On Thursday (7 Jan. 2016) I wrote that,
"
As in the case of the cyber attack on Estonia in 2007, Putin is once again hiding behind the skirts of "so-called" hackers, in the hope that the international community will not see him as the instigator of this cyber warfare against Ukraine.
Many commentators seem to be tip-toeing around pointing the finger directly at Putin." (blog)
Finally, yesterday
U.S. cyber intelligence firm iSight Partners said on Thursday it has determined that a Russian hacking group known as Sandworm caused last month's unprecedented power outage in Ukraine.
"We believe that Sandworm was responsible," iSight's director of espionage analysis, John Hultquist, said in an interview.
.....
"It is a
Russian actor operating with alignment to the interest of the state,"
Hultquist said. "Whether or not it's freelance, we don't know." (Reuters :
As Doug Bernard (right) also explains,
"Not surprisingly, Russia has figured as the principal suspect in planting the Ukrainian malware. Neither Russian or Ukrainian officials have spoken about the incident publicly, but in the past, government-linked Russian hackers have been tied to cyber-attacks in Estonia, Georgia and elsewhere." (VoA : January 07, 2016) (my emphasis)
Putin's 'maskirovka' mask is slipping very fast.
And whilst Putin's 'hackers' are busy 'cyber'-attacking the grid system of Ukraine, the Moscow Times reveals that,
"German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday she believes there
will be progress in the "Normandy format" negotiations on the Ukraine
crisis over the next few months.
As I stated in my blog entry on 4 Jan. 2016,
"Now, however, events between Iran and Saudi Arabia has rather "thrown the cat amongst the pidgeons" of this 'hidden agenda' of Merkel and Hollande. (i.e. to have the economic sanctions against Russia lifted)
Putin cannot 'suddenly' withdraw his support for Assad.
More importantly, Hollande cannot be seen to stand alongside Putin, thus courting the extreme displeasure of Saudi Arabia and her friends.
Merkel, on the other hand, has given refuge to hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees.
Merkel can help Putin get off the Syrian hook on which he now dangles.
Will she now force Putin's hand over Ukraine" (blog)
As her current optimism indicates, it would seem that this is precisely what she is doing viz. forcing Putin's hand over Ukraine.
But will it work?
(to be continued)
"
As in the case of the cyber attack on Estonia in 2007, Putin is once again hiding behind the skirts of "so-called" hackers, in the hope that the international community will not see him as the instigator of this cyber warfare against Ukraine.Many commentators seem to be tip-toeing around pointing the finger directly at Putin." (blog)
Finally, yesterday U.S. cyber intelligence firm iSight Partners said on Thursday it has determined that a Russian hacking group known as Sandworm caused last month's unprecedented power outage in Ukraine.
"We believe that Sandworm was responsible," iSight's director of espionage analysis, John Hultquist, said in an interview.
.....
"It is a
Russian actor operating with alignment to the interest of the state,"
Hultquist said. "Whether or not it's freelance, we don't know." (Reuters :
As Doug Bernard (right) also explains,"Not surprisingly, Russia has figured as the principal suspect in planting the Ukrainian malware. Neither Russian or Ukrainian officials have spoken about the incident publicly, but in the past, government-linked Russian hackers have been tied to cyber-attacks in Estonia, Georgia and elsewhere." (VoA : January 07, 2016) (my emphasis)
Putin's 'maskirovka' mask is slipping very fast.
And whilst Putin's 'hackers' are busy 'cyber'-attacking the grid system of Ukraine, the Moscow Times reveals that,
"German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday she believes there
will be progress in the "Normandy format" negotiations on the Ukraine
crisis over the next few months.
The "Normandy format" includes France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine.
"I believe that we will achieve progress in the Normandy negotiations between Russia and the Ukraine within the next months. I am optimistic," Merkel said at a Chamber of Industry and Commerce event in Magdeburg.." (Moscow Times : Jan. 08 2016) (my emphasis)
"I believe that we will achieve progress in the Normandy negotiations between Russia and the Ukraine within the next months. I am optimistic," Merkel said at a Chamber of Industry and Commerce event in Magdeburg.." (Moscow Times : Jan. 08 2016) (my emphasis)
As I stated in my blog entry on 4 Jan. 2016,
"Now, however, events between Iran and Saudi Arabia has rather "thrown the cat amongst the pidgeons" of this 'hidden agenda' of Merkel and Hollande. (i.e. to have the economic sanctions against Russia lifted)
Putin cannot 'suddenly' withdraw his support for Assad.
More importantly, Hollande cannot be seen to stand alongside Putin, thus courting the extreme displeasure of Saudi Arabia and her friends.
Merkel, on the other hand, has given refuge to hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees.
Merkel can help Putin get off the Syrian hook on which he now dangles.
Will she now force Putin's hand over Ukraine" (blog)
As her current optimism indicates, it would seem that this is precisely what she is doing viz. forcing Putin's hand over Ukraine.
But will it work?
(to be continued)
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