I/III. http://rt.com/news/188808-poroshenko-usa-nato-lethal/ Obama declines to give Ukraine 'lethal aid' despite Poroshenko's plea Published time: September 18, 2014 14:48 Edited time: September 18, 2014 20:57
U.S. President Barack Obama speaks while Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko (L) listens as they talk to the media during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, September 18, 2014. (Reuters / Larry Downing) President Barack Obama has declined to supply Ukraine with "lethal aide" despite the passionate plea for more military equipment that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko made to Congress earlier on Thursday. During a White House meeting between the two leaders that occurred after Poroshenko's address to Congress, President Obama said the United States would keep working to mobilize the international community in order for the conflict in Ukraine to be solved diplomatically, Reuters reports. Following the meeting, Poroshenko said he was pleased with Washington's help, and expressed hope that the shaky ceasefire in Ukraine would eventually lead to stability and peace. Earlier in the day, however, Poroshenko suggested that NATO give *"special"* security status to Ukraine. Addressing the US Congress, he called on Washington to provide Kiev with *"more military equipment, lethal and non-lethal"* to *"keep peace"* in the eastern part of his country. While President Obama has continued to say that only non-lethal assistance will be supplied to Kiev - bullet-proof vests, helmets and the like - Poroshenko said this would not be enough. Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko (C) gestures while addressing a joint meeting of Congress in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, September 18, 2014. (Reuters / Kevin Lamarque) "*Blankets and night-vision goggles are important, but one cannot win the war with blankets. You cannot keep the peace with a blanket,*" he told lawmakers, adding that Ukraine urgently needs "*more military equipment, both lethal and non-lethal.*" As his statement drew applause from the audience, the Ukrainian leader went on to call on NATO for closer ties. "*I strongly encourage the United States to give Ukraine a special security and defense status which reflect the highest level of interaction with a non-NATO ally*," he said. Russia has warned that NATO's progress towards the east and Ukraine, which the military bloc sees as a potential member, will trigger a strong reaction. 'We will react to NATO build-up!' Key Putin quotes from defense policy address <http://rt.com/news/174768-putin-security-nato-ukraine/> Poroshenko accused Russia of having an *"imperial mindset"* and *"nostalgia for the Soviet Union,"* referring to Crimea's breakaway and Russia's alleged support of rebels in eastern Ukraine. "*I urge you not to let Ukraine stand alone in the face of this aggression*," he said, also recalling events in Georgia's break-away regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in 2008 as well as the 1992 military conflict in Moldova, which resulted in Transnistria unilaterally proclaiming independence. Saint John of Kronstadt (Ioann Kronshtadsky) Church destroyed during a bombardment in the town of Kirovskoye, Donetsk Region. (RIA Novosti) He then drew a sudden parallel with Israel: "*Just like Israel, Ukraine has the right to defend her territory, and will do so with all the courage in her heart and dedication in her soul.*" Ukraine has been engulfed in violent internal conflict since April, when Kiev's military began its crackdown on the southeastern regions of the country. According to United Nations' estimates, over 2,249 people have been killed so far and more than 6,033 wounded in the fighting in eastern Ukraine. The number of internally displaced Ukrainians has reached 260,000, with another 814,000 finding refuge in Russia. READ MORE: Kiev, E. Ukraine militia agree on ceasefire <http://rt.com/news/185396-ukraine-ceasefire-russia-militia/> Aside from asking for military assistance, Poroshenko called on the US to continue its economic pressure on Russia. "*And I also ask that the US be forceful and stand by its principle with respect to further sanctions against the aggressor. Economic sanctions are important for many reasons. They help to distinguish between good and evil. They help us to defend and stand the moral high ground and not to sink into indifference, disgust and pragmatism*," the Ukrainian president said. Meanwhile, the United States has pledged $53 million in fresh aid to Ukraine. The new assistance would include $46 million to bolster Ukraine's security in its conflict in eastern Ukraine and $7 million in humanitarian aid. II/III. http://edition.cnn.com/2014/09/17/opinion/talbott-arming-ukraine/ Time to give Ukraine defensive weapons By *Steven Pifer *and *Strobe Talbott* September 18, 2014 -- Updated 1319 GMT (2119 HKT) American troops arrive in Ukraine *Editor's note: Strobe Talbott, president of the Brookings Institution, served as deputy secretary of state in the 1990s. Steven Pifer, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, served as U.S. ambassador to Ukraine from 1998 to 2000. Both were involved in negotiation of the Budapest memorandum. The views expressed are the writers' own.* *(CNN)* -- When Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko visits Washington on Thursday, he will almost certainly again ask for U.S. military assistance, including defensive weapons. President Barack Obama should say yes. Arming Kiev can deter Russian Vladimir Putin from further aggression and support the fragile Ukraine ceasefire <http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/07/world/europe/ukraine-ceasefire-analysis/> and settlement process. Doing so would also bolster U.S. efforts to prevent nuclear proliferation. Russia illegally occupied and annexed Crimea in March <http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/18/world/europe/ukraine-crisis/>. Just weeks later, armed separatists -- assisted and, in some cases, led by Russian intelligence officers -- began seizing government buildings in the eastern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. Ukrainian counterattacks started making headway in the summer. Russia responded by supplying heavy weapons to the separatists -- including, it is widely believed, the Buk anti-aircraft system believed to have shot down Malaysia Airlines flight 17 in mid-July. Despite the influx of arms, Ukrainian forces continued to make progress. By early August, the separatists looked on the verge of defeat. That would have stopped Putin's strategy in its tracks. So, as NATO noted <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/23/world/europe/russia-moves-artillery-units-into-ukraine-nato-says.html>, elite Russian military units invaded and occupied Ukrainian territory, hitting Ukrainian forces hard. Vastly outgunned, Poroshenko had little choice but to accept a ceasefire on September 5. The truce is shaky, but the Ukrainian president seems intent on pursuing a peaceful settlement. Whether common ground can be found among Kiev, the separatists and Moscow is unclear. At best, the negotiation will be long and arduous. The Ukrainian government has for some time sought lethal military assistance, such as anti-armor weapons, as well as secure communications equipment and reconnaissance drones. When he hosts Poroshenko in the Oval Office, Obama should agree to provide defensive arms on an expedited basis. Such assistance would enhance Kiev's ability to deter further Russian aggression, aggression that would threaten, perhaps fatally, the possibility of a negotiated settlement. A better-armed Ukrainian military would give Putin pause, because it could impose greater costs on the Russian army if the Russians break the ceasefire and renew the fighting. Reports detail the extraordinary lengths <http://www.newsweek.com/2014/09/19/russian-soldiers-reveal-truth-behind-putins-secret-war-269227.html>, such as nighttime burials, to which the Kremlin has gone to hide from its public the fact that Russian soldiers have fought and died in Ukraine. The more costly the Ukrainians can make any fighting for the Russians, the less Moscow's interest in resuming the conflict. Some may argue that providing lethal military assistance would provoke Putin to escalate. But he has already escalated the situation -- from instigating separatist actions to providing heavy weapons to sending in the Russian army. This suggests the opposite may well prove true: Arming Ukraine will raise the costs of escalation to Russia and thus make it less likely. Putin has made clear his contempt for the Western response to date. Inaction could embolden him to escalate in Ukraine and test the waters elsewhere, perhaps in a NATO member state such as Estonia. Moreover, the Ukrainians will bear the risks and brunt of any escalation. If they are willing to accept those risks, we should give them the tools to defend themselves. And there is an additional important reason to respond favorably to Ukraine's request for defensive arms: to restore credibility to the notion of security assurances. In December 1994, the leaders of the United States, Britain and Russia signed the Budapest memorandum <http://www.cfr.org/arms-control-disarmament-and-nonproliferation/budapest-memorandums-security-assurances-1994/p32484> on security assurances, which committed those countries to respect Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity and not use force against Ukraine. Those commitments paved the way for Kiev's decision to give up about 1,900 strategic nuclear warheads, at the time the world's third-largest nuclear arsenal. Moscow has grossly violated the Budapest memorandum by its seizure of Crimea and assaults on Ukraine. The United States and Britain have an obligation to respond. Washington has imposed economic sanctions on Russia and provided Ukraine a modest amount of nonlethal military aid. Those are appropriate steps, but they do not suffice. Last Friday, former President Leonid Kuchma, who signed the Budapest memorandum for Ukraine, suggested his country had been cheated. That reflects general sentiment in Kiev. The widely held impression that Moscow has violated its Budapest commitments at low cost badly weakens the value of security assurances in the future. That is unfortunate, as security assurances could play a role as part of the package to resolve the Iran and North Korea nuclear issues. But how much value will security assurances have if Tehran and Pyongyang see that they can be violated with relative impunity? Washington can change that impression. Providing lethal military assistance to Ukraine could not only deter Putin from further war against Ukraine, but could help to reestablish security assurances as part of the solution to critical nuclear proliferation challenges. III. http://news.sky.com/story/1338092/poland-sets-up-military-unit-with-ukraine Poland Sets Up Military Unit With Ukraine A joint military brigade made up of Polish, Ukrainian and Lithuanian troops will be set up to carry out peacekeeping operations. Ukrainian troops ride on an armoured vehicle near the town of Pervomaysk Poland will establish a joint military unit with Ukraine and Lithuania to be based in the east of the country. The Polish president's office said the new unit will be commanded from Lublin, in eastern Poland. The proposed brigade will be made up of Ukrainian, Lithuanian and Polish soldiers who will be located close to their home countries. A defence ministry spokesman said the project is aimed at creating a unit for peacekeeping operations. The brigade may also become the basis to build a Nato battle group in the future, the spokesman added. It comes as the United States pledged $53m (£32m) in aid to Ukraine, including radar equipment to counter mortar attacks. The assistance includes $46m (£28m) to bolster Ukraine's security in its conflict with Russian-backed separatists, and $7m (£4m) in humanitarian aid. The package does not include the type of lethal weaponry that some Republican politicians wanted the US to provide. Mr Poroshenko speaks during a joint meeting of Congress in Washington Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko appealed to US Congress for lethal and non-lethal aid during his visit to Washington on Thursday. He asked for more aid for the military, beyond the basic equipment such as night-vision goggles which the US has already supplied. "I strongly encourage the United States to give Ukraine a special security and defence status which reflects the highest level of interaction with non-NATO allies," Mr Poroshenko said. "They need more political support throughout the world. They need more military equipment, both lethal and non-lethal. "Blankets, night-vision goggles are also important, but one cannot win the war with blankets. Mr Poroshenko also pushed for more sanctions to be put in place against Russia. "I also asked that the United States be forceful and reflect its principles with the respect of further sanctions against the aggressor," he said. On Tuesday, the Ukrainian parliament passed a law granting greater autonomy to rebel-held parts of Ukraine's east and an amnesty for separatist fighters. A ceasefire was also declared on September 5 which has been threatened by violations, and both sides have promised to regroup and continue fighting if required. -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
