In the latest of a series of highly public antisemitic statements by prominent figures in Ukraine, a retired Ukrainian general affiliated with the country’s intelligence services this week called for the destruction of his country’s Jewish community.
Reconsidering Russia Podcast: An Interview with Halyna Mokrushyna
Scholar and Reconsidering Russia blogger Pietro Shakarian interviews Dr. Halyna Mokrushyna on the state of democracy in Ukraine today. Dr. Mokrushyna holds a PhD in linguistics and an MA in communication. She is also currently enrolled in the PhD program in sociology at the University of Ottawa and is a part-time professor. Her doctoral research deals with the memory of Stalinism and the Stalinist purges in Ukraine.
America’s ’emotional obsession’ with Russia will end soon, Kremlin says (ABC News)
“We regret the emotional obsession with the so-called Russian factor that is being zealously maintained in America,” Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin, said Friday in a telephone call with reporters. “But, on the other hand, we understand that we need to be patient — this obsession will end soon.”
Russia’s Medvedev: Ukraine Could Face Yugoslavia-Style Break Up
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has warned that Ukraine could disappear from the map of Europe as Yugoslavia did, if Kiev does not “show some flexibility” and grant more autonomy to the territories in the east held by pro-Russian separatists.
How Russia Could Help Solve the North Korea Crisis (Lyle Goldstein)
At this point, Pyongyang might trust Moscow more than it trusts Beijing.
U.S. troops to train regular Ukrainian military troops: State Department
U.S. troops will begin training regular Ukrainian military forces later this year in an expansion of their current mission, which so far has been limited to instructing Interior Ministry national guard units, the State Department said on Friday.
“This training is part of our long-running defense cooperation with Ukraine and is taking place at the invitation of the Ukraine government. This additional program brings our total security assistance committed to Ukraine since 2014 to over $244 million,” State Department Mark Toner said.
What Is America’s Goal in the World? (Pat Buchanan)
A quarter-century after the Cold War, we remain committed to 60-year-old Cold War alliances to defend scores of nations on the other side of the world. Consider some of the places where America collides today with nuclear powers: the DMZ, the Senkakus, Scarborough Shoal, Crimea, the Donbass.
GOP lawmaker: Russian jets’ US fly-by shows Cold War ‘is back on’
More incendiary rhetoric out of Capitol Hill, the latest example is the below story which features Congressman Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) claiming that two Russian nuclear bombers flying within miles of the California coast earlier this month was a clear “act of aggression” by Moscow.
Russia Seeks Accord With U.S. on Iran Role in Syria Safe Zones (Bloomberg)
Russia is seeking to convince the U.S. to accept an Iranian role in a plan for foreign troops to police safe zones in Syria as a step toward ending the six-year war.
Russia and the New Cold War in Historical Context: Part II of Conversations With Russia Scholar Stephen Cohen
ACEWA Founding Board Member Stephen F. Cohen suggests, in this, the second installment of his wide-ranging interview with the Huffington Post’s Dan Kovalik, that American policymakers should try and adopt a foreign policy that seeks to engage, rather than to simply criticize, the Russian government.
Ukraine Police to Question Authors of Documentary “Killing Pavel” (OCCRP)
The film shows the results of a nine month-long investigation by reporters from OCCRP and Slidstvo.Info. In exclusive footage and interviews, it reveals crucial information about the night and morning of the July 2016 killing of Pavel Sheremet that never found its way into the official investigation.
DENY, DENY, DENY
Professor Paul Robinson notes that while both sides of the Ukrainian civil war have stubbornly denied culpability for civilian casualties, “What is perhaps surprising is the willingness of outsiders to let people get away with it. Neither Russia nor the West have shown any notable inclination to force their proxies to be more honest. Rather they seem to encourage the tendency to claim that others are at fault. It seems that the desire to maintain an ally’s image outweighs the desire for the truth.”
Stop promoting liberal conspiracy theories on Twitter (Sarah Jones)
Louise Mensch is experienced in three areas: Writing chick lit, marrying famous music managers, and quitting a political career. Notice that Russian politics is not one of these areas.
BBC: Ukrainians struggling as their economy shrinks
Many Ukrainians are feeling the effects of their country’s severe recession. Fuelled partly by the debilitating war in the east with Russian-supported militants, Ukraine’s economy is shrinking.
The country may also be on the verge of defaulting on some of its international debts.
Lavrov in Washington: Can America and Russia Work Together? (Nikolas K. Gvosdev)
The U.S.-Russia relationship is starved for normalcy.
Ukraine agrees to 30-kilometer buffer zone
Ukrainan President Petro Poroshenko has announced plans to introduce a 30-kilometer demilitarized zone in Luhansk. The president has also instated a well-known volunteer as Kyiv’s governor of the war-torn region. The buffer zone, which was agreed between Ukraine’s warring factions under mediation of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and Russia, requires all tanks and artillery to be withdrawn from the region. The move aims to bring an end to the “permanent shelling.”
PODCAST: World War II Memories in Moscow, Another Cold War Inquisition in Washington (Stephen F. Cohen)
Princeton and NYU Professor Emeritus Stephen F. Cohen and John Batchelor continue their weekly discussions of the new US-Russian Cold War. Cohen emphasizes that while VE (Victory in Europe) Day – a major American holiday, on May 8, when he was growing up in Kentucky – is no longer observed, Victory Day, on May 9, remains the most sacred Russian holiday, a “holiday with tears.”
Kerry’s next challenge
The nuclear agreement with Iran provides ample proof of Secretary of State John F. Kerry’s remarkable commitment and skill in waging diplomacy. In an era when the Pentagon dominates our foreign policy and military options are too often trotted out as first responses, he has resuscitated the United States’ power to lead, pressure and negotiate, a capacity too often denigrated as “soft power.”
No good deed goes unpunished.
It Was Inevitable That Trump Would Fire James Comey (Jacob Heilbrunn)
As George F. Kennan once noted, the average citizen who reads the New York Times knows as much, or even more, than many government officials. Comey made claims on the order of stating that Russia is the “greatest threat” to the United States. It isn’t the job of the FBI director to indulge in geopolitical analysis. Anyway, how would he know?
Gorbachev urges Moscow and Berlin to rebuild trust
Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev urged Moscow and Berlin on Tuesday to “re-establish trust” amid fierce tension caused by the ongoing Ukraine crisis.
The ageing Russian leader said he is concerned by the country’s deteriorating relationship with the West, nearly 30 years after US president Ronald Reagan’s call for Gorbachev to “tear down this wall!” and end the divide between East and West.