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Thread: Ukraine: Russo-Ukr War (June-December 2015)

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    Quote Originally Posted by OUTLAW 09 View Post
    OSCE's Hug says their drones being jammed & their vehicles wrecked by "organized vandalism." What are seps hiding? https://twitter.com/Millermena/statu...13948955807746
    Donetsk @vladicvp I asked vata [=local Putin supporters] 'what over 30 #OSCE cars were vandalized for' and got answer 'Are they holy?'

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    Yesterday militants attacked positions of Ukrainian troops 78 times. As of 06:00 today, attacks continue - ATOhttps://m.facebook.com/story.php?sto...54&__tn__=%2As

    Newly appointed Head of #Luhansk reg/ admin Tuka: 2 vehicles w/ smuggled goods were stopped near delimitation line http://censor.net.ua/blogs/742/otchety_quotletuchekquot

    Echelon of military Kamaz trucks near the border of Ukraine pic.twitter.com/ps4VP3ovPT http://liveuamap.com/en/2015/24-july...ear-the-border

    Kuzminka: Self-contained Russian army tactical group with enough fuel bowsers for an offensive/long-distance pic.twitter.com/1DwZ8Z3Mji

    Kuzminka: Russian motor rifle (mechanised infantry) and tank tactical group with SPG/MLRS artillery support pic.twitter.com/sSkioWVwRn

    Russian Army base at Kuzminka (Vodino/Golovinka), Rostov region 6 July 2015 PHOTOS
    http://ru.tsn.ua/foto/otdyh-otpuskni...iy-456176.html
    http://reviewnews.net/ukraine-1/3641...ranits-ukrainy

    Ready to roll. Russian Army base at Kuzminka (Vodino/Golovinka), Rostov region (55km from Ukraine border) 6 July pic.twitter.com/rNqZ11gP1y

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    Putin is attempting to force the Ukrainians to deal directly with the Russian mercenaries which would then give them the "appearance of being legitimate" and then in the so call federalization that Putin envisions they would have seat in the RADA and being able to block anything that appears like the Ukraine is trying to do with NATO and or the EU--this is Putin's "Bosnian solution".

    The NYTs recently wrote an article on the so called "Putin Bosnian model" for the Donbass regions.

    Notice Russia in is press release says absolutely nothing on what they and her mercenaries should be doing to implement fully Minsk 2--not a single word is wasted--it is all about WHAT the Ukraine needs to do.

    Currently the discussion on the 30km buffer zone was also originally proposed by the Russian General in the Russian JCCC--again a Russian solution--it was proposed during the extremely heavy fighting near Mariupol as the Russians attempted to break through to Mariupol and when civilians were still in the town--none are there now.

    Secondly the supposedly "good faith pull back" is not so "good faith" as they only pulled back a total of 1.5km and still shell Ukrainian positions daily.

    NOTICE Putin is demanding a "pull back" much in the same tone he demanded when actual Russian troops were attacking Debaltseve.

    Troubling is when Holland Merkel and actually Obama are putting extreme pressure on the Ukraine to concede point after point to Putin unilaterally WITHOUT a single reciprocal move by Russian and or her mercenaries.

    There was to be a teleconference on Monday night between Nuland and here Russian back channel much announced by the Russians AND nothing was released from that teleconference--telling.

    NOW the Ukrainian High Command is attempting to keep their own troops when heavily shelled and or involved in ground attacks from returning artillery and mortar fire to protect themselves--THE key question WHO is applying pressure on them to do that WHEN every day there are over 80 major shelling and aground attacks being conducted against them.

    AND that so called 100mm weapons withdrawal--total lies by Russia and her mercenaries--the furthest they moved back was 3km not the demanded 30km.

    So has Obama, Nuland,Hollande and Merkel decided now is the time to unilaterally conceded the Ukraine to Russian in order to "save his face" and so "gratitude" for his assistance with Iran???????

    Appears so------

    http://www.unian.info/politics/11043...of-donbas.html

    Putin urges Kyiv to agree with militants on special status of Donbas

    24.07.2015 | 09:21

    Russian President Vladimir Putin believes that Kyiv should establish a direct dialogue and coordinate with the DPR and LPR terrorist organizations the legislative support of a special status of the militant-occupied territories and the amnesty law, as well as determine the modalities and the procedure for the local elections, according to the Kremlin’s press service.

    "The sustainable comprehensive settlement of the crisis is impossible without a direct dialogue between Kyiv and representatives of Donbas," Putin said during a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande.

    The Russian president called on the Ukrainian side to strictly follow the letter and spirit of the Minsk agreements. In particular, Kyiv must agree with the DPR and LPR and enact a permanent legislative support of the special status of the regions and the amnesty law, as well as determine the modalities and the procedure for the local elections, the press service said.

    In addition, the Kremlin called "a goodwill gesture" the withdrawal of militants from the village of Shyrokyne and emphasized the need of the Ukrainian servicemen leaving the village.

    "In this regard, it is necessary to withdraw the Ukrainian armed forces from the village of Shyrokyne, as it was previously done by the militants as a gesture of goodwill," the press service of the Russian president said
    .
    Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 07-24-2015 at 11:47 AM.

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    Quote Originally Posted by OUTLAW 09 View Post
    Putin is attempting to force the Ukrainians to deal directly with the Russian mercenaries which would then give them the "appearance of being legitimate" and then in the so call federalization that Putin envisions they would have seat in the RADA and being able to block anything that appears like the Ukraine is trying to do with NATO and or the EU--this is Putin's "Bosnian solution".

    The NYTs recently wrote an article on the so called "Putin Bosnian model" for the Donbass regions.

    Notice Russia in is press release says absolutely nothing on what they and her mercenaries should be doing to implement fully Minsk 2--not a single word is wasted--it is all about WHAT the Ukraine needs to do.

    Currently the discussion on the 30km buffer zone was also originally proposed by the Russian General in the Russian JCCC--again a Russian solution--it was proposed during the extremely heavy fighting near Mariupol as the Russians attempted to break through to Mariupol and when civilians were still in the town--none are there now.

    Secondly the supposedly "good faith pull back" is not so "good faith" as they only pulled back a total of 1.5km and still shell Ukrainian positions daily.

    NOTICE Putin is demanding a "pull back" much in the same tone he demanded when actual Russian troops were attacking Debaltseve.

    Troubling is when Holland Merkel and actually Obama are putting extreme pressure on the Ukraine to concede point after point to Putin unilaterally WITHOUT a single reciprocal move by Russian and or her mercenaries.

    There was to be a teleconference on Monday night between Nuland and here Russian back channel much announced by the Russians AND nothing was released from that teleconference--telling.

    NOW the Ukrainian High Command is attempting to keep their own troops when heavily shelled and or involved in ground attacks from returning artillery and mortar fire to protect themselves--THE key question WHO is applying pressure on them to do that WHEN every day there are over 80 major shelling and aground attacks being conducted against them.

    AND that so called 100mm weapons withdrawal--total lies by Russia and her mercenaries--the furthest they moved back was 3km not the demanded 30km.

    So has Obama, Nuland,Hollande and Merkel decided now is the time to unilaterally conceded the Ukraine to Russian in order to "save his face" and so "gratitude" for his assistance with Iran???????

    Appears so------

    http://www.unian.info/politics/11043...of-donbas.html

    Putin urges Kyiv to agree with militants on special status of Donbas

    24.07.2015 | 09:21
    Hilarious
    #Putin demands fr. #Merkel,#Hollande that #Ukraine retreats from #Shyrokyne,while #OSCE conf., Rus have 11 MBT, 30 apc, 8 km east


    MFA Russia ✔ @mfa_russia
    Comprehensive settlement of #Ukraine’s crisis possible if Kiev establishes direct dialogue w/ Donbass representatives
    http://goo.gl/GmeERL

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by OUTLAW 09 View Post
    Putin is attempting to force the Ukrainians to deal directly with the Russian mercenaries which would then give them the "appearance of being legitimate" and then in the so call federalization that Putin envisions they would have seat in the RADA and being able to block anything that appears like the Ukraine is trying to do with NATO and or the EU--this is Putin's "Bosnian solution".

    The NYTs recently wrote an article on the so called "Putin Bosnian model" for the Donbass regions.

    Notice Russia in is press release says absolutely nothing on what they and her mercenaries should be doing to implement fully Minsk 2--not a single word is wasted--it is all about WHAT the Ukraine needs to do.

    Currently the discussion on the 30km buffer zone was also originally proposed by the Russian General in the Russian JCCC--again a Russian solution--it was proposed during the extremely heavy fighting near Mariupol as the Russians attempted to break through to Mariupol and when civilians were still in the town--none are there now.

    Secondly the supposedly "good faith pull back" is not so "good faith" as they only pulled back a total of 1.5km and still shell Ukrainian positions daily.

    NOTICE Putin is demanding a "pull back" much in the same tone he demanded when actual Russian troops were attacking Debaltseve.

    Troubling is when Holland Merkel and actually Obama are putting extreme pressure on the Ukraine to concede point after point to Putin unilaterally WITHOUT a single reciprocal move by Russian and or her mercenaries.

    There was to be a teleconference on Monday night between Nuland and here Russian back channel much announced by the Russians AND nothing was released from that teleconference--telling.

    NOW the Ukrainian High Command is attempting to keep their own troops when heavily shelled and or involved in ground attacks from returning artillery and mortar fire to protect themselves--THE key question WHO is applying pressure on them to do that WHEN every day there are over 80 major shelling and aground attacks being conducted against them.

    AND that so called 100mm weapons withdrawal--total lies by Russia and her mercenaries--the furthest they moved back was 3km not the demanded 30km.

    So has Obama, Nuland,Hollande and Merkel decided now is the time to unilaterally conceded the Ukraine to Russian in order to "save his face" and so "gratitude" for his assistance with Iran???????

    Appears so------

    http://www.unian.info/politics/11043...of-donbas.html

    Putin urges Kyiv to agree with militants on special status of Donbas

    24.07.2015 | 09:21
    https://www.facebook.com/dmitry.tymc...84?pnref=story
    Report
    Tymchuk says,there is a "witch-hunt" going on in the Ukr army,searching for Ukrainian soldiers who returned fire. Prohibited now.

    Tymchuk: The ATO command in "compliance w Minsk agreements", concluded in the strictest ban Ukrainian troops to open fire in response... .in the event of attacks (including fr heavy weapons) by the Russian forces & terrorist forces.

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    An odd comparison. Medvedev: Ukraine could end like Yugoslavia.https://twitter.com/ellie_knott/stat...76028644237312

    This is not an "odd comment"--during the run up to fully annexing Crimea there was a number of articles released by Russian propaganda about the Ukraine being not really be a nation state--but really composed of four or five different ethnic groups and these articles suggested that the Ukraine be broken up into the ethnic groups with Poland, Hungary, Romania, Russia and Georgia getting portions of the now Ukraine.

    Interesting that Hungarian intel agents recently got caught working in the region of ethnic Hungarians since the Hungarian government is pro Russian leaning.

    Interesting to see this pop up again as it tells me the eastern Ukraine is now "frozen" meaning it is "freezing" Russian in place not vice versa--Russia has to pay for everything and send in supplies and troops and heavy equipment at a cost of 30-40M USDs per day.

    Thus their shrill tones in trying to get the Ukrainians to deal directly with her mercenaries which the Ukraine refuses to do stating they are not the truly elected officials and will not deal with them until there are Ukrainian held elections as stated in Minsk 2.

    Putin desperately needs a "Bosnian solution" and the Ukraine sees right through it and is deflecting it nicely angering Putin to no end thus the shrillness lately and his demanding tone when he talks to Hollande, Merkel and Nuland about implementing Minsk 2.

    WHEN Russia has not implemented a single point in the agreement YET demands incessantly full compliance from the Ukraine AND it was Russia that invaded eastern Ukraine and annexed the Crimea NOT the Ukraine invading Russia.
    Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 07-24-2015 at 12:11 PM.

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    http://uatoday.tv/politics/media-kre...ia-462125.html

    Jul. 24, 2015

    Media: Kremlin anxious of Ukrainian 'Maidans' across Russia
    Rapid response force established to monitor potential protests: Nezavisimaya Gazeta


    The Kremlin's fear about anti-government protests like Ukraine's EuroMaidan uprising have led Russian authorities to begin establishing a new rapid response force.

    The new unit will focus on quelling any discontent or uprising in society, not only through direct interception but also with direct contact with protest group organizers and working groups.

    According to a source in Russian publication ‘Nezavisimaya Gazeta' (Independent newspaper), the rapid response force was created due to the authorities growing anxiety that their current popularity may soon turn sour, as regional budgets are slashed in the wake of the Russian economic crisis.

    An analyst at the Moscow-based independent pollster ‘The Levada Centre' said: "In view of the economic downfall and declining living standards, people's discontent could manifest itself anywhere. Labor protests may erupt, caused by non-payment of wages, medical staff reduction, etc. They have the potential of getting politicized quickly, so the creation of monitoring bodies supported by security forces indicates that the authorities are preparing for this scenario in advance".
    Austerity Hurts: Putin just fired 110k employees of Russia's interior ministry http://money.cnn.com/2015/07/24/news...ffs/index.html

    Well there is still the eastern Ukraine employment available at 450 USDs per month and all the bullets you can fire.
    Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 07-24-2015 at 12:28 PM.

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    Kuzminka: Some interesting "shapes" in the background - Wish we had better quality photos! pic.twitter.com/Gq3aTN39PA

    Same also visible in 2 other photos pic.twitter.com/Dlln5kUwJA

    Kuzminka: Battery of 2B26 Grad-K MLRS on KamAZ chassis (modernized version of BM-21 Grad) http://www.military-today.com/artillery/grad_k.htm … pic.twitter.com/jEk0RbRdJS

    15:27 #Horlivka, #Donetsk @vladicvp
    Quiet in all districts, distant rumbles only

    13:27 @vladicvp No water services in #Yuzhnokomunarivsk, Lisny, #Luhansk Kambrod, Kirovske, #Starobesheve

    ATO staff: Attacks decreasing, but not near Donetsk
    http://www.unian.info/politics/11045...r-donetsk.html … pic.twitter.com/SRXuzmNvn4

    1 #Ukrainian serviceman was killed in action in the last day, 3 were wounded in action - #ATO daily report

    #Fact
    #Russian-organised "protesters" first painted swastikas on @OSCE cars.
    Then made #Novorossiya flags out of them
    pic.twitter.com/Gi6O5y9J78

    Same with @ICRC cars.
    So f*ing revealing ... pic.twitter.com/zuP2q1sH2j
    Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 07-24-2015 at 12:34 PM.

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    After 5months of daily RU attacks, they stopped right now, while there are non-stop attacks everywhere.

    Ukr Gen Staff said it will withdraw troops from Shyrokyno if RU attacks cease. And... they did!

    Translation: We will withdraw soon Ukr troops from #Shyrokyno, as Russia requested. No need for them to be there anymore.

    ATO spox: "In #Mariupol sector ceasefire holds. First time since Minsk II no violations".


    Got #Thermobaric? #Ukraine pic.twitter.com/H6nYdVKCa1

    Donetsk #rumours @666_mancer It is rumoured that one of these days lots of Russian hardware will be delivered.

    SBU detained two of the Lviv separatists from the organization "Galician hawk" http://liveuamap.com/en/2015/24-july...tists-from-the

    Russian military equipment, Novocherkassk, Rostov region 18 July. via @GirkinGirkin pic.twitter.com/I9wZykbX17 Map https://www.google.ie/maps/place/Nov...c03d8f6214c8ca

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    .@nytimes MUST READ article: how #Russia groups crowd-fund the war in #Ukraine w/ SM, propaganda like GWP http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/12/wo...aine.html?_r=0

    Meanwhile, GWP's @JustGiving fundraiser 4 crowdfunding the war in #Ukraine has been REMOVED
    https://www.justgiving.com/search?q=Donbass … pic.twitter.com/Ua6iv3uPku

    Russia still trying hard to get that missile defense system out of European as it could in fact target Russian missiles BT since they keep threatening the use of tactical nuclear weapons might as well leave it in place.

    MFA Russia ✔ @mfa_russia
    Vladimir Chizhov: There is no need for a US missile defense system in Europe after #Irandeal was struck http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150724/1024988734.html

    MFA Russia ✔ @mfa_russia
    Ambassador to #EU Vladimir Chizhov: Results of #MH17 Crash Investigation Must Be Disclosed http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150724/1024990369.html
    BUT not disclosed to an international tribunal where we will be the criminal in the court room.

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    Quote Originally Posted by OUTLAW 09 View Post
    After 5months of daily RU attacks, they stopped right now, while there are non-stop attacks everywhere.

    Ukr Gen Staff said it will withdraw troops from Shyrokyno if RU attacks cease. And... they did!

    Translation: We will withdraw soon Ukr troops from #Shyrokyno, as Russia requested. No need for them to be there anymore.

    ATO spox: "In #Mariupol sector ceasefire holds. First time since Minsk II no violations".


    Got #Thermobaric? #Ukraine pic.twitter.com/H6nYdVKCa1

    Donetsk #rumours @666_mancer It is rumoured that one of these days lots of Russian hardware will be delivered.

    SBU detained two of the Lviv separatists from the organization "Galician hawk" http://liveuamap.com/en/2015/24-july...tists-from-the

    Russian military equipment, Novocherkassk, Rostov region 18 July. via @GirkinGirkin pic.twitter.com/I9wZykbX17 Map https://www.google.ie/maps/place/Nov...c03d8f6214c8ca
    From the Mariupol area where Putin wants the Ukraine to withdraw from as a "sign of good faith" this happened yesterday.

    Appears Putin really badly wants the area taken without a fight much like he demanded for Debaltseve.

    Yesterday militants 8 times attacked UKR positions in sector "M". Both Starohnativka (6) and Chermalyk (2) attackedhttp://m.0629.com.ua/news/902205

    Sector M is Mariupol area of the front line.

    Maybe Obama and Nuland with their "special Putin relationship" can ask him why there is still fighting in this area when they were suppose to be pulling back and claimed they pulled back.

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by OUTLAW 09 View Post
    Putin is attempting to force the Ukrainians to deal directly with the Russian mercenaries which would then give them the "appearance of being legitimate" and then in the so call federalization that Putin envisions they would have seat in the RADA and being able to block anything that appears like the Ukraine is trying to do with NATO and or the EU--this is Putin's "Bosnian solution".

    The NYTs recently wrote an article on the so called "Putin Bosnian model" for the Donbass regions.

    Notice Russia in is press release says absolutely nothing on what they and her mercenaries should be doing to implement fully Minsk 2--not a single word is wasted--it is all about WHAT the Ukraine needs to do.

    Currently the discussion on the 30km buffer zone was also originally proposed by the Russian General in the Russian JCCC--again a Russian solution--it was proposed during the extremely heavy fighting near Mariupol as the Russians attempted to break through to Mariupol and when civilians were still in the town--none are there now.

    Secondly the supposedly "good faith pull back" is not so "good faith" as they only pulled back a total of 1.5km and still shell Ukrainian positions daily.

    NOTICE Putin is demanding a "pull back" much in the same tone he demanded when actual Russian troops were attacking Debaltseve.

    Troubling is when Holland Merkel and actually Obama are putting extreme pressure on the Ukraine to concede point after point to Putin unilaterally WITHOUT a single reciprocal move by Russian and or her mercenaries.

    There was to be a teleconference on Monday night between Nuland and here Russian back channel much announced by the Russians AND nothing was released from that teleconference--telling.

    NOW the Ukrainian High Command is attempting to keep their own troops when heavily shelled and or involved in ground attacks from returning artillery and mortar fire to protect themselves--THE key question WHO is applying pressure on them to do that WHEN every day there are over 80 major shelling and aground attacks being conducted against them.

    AND that so called 100mm weapons withdrawal--total lies by Russia and her mercenaries--the furthest they moved back was 3km not the demanded 30km.

    So has Obama, Nuland,Hollande and Merkel decided now is the time to unilaterally conceded the Ukraine to Russian in order to "save his face" and so "gratitude" for his assistance with Iran???????

    Appears so------

    http://www.unian.info/politics/11043...of-donbas.html

    Putin urges Kyiv to agree with militants on special status of Donbas

    24.07.2015 | 09:21
    NOTE to Obama, Nuland and Biden--that so called "good faith gesture" that Putin talks about does not quite seem to be "in good faith" as the Russian pullback was only 1.5kms where they built a new defensive line and they have attacked three times since this Putin statement the exact location where they are demanding a "good faith gesture"

    So has Obama, Nuland and Biden "fallen" for Russian propaganda and or are they really interested in just throwing the Ukraine under the bus for Obama's "legacy".

    In Mariupol activists are demanding an explanation from ATO HQ about the demilitarization of Shyrokyne.
    http://112.ua/obshchestvo/v-mariupol...nt-247760.html

    Andriy Lysenko reports terrorists renewed attacks in Mariupol sector http://www.kyivpost.com/content/ukra...or-394297.html

    Yesterday in Sector "M" militants attacked Starohnativka (SPGs), Shyrokyne and Chermalyk (small arms) - Sec. M spox
    http://m.0629.com.ua/news/902836

    The key question Obama, Nuland and Biden should be asking themselves is WHY after five hard months of intense fighting and massive shellings of Shyrokyne and they lost all the fights--just WHY are the Russian even pulling back.

    They should be asking themselves if the Russian Army gains ground WHY give it up? That is not their military doctrine of 2013.

    Remember the DMZ concept was first proposed four months ago by a Russian JCCC General.

    Unilateral moves without a required reciprocal move is called in the international relations world simply "appeasement". One could in fact do that IF there was "trust" BUT remember in 2014 Obama openly stated to the entire world "we will judge Putin on his actions not his words".

    Seems Obama forgets his own statements as often as he forgets his own red lines.

    Remember recently he stated again "if the fighting gets serious we will implement harder sanctions"--well the fighting is extremely serious and heavy and yet nothing from Obama--seems he forgot again..

    If one really looks at the Minsk 2 agreement the French and Germans built such an agreement knowing full well that unless the military steps were not implemented there would never be political steps--AND Obama has now "reversed" that plan--AND for exactly what reasons--his "legacy and showing gratitude" towards Putin is the answer.
    Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 07-26-2015 at 09:39 AM.

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    It is interesting to read this article in light of the fact that at the height of the Cold War we had hundreds of people doing exactly what this writer talks about in the article and they got it right most of the time---so here we are 25 years later and we do not have the capability at all--nor the needed linguists.

    Well worth reading---------

    http://www.thedailybeast.com/article...iplospeak.html

    Neo-Soviet Lingo

    07.25.1510:00 PM ET

    Russia’s Stalinist Diplospeak

    A Russian linguist closely examines how the Russian Foreign Ministry’s communication has resurrected the creepy old Soviet style.

    Russian is a tough language to learn not because of the complex tenses and six cases, but because the style of communication is what matters most. The Russian style not only expresses the mood of the speaker or writer, a certain political situation, or the time and circumstances of the moment; the Russian style also “smells.” Or stinks.

    Thus, Russian politics are all about the style of expression, and the language used to convey a political message in Russia is more than just a mere communication tool. It’s a cult and has been one since 1917.

    Within the first year after the Bolshevik Revolution, Lenin changed the Russian alphabet, the grammar, the syntaxes and even the time: the country finally adopted the Gregorian calendar and established time zones. But the most significant alteration occurred in the style of Soviet discourse. Stalin later converted what wasn’t even his native tongue (he grew up speaking Georgian) into a veritable arsenal for warfare, redefining way state officials spoke, wrote and, regrettably, thought. It was all done to mask his Big Lie in layer upon layer of obfuscation and hidden meaning.

    Stalin’s style was difficult to ignore because there were four main foundations underlying it.

    Self-questioning

    Stalin’s classic essay “Marxism and the Issues of Language Studies” gives a perfect example of this style: “The question arises, what have changed in Russian language since the October Revolution? The vocabulary shifted significantly, in a sense that it got amended with a large number of words and idioms.”

    The question here only “arose” because Stalin himself raised it.

    Metonymy

    As developed in the Stalinist style, this is when the speaker seamlessly assigns a much broader and encompassing name to refer to a specific thing or constituency. Some pure examples remain in the Soviet archives, such as this statement from 1976:

    “Those forces in the West are capable of any deception method to complicate the issue of the termination of the arms race.”

    “Those forces in the West” refers to the American military-industrial complex but note how much more ambiguously menacing the reformulation is. “Forces” suggests a multitude with global reach.

    Proactive Commentary

    This is when the speaker says something even if no one is seeking his opinion. Overreaction laden with clichés of ideology and emotive abuse is the defining feature. A classic form of such commentary was an unsolicited “reaction to anti-Soviet hysteria in country X”.

    The following quote, for instance, is taken from a 1977 Soviet communique:

    “In China, (we observe) a widening scale of the anti-Soviet campaign that is maintained by propagandistic institutions and officials at all levels. Chinese press and other media distributes daily obvious lies and slanders in regard to the USSR, those are not much different from imperialist propaganda that has long discredited itself with the peoples of the world.”

    Now here’s one by Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich, reacting to a U.S. State Department report on human rights in June 2015, which of course contained criticism of Russian human rights abuses:

    “The report published on June 25 by The Department of State of the USA on the conditions of human rights in the world, as with all previous opuses, is plagued with politicized remarks and rude ideological stock phrases. The document is nothing more than a serial specimen of American mentorship and lecturing manner in the area of human rights. This manner is grounded on a false logic of US’s infallibility and perceived problems other states have on the issue.”

    In neither case was Moscow’s response necessary. It was freely offered, almost with a joyous expectancy of being able to get its “retaliation in first.”

    Criminal Vocabulary

    The Russian Civil War birthed a new gangland vocabulary for everyday use to denigrate real and perceived opponents of the Soviet order. It transcended Stalin’s own style to amplify the underlying mood of belligerence, if not mercilessness.

    In the 1930s, the Stalinist criminal vocabulary became the subject of a famous satire, “Golden Calf” by Ilia Ilf and Eugeny Petrov. The central character, Ostap Bender, is a talented adventurist who tries to make his fortune on the edge of NEP (the New Economic Policy, which constituted a temporary turn back to capitalism in the USSR from 1921-1930). In one of the episodes, Bender travels on the train with a group of Soviet journalists whose verbal resources are maximally constrained by the new rules on revolutionary reportage. Bender creates a dictionary of over 100 clichéd constructions which perfectly comply with the Party’s editorial standards for journalism, he successfully sells it to the bored journalists who can now use it as boilerplate.

    ***

    Today, Vladimir Putin, has resurrected Stalin’s four foundations of style and encouraged his diplomats and government officials to employ them with the same frequency and purpose as his Soviet forbears.

    I have analyzed all official communications of the Russian Foreign Ministry from September 2011 to June 2015, indexed them, and run them through a specific linguistic software called Voyant Tools, based on Stanford Natural Language processing toolkit. The total database consists of 2.5 million words, and 21,765 documents. Here’s what I found.

    Self-Questioning

    Self-questioning is barely present in Foreign Ministry statements until the Fall of 2012, with the occasional use of a formulation such as, “Some partners of Russia question that…” But starting in 2013, when Putin took a harder stance against the West, self-questioning became much more frequent. The method skyrocketed in 2014, reaching 188 total uses, most commonly deployed by the nameless “press statements” on behalf of the Foreign Ministry, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and Foreign Ministry Spokesman Alexander Lukashevich.

    Official press statements are much less speculative and rarely employ Stalin’s favorite tool: a meager 25.

    Lavrov is a great fan of self-questioning. He holds 66 of 189 uses of the formulation “the question arises” and its manifold variations.

    The winner of self-questioning, however, is Lukashevich, with 101 uses, but some of his briefings and statements just repeat Lavrov’s earlier sentiments.

    Metonymy

    Likewise, metonymy has made a comeback. Consider this comment by Lavrov in his November 2013 Address to the State Duma:

    “Some countries are guided with an opportunistic interest to circumvent the global limits on the use of force in international relations… It’s obvious for us that some countries exercise the power they possess more frequently and tend to redraw the guiding principles of international relations.”

    He means only one country.

    Since the beginning of the Ukraine crisis, however, the frequency of Stalinist metonymy grows. “Western partners,” “hegemonic force,” “some country that imagines itself a policeman of the world”—all these become have become frequent stand-ins for “White House” or “United States.”

    Criminal Vocabulary

    Putin himself is famous for deploying Bender-like formulations. He uses “whack” like an Italian mobster when he refers to what Russia will do to terrorists. Another favorite: “If my grandmother had balls, she’d be my grandfather,” used to derisively dismiss what he considers a non-possibility, such as the capacity for the post-Yanukovych Ukrainian transitional government to perform.

    Typically, professional diplomats don’t resort to gangland jargon, but in Putin’s Russia, the exceptions are subtly smuggled in.

    For instance, one Foreign Ministry briefing on June 29, 2012, read, in Russian, “Americans prefer to pull down their allies rather than take their interests into account.” To the untrained reader, this sounds hostile but ho-hum. However, the usage here of the verb, opustit (“to pull down”), in the Russian criminal argot refers to homosexual rape. Opustit in fact, refers to how tougher inmates make weaker ones their “bitches.”

    Proactive Commentary

    When Russia abandoned its Soviet identity in 1991, its Foreign Ministry’s language changed accordingly. Diplomats attempted a sober neutrality and a more rational mode of communicating with the outside world. Until 2007, Russian diplomacy maintained a formal, if sometimes murky, style which rarely conveyed a single, unambiguous meaning. Moscow knew that its post-Soviet leaders would need wiggle room to dodge and obfuscate; in a democracy, climb-downs from original “official positions” were inevitable in the course of engagement other countries.


    But in 2007, at the Munich Security Conference, Putin put paid to this new mode of Russian “diplospeak.” He presented the idea that the collapse of the USSR “was the largest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century.” This was hardly unambiguous and signaled a calcification in the Russian view of recent history. Further, Putin blamed the West in seeking to humiliate Russia, thus wakening the “sleeping beasts” of the Soviet style.

    I was working in Russian media at the time and remember this grim return to form quite well.

    Continued.......................................

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by OUTLAW 09 View Post
    Yesterday militants attacked positions of Ukrainian troops 78 times. As of 06:00 today, attacks continue - ATOhttps://m.facebook.com/story.php?sto...54&__tn__=%2As

    Newly appointed Head of #Luhansk reg/ admin Tuka: 2 vehicles w/ smuggled goods were stopped near delimitation line http://censor.net.ua/blogs/742/otchety_quotletuchekquot

    Echelon of military Kamaz trucks near the border of Ukraine pic.twitter.com/ps4VP3ovPT http://liveuamap.com/en/2015/24-july...ear-the-border

    Kuzminka: Self-contained Russian army tactical group with enough fuel bowsers for an offensive/long-distance pic.twitter.com/1DwZ8Z3Mji

    Kuzminka: Russian motor rifle (mechanised infantry) and tank tactical group with SPG/MLRS artillery support pic.twitter.com/sSkioWVwRn

    Russian Army base at Kuzminka (Vodino/Golovinka), Rostov region 6 July 2015 PHOTOS
    http://ru.tsn.ua/foto/otdyh-otpuskni...iy-456176.html
    http://reviewnews.net/ukraine-1/3641...ranits-ukrainy

    Ready to roll. Russian Army base at Kuzminka (Vodino/Golovinka), Rostov region (55km from Ukraine border) 6 July pic.twitter.com/rNqZ11gP1y
    2nd Guards Motor Rifle 'Taman' Div and 4th Guards 'Kantemir' Tank Div received "Tornado-G" MLRS to replace Grad BM-21 http://tass.ru/armiya-i-opk/2136010

  15. #15
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    NEW POST: @EliotHiggins on using Google Earth, Yandex, Echosec and Yomapic for verification https://medium.com/1st-draft/searchi...n-89d960bb8fba … pic.twitter.com/aQu1tcxZti

    Having vandalized #OSCE cars ruscists achieved their goal in #Donetsk. Less OSCE, less RUS activity recorded. https://twitter.com/UkrWatchTower/st...46344351817729

    The OSCE SMM is to limit activity in Donetsk because of pressure on observers - Hug
    http://112.ua/ato/missiya-obse-ogran...ag-247515.html

    It just so happened that pro-Kremlin media - @Ruptly, were there to film it all
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vj8if12FrDs

    BBC News - Why would Russia deploy bombers [Tu-22M3] in Crimea? http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-33649298 … via @BBCrussia 24 Jul

    About 200 Ukrainians still held hostage by Russian-separatist forces - advisor to SBU chief http://www.kyivpost.com/content/ukra...ef-394221.html … via Kyiv Post 24 Jul

    Anyone knows when Kredo-M1 entered service? other users apart from Russian Armed Forces? http://www.almaz-antey.ru/en/catalog...1219/1242/1331 … pic.twitter.com/vSVO5O90j8

    There are no "representatives" of Donbas right now (& Russia & her proxies are obstructing elections to get some) http://osce.usmission.gov/mobile/jul...to_russia.html

    Criminal group behind 1 bn $ Moldovan theft linked to the 20 bn Russian Laundromat™
    https://www.bellingcat.com/news/uk-a...theft-moldova/ … via @OCCRP and @bellingcat

    Another Russian spy drone shot down in east Ukraine (Video)
    http://uatoday.tv/news/another-russi...eo-461708.html … pic.twitter.com/14b5IeAJBG
    Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 07-24-2015 at 08:19 PM.

  16. #16
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    http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/526147.html

    Russian Official Calls for Obligations to International Law to be Struck from Constitution

    By Anna Dolgov
    Jul. 24 2015 13:53

    The head of Russia's Investigative Committee has called for scrapping from the country's Constitution all mentions of adherence to international law, according to an interview with official government daily Rossiiskaya Gazeta.

    The proposal by Alexander Bastrykin, which was part of an interview published by Rossiiskaya Gazeta on Thursday follows a Constitutional Court decision earlier this month ruling that Moscow can refuse to comply with European Court of Human Rights judgments.

    Bastrykin praised the court's decision, but said the country needed to take it further.

    Without a doubt, it is necessary to eliminate from the Constitution the provisions according to which the widely accepted principles and norms of international law are an inalienable part of the legal system of the Russian Federation," Bastrykin, a lawyer by training, was quoted as saying.

    Article 15 of the Russian Constitution reads that the "widely accepted principles and norms of international law and the international agreements of the Russian Federation are a component part of its legal system."

    The article also says that in case of contradictions between Russia's international agreements and domestic laws, international agreements take precedence.

    The article has been the object of Bastrykin's ire for months. He called it "legal sabotage" during a meeting with Investigative Committee officials in February, saying it should be abolished, Kommersant reported at that time.

    The ruling by the Constitutional Court on the European Court of Human Rights was a step toward measures that Bastrykin has been advocating.

    In its July 14 decision, the court ruled that "in exceptional cases, Russia can diverge from fulfilling the obligations imposed upon it if such deviation is the only possible way to avoid violating fundamental constitutional principles."

    "The European Convention on Human Rights and the legal positions taken by the [European Court] based on [the convention], cannot undermine [Russia's] Constitution, which takes priority," the court said in a statement.

    The Constitutional Court's decision was seen as opening the way for Moscow to avoid paying compensation to former shareholders of Mikhail Khodorkovsky's defunct Yukos oil company. The European court ruled last year that the handling of Yukos assets violated its shareholders' rights, and ordered Moscow to pay compensation to them.


    Bastrykin told Rossiyskaya Gazeta that Russia needs to "continue and expand" the Constitutional Court's decision to avoid "legal collisions," adding that the Constitution — adopted in 1993 — may be due for a thorough overhaul.

    "Beside the provisions on the priority of international law, an array of other constitutional provisions could be corrected, considering the more than 20-year service of our Constitution," Bastrykin was quoted as saying. He did not elaborate on what provisions he thought should be changed.

    The issue of Russia's abidance by international law and treaties has repeatedly been called into question since Moscow annexed Crimea from Ukraine in March 2014. Western governments and Kiev have accused Russia of violating international law and agreements with Ukraine, including the 1994 Budapest Memorandum — which reaffirmed Ukraine's territorial integrity in exchange for the country agreeing to give up nuclear weapons — and the 1997 Friendship Treaty between Russia and Ukraine.

  17. #17
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    Heavy shellings and ground attacks this evening—so much for all the hype from Russia about implementing Minsk 2 and so much for US, France and German appeasement “to save Putin’s face”

    This is the direct result of their unilateral moves with no reciprocal demands on Russia.

    22:00 #Starohnativka @Staroignatievca Heavy volleys and blasts nearby

    Maryinka @hyeva_maryinka [vk]
    21:20 Quiet
    21:21 Just wrote and a boom at once

    21:23 #Novhorodske @LeeZernoganja [Recently] a couple of projectiles hit rails, couple more at old dachas.

    20:59 #Alchevsk @protiv_voiny What is that rumbling? Drills?

    21:19 #Dzerzhynsky @blessmaster Lots of small arms fire, mortars in #Shumy/Yuzhna mine direction

    20:52 #Zalizne (#Novhorodske) @LeeZernoganja My village was shelled, several impacts, like direct fire. Smoke plumes

    20:18 #Maryinka @hyeva_maryinka [vk] And again few heavy machine gun bursts

    20:56 #Zalizne (part of #Novhorodske) @LeeZernoganja Something on fire pic.twitter.com/vdmQheBfEr

    20:46 #Mariupol @p251977 Who has heard boom?
    20:51 @ukrmarik I thought it seemed to me

    22:09 #Volnovakha @lapa545 Strong booms somewhere. Dogs are barking, hard to get where, I guess north/northeast

    22:16 #Dokuchaevsk @goky4_ykpauHa Also audible in #Dokuchaevsk

    22:14 #Volnovakha @solomazheka Rumble for about 20min in the east, approx #Starohnativka, ongoing battle, heavy [arty]

    22:22 @solomazheka Stir in #Volnovakha or sort of [road police] interception oper'n, all cars are checked, never been before

    22:33 #Dzerzhynsk @dimetros7776 Impacts on houses on Yuzhna St, incoming were fr/#Horlivka direction, UKR almost didn't reply
    Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 07-24-2015 at 07:45 PM.

  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by OUTLAW 09 View Post
    Heavy shellings and ground attacks this evening—so much for all the hype from Russia about implementing Minsk 2 and so much for US, France and German appeasement “to save Putin’s face”

    This is the direct result of their unilateral moves with no reciprocal demands on Russia.

    22:00 #Starohnativka @Staroignatievca Heavy volleys and blasts nearby

    Maryinka @hyeva_maryinka [vk]
    21:20 Quiet
    21:21 Just wrote and a boom at once

    21:23 #Novhorodske @LeeZernoganja [Recently] a couple of projectiles hit rails, couple more at old dachas.

    20:59 #Alchevsk @protiv_voiny What is that rumbling? Drills?

    21:19 #Dzerzhynsky @blessmaster Lots of small arms fire, mortars in #Shumy/Yuzhna mine direction

    20:52 #Zalizne (#Novhorodske) @LeeZernoganja My village was shelled, several impacts, like direct fire. Smoke plumes

    20:18 #Maryinka @hyeva_maryinka [vk] And again few heavy machine gun bursts

    20:56 #Zalizne (part of #Novhorodske) @LeeZernoganja Something on fire pic.twitter.com/vdmQheBfEr

    20:46 #Mariupol @p251977 Who has heard boom?
    20:51 @ukrmarik I thought it seemed to me

    22:09 #Volnovakha @lapa545 Strong booms somewhere. Dogs are barking, hard to get where, I guess north/northeast

    22:16 #Dokuchaevsk @goky4_ykpauHa Also audible in #Dokuchaevsk

    22:14 #Volnovakha @solomazheka Rumble for about 20min in the east, approx #Starohnativka, ongoing battle, heavy [arty]

    22:22 @solomazheka Stir in #Volnovakha or sort of [road police] interception oper'n, all cars are checked, never been before

    22:33 #Dzerzhynsk @dimetros7776 Impacts on houses on Yuzhna St, incoming were fr/#Horlivka direction, UKR almost didn't reply
    OSCE monitors cannot confirm arms withdrawal by Russian-separatist forces http://www.kyivpost.com/content/ukra...es-394242.html

    23:09 #Starohnativka @Staroignatievca Lull
    Lull before next shellings--resupplying

    23:03 #Krasnohorivka @hyeva_maryinka [vk]
    22:30 Skirmishes on the front line don't cease
    22:55 Ongoing shooting


    Starohnativka: scary explosions, perhaps shell landings in a village. https://twitter.com/Staroignatievca/...03811861000193

    Hot spots atm: Horlivka, Krasnogorivka, Starohnativka

    .@lisova1992 It has been reported on #Rovenki militants KIA near #Stanytsia_Luhanska

    Russian artillery barrage near #Starohnativka (W of Bila Kamyanka, E of Volnovakha), Donetsk region https://www.google.ie/maps/place/Sta...caefec39e495c0 … via @loogunda

    intensive machineguns in Krasnogorovka https://twitter.com/arthurnkua/statu...69361513611265

    22:52 #Starohnativka @Staroignatievca Hell again, massive explosions, the sky is flashing

    22:41 #Donetsk @JRijJyY08AkRzL8 We can hear you, burst wave reaches us, cheer up! https://twitter.com/loogunda/status/624660986147024896

    Results of shelling by militants of Novhorodsʹke (July 24)Video here >https://m.facebook.com/story.php?sto...81&__tn__=%2As … pic.twitter.com/fIOuTE4C8V

    Ukraine soldier killed in clashes following peace talks http://f24.my/1Or3FOG pic.twitter.com/o01qwGFAzi

    BBC journalist at Donetsk airport: "This is what Armageddon feels like"
    http://www.unian.info/war/1104723-bb...eels-like.html … pic.twitter.com/6ptuJjf1OQ
    Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 07-24-2015 at 08:16 PM.

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