Zelensky should be careful not to squander his current political capital.

 Finally the members of the European Parliament are beginning to realize that cowering before the dangerous and ruthless actions of Putin's military actions on the border of Ukraine, and in Ukraine's Crimea, has to come to an end.

As reported by UNIAN,

"The European Parliament on Thursday, April 29, adopted a tough resolution targeting Russia laying down harsh sanction measures in case Russian troops invade Ukraine.

The Resolution also addresses the case of opposition's Alexei Navalny and ammo depot explosions in the Czech Republic, Deutsche Welle reported.

EP says it remains highly concerned by the large Russian military build-up at the border with Ukraine and in the illegally occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea, which the Russian Ministry of Defense declared to have come to an end." (UNIAN : 29 April 2021) (my emphasis) 

Included in the adopted resolution are:

• .. "demands that Russia immediately end the practice of unjustified military build-ups targeted at threatening its neighbours."
• MEPs have also warned Russia of the "severe price" of an actual invasion of Ukraine, the move that would be in gross violation of international law.
• In such circumstances, "imports of oil and gas from Russia to the EU be immediately stopped, while Russia should be excluded from the SWIFT payment system, and all assets in the EU of oligarchs close to the Russian authorities and their families in the EU need to be frozen and their visas cancelled."
• MEPS have called to adopt an EU anti-corruption sanctions regime in order to complement the current EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime.
• The EP has demanded that the EU "should reduce its dependence on Russian energy", and urged the EU and member states to stop the completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and to demand a stop to the construction of controversial nuclear power plants built by Rosatom. (ibid UNIAN 29/4/2021)
  

 Unlike previous EU resolutions targeting Putin's war with Ukraine, this resolution critically includes

•  The Resolution stresses that "friendly countries should step up their military support to Ukraine and their provision of defensive weapons, which is in line with Article 51 of the UN Charter that allows individual and collective self-defence."

This resolution, by calling for states to "stop the completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, is finally giving the lie to Angela Merkel's and President of the EU Commission,Ursula von den Leyen's, continued assertion that Nord Stream2 is purely an economic contract between Putin and Germany, and not an attack on the economy of Ukraine.

And now, completely wrong-footing Putin, the Pope is willing to act as a mediator in talks between Zelensky and Putin to end Putin's war with Ukraine.

As reported by UNIAN,

"Pope Francis is willing to mediate Volodymyr Zelensky's meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, a Vatican diplomat says." (UNIAN : 29 April 2021)

 Does Putin reject the Pope as a possible mediator between himself and Zelensky?

If so, how will this be viewed by his comrade in arms, Russian Orthodox Patriarch Vladimir Kirill?

 

As reported by the DW (Deutche Welle),

" Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill exchanged kisses and embraced each other before sitting down smiling for the historic meeting at the airport in Havana on Friday.... "At last we meet. We are brothers," the pope said as the two church leaders met. "Clearly this meeting is God's will."

"Now things are easier," Kirill, 69, added." (DW : 12 February 2016) (my emphasis)

Will Russian Patriarch Kirill be willing to jeopardize the continuing brotherly relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church by supporting Putin if he rejects the Pope's offer as a mediator between himself and Zelensky?

This is also the dilemma now facing Putin in light of the offer to act as a mediator between himself and Zelensky by Pope Francis.

What makes this dilemma of Putin even more difficult for him to resolve is the fact that,

" [Zelensky] invited his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to hold talks in Donbas." (UNIAN: 29 April 2021) (my emphasis)

Putin's response was,

"On April 22, 2021, Putin responded to the invitation by suggesting that Zelensky could discuss the Donbas issue with the "leaders" of the two self-proclaimed republics, the "LPR/DPR," adding that Moscow remained open for contact on any other issues." (ibid UNIAN)  

This cursory dismissal by Putin of  holding talks with Zelensky in the Donbas now leaves him with no alternative other than to also dismiss the offer of Pope Francis as a possible mediator between them.

 

One is somewhat reminded of Navalny's retort during his recent trial that,

 

"In his final statement before Judge Kurysheva Natalia left to consider a decision, Navalny launched a tirade against Putin, likening him to the foolish king in the children's tale "The Emperor's New Clothes."

"I would like to say that your king [Putin] is naked, and more than one little boy is shouting about it -- it is now millions of people who are already shouting about it. It is quite obvious. Twenty years of incompetent rule have come to this: there is a crown sliding from his ears," Navalny said of Putin.." (Anna Chernova, Sebastian Shukla and Angela Dewan : CNN : 29 April 2021) (my emphasis)

 

 

Putin's threatening military invasion of Ukraine, his dismissal of talks with Zelensky in the Donbas, his possible dismissal of Pope Francis as a mediator, and the strongest ever resolution against him from the European Parliament, supports the contention of Navalny that "there is a crown sliding from his ears".

 

Adding to which, the railing of his dyed-in-the-wool Soviet Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov,

 

" ....  [warning]  Ukrainian officials Wednesday that Moscow would not accept their push to revise a peace deal for eastern Ukraine.(Vladimir Isachenkov The Associated Press: Global News : 28 April 2021) (my emphasis)

 

further indicates that Putin is politically flailing to extricate himself from the international political fallout of his threatening to invade Ukraine by massing his army on Ukraine's border and in Ukraine's Crimea.

 

Zelensky should now politically tread cautiously in thinking that he can woo Putin by re-visiting the Minsk2 protocols.

 

 As reported by UNIAN,

 

"Spokesman for the Ukrainian delegation to the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG) Oleksiy Arestovych says the presidents of Ukraine and Russia, Volodymyr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin, during a personal meeting may discuss a "revamp" for the Minsk agreements, in particular in the context of the banking system of the occupied territories of Donbas.

Arestovych added "there are many such clauses" and this, perhaps, would be one of the main issues of upgrading the Minsk agreements so that they can be implemented as such." (UNIAN : 29 April 2021)  (my emphasis)

Putin's mouthpiece, Sergey Lavrov, has already scuppered any such "revamp" by Zelensky.

 

Short of caving in on Putin's interpretation of Minsk2, Zelensky is on a political hiding to nothing in trying to "revamp" Minsk2.

 

 Zelensky should be careful not to squander his current political capital.

 

 

(to be continued)