs should annexed Ukrainian Crimea be threatened will no doubt be a card that they will use.

But will the upturn in the German economy scupper their plans? As Martin Hüfner (left) reports,

"This year German metalworkers will see the largest real wage growth in a long time. The collective bargaining partners just agreed to raise wages by 3.4%. With some extra lump-sum benefits and close-to-zero inflation, this translates into a real wage increase of 3.5%.

While this does not apply to the economy as a whole, the metalworkers’ deal is clearly a bellwether for other industries. " ( The Globalist : March 30, 2015)


We can but wait and see.

(to be continued)