Will Henry Kissinger and Rex Tillerson bury Minsk2 for Putin?

" Even when he dominated US foreign policy at the height of the Cold War, the Harvard professor [Henry Kissinger (left)] with the distinctive German accent was also a media celebrity with a reputation as a ladies’ man. “Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac,” he once noted, dryly."

So wrote Philip Sherwell about Henry Kissinger just before his 88th birthday. (The Telegraph : 21 May 2011) (my emphasis)

Now, in his 93rd year, Kissinger has been given another dose of 'political viagra' by none other than Donald Trump.

As Nahal Toosi and Isaac Arnsdorf report,

"Now, as Donald Trump signals that he wants a more cooperative relationship with Moscow, the 93-year-old Kissinger is positioning himself as a potential intermediary — meeting with the president-elect in private and flattering him in public. (Politico : Dec 24, 2016) (my emphasis)

What is of particular interest as Kissinger once again elbows himself towards the 'centre stage' on the geoplitical front is the fact that,

"He believes that rapprochement with Russia is the right move to position itself against the increasing militarization of China. A balance between America and Russia would strengthen global stability." (UT : Dec. 27, 2016) (my emphasis)

Kissinger further believes that,

"The core of the idea is that Russia guarantees the security of the eastern Ukraine, gradually withdrawing from there. The West, in return, does not interfere with the Crimean question.

The occupation of the Ukrainian peninsula [Crimea] is not officially recognized - but should not be an issue between Moscow and Washington, Kissinger recommends. (ibid UT) (my emphasis)

In effect, Kissinger is telling Trump to simply ignore the fact that Putin annexed Crimea, contrary to international law, and in so doing actually giving Putin a fig-leaf of international respectability for seizing some of the territory of an independent country.

But this was not always the case with Kissinger.

In 2014, when Putin invaded and annexed Crimea, and then rolled his troops into the Donbas, Kissinger stated that,

"The situation has gone very far, and Russia is using military pressures which we cannot accept.

And therefore it is appropriate for us to insist that the military pressures cease..... We cannot permit a country to be dismembered ..... (video below)

By April of 2015 Kissinger was giving a slanted historical justification (see video below) for Putin's annexation of Ukrainian Crimea, claiming that Ukrainian Crimea had ALWAYS been part of Russia, seemingly forgetting that Cathering the Great, the minor German princess who became ruler of Russia, also annexed Crimea in 1783 after wresting it from the Crimean Tatars.

It then also became a vassal of Russia. (cf Wikipedia [1], [2]

And now, in 2016, Kissinger, who has met Putin on many occasions, not only supports Trump's views about Putin, but also recommends,

".... recognizing the dominance of Russia in the former Soviet republics of Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia and Kazakhstan. This means: The US politically confers Russia's space between Poland / Baltics and Iran, Afghanistan and China as a sphere of influence." (ibid UT) (my emphasis)

Does Kissinger, together with Rex Tillerson, the prospective US Secretary of State appointed by Trump, spell the end of the Maidan revolution?

Does this duo of Kissinger and Tillerson also spell the end of US sanctions against Putin, even in the light of,

"The European Union has extended sanctions against Russia for its actions in Ukraine for another six months.

The European Council formally approved the extension on December 19 after EU leaders agreed to the move at a summit last week.

"The council prolonged the economic sanctions targeting specific sectors of the Russian economy until July 31, 2017," the council said in a statement"? (RFE/RL : December 19, 2016) (my emphasis)

Will the duo of Kissinger and Tillerson also hammer the final nail in the coffin of Minsk2 for Putin?

(to be continued)