Ukraine (closed; covers till August 2014)

[OUTLAW 09]

It was apparently never written, signed or even ratified as a deal.

In fact, some Western politicians who were supposedly involved deny that any such thing ever happened, and point at how back in '90 the Warsaw Pact and Soviet Union still looked quite intact and there was nobody thinking about the possibility of NATO/EC (no EU yet) expanding beyond the Oder river yet.

The only assurances which were proved to have existed were about how many Western troops would be stationed in East Germany (not more than the previous military strength of Est Germany; the Bundeswehr merely maintained a couple formations such as the MiG-29 wing in the East) - IIRC.

fuchs---actually go back to the 2 plus 4 treaty agreements concerning Germany and you will notice a number of items that Merkel is still holding which relate directly to German resistance to a stronger NATO response and a real reluctance to impose branch wide economic sanctions that the US is pushing.

I will go back to the things I have previously posted here---when the West/Europe really wants to get Putin's interest and when he will know the West is serious is when the West suffers economically as well if sanctions are imposed--then you will get Putin's interest and knows the West/Europeans are serious.

By the way there is also a touch of anti Americanism in many of the German actions since 2003 and it is not to subtle these days.

Really reread the treaties and you will fully understand German reluctance.