Will the Biden-Zelensky co-operation be the denouement of Putin?

One could almost say it was inevitable that following  Merkel, Germany's CDU Party would crown a pro-Putin successor to replace her when she steps down as the current leader of the CDU.

As reported by Joel Day,

"Mr Laschet's appeasement towards Russia has led many within Germany to describe him as a Russlandversteher (cf. also Wikipedia): A derogatory term for people who take a soft and sympathetic stance on Mr Putin’s Russia, according to Politico." (Express : 18 January 2021) (my emphasis)

Indicative of Laschet's pro-Putin stance, Daniel Johnson (right) informs us that,

"Laschet seems inclined to trust the Russian President even when the evidence of his culpability is overwhelming. For example, after the Salisbury poisoning, he responded to the British request for Western sanctions by tweeting: “If you force almost all Nato countries to show solidarity, shouldn’t you have reliable evidence?” Given the devastating detail with which British investigators built the case that this chemical weapons attack must have been authorised at the highest level (i.e. by Putin himself), this expression of scepticism is deeply disturbing." (The Article : 18 January 2021) (my emphasis)

Admittedly, Lascher may not succeed in becoming Chancellor of Germany during the German election later this year.

However, should he succeed in becoming Germany's next Chancellor, Zelensky should expect him to tacitly support the lifting of the EU sanctions against Putin, sanctions which were put in place because of Putin's illegal annexation of Ukraine's Crimea, and his support for his proxies in the Donbas.

Laschet  will, however, be dealing with Joe Biden, the new US President who has his sights already set on Putin.

Already, as reported by Michael Nienaber,

"The United States has informed the German government that it plans to sanction Russian vessel “Fortuna”, which is involved in construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, and its owner KVT-RUS, German business daily Handelsblatt reported on Monday.

U.S. government officials informed Berlin and other European allies on Monday that the sanctions would go into effect on Tuesday, the newspaper added, without citing sources." (Reuters : 18 January 2021) (my emphasis)

“We’re taking note of the announcement with regret,” an Economy Ministry spokesman in Berlin said. (Michael Nienaber : Reuters : 18-19 January 2021) (my emphasis)

Furthermore, as reported by UNIAN,

Ihor Zhovkva, the deputy head of President Volodymyr Zelensky's Office, has outlined a number of priorities in cooperation between Ukraine and the administration of U.S. President-elect Joe Biden.U.S (left). 

 

(i) support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, taking into account military aid...  And what is even more important is an increase in funding for the supply of lethal weapons to Ukraine 

 

(ii) the United States' active involvement in the process of resolving the situation in Donbas and the end of the Russian occupation of Crimea.

 

(iii) the economic sector would remain one of the priorities on the agenda of bilateral relations between Ukraine and the United States.

 

(iv) Zhovkva also highlighted the fight against corruption as a priority in relations with the United States. "Here we will indeed be allies of President Biden in carrying out anti-corruption measures in Ukraine. (UNIAN : 18 January 2021) (my emphases)

 

If Biden's plan to sanction not only the "Fortuna" pipelaying vessel and its owner, KVT Rus, but also to fully support the above priorities coming out of Zelensky's office, how will Denmark and Germany react?

According to Kirsti Knolle and Oliver Danzer ,

"Denmark’s Nautiskinformation notified shippers on Thursday that prohibited areas near Bornholm would be established beginning on Friday for the pipe laying vessel Fortuna, assisted by construction and supply vessels.

Earlier, the German business daily Handelsblatt said the NS2 group, which is led by Russia’s Gazprom, was delaying the completion work, linking this to enhanced sanctions pressure from Washington aimed at halting the project." (Reuters : 15 January 2021) (my emphasis)

And as DW reports,

 

"Germany's Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) on Friday said construction on the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline can restart immediately.
...[]
However, local media said the restart could still be delayed by legal action from environmental groups as the remaining stretch of the pipeline runs through the edge of a conservation area for birds.
...[]
Nord Stream 2 AG said despite the approval, work in German waters was unlikely to resume immediately." (DW : 15 January 2021) (my emphases)

Which must all be causing a headache for Putin and Merkel, the staunchest advocates of linking Putin's Russia and Merkel's Germany with the economic umbilical cord of Nord Stream2.

Will the Biden-Zelensky co-operation be the denouement of Putin?  

(to be continued)

Zelensky should now, more than ever, be aware of just how dangerous Putin can be.

 What has happened at the US parliamentary building two days ago was, in the words of Lawrence O' Donnell,

"Yesterday ... yesterday ... thanks to the people that Donald Trump sent to the capital, Hitler got a bit of revenge on that building by having some people who fully support Hitler's genocide, invade the inner sanctums of the government that crushed Hitler and liberated his death camps" (MSNBC : 8 January 2021) (my emphasis)

O' Donnell goes on to say that,

"The Russian [Putin's] campaign's goal was never to push out a coherent pro-Trump message, but instead to subvert America's democratic institutions and sow distrust. President Donald Trump was just a means to an end. [Quoted from Haaretz Israeli newspaper]" 

Meanwhile, on the 8th December 2020, that Soviet dyed-in-the-wool Foreign Secretary, Sergey Lavrov, wined and dined Germany's Neo-Nazi AFD Party members in Moscow.

As reported by Thomas O. Falk,

"During a visit by two AfD politicians to Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov praised the party’s role in “maintaining” German-Russian relations. It was imperative to develop contacts with those who want to “overcome the existing problems,” Lavrov said on Tuesday at a meeting with AfD co-chair Tino Chrupalla and parliamentary group vice-chair Armin-Paul Hampel, the AfD’s foreign policy spokesman.

The AfD is resolutely in favor of lifting the EU sanctions against Russia, which, according to Chrupalla, had harmed both sides." (European Views : 9 December 2020) (my emphasis)

But what Trump and his sons have done by exhorting his fanatical Neo-Nazi followers to violently try to overturn Biden's win in the Presidential elections has awoken the sleeping American giant that Trump deliberately caused to sleep during his four year reign as the US president. This was payback to Putin for getting him into the White House.

Already, as reported by UNIAN,

"Ukraine will receive from the United States two new MK VI patrol boats. That's according to Army Inform, Ukraine Defense Ministry's information agency, referring to a Pentagon report." (UNIAN : 7 January 2021) (my emphasis)

Furthermore, the incoming Biden presidency also has its sights on Nord Stream 2. 

It is therefore no coincidence that Lavrov wooed Germany's Neo-Nazis because they will try to ensure that the Nord Stream 2 umbilical cord between Germany and Putin's Russia will soon be up and running.

As I wrote in my last blog entry (31/12/2020),

"For Zelensky the question now is,

"Will plucky Denmark hold up the resuming of the pipeline laying works in Denmark's territorial waters until they receive an updated plan?"

It is time for Zelensky to woo the Danish government."

As Peter Dickinson (left) recently wrote in his article "All Roads Lead To Ukraine in Putin's Global Hybrid War",

"How did we go from presidential one-liners to a new Cold War in less than a decade? While events such as Moscow’s brief 2008 war with Georgia had previously strained relations, the real turning point came in February 2014 when Russia invaded Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula. This was a watershed moment in twenty-first century history marking the dawn of a new and troubling era of competition between Russia and the West. Ever since Putin’s “little green men” (Russian soldiers without insignias) first seized Crimea seven years ago, the confrontation has continued to expand and escalate. (Atlantic Council : 5 January 2021) (my emphasis)

It is therefore interesting to note, as reported by UNIAN, that,

"A few individuals in the video that has gone viral on Thursday are seen trying to break into the Capitol, smashing windows and glass doors, while someone in the background at one moment is
heard cheering them up in Russian.

"Smeleie," a male voice yells twice, which in the English equivalent would be something like "Come on!", "Do it!" or "Don't be scared."

"Davai bystreie," the voice also yells, which stands for "Do it faster,"  Segodnia reports.
...
It was a Ukrainian journalist Andriy Tsaplienko who posted the video clip on his Telegram channel, drawing public attention to the incident." (UNIAN : 7 January 2021) (my emphasis)

Like Trump, Putin is also now being squeezed into a tight political corner by the Biden US Presidential win.

And like Trump, Zelensky should now be aware more than ever just how dangerous Putin can be.

As reported by the Daily Mail (3 June 2020),

"President Vladimir Putin has endorsed Russia's nuclear deterrent policy which allows him to use atomic weapons in response to a conventional strike targeting the nation's critical government and military infrastructure." (Daily Mail : 3 June 2020) (my emphasis)

Zelensky should now be very very wary of the nuclear missiles that Putin has installed in Ukraine's Crimea.

(to be continued)