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Pro-Russian protesters have seized state buildings in several east Ukrainian cities, prompting accusations from Kiev that Moscow is trying to "dismember" the country.
The protesters broke into a regional administrative building in the mining city of Donetsk on Sunday as well as security services offices in nearby Luhansk, where police said they had seized weapons.
A self-proclaimed legislature, representing what it called the Donetsk People's Republic, then announced that it would hold a referendum by May 11 on whether the area should join Russia, Russian state-run news agency ITAR-Tass reported Monday. CNN has not confirmed the report.
The Russian news agency also said the Donetsk group asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to send a "temporary peacekeeping contingent."
the2ofusr1
reply to post by daaskapital
There is a thread already posted on this subject although it may be in a different forum ....just saying ...peace
khimbar
So, a government which took power by force in a coup, is trying to stop the other side taking power by referendum?
Xcathdra
reply to post by VirusGuard
I am assuming you 2 are referring to Crimea? Where masked gunmen entered their parliament building and arrested the Prime minister, replacing him with a pro Russian who was not elected.
Since the former President of Ukraine was lawfully removed under the 2004 Constitution that he signed back into effect surely you cant be referring to Ukraine.
Current acting President is the current Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament Oleksandr Turchynov after the Ukrainian Parliament ousted Viktor Yanukovych from this office on 21 February 2014.[1] It is unclear if the removal of Yanukovych was legal because Yanukovych had not signed the bills that would restore the Constitution as it was between 2004 and 2010.[2] The constitutional guidelines provide for a review of the case by Ukraine's Constitutional Court and a three-fourths majority vote by parliament (338 MPs).[2] The decisions to remove Yanukovych was supported by 328 MPs.[3] Yanukovych still claims to be "the legitimate head of the Ukrainian state elected in a free vote by Ukrainian citizens".
LightAssassin
reply to post by daaskapital
Russia are merely saying to the West and NATO....."Anything you can do in the Middle East, I can do here!"
I don't support either.....but a wry smile crosses my face seeing these articles, and the way they're spun to try and make Russia look evil.
In their idea its a round about method of invasion without actually firing shots.
Xcathdra
reply to post by daaskapital
Actually Russia pushed the idea of a "Federation" style government for Ukraine and its "regions". They are essentially pushing for a association style government, which in turn would make it easier for Russia to continue absorbing sections of Ukraine. In their idea its a round about method of invasion without actually firing shots.
The reaction from Ukraine tells me the Russian idea is not going to happen. There have been reports of people being arrested coming into Ukraine with weapons / bombs / explosives etc. With the amount of propaganda flowing from both sides its difficult to figure out what info is valid and what info is not.
Russia essentially has Ukraine surrounded now with military assets so and the theory is they are going to strike just prior to the Presidential elections.
www.nytimes.com...
Police officers sealed off access to the buildings but said that they had no idea who was behind the assault...
...But it was unclear how much authority Mr. Avakov has over the police and other state services in Crimea, where a heavily ethnic Russian and Russian-speaking population mostly views the Ukrainian government installed after the ouster last weekend of Mr. Yanukovych as the illegitimate result of a fascist coup.
“Provocateurs are on the march,” Mr. Avakov added. “It’s a time for cool heads, the healthy consolidation of forces, and careful action.”
Outside the occupied legislature building, columns of several hundred pro-Russia protesters forced their way through police lines chanting “Rossiya, Rossiya” — “Russia, Russia” — and waving Russian flags. The leader of a group called the Russian Movement for Crimea read out Mr. Yanukovych’s reported statement declaring himself to be the legitimate president. “We agree, we agree,” the crowd shouted. One man shouted through a bullhorn: “We are not separatists. Russia, Ukraine and Belarus are one country.”
www.informationclearinghouse.info...
Victoria Nuland Admits: US Has Invested $5 Billion In The Development of Ukrainian, "Democratic Institutions"
intrptr
reply to post by Xcathdra
In their idea its a round about method of invasion without actually firing shots.
No, thats your idea. The Russians aren't "invading" the Ukraine. The EU (NATO) are and many shots have been fired in that regard already.
junglimogli
Russia needs to take back Ukraine .. that's the only way they can stay head to head with the West trying to put up a missiles defense shield and such in Poland, etc .. once they have Ukraine, they can use that is a buffer zone to beef up their own defenses ..
During the late 1990s, the U.S. Navy was tasked to provide a weapon system for exploratory testing of LEAP. This phase was designated the Aegis LEAP Intercept (ALI) program. The program was for two successful intercepts in five attempts. On June 13, 2002, the second successful ALI intercept occurred during the FM-3 flight test mission. Initial Aegis BMD success may have contributed to President George W. Bush's decision to deploy an emergency ballistic missile capability by late 2004.
Upon the completion of the ALI program, Aegis BMD was transitioned to the production phase. The first Block I production SM-3 was delivered in October 2004, and the Aegis 3.0 update was delivered in 2005.
This system was given major new importance by President Obama in September 2009, when he announced plans to scrap the plans for a missile defense site in Poland, in favor of missile defense systems located on U.S. Navy warships.[4][5] On 18 September 2009, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin welcomed Obama's plans for missile defense which may include stationing American Aegis armed warships in the Black Sea, as these would be less effective against Russia's missile attacks.[6][7] In 2009, several U.S. Navy ships were fitted with SM-3 missiles to serve this function, which complements the Patriot systems already deployed by American units. Also, warships of Japan and Australia have been given weapons and technology to enable them to participate as well.[8][9]
Current Aegis BMD hardware includes the SM-3 Block-1a missile and other improvements to the Aegis Weapons System. Future development of the Aegis BMD system includes Launch on Remote capability, upgraded SM-3 avionics and hardware, and an upgraded Aegis Weapon System. In 2012 Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense will merge with Aegis Open Architecture and deliver the benefits of both platforms.[10] The Launch on Remote capability involves the use of off-board sensors, such as the Space Tracking and Surveillance System to provide a targeting solution for a SM-3 launch.[11]
Aegis Ashore[edit]
A land-based component, Aegis Ashore, is also planned (pictured). This would consist of equipment which is commonly used by the Navy being deployed in land-based facilities. This would include SPY-1 radars and a battery of Standard Missile-3s. The Obama administration’s plans call for two sites: the first in Romania at Deveselu in 2015 and the second in Poland in 2018. In 2020, both will get the latest versions of the Aegis BMD software and the latest version of the SM-3.[12] Some radar facilities will be placed in Turkey at a future date.[13][14][15][16]
As of January, 2014, the U.S. and Japan are the only countries to have deployed the Aegis BMD.[17]