Wednesday, May 14, 2014
As the Ukrainian
crisis persists, those in Kiev have held a meeting to discuss the future of
their country. The separatists fighting for autonomy and consequent absorption
into Russia spurned the meeting and still hang on to their demand and the
installations that are under their control.
Clearly,
the consequences are dire already. Three main ones stand out for attention:
• The interim government of Ukraine says that the annexation of
Crimea by Russia earlier this year cost Ukraine at least 1tn hryvnya (£49.3bn;
$83bn; 60.5bn euros);
• Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry
Rogozin says that he [Russia, invariably?] would not support a US and European
proposal to extend the international space station beyond 2020 but US space
agency Nasa, which relies on Russia to ferry astronauts to the station, said it
had not yet received any official notification on changes in space co-operation;
• Russian troops moved to begin
constructing a pipeline to supply Crimea with water weeks after Ukraine cut off
supplies.
Credit: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-27403109
We can
see how the situation looks like at this stage. The imposition of sanctions on
Russia won’t necessarily deter Russia from ensuring that the US and EU don’t
drag their NATO war machine to its backyard. In consequence, the threat
regarding the international space station will definitely alarm the US for it
to tone down on its belligerence. The US can’t do without advanced technology
(more so, one deriving from space exploration).
Meantime,
the US Vice President’s household has begun benefiting from the situation. As
reported by the BBC, a private oil and gas company
in Ukraine (Burisma) announced this week that it has appointed Hunter Biden,
the youngest son of US Vice President Joe Biden, to its board of directors.
The company, founded in 2002, is
controlled by a former energy official in the government of deposed Ukrainian
President Viktor Yanukovych.
The move has raised some eyebrows in the
US, given the Obama administration's attempts to manage the ongoing crisis in
Ukraine.
Biden
was in Kiev last month to extend the US’ hand of support to the government. Any
quid pro quo (one good turn deserving another) happening here? I am reminded of
Dick Cheney, former Vice President under George Bush and the Haliburton
contracts in Iraq after the pushing out of Saddam Hussein!!
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
Politics is good for those who know how to do it.
We will
continue to monitor the situation to see how the tide flows.
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