Will Merkel and Macron fall into Tillerson's trap of counter proposals to Minsk2?

The dust is finally beginning to settle on the G20 meeting that was held in Germany, and at which many leaders of the world held many private conversations with selected members of their counterparts from different countries.

The Trump-Putin meeting, much anticipated by many in the world, has come and gone.

Tillerson's press meeting, at which he attempted a summary of what Putin and Trump spoke about, did not quite square with Lavrov's press statements about what transpired during the Putin-Trump meeting.

As reported by MSNBC ...

Somewhat eclipsed by the Putin-Trump meeting is the fact that,

"The leaders of Germany, France, and Russia have agreed that the Minsk agreements on ending the conflict in eastern Ukraine "should be comprehensively implemented," a German official tells RFE/RL.

The characterization of the meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Group of 20 summit in Hamburg, Germany, suggested no significant progress on efforts to bring peace to eastern Ukraine." (Rikard Jozwiak : RFERL : July 08, 2017) (my emphasis)

Now recall that just over three weeks ago,

"Secretary of State Rex Tillerson signaled the U.S. could ease off demands that Russia abide by the Minsk agreement to end the conflict in Ukraine, telling lawmakers that the administration doesn’t want to be “handcuffed” if Moscow and Kiev can settle their dispute another way.

Tillerson made the comment Wednesday to House lawmakers who may soon be weighing tougher sanctions against Moscow over its role in the Ukraine conflict" (Nick Wadhams: Bloomberg : 14 June 2017) (my emphasis)

And then, lo and behold,

"At the request of President (Vladimir) Putin, the United States has appointed ... a special representative for Ukraine, Ambassador Kurt Volker," (right: Tillerson and Volker) Tillerson told reporters after a meeting between Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany." (Susan Heavey and Doina Chiacu : Reuters : Fri Jul 7, 2017) (my emphasis)

Today, as reported by Nike Ching (left),

"U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson makes his first official visit to Kyiv Sunday, where he will meet with President Petro Poroshenko to discuss ways to help end the conflict in eastern Ukraine and support its ongoing reform efforts.

“The United States remains fully committed to the objectives of the Minsk agreement,” Tillerson said in a statement Friday, referring to the cease-fire deal that Moscow and Kyiv agreed to in 2015." (RFERL : July 09, 2017) (my emphasis)

As in the fact that Tillerson and Lavrov's statements about what transpired during that G20 meeting between Trump and Putin did not quite square with each other, we now have to ask ourselves,

"How does Tilleron's statement that,

• "the U.S. could ease off demands that Russia abide by the Minsk agreement to end the conflict in Ukraine" quite square with his yesterday's statement that, 
• "The United States remains fully committed to the objectives of the Minsk agreement"?

Perhaps, even more pertinent,

"How does one remain committed to the OBJECTIVES of the Minsk2 protocols without, in any way, remaining committed to the DEMANDS of the Minsk2 protocols unless, of course, you view the DEMANDS of Minsk2 as UNREASONABLE in bringing an end to Putin's war with Ukraine?

Is Kurt Volker being set up by Tillerson to present to Merkel and Macron counter proposals to the Minsk2 proposals?

Will Merkel and Macron fall into Tillerson's trap of counter proposals to Minsk2?

And lest we forget,

"At the request of President (Vladimir) Putin, the United States has appointed ... a special representative for Ukraine, Ambassador Kurt Volker," Tillerson told reporters after a meeting between Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany." (ibid Susan Heavey and Doina Chiacu)

(to be continued)

Neither Putin, Trump, nor Tillerson, can disentagle themselves from the scarlet thread of Maidan.

The much anticipated meeting between Trump and Putin at the G20 Summit in Germany has now come and gone.

Many are now poring over the possible discussions that took place between Putin and Trump, a two hour and sixteen minute meeting that is still shrouded in secrecy.

Putin, Lavrov, Trump, and Tillerson, the Group of Four that attended this meeting, did NOT have any persons in attendance who took contemporaneous notes of this meeting.

What we now have to rely on is Tillerson's press conference of what transpired during this meeting.

Now recall that in my last blog entry I stated that,

"Is Putin setting up Trump to be the knight in shining armour that will end the war between Russia and Ukraine in the Donbas and, in return, have the sanctions against Russia, himself, and his 'siloviki' clique, lifted?" (blog : 31 January,2017)"

And we have the answer from Tillerson himself.

"At the request of President (Vladimir) Putin, the United States has appointed ... a special representative for Ukraine, Ambassador Kurt Volker," (right: Tillerson and Volker) Tillerson told reporters after a meeting between Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany." (Susan Heavey and Doina Chiacu : Reuters : Fri Jul 7, 2017) (my emphasis)

Neither Putin, Trump, nor Tillerson, can disentagle themselves from the scarlet thread of Maidan.

In the words of US Congress Representative Maxine Waters, (MSNBC : 7th July,2017)

Which brings us to the $64 question.

"Is the appointment of Volker as the US special representative for Ukraine yet another 'wrong-footing' of Merkel's and Macron's political stance against Putin's war with Ukraine, and his illegal annexation of Ukrainian Crimea? (left: Merkel and Macron)


This follows on from the question I posed in my last blog entry.

 "Is Lavrov's admission that Putin IS at war with Ukraine a prelude to Putin now giving Trump the 'go-ahead' to ask him to 'end his war with Ukraine', thus wrong-footing both Angela Merkel and Macron? (blog : 31 January,2017)

(to be continued)

Donald Trump and Senators Lindsey Graham and Chuck Grassley are the Republican triumvirate preparing to throw Ukraine under the bus.

On Tuesday 31 January, 2017, I wrote that,

"As reported by David Smith,

"Donald Trump attempted to put up a united front with key ally Theresa May on Friday [27th January 2017] but stopped short of endorsing her commitment to continued sanctions on Russia." (The Guardian : Friday 27 January 2017) (my emphasis)

....
The following day [28th January 2017] we had the most anticipated phone call between Trump and Putin take place, a call that lasted for 50 minutes.
...... 
Why would Putin have his soldiers and rebel proxies in eastern Ukraine (Donbas) suddenly unleash themselves against Ukrainian forces immediately after that Trump-Putin telephone tête-à-tête?

Is this why Trump deliberately stopped short of endorsing [Teresa May's] commitment to continued sanctions against Russia, irrespective of the threat of John McCaine to codify these sanctions into US law?

Is Putin setting up Trump to be the knight in shining armour that will end the war between Russia and Ukraine in the Donbas and, in return, have the sanctions against Russia, himself, and his 'siloviki' clique, lifted?" (blog : 31 January,2017)

Fast foreward to 2nd July 2017, 6 days before Trump and Putin will be meeting at the G20 summit in Germany.

As UNIAN now reports,

02 July 2017

Read more on UNIAN: https://www.unian.info/politics/2006424-lavrov-on-donbas-war-i-heard-criticism-of-our-decision-to-join-the-fight.html

02 July 2017

Read more on UNIAN: https://www.unian.info/politics/2006424-lavrov-on-donbas-war-i-heard-criticism-of-our-decision-to-join-the-fight.html

02 July 2017

Read more on UNIAN: https://www.unian.info/politics/2006424-lavrov-on-donbas-war-i-heard-criticism-of-our-decision-to-join-the-fight.html

"Russia's Lavrov [FINALLY!] admits that Russia is at war with Ukraine in the Donbas region," investigative journalist, reporter and Russian media monitor and analyst Julia Davis wrote on Twitter." (my emphasis)

And as in the case of of Putin unleashing his Russian soldiers against Ukrainian forces in the Donbas just prior to his 50 minute tête-à-tête call with Trump [28th January 2017] , UNIAN also reports that,

"Russia's hybrid military forces attacked Ukrainian army positions in Donbas 15 times in the past 24 hours, according to the press service of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) Headquarters." (UNIAN : 5 July, 2017) (my emphasis)

These attacks follow a series of viscious attacks that started two weeks ago, as reported by LiveUAmap .

Is Lavrov's admission that Putin IS at war with Ukraine a prelude to Putin now giving Trump the 'go-ahead' to ask him to 'end his war with Ukraine', thus wrong-footing both Angela Merkel and Macron?

Is Putin setting up Trump to be the knight in shining armour that will end the war between Russia and Ukraine in the Donbas and, in return, have the sanctions against Russia, himself, and his 'siloviki' clique, lifted?"
  

(MSNBC 5th July, 2017)

 

Both Putin and Trump desperately need to stymie the US Senate and Congressional hearings into just how Putin helped him into the White House.

Already Republicans in both the US Senate and the Congress are ramping up their attacks against the Christopher Steele dossier, which they are now desperately trying to argue, set off the FBI investigation into Putin's gross interference in the 2016 US presidential elections.

(MSNBC: 29th June, 2017)

It would now seem that the scarlet thread of Maidan has also ensnared Republicans in the US Senate and Congress, and this will add to Putin's 'charm offensive' against Donald Trump when they privately waltz together at to-morrow's G20 Summit in Germany.

Will Trump, and  US Republican Senators Lindsey Graham and Chuck Grassley (right: Grassley and Graham) now form the Republican triumvirate that will throw Ukraine under the bus as payback to Putin and his kleptocratic 'siloviki' in the Kremlin for getting Trump elected to the White House?

(to be continued)

What the world will not see is the scarlet thread of Maidan that is wrapped around Putin and Trump as they waltz together at the G20 summit.

The longs knives of Republicans in the Senate and Congress are being sharpened against the FBI investigation into Putin's collusion with Trump officials during the 2016 US presidential elections, which ultimately led to Trump now occupying the White House.

Republican Senators Grassley and Graham (left) have, on June 27, 2017, fired off a letter to Rod J. Rosenstein (right : McCabe and Rosenstein), Deputy Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, and Andrew McCabe, Acting Director, FBI, demanding that, 

(a) Copies of all proposed and all final signed FISA applications submitted to the FISC relating to: Russian interference in the 2016 election; allegations of collusion between people associated with the Trump campaign and Russia; and any known Trump associates regardless of context. 

(b) Copies of all FISC responses to the above-mentioned applications in which the Court notified the FBI or Justice Department that it would not grant the proposed applications or recommended changes.  If any such FISC responses were provided orally, rather than in writing, please provide copies of all FBI or Justice Department records memorializing or otherwise referencing the relevant FISC responses. 

 

(c) Copies of all FISC orders relating to the above-mentioned applications, whether denying the applications and certifications, denying the orders, modifying the orders, granting the orders, or other types of orders.

Essentially, the focus of Republican Senators Grassley and Lindsey is to discredit the Steele dossier, and to argue that it was this dossier that precipitated James Comey, then Director of the FBI, to set in motion the 'Russia Investigation'.

As Rachel Maddow of MSNBC explains,

"They're saying implicitly that that dossier of materials is unproven and suspect and that's what the FBI's whole investigation is based on"  (MSNBC : 28 June, 2017)

In other words, Grassley and Graham are, in effect, saying that ALL the EU secret agencies, that have substatianted much in this dossier, are not to be believed.  

 Even more significantly, Grassley and Graham are trying to divert the attention of the American public from the fact that, as reported by Robert Mendick and Robert Verkaik,

"An ex-KGB chief suspected of helping the former MI6 spy Christopher Steele to compile his dossier on Donald Trump may have been murdered by the Kremlin and his death covered up. it has been claimed.

...

Erovinkin (left)  has been described as a key liaison between Sechin and Russian president Vladimir Putin. Mr Steele writes in an intelligence report dated July 19, 2016, he has a source close to Sechin, who had disclosed alleged links between Mr Trump’s supporters and Moscow.
The death of Erovinkin has prompted speculation it is linked to Mr Steele’s explosive dossier .." (The Telegraph : 27 January 2017) (my emphasis)

Central to the Steele report is the fact that,

By trying to undermine the veracity of many details in, if not ALL of, the Steele report, Grassley and Graham are playing directly into the hands of Putin.

The EU-US sanctions against Putin and his 'siloviki' clique in the Kremlin, that resulted from the ongoing war between Putin and Ukraine, and Putin's illegal annexation of Ukrainian Crimea; that 'sanctions' scarlet thread of Maidan cannot so easily be wished away by either Grassley or Graham since it is the very raison d'être of Putin helping Trump get elected president of the US.

And next week the world waits with bated breath as,

"President Donald Trump will meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin next week at the G20 summit in Germany.

Senior White House officials declined to say whether Mr Trump would address Russian interference in the 2016 US election.

H.R. McMaster, the national security adviser, said the agenda for the high stakes meeting had not been finalised. (Nick Allen and Harriet Alexander : The Telegraph : 29 June 2017) (my emphasis)

So the world will be watching as Trump and Putin waltz together at the G20 summit in Germany, straining to hear what these two will be whispering into each other's ear.

What the world will not see is the scarlet thread of Maidan that is wrapped around them as they waltz together at the G20 summit.

 (to be continued)

Will Putin be holding "the dossier" as a sword of Damocles over the head of Trump at the upcoming G20 summit?

The Week reports that,

"The oil price is hovering near seven-month lows and remains close to being in a "bear market", despite a big fall in reported US oil reserves.

Brent crude, the international oil price benchmark, fell below $46 a barrel yesterday after peaking earlier this year at $56 a barrel. Earlier today, it hit an intraday low below $45, marking a peak-to-trough fall of more than 20 per cent to meet the definition of a bear market." (The Week : Jun 22, 2017) ( my emphasis)

And as  Putin and his 'siloviki' clique must be tearing out their hair at this near precipitous fall in the price of oil,

"The leaders of European Union nations have agreed to extend sanctions against Russia over its actions in Ukraine, following a similar move by the United States this week.

European Council president Donald Tusk tweeted Thursday while hosting an EU summit in Brussels: "Agreed. EU will extend economic sanctions against Russia" over its failure to implement measures promised in a peace agreement. [i.e Ukraine ceasefire agreement]

After Thursday's political decision, the sanctions will be formally extended for another six months starting next week." (Caledonian Record : Jun 22, 2017) (my emphasis)

Meanwhile yesterday,

"French President Emmanuel Macron (right) said on Monday that France refuses to recognise Russia’s “annexation” of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea but that he hoped to make progress towards peace.

Mr. Macron said after meeting Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Paris that his approach to future talks was unambiguous: “France is committed to Ukraine's sovereignty with its recognised borders,” he said." (The Hindu (Agence France Press) : Paris, June 27, 2017) (my emphasis)

 It is therefore no wonder that Putin has now lashed out against Ukraine by,

"Companies across the globe are reporting that they have been struck by a major ransomware cyber-attack.

Ukrainian firms, including the state power company and Kiev's main airport, were among the first to report issues." (BBC News : 28 June, 2017 [4 hours ago]) (my emphasis)

 And as Putin continues to lash out against Ukraine, much like Donald Trump railing against the continuing unravelling of just how Putin got him into the White House .....

Theodoric Meyer reports that,

"The firm headed by Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman, made more than $17 million working as a foreign agent of a pro-Russian Ukrainian political party, according to newly filed disclosure reports.
...
The filing makes Manafort the second Trump campaign official to retroactively disclose foreign lobbying." (Politico : 28/6/17) (my emphasis)

 In light of all this,

"President Donald Trump is eager to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin with full diplomatic bells and whistles when the two are in Germany for a multinational summit next month.
...
But the idea is exposing deep divisions within the administration on the best way to approach Moscow in the midst of an ongoing investigation into Russian meddling in the U.S. elections.
...
Many administration officials believe the U.S. needs to maintain its distance from Russia at such a sensitive time — and interact only with great caution. (Vivian Salama (AP): Chicago Tribune : June 28, 2017) (my emphasis)

What will transpire between Putin and Trump at the July G20 Summit meeting in July in Germany remains to be seen.

Who will be calling the "meeting" shots at the upcoming G20 summit in Germany?

Will Putin be holding "the dossier" as a sword of Damocles over the head of Trump at this G20 summit?

 
 (to be continued)

What hold does Putin have over Trump?

Yesterday, as reported by Dan Merica (left),

" ... When Petro Poroshenko visited the White House on Tuesday, the Ukrainian President wasn't greeted by the traditional pomp and circumstance that comes with a foreign leader meeting with the president of the United States." (CNN : 20 June, 2017) (my emphasis)

Dan Merica goes on to report that,

" ... Poroshenko's treatment is noteworthy given Trump's tendency to roll out the red carpet for almost all foreign leaders who visit the White House -- even those from small countries with few pressing issues in the United States." (ibid Dan Merica) (my emphasis)

Perhaps even more significant, as reported by Shaun Walker (right),

" ...Trump said Ukraine was “a place that we’ve all been very much involved in; we’ve been seeing it and everyone’s been reading about it”, but did not condemn Russian aggression against Ukraine, something he has never done." (The Guardian : 20 June, 2017) (my emphasis)

And if this were not enough, Trump's nominee for US Deputy Defence Secretary, Boing executive Pat Shanahan, displayed a dangerous ignorance about the situation in Ukraine during his confirmation hearing.

As reported by Travis Tritten,

" .. Sen. John McCain (left) on Tuesday threatened to block President Trump's deputy defense secretary nominee during a tense exchange over providing weapons to Ukraine.

McCain took issue with Boeing executive Pat Shanahan's written response to the Senate Armed Services Committee that he would need to take a look at equipping Ukrainian allies with lethal arms, something McCain has long advocated.

The chairman hammered Shanahan with pointed questions over his time at Boeing and whether he did his homework on the Ukraine question during the opening minutes of what was expected to be a smooth confirmation hearing." (Washington Examiner : June 20, 2017) (me emphasis)

What we therefore have is the following :-

• Yesterday (20 June, 2017) Trump did NOT condemn Putin for his illegal annexation of Ukrainian Crimea, and his ongoing war with Ukraine in the Donbas, during yesterday's joint press release with President Poroshenko of Ukraine
• Trump's nominee for US Deputy Defence Secretary not only displayed woeful ignorance about Putin's war with Ukraine but, more significantly, stated that, "he would need to take a look at equipping Ukrainian allies with lethal arms"

Which once again raises the issue of Trump's reluctance to condemn Putin's illegal annexation of Ukrainian Crimea, as well as his ongoing war with Ukraine in the Donbas.

What hold does Putin have over Trump that seems to demand of Trump that he dare not critisize what Putin has done, and is still doing, in Ukraine?

(to be continued)

Is Putin on the brink to verify the Christopher Steele 'dossier' on Trump?

The US wheels of justice may, at times, seem tortuously slow. When, however, it gathers pace, then things begin to move very fast.

In a recent article, Bob Bauer (left) explains that,

“... given the potentially momentous political consequences for the Nation at stake, there is a fundamental, structural incompatibility between the ordinary application of the criminal process and the Office of the President." (Lawfare : Monday, June 19, 2017) (my emphasis)

In other words,

"... do the strains on a presidency under investigation require the conclusion that the president cannot be indicted while in office? As recently as 2000, the Office of Legal Counsel affirmed the position it took in 1973 with an emphatic “yes.”" (ibid Bob Bauer) (my emphasis)

Bauer goes on to further explain that,

" ... It is in constitutional theory only that a president may order an end to an investigation directed against him. In practice, he will fail." (ibid Bauer) (my emphasis)

And it is the scarlet thread of Maidan that will ensure the failure of Trump to prevent himself from being indicted and thus remain in office until the end of his presidency.

As Julia Manchester (right) reports,

"Then-Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort met with a Ukrainian business associate who previously served in the Russian army last August, as speculation rose about Russian meddling in the U.S. presidential campaign, the Washington Post reports." (The Hill : 19 June, 2017) (my emphasis)

Adding to Trump's present woes about his direct links with Putin during the 2016 US presidential elections, and his offering to Putin 'payback' in the form of lifting the US sanctions against Putin and his 'siloviki' clique because of Putin's  illegal annexation of Ukrainian Crimea, and his ongoing war with Ukraine in the Donbas, the US Senate has stymied Trump in unilaterally lifting those sanctions by,

" ... [voting] to increase sanctions on Russia, and give Congress the power to review any attempt by President Donald Trump to unilaterally lift them, a rebuke of the president’s suggestions that the U.S. improve relations with the country.
...
Lawmakers said they’re responding to Russia’s involvement in Ukraine and meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election ... " (Terence Dopp (left): Bloomberg : 15 June 2017) (my emphasis)

Even the 'press shy' Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, can no longer hide himself from the public.

His involvement in the Trump-Putin investigation is now also forcing him to show himself to the public.

This is the man-boy upon whom Trump has heaped more power than a committee of seasoned politicians can handle.

Putin must now be rather resigned to the fact that Trump will not be able to give hims the 'payback' that he deserves for getting Trump into the White House.

The only 'ace up his sleeve' that he now can play is to completely throw the US political system into near total turmoil.

Which once again brings us back to the dossier compiled by Christopher Steele.

(to be continued)

Trump, like Putin, is now drinking in the "Last Chance Saloon"

Yesterday Ukrainian authorities have opened the doors to the EU as Ukrainian people celebrate ending their decade-long wait for free visa access to the EU on Sunday, with parties and ceremonies. (Euronews : 12/06/2017) (my emphasis)

These celebrations have, however, been marred by the fact that,

"Russia's hybrid military forces attacked Ukrainian army positions in Donbas 57 times in the past 24 hours, with one Ukrainian soldier reported as killed in action (KIA) and five as wounded in action (WIA), according to the press service of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) Headquarters." (UNIAN : 13 June 2017) (my emphasis) 

Further marring these celebrations is the fact that, as reported by Kenneth Rapoza,

"The European Commission received a mandate on Sunday to go ahead and negotiate with Russia on the construction of the so-called Nord Stream 2 pipeline through the Baltic Sea" (Forbes : Jun 12, 2017) (my emphasis)

This mandate, which clears a significant hurdle for a project that has faced strong resistance from many EU member states, was celebrated by Gazprom's Gehardt Schroeder, former chancellor of Germany, and Alexei Miller (left).

The so-called Nord Stream 2 pipeline will be 50% funded by  Anglo-Dutch group Royal Dutch Shell, Austria’s OMV, France’s Engie and Germany’s Uniper and Wintershall, with each EU company contributing €950m EACH to the project.  (cf: Henry Foy and Rochelle Toplensky: Financial Times : April 24, 2017) (my emphasis) 

 As reported by Gabriela Baczynska (right),

"Opponents of the pipeline also note that it would bypass Ukraine, thereby harming the interests of the pro-Western government in Kiev at a time when Russia remains under EU sanctions over its annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and its support for separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine"  (Reuters : Thu Jun 8, 2017) (my emphasis)

The Nord Stream 2 pipeline is scheduled to be completed in 2019 so, whilst Gehardt Schroeder and Alexei Miller may now be celebrating this EU mandate for a 'go-ahead' in negotiations, it would be wise for them to remember, as reported by Jude Clemente (left),

" ...[That the US] will now be implementing more pro-oil and pro-natural gas policies might be the biggest understatement you will hear this year. Think about it: former Texas governor Rick Perry is head of the U.S. Department of Energy and former ExxonMobil CEO is head of the U.S. Department of State.

Thus, the U.S. could rival Russia as the world's largest oil and gas exporting machine." (Forbes : Feb 25, 2017)  (my emphasis)

Even as the evidence against Donald Trump obstructing justice begins to mount, and impeachment begins to beckon, nonetheless a prospective US President Mike Pence will not deviate from a central plank in Trump's election campaign viz., "... to roll back federal regulations to help U.S. oil and natural gas and to open up new areas for development" (ibid Jude Clemente)

Trump, like Putin, is now drinking in the "Last Chance Saloon".

It is now being reported by Bryan Logan that,

"President Donald Trump may consider firing Robert Mueller (left), the special counsel overseeing the Russia investigation.

"He's weighing that option," said Chris Ruddy, Newsmax CEO and friend of Trump on PBS NewsHour Monday evening. "I personally think it would be a very significant mistake – even though I don't think there's a justification ... for a special counsel in this case," Ruddy said" (UK Business Insider : Jun. 13, 2017) (my emphasis)

Not only is his Senior Advisor daughter, Ivanka Trump, now also being forced to come to his aid,
 

he is also now, just like a Mafia Don, desperately trying to project the the American public at large that his cabinet 'admires' him.

 

But try as he may Trump, like Putin, simply cannot escape from their entanglement by the scarlet thread of Maidan.

As each new day brings forth yet more revelations about Putin's direct hand in Trump's election to the White House, so too is revealed the very foundation of Putin's interference in the 2016 US Presidential elections viz. the lifting of US sanctions brought about by his illegal annexation of Ukrainian Crimea, and his ongoing war with Ukraine in the Donbas.

So whilst Putin and his Kremlin 'siloviki' may be congratulating themselves on the success of their first step towards constructing the so-called Nord Stream 2 pipeline, a pipeline that will directly affect Ukraine negatively, nonetheless Trump's impeachment and Mike Pence's donning of the mantle of US president will not stop the US from potentially becoming the world's largest oil and gas exporting machine.

Neither will Putin get his lifting of US sanctions 'payback' from Trump, as Trump's impeachement draws ever closer.

Meanwhile, the EU has opened up its visa-free doors to Ukrainians.

(to be continued)

In their defence of Trump, are Republicans aware that they are also defending Putin?

When  Trump "repeatedly pursued business deals in Russia since 1987, and sometimes travelled there to explore potential business opportunities", and "..in 2008 his son Donald Trump Jr. said that Russia was an important source of money for the Trump businesses", (Wikipedia) little did Putin then know that his FSB surveillance of  Trump had collected salacious details on a big fish ... the future President of the US, Donald Trump.

These salacious details gathered by Putin, as revealed in the dossier of  David Steele, have always haunted Trump. So much so, that one can now understand Trump's fear of 'getting on the wrong side' of Putin since Putin can, by simply revealing these salacious details, put an ignominious and abrupt end to Trump's presidency.

And so it is that these 'salacious' details are now beginning to be publicly mentioned, by none other than Trump himself in a revealed one-on-one conversation with former FBI director, James Comey, as the Senate Intelligence Committee continues its investigation into Putin's collusion with Trump and his cohorts during the 2016 US presidential elections.

Today James Comey will be appearing before the US Senate Intelligence Committee, and the already publicly released details of Comey's conversations with Donald Trump will come under severe scrutiny.

Today, the psychological pressure that Putin is exerting on Trump to have the US sanctions against himself, his 'siloviki', and his private 'slush fund Russian bank', Vnesheconombank, removed, will be revealed.

What will also be revealed, as Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson explains, is the fact the the Trump administration, just like Putin and his Kremlin clan, is being run like a Mafia Organization, an organization that demands loyalty.

Trump however, in not above the Rule of Law in the US, nor the US Constitution, something that he simply fails to understand.

How he must wish that he had the same power as Putin, where the so-called Russian Rule of Law simply does not exist, and where Putin IS the law.

The fact that Trump wanted former FBI director, James Comey, to drop his investigation into the many conversations between Russian US ambassador, Sergei Kislyak, and  Mike Flynn, (left: Flynn and Kislyak) both during and after the 2016 US presidential election, signifies that Trump, himself, must have know that the central theme of those conversations between Flynn and Kislyak was the dropping of  the US sanctions that was instituted because of Putin's illegal annexation of Ukrainian Crimea, and his ongoing war with Ukraine in the Donbas.

This was the 'payback' expected by Putin of Trump for getting Trump into the White House.

The scarlet thread of Maidan, that has wrapped Putin in sanctions, and that has wrapped Trump in the nightmare of his salacious cavortings in Russia being publicly revealed, as by his own 'denial' of those cavorting to James Comey, cannot be easily escaped from by either Putin nor Trump.

James Comey's testimony before the US Senate Intelligence Committee today will bring out the most tortuous legal defence of Trump by his Republican defenders in both the US Congress and Senate.

The $64 question is,

"How far will Republican Senators and Congress men and women go to defend Trump in the face of ongoing revelations about his attempt to obstruct Justice?"

In their defence of Trump, are Republicans aware that they are also defending Putin?

(to be continued)