Putin's 'feverish' diplomatic flurry being aided and abetted by Merkel and Hollande

In March of 2015 Putin, for the first time, publicly admitted that,

"... the plan to annex Crimea was ordered weeks before the referendum on self-determination." (BBC News : 9 March 2015) (my emphasis)

We should therefore not be surprised that, as recently reported by Damien Sharkov,

"Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that his government was “forced to defend the Russian speakers” of eastern Ukraine, despite previously denying that Moscow plays any formal role in the conflict in the Donbas regions.
...
Putin had denied sending troops into Crimea, before annexing it in 2014, and issued similar denials regarding Donbas. However, he has issued statements seemingly admitting to armed Russian presence in both regions since." (Newsweek: 10/12/16) (my emphasis)

This public announcement by Putin comes on the heels of,

• "The Russian and Turkish leaders .. [agreeing] to intensify military and intelligence contacts after a meeting in Istanbul" (BBC News: 10 October 2016) (my emphasis), as well as,
•  Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, met on Monday for the second time since August to finalize a deal for an undersea gas pipeline and demonstrate renewed bilateral ties ..... The pipeline would be hugely beneficial to Russia, allowing Moscow to bypass Ukraine entirely and giving it a direct opening into the European market. (Natasha Bertrand : Business Indsider : Oct. 12, 2016) (my emphasis)

It also come on the heels of,


"Russian President Vladimir Putin [cancelling] a planned visit to France next week, the Kremlin said Tuesday, in an apparent snub to French President François Hollande, who suggested Moscow was guilty of war crimes in Syria." (Angela Dewan (left): CNN : October 11, 2016) (my emphasis)

And then, in a telephone conversation between Putin, Merkel, and Hollande (Oct 12, 2016),

"Despite growing diplomatic tensions over Syria, the leaders of Russia, France and Germany may meet "very soon" in Berlin to revive peace efforts for Ukraine.
....
The statement said they agreed that a Ukraine peace meeting would have to be "constructive and useful" toward ensuring a cease-fire and free elections. Prospects of a quick solution to Ukraine's conflict between the government and Russia-backed separatist rebels seem remote, however." (ABC News (Associated Press) : Oct 12, 2016) (my emphasis)

This "opportunistic diplomatic flurry" of Putin has been spurred on as the eyes of President Obama are averted towards what is turning into the 'strangest' of American presidential elections, and also with the possible election of Hilary Clinton into the Oval Office within the next 30 days.

Unlike President Obama, a Hilary Clinton presidency will not be as 'soft on Putin' as Obama has been.

In 2014 she stated that Putin's actions in Ukrainian Crimea,

".... were similar to what happened in the Nazi era in Czechoslovakia and Romania.
 
"Now if this sounds familiar, it’s what Hitler did back in the 30s,” Clinton said... “Hitler kept saying: ‘They’re not being treated right. I must go and protect my people.’ And that’s what’s gotten everybody so nervous.” (The Guardian (Associated Press) : Thursday 6 March 2014) (my emphasis)

As Putin himself recently said about sending his soldiers into the Donbas and into Ukrainian Crimea,

“Then when we were forced, and I want to underline this, forced to defend the Russian speaking population of Donbas, forced to respond to the struggle of the people living in Crimea to return to the Russian federation, [the U.S.] begins a wave of anti-Russian policies and introduces sanctions.” (ibid Damien Sharkov) (my emphasis)

And whilst Putin, Merkel, and Hollande, are once again shouting from the rafters that,

".. they agreed that a Ukraine peace meeting would have to be "constructive and useful" toward ensuring a cease-fire and free elections." (ibid Angela Dewan)
....
"The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has said that only "significant and measurable progress" by Russia towards implementation of previous resolutions of the Assembly can form the basis for restoration of a fully-fledged, mutually respectful dialogue" (UT : Oct. 12, 2016)

This is rather succinctly summed up in the words of Ukraine's Parliament First Deputy Chairwoman Iryna Gerashchenko (right) that,

"They recognized that if the OSCE cannot guarantee the security of the two speakers in the occupied territories, the OSCE cannot guarantee the security of the elections. Therefore, any elections in the occupied Donbas currently is out of the schedule. This is recorded in the PACE resolution, supported by 87 members of the Assembly. We have a powerful argument in our discussions with Western partners. It is difficult to overestimate." (ibid UT)

The obvious fact that the OSCE, currently chaired by that Putinversteher Walter Steinmeier (left), cannot guarantee the security of elections in the Donbas, Putin's desperation to have the sanctions against him and his siloviki lifted is now the main focus of his wanting this 'meeting' about Ukraine with Merkel and Hollande.
 
And notwithstanding the deepening military and economic collaboration between Putin and Erdogan, a potential President Clinton will want to INCREASE the sanctions against him and his siloviki clique, especially in light of what Putin is doing in Allepo, and Putin is well aware of this. 

Putin does not have time on his side.

And to now, suddenly, announce publicly that  he was “forced to defend the Russian speakers” of eastern Ukraine, thus admitting that thousands of Russian soldiers are operating in the Donbas, indicates his desperation to at least have 'his' framework for those 'elections' in the Donbas underwritten by Merkel and Hollande before the looming US presidential elections.

(to be continued)