If this was a leftist claim, I would not be surprised, but a surprising number of conservatives have started spouting the pro-Putin line even claiming the Ukrainians shot down that airliner some years back. Just because the Obama/Clinton Administration backs Ukraine does not make Ukraine on the wrong side. They clearly were too ready to treat Putin as a potential ally, but Russia invaded a largely liberal democracy.
Good comments. Yes, Ukraine has a substantial corruption problem (and not just with Hunter Biden). This is a likely consequence of Soviet rule corrupting the morals of the population. Trying to make True Socialist Man, only looking out for the common good, promotes a corner-cutting self-interest. I am not sure how many generations it will take for this to breed out of the culture.
Yes, the Clinton Administration involved itself in the battle for democracy there. I recall one very clever stunt by the CIA that shows that they are capable of subtlety. A group of Russian-speaking Ukrainian steelworkers were transported to the capital by train. CIA paid for a large quantity of liquor for them at the train station. They never got to where the were supposed to bust heads.
The 2014 Orange Revolution involved a dispute over Yanukovych's refusal to sign the EU treaty approved by Parliament. He was removed from office by a majority vote of Parliament.
Protesters opposed what they saw as widespread government corruption and abuse of power, the influence of oligarchs, police brutality, and violation of human rights in Ukraine.
Obama/Clinton might well have had mercenary interests in the matter, but replacing an authoritarian government allied with an enemy of the U.S. in favor of a democratic, largely freer society is a good thing.
You: "the Obama/Clinton Administration backs Ukraine"
ReplyDeleteReagan's ambassador to USSR: "[The Obama/Clinton administration] supported an illegal coup d’etat that changed the Ukrainian government in 2014, a procedure not normally considered consistent with the rule of law or democratic governance."
Is it possible you misunderstand recent history badly enough that you're not in a good position to offer firm conclusions about what's going on over there?
The issue isn't whether "Ukraine" is on the wrong side. The issue is that their ruling political class may be a creature of our foreign policy establishment.
Russia invaded a largely liberal democracy.
Please watch this recent interview with a Ukrainian woman on French TV (about 6 min total).
Russia is clearly in wrong, here, but that doesn't mean that Ukraine is a white hat. It was, and is, one of the most corrupt nations on earth.
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