"... a person, especially a politician, being used as a puppet by an enemy power. The term is commonly used to indicate disloyalty or corruption, whether intentional or unintentional."
In more ways than one, yesterday (16 July, 2018) Trump exposed himself internationally as a possible Manchurian Candidate during the Putin-Trump press conference, after their slightly more than two hour PRIVATE tête-à-tête in Helsinki, that is also euphemistically being called a 'Summit Meeting'. Perhaps the most stunning expose of Trump was in his response to a question about Putin's meddling in the 2016 US Presidential election.
The US questioner asked,
"Just now President Putin denied having anything to do with the election interference in 2016. Every US intelligence agency has concluded that Russia did.
My first question for you, sir, is, "Who do you believe?" My second question is, "Would you now, with the whole world watching, tell President Putin ... would you denounce what happened in 2016, and would you warn him to never do it again?" Trump then went out of his way to agree with Putin, and in the process threw the whole of his US intelligence agencies under the bus! (video below)
Trump's response has, to say the least, alarmed many in the US.
Now recall that in my blog entry (28/6/2018) I wrote that,
"Also high on Putin's agenda will be a public recognition, by Trump, that Ukraine's Crimea really belongs to Russia." (blog entry :28/6/2018)
Towards the end of their press conference, a US reporter directed two questions towards Putin, which rather unnerved him.
"Can you tell me what President Trump may have indicated to you about officially recognizing Crimea as part of Russia?"
Secondly, "Do you ... does the Russian government have any compromising material on President Trump or his family .."
Putin's responses were rather interesting.
To the question about Ukraine's Crimea, Putin responded that,
" ... Posture of President Trump on Crimea is well known .... "
Trump's belligerent stand at his recent meeting with NATO members, when viewed together with the recent visit to Putin's Russia by a group of US Republican Senators, should give us pause for concern.
The visit to Putin's Russia, headed by Senator Richard C. Shelby (R-Ala.), was said by accompanying Senator Steve Daines (R-Mont.) to have,
" ... sent a very strong message and a direct message to the Russian government,” he said, ticking off four items he said they pressed while there: Don’t interfere in U.S. elections, respect the sovereignty of Ukraine, work with us toward peace in Syria, and uphold obligations under nuclear arms treaties.
That message did not appear to have much impact, though." (Karoun Demirjian : Washington Post : 5 July, 2018) (my emphasis)
This is best exemplified by the fact that, as reported by Joel Gehrke (right),
"President Trump and U.S. lawmakers should consider revising sanctions
targeting Russia so they focus more on Russian oligarchs, a senior
Republican lawmaker [ Senator Johnson] suggested after participating in a congressional
delegation visit to Moscow.
....
“You do something and nobody ever sits back and analyzes, 'Well, is it working?’” Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., told the Washington Examiner. “And I think you'd be hard-pressed to say that sanctions against Russia are really working all that well.” (Washington Examiner : July 7, 2018) (my emphasis)
Let us now remind ourselves that Senator Richard C. Shelby (R-Ala.), the Republican leader of this recent Republican delegation to Putin's Russia, also stated that,
"We have an upcoming meeting between President Putin and President Trump in Helsinki .... I think our meetings in St Petersberg ... especially here ... will lay the groundwork for some of that ..." (cf. first video)
The $64 question is this ...
"Have this Republican delegation to Putin's Russia laid the groundwork for the lifting of US sanctions against Russia since, in the words of one of those Republican delegates, "U.S. lawmakers should consider revising sanctions
targeting Russia so they focus more on Russian oligarchs"?
In other words, should US sanctions against many important Russian industries, including Russian banking, now be excluded from US sanctions?
This approach towards US sanctions against Russia, as now expounded by Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis, dovetails with Trump's own views about US sanctions against Putin's Russia.
As reported by Brett Forrest and Peter Nicholas, "Any meeting between the two presidents would be expected to include discussions on Syria,
Ukraine and nuclear-arms control. The summit’s purpose would be to
resolve longstanding differences, people familiar with the matter said. .... [Trump] added: “There is no reason for this. Russia needs us to help with their economy.” He went on to suggest that a more collaborative relationship with Russia could curb the arms race." (Wall Street Journal : June 1, 2018) (my emphasis)" (blog : 9/6/2018)
At the recent breakfast of NATO members, Trump lambasted Merkel by complaining that,
“I think it’s very sad when Germany makes a massive oil and gas deal with Russia, where you’re supposed to be guarding against Russia and Germany goes out and pays billions and billions of dollars a year to Russia,” Trump said in his opening remarks at the breakfast, which were broadcast live on television." (David M. Herszenhorn (left): Politico :July 11, 2018) (my emphasis)
Was this 'undiplomatic' rant of Trump a further laying of the foundation for his total revising of US sanctions against Putin's Russia, as outlined by Senator Ron Johnson, at the upcoming Trump-Putin Helsinki meeting?
Has Trump laid the foundation at the NATO summit for lifting sanctions against Putin's Russia, sanctions that were put is place because of Putin's illegal annexation of Ukraine's Crimea, and his ongoing war with Ukraine in the Donbas?
"Also high on Putin's agenda will be a public recognition, by Trump, that Ukraine's Crimea really belongs to Russia.
...
Let us recall that even
before the 2016 US presidential election, Trump legitimized Putin's
illegal annexation of Ukraine's Crimea, blaming it on former US
president Obama!" (blog entry: 28/6/2018)
And now Trump's 3rd Security Advisor, John Bolton, has somewhat let slip that at the upcoming Putin-Trump meeting in Helsinki, Trump is, indeed, open to acknowledging Ukraine's Crimea as a legitimate part of Russia.
RT, Putin's propaganda mouthpiece, has not been slow in flooding the international airwaves with Trump's response to a reporter on Air Force One that he is open to recognizing Ukraine's Crimea as part of Russia.
" Russia’s energy ministry said it had conducted the first test of a
German-made electricity turbine that was installed in Crimea in
contravention of European sanctions.
... Without help from Siemens or
engineers affiliated with Siemens, it would be hard to activate the
turbines and the software used to run them, several power generation
specialists told Reuters.
...
The testing indicated, though, that
Russia is getting closer to being able to commission the turbines and to
start using them to generate electricity for Crimea." (Reuters : June 29, 2018) (my emphasis)
“The project [Nord Stream 2] will definitely be financed. It is important for Gazprom
and Russia currently has a high liquidity in euros,” Paul Corcoran, the
Nord Stream 2 CFO, told Welt am Sonntag in an interview.
His
comments come after [Angela Merkel's] Germany said on Friday it had been assured by the
United States that any sanctions imposed on Russia would not affect the
building of a gas pipeline to bring Russian gas to Europe - even though
the United States said there had been no change in its policy" (Reuters : June 30, 2018) (my emphasis)
In both of these instances viz.
Germany's Siemens flouting EU sanctions by helping Putin to install and operate their electricity turbines in Ukraine's Crimea, and
Merkel now being assured that the US will NOT impose any sanctions on EU companies helping Putin build Nord Stream 2,
we have echoes of the German jackboots that walked over Ukraine during WW2, except that these jackboots are now being worn by German business men!
These developments will further embolden those in the EU who support Putin's call for an end to EU sanctions, notwithstanding the fact that,
"European Union leaders agreed ..
... to extend their economic sanctions against Russia for annexing Crimea from Kiev and backing rebels fighting government troops in east Ukraine, an EU official said.
The decision, which will be formally confirmed in the coming days, will prolong EU's curbs on doing business with Russian banking, financial and energy sectors for six months until the end of January." (CNBC (Reuters): Thu, 28 June 2018) (my emphasis)
This decision now rings hollow in light of the fact that Nord Stream 2 is being heavily financed by EU companies, and that these companies have just been given a free pass by the EU and the US to continue with the building of Putin's weaponized gas pipeline against Ukraine.
So what, then, of the upcoming Trump-Putin summit in Helsinki?
The acknowledging by John Bolton that Trump is on the verge of recognizing Ukraine's Crimea as part of Putin's Russia. (cf. video above)
" John Bolton, Donald Trump’s hawkish national security adviser, has hit out at criticism of the US president’s plans to meet Vladimir Putin, as the Kremlin said the two sides had agreed a date and location for the summit." (FT : 27 June, 2018) (my emphasis)
Putin is 'over the moon' about this impending summit between himself and Trump.
"Your visit to Moscow raises hopes that we may make the first step of restoration of fully fledged relations between our government", Putin said to Bolton at their meeting in Moscow. (video above :
Recall that in my blog entry of [9/6/2018] I wrote that,
""Like a bolt out of the blue, Trump announced yesterday that a summit meeting between himself and Putin is being set up.
.....
AsBrett Forrest and Peter Nicholas report, "Any meeting between the two presidents would be expected to include discussions on Syria,
Ukraine and nuclear-arms control. The summit’s purpose would be to
resolve longstanding differences, people familiar with the matter said. .... [Trump] added: “There is no reason for this. Russia needs us to help with their economy.” He went on to suggest that a more collaborative relationship with Russia could curb the arms race." (Wall Street Journal : June 1, 2018) (my emphasis)" (blog : 9/6/2018)
So like Kim Jong-UN, is Putin expecting
Trump to similarly announce that he is going to lift all those
sanctions against Russia at their impending summit meeting? "
This will be high on Putin's summit agenda with Trump since Nord Stream 2, Putin's weaponized pipeline against Ukraine, depends on the decision of the Danish government whether or not to allow Nord Stream 2 to pass through their territorial waters.
Trump may pronounce at this impeding summit that 'no US sanctions will be taken against any EU companies helping Putin with building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.(cf. blog entry [18/6/2018])
Also high on Putin's agenda will be a public recognition, by Trump, that Ukraine's Crimea really belongs to Russia.
Let us recall that even before the 2016 US presidential election, Trump legitimised Putin's illegal annexation of Ukraine's Crimea, blaming it on former US president Obama!
And more recently Trump, once again, blamed former US President Obama for Putin illegally annexing Ukraine's Crimea.
"President Donald Trump told G7 leaders that Crimea is Russian because
everyone who lives there speaks Russian, according to two diplomatic
sources.
...
Trump also blamed former president Barack Obama for what happened in
Ukraine. "Obama can say all he wants, but he allowed Russia to take
Crimea," Trump said." (BuzzFeed News : June 14, 2018) (my emphasis)
All of which once again raises the central question of what possible hold Putin may have on Trump.
As Colonel Peters states in the above video,
"When I first learnt about the Steele dossier it just rang true to me because that's how the Russians do things. And before he became a candidate, Donald Trump was the perfect target for Russian intelligence.
....
In the future we are going to look back on the much maligned Christopher Steele who took that dossier to the FBI as something of a hero ...."
As in his summit with Kim Jong Un, where he unilaterally decided that the US will,
"..... end joint military exercises with South Korea [which] took South Korean and U.S. military officials by surprise..." (Josh Smith and Phil Stewart: Reuters : 12 June, 2018) (my emphasis),
are we in for surprise unilateral Trump concessions to Putin at their coming Helsinki summit meeting?
"Germany has approved the construction and operation of the
Russia-built Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, its operator and the German
maritime authority said on Tuesday.
...
The Nord Stream 2 operator
said it expected that other four countries along the route of the
undersea gas pipeline – Russia, Finland, Sweden and Denmark – will issue
permits in the coming months." (Reuters : March 27, 2018) (my emphasis)
"Unfortunately, however, whilst Finland has recently given Putin permission "to use the Finnish Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) for the construction of the pipeline",
little Denmark finds itself in a real political quandary over whether
it, too, should allow Putin's gas pipeline to cross through its
territorial waters.
"The Danish government is facing fierce lobbying by Russia, EU allies and
the United States over the 9.5 billion euro ($11.7 billion) Nord Stream
2 project championed by President Vladimir Putin and financed by five
Western firms.
...
A Danish veto, under new legislation allowing it to do so on security
grounds, would force Russia, which supplies about one third of Europe’s
gas needs, to find a new route for the pipeline.
... “This is not
about gas, it is one of the most important foreign policy decisions in
Denmark since the Cold War,” said senior foreign policy researcher Hans
Mouritzen at the Danish Institute for International Studies." (Reuters : March 26, 2018) (my emphasis)" (blog)
And just recently,
"Denmark is the last hold out in Europe, yet to give permission for the construction of the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline afterthe Swedish government became the latest EU country to sign off on construction permissions for the pipelinethat will carry Russian gas from the Yamal peninsula under the Baltic Sea to Germany." (bneIntelliNews : June 13, 2018) (my emphasis)
“This is an important milestone for the Nord Stream 2 project. We are
pleased to have obtained the Swedish government’s approval to construct
and operate the Nord Stream 2 Pipeline,” said Lars O Grönstedt, Senior
Advisor at Nord Stream 2, quoted in an official press release." (Georgi Gotev (left):EuroActiv : June 11, 2018)
One can now begin to imagine the increasing pressure that will be exerted on the Danish parliament to also give Putin permission for his Nord Steam 2 pipeline to pass through Danish waters.
All those countries which have given Putin his Nord Stream 2 "Go Past Go and collect $100" Monopoly ticket cannot simply argue that their decisions are based purely on economic criteria.
What their decisions have done is to actively support Putin in weaponizing this pipeline against Ukraine.
As Hans Mouritzen correctly argues,
“This is not
about gas, it is one of the most important foreign policy decisions in
Denmark since the Cold War.” (ibid Stine Jacobsenand Alissa de Carbonnel)
This decision of Sweden has even further significance in view of Trump's determination to steam ahead with his summit with Putin.
"Moscow and Washington are "exploring" the possibility of a meeting
between the two leaders, according to US officials and a Russian media
report.
...
While nothing is imminent, the official acknowledged there are ongoing discussions of setting up a Putin-Trump face-to-face.
...
Another
source with the National Security Council said a meeting "is being
worked on" and a diplomatic source added that a meeting is likely to
happen soon." (CNN : 15 June, 2018) (my emphasis)
Key for Putin at this impending summit between himself and Trump will be to ensure that no US sanctions will be imposed on EU companies helping in the construction of the Nord Sea 2 pipeline IF Denmark also gives permission for it to pass through Danish waters.
"The U.S. stepped up its opposition to the Nord Stream 2 natural gas
pipeline linking Russia and Germany, saying the project raises security
concerns and that it could draw U.S. sanctions.
... U.S. threats to Nord Stream 2, which has split eastern and western EU
states, could impact companies in Austria, France, Germany and the
Netherlands. (Bloomberg : May 17, 2018) (my emphasis)
Let us now recall that at the Trump-Kim Jong Un summit, Trump suddenly announced that he was ending the joint military exercises between the US and South Korea. (Brad Lendon : CNN : June 12, 2018)
When the Trump-Putin summit takes places, will he also suddenly announce that Nord Stream 2 can go ahead, without the incurring of US sanctions on EU companies helping to build Nord Stream 2?
Everything now depends on the decision that the Danish parliament will take regarding Nord Stream 2 passing through their territorial waters.
If they say "No", then no matter what Trump says, Nord Stream 2 will be scuppered.
If they say "Yes", then Trump will go against the US government.
Putin's pressure on Denmark grows greater by the day.
The big buildup to the Trump - Kim Jong UN meeting in Singapore has subsided, and the actual meeting itself had ended not so much with a bang, but rather with a whimper.
More than anything else, this meeting has propelled Kim Jong-Un onto the international stage, to his obvious delight.
What is interesting is just how much of what Putin said about the situation regarding North Korea during his pre-Singapore interview, and what Trump subsequently said during his speech and press conference after his meeting with Kim Jong-Un, uncannily mirror critical statements made by each other.
Indeed, one could almost conclude that Putin must have had a hand in drafting Trump's Singapore speech.
And just as Trump and Kim Jong-Un had their 'summit' meeting in Singapore,
"The German, French, Russian, and Ukrainian foreign ministers were meeting in Berlin late on June 11 for talks on bringing an end to the fighting in eastern Ukraine.
The meeting -- the first of the "Normandy" group in more than a year -- focused on implementing an unfulfilled peace agreement reached in 2015 and the possibility of deploying a UN peacekeeping mission in the conflict zone." (RF/ERL : June 11, 2018) (my emphasis)
The sticking point for Putin about the deployment of UN troops is that,
"Germany and France (and Ukraine) want UN troops to be deployed in all areas controlled
by Russia-backed rebels, including on the Ukraine-Russia border"(ibid RF/ERL,
whereas Putin simply wants them to patrol along the line of contact in the Donbas.
"German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said after the four-way talks that
Russia and Ukraine agreed in principle on a UN peacekeeping mission, but
their ideas about how to implement it were still “very much apart.”(Reuters : June 11, 2018) (my emphasis)
"What", we may ask, "does Putin have to gain in upturning this latest 'Normandy Group Meeting', especially in light of the dire state of the Russian economy?"
Which brings us back to that recent Trump-Kim Jong-UN summit in Singapore.
"North Korea has celebrated the Trump-Kim summit as a great win for the country, with state mediareporting that the US intends to lift sanctions." (BBC : 13 June, 2018)
And in a recent blog entry (9/6/2018) I wrote that,
"Like a bolt out of the blue, Trump announced yesterday that a summit meeting between himself and Putin is being set up.
.....
AsBrett Forrest and Peter Nicholas report, "Any meeting between the two presidents would be expected to include discussions on Syria,
Ukraine and nuclear-arms control. The summit’s purpose would be to
resolve longstanding differences, people familiar with the matter said. .... [Trump] added: “There is no reason for this. Russia needs us to help with their economy.” He went on to suggest that a more collaborative relationship with Russia could curb the arms race." (Wall Street Journal : June 1, 2018) (my emphasis)" (blog : 9/6/2018)
So like Kim Jong-UN, is Putin expecting Trump to similarly announce that he is going to lift all those sanctions against Russia at their impending summit meeting?
" Donald Trump has called for Russia to be readmitted to the G7 club of world leaders, opening up a new rift with US allies who swiftly contradicted him at a contentious summit in Quebec." (The Guardian : Fri 8 Jun 2018) (my emphasis)
British Prime Minister, Teresa May, has responded to Trump's call for re-instating Putin into the G7. "We should remind ourselves why the G8 became the G7, it was because Russia illegally annexed Crimea. 'We have seen malign activity from Russia in a whole variety of ways, of course including on the streets of Salisbury in the UK. 'So we need to say, I think, before any such conversations can take place Russia needs to change its approach." (Kate Ferguson and John Stevens : Mail Online : 8 June 2018) (my emphasis) (cf. also: CNN : Business Insider : The Hill)
Little did those at Maidan in 2014 realise just where their overthrow of Putin's puppet, the then president of Ukraine, Victor Yanukovich (right), would lead to.
Putin and Trump cannot escape from this 'Thread of Maidan' that binds them together tightly.
It is this 'Thread of Maidan' that not only has led to Putin being evicted from the G8 but, more significantly, has led to the crippling EU-US sanctions against Putin for his annexation of Ukrainian Crimea and his ongoing war with Ukraine,
Whilst Putin may now be riding the crest of a wave with Trump, it is reported that, "The UN Security Council has unanimously condemned the "continuous
violations of the cease-fire" in eastern Ukraine and called for an
immediate withdrawal of heavy weapons." (RFERL :
No doubt that at the back of Nebenzya's mind when agreeing to this UN Security Council statement is the fact that,
"The European Union in March extended its sanctions by another six months, but the coming to power of more pro-Russian governments in Italy, Austria, Hungary, and elsewhere has increased calls within the bloc for easing the sanctions." (ibid RFERL) (my emphasis)
And whilst this Security Council condemnation was being agreed upon by Putin's mouthpiece at the UN, the Moscow Times reports that,
"President Vladimir Putin on Thursday warned Kiev of "very serious consequences for Ukrainian statehood" if it were to launch military action against pro-Russian rebels in the east during the football World Cup, which begins in Russia next week." (The Moscow Times : Jun 09, 2018) (my emphasis), whilst at the same time, UNIAN reports that, "The Russian occupation troops are carrying out terrain mining with the use of Russian-made anti-personnel mines, which are prohibited by international law." (UNIAN : 08 June, 2018) (my emphasis)
And ...... ,
"Russia's hybrid military forces mounted 37 attacks on Ukrainian army positions in Donbas in the past 24 hours, with four Ukrainian soldiers reported as wounded in action (WIA)." (UNIAN : 08 June,2018) (my emphasis)
All of which rather calls into question the motivation of Putin's UN mouthpiece, Vasily Nebenzya, agreeing to the UN Security Council 'condemnation' of the ceasefire violations in the Donbas, without the Security Council identifying Putin's Russian soldiers and his proxies as being the prime instigators thereof.
Trump is emboldening Putin by opening up a new rift between the US and its European allies.
Will this Trumpian rift also embolden the pro-Russian governments in Italy, Austria, Hungary, and elsewhere to mount a concerted and vigorous attack against the current EU sanctions hanging around Putin's neck?
Like a bolt out of the blue, Trump announced yesterday that a summit meeting between himself and Putin is being set up.
Now a summit meeting is,
" ... an international meeting of heads of state or government, usually with considerable media exposure, tight security, and a prearranged agenda." (Wikipedia)
AsBrett Forrest and Peter Nicholas report, "Any meeting between the two presidents would be expected to include discussions on Syria,
Ukraine and nuclear-arms control. The summit’s purpose would be to
resolve longstanding differences, people familiar with the matter said. .... [Trump] added: “There is no reason for this. Russia needs us to help with their economy.” He went on to suggest that a more collaborative relationship with Russia could curb the arms race." (Wall Street Journal : June 1, 2018) (my emphasis)
Now recall that in my last blog entry I wrote that, "And whilst Putin's anger is now focusing itself on mounting a fully-fledged cyber attack against Ukraine, nonetheless the Putinversteher Angela Merkel concluded her meeting in Sochi with Putin (18 May, 2018), emphasizing that,
"We have strategic interests to maintain good relations with Russia ..."
To which Putin responded,
"Germany is one of our key trade partners ... We just started to buy German goods in higher volumes, which supports jobs in Germany" (blog entry: 24/5/2018)
Both Trump and Merkel seem, ironically, to be "concerned" in helping Putin out of the economic morass into which he has plunged the Russian economy.
And whilst Trump states that, "Russia needs us to help with their economy",Nikki Hayley (right), the US representative at the UN, stated in no uncertain terms that,
"We condemn, in the strongest terms, Russia's involvement in eastern
Ukraine and its purported annexation of Crimea," said Haley, promising
US sanctions will remain in place until Russia withdraws from the
long-simmering conflict, which she called "a textbook example of the
direct violation of the sovereignty of one (UN) member state by another
member state." (Laura Koran : CNN : May 29, 2018) (my emphasis)
As Trump is gearing up for a summit with Putin, Dough Palmer (left) reports that,
"The Trump administration will impose new duties on steel and aluminum
imports from three key trading partners — the European Union, Canada and
Mexico — after failing to reach deals with them to address national
security concerns related to the imports, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross
said Thursday." (Politico : 31 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
Trump, having set in motion this trade war with the EU, among others, we have to now ask ourselves the following question,
"Like Merkel, how far will Trump go to bail out Putin from his economic travails?"
Even more pertinent,
"How far will Merkel's and Trump's bailout of Putin from his economic travailsundermine the EU-US sanctions against Putin because of his illegal annexation of Ukrainian Crimea, and his ongoing war with Ukraine?"
"Hedging his bets in case his Kerch bridge proves to be the 'white
elephant' that it is, Putin has begun to accelerate his attempt to
secure a land-bridge connection between Russia and Ukraine."
As UNIAN reports,
The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine has reported it spotted a significant accumulation of heavy weapons near the occupied village of Buhaivka in Donbas. (UNIAN: 22 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
The occupation forces attacked Ukrainian troops 53 times in the past day. In particular, 30 attacks were mounted with the use of proscribed 122mm artillery systems, 120mm and 82mm mortars. (UNIAN: 22 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
However, it is also reported that,
"Ukraine conducted first launches of the Javelin missile systems today, May 22.
"Finally this day has come! Today, for the first time in Ukraine, the launch of Javelin missile complexes took place. This is a very effective defensive weaponry, which is used in the event of Russian offensive on the positions of Ukrainian troops," Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko wrote on Twitter." (UNIAN : 22 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
As well as conducting their first test of the Javelin Anti-Tank missile, UNIAN also reported that,
"The Ukrainian Armed Forces have repelled a militant subversive group that attempted to force the Ukrainian army out of the recently liberated village of Pivdenne in Donetsk region." (UNIAN : 21 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
Spitting nails, Putin has now decided to intensify his cyber attacks against Ukraine.
"The U.S. government said late on Wednesday that it would seek to wrestle hundreds of thousands of infected routers and storage devices from the control of hackers who security researchers warned were planning to use the “botnet” to attack Ukraine. ... Cisco said the largest number of infections from the VPNFilter malware were in Ukraine, which led it to believe Russia was planning an attack on that country. " (Reuters : May 23, 2018) (my emphasis)
And whilst Putin's anger is now focusing itself on mounting a fully-fledged cyber attack against Ukraine, nonetheless the Putinversteher Angela Merkel concluded her meeting in Sochi with Putin (18 May, 2018), emphasizing that,
"We have strategic interests to maintain good relations with Russia ..." (see video below)
To which Putin responded,
"Germany is one of our key trade partners ... We just started to buy German goods in higher volumes, which supports jobs in Germany" (see video below)
Yet again am I reminded of the 1922 Treaty of Rapallo that was signed between Germany and Russia, in particular Article 5, which states that,
Article 5: The two Governments shall co-operate in a spirit of mutual goodwill in meeting the economic needs of both countries. In the event of a fundamental settlement of the above question on an international basis, an exchange of opinions shall previously take place between the two Governments. The German Government, having lately been informed of the proposed agreements of private firms, declares its readiness to give all possible support to these arrangements and to facilitate their being carried into effect.
The $64 question is,
"Just how far will Merkel go to bail out Putin from his current economic travails?"
In my blog entry of May 1, 2018, I wrote that, "Unfortunately for Putin, as AT writes,
"On the Crimean bridge began to collapse support. The bridge can already
be called emergency. According to safety rules, it is already necessary
to demolish the problematic support and build a new one ... But this concrete will create a huge load on
the piles... ... If
the bridge is opened and a stream of cars is allowed, it will cause even
more load. ... Many
people will not even know that they are going to the emergency bridge,
because the Russian propogandists were given a command that says nothing
about it. (AT : YouTube : 24 Apr 2018) (my emphasis) (cf. also: Igor Korsakov)"
Fifteen days later,
"Russian President Vladimir Putin has attended the opening of the Crimean bridge.
...
Being at the wheel of a Kamaz truck, Putin led a column of trucks.
...
Motor traffic along the Crimean bridge will be opened at 05:30 on May 16" (UNIAN : 15 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
Putin, however, is also well aware of the serious problems that beset his Kerch Bridge, a bridge that may soon turn out to be a "white elephant".
A white elephant is a possession which its owner cannot dispose
of and whose cost, particularly that of maintenance, is out of
proportion to its usefulness.
The remarks of Ukrainian President, Petro Poroshenko, rather neatly sums up this opening of Putin's bridge.
""The illegal construction of the Kerch Strait Bridge is more evidence of Kremlin neglect of international law
...
"Russia
will be fully responsible, and the bridge will be necessary for the
invaders when they leave our Crimea urgently," Poroshenko said. (Interfax-Ukraine: 15.05.2018) (my emphasis) Hedging his bets in case his Kerch bridge proves to be the 'white elephant' that it is, Putin has begun to accelerate his attempt to secure a land-bridge connection between Russia and Ukraine.
As reported by UNIAN,
"Russian-led forces mounted 80 attacks on Ukrainian troops in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, in the past day...In particular, the Russian occupation forces attacked the Ukrainian forces 22 times with the use of artillery systems and mortars, and there were two tank attacks ..." (7 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
"Fierce fighting with Russian-led troops in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, continued on Saturday, May 12, as a result of which one Ukrainian soldier was killed in action, another four were wounded in action." (13 May, 2018)
"The Russian-led forces in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, have started using the latest weapons against the Ukrainian army. A few days ago, the enemy launched the newest rockets to shell Ukrainian positions near the Ukrainian-controlled strategic port city of Mariupol" (13 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
"Russian-led forces mounted 45 attacks on Ukrainian troops in Donbas in the past day, using heavy weapons 17 times. "Over the past 24 hours, the situation remained tense. The fighting intensified after 16:00 and continued in all sectors," (16 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
As Kurt Volker is being given new powers as the US representative in Ukraine, UAWire reports that,
"Volker and Vladislav Surkov (right: Volker and Surkov) did not reach an agreement in the negotiations.
... The stumbling point was the law about the reintegration of the Donbas." (UAWire : Tuesday, May 15, 2018) (my emphasis)
And after [Kurt Volker's] visit to the Donbas, the first trip of the U.S. envoy to eastern Ukraine
since the start of the JFO, the new military operation of the Ukrainian
government in the conflict-hit region, Volker realised that,
"If Russia will veto the decision on peacekeepers, it means Kremlin wants to continue the war." (LiveUAmap: 15 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
Putin's current escalation of the war between Ukraine and Russia should also be viewed against the backdrop of the effects that the new US sanctions against Russia are having, especially among his kleptocratic "inner circle". As Benjamin Bathke and Elena Barysheva Report,
"Russian lawmakers have drafted a bill that would make it a criminal offence punishable by up to four years in jail to observe sanctions imposed by the United States or other foreign countries, Russian news agencies reported on Tuesday." (DW : 15.05.2018) (my emphasis)
To soften this blow on ordinary Russian citizens, Jamie Dettmer reports that,
"Initially, Russian lawmakers said they would impose restrictions on a wide range of specific goods and services from the United States, including medicine and agricultural products; but, in the draft legislation approved on May 15, language that targeted specific goods to soften the impact on Russian consumers and industries was removed." (VOA : 15 May, 2018) (my emphasis)
Russia is also starting to print money to assist Putin's billionaires who are now under US sanctions.
"The Russian government has already given assistance to sanctioned billionaire Viktor Vekselberg’s Renova Group, and is currently working on financial support measures for Oleg Deripaska’s companies, including Rusal and the GAZ group, as announced on Monday by Russia’s acting Finance Minister Anton Siluanov." (UAWire : Tuesday, May 15, 2018) (my emphasis)
This printing of money by Putin already amounts to $ billions. (ibid UAWire)
So whilst Putin was driving his truck along the emergency bridge of his Kerch bridge, he drove with a troubled mind.
Bailing out his 'inner circle' from the sanctions imposed upon them by the US, by printing billions upon billions of Roubles, shows that Putin is a worried man. The millstone of sanctions around his neck is already becoming unbearable.
A "Manchurian Candidate" is defined as,
My first question for you, sir, is, "Who do you believe?" 
