What follows is an approximate transcription of the interview
Press TV: Well Paul Craig Roberts, this crisis keeps escalating. My first question initially of course is what does Russia have in mind do you think?
Roberts: If Russia wanted to invade Ukraine they would not need a pretext much less would they use a pretext of sending humanitarian aid. If Russia wants to invade the parts of the Ukraine that have voted to disassociate from Ukraine and rejoin Russia it can do so it will, no one could stop Russia from this.
And so I think the Ukrainian government continues to show how ridiculous it is in these stupid kinds of public statements that it makes. Clearly what is going on in Ukraine is the absence of Russian help and that is why the "separatists" as they are called are having their apartment buildings blown up, their homes blown up and their civilian infrastructure blown up.
Essentially what the American stooge government in Kiev is doing in Ukraine is what the Israelis are doing to Gaza. They are slaughtering civilians and if the Red Cross recognizes that this is a humanitarian crisis and is cooperating with the Russian government to send aid, then you can bet that exactly that is what is going on. They are sending aid; people were being murdered by the American stooge government in Kiev.
Press TV: Well looking at the situation it seems like NATO is itching to get into some kind of conflict. We have seen some statements come from a particular NATO official which I do not remember at this point what his position was but he said they are looking for a quick reflect action were Russia to come into eastern Ukraine and of course the US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has said that is almost eminent.
Do you think that it is going to be a conflict where the Kiev government perhaps to get entangled then followed by NATO and perhaps some kind of US involvement?
Roberts: No I do not think so because NATO is no match for the Russian military on its own territory and the Russian military if it is eventually forced to intervene by the attacks from Kiev on civilians who are essentially Russian people, if it is forced to intervene, its intervention will stop at these territories that were formally part of Russia herself.
So I do not think there is any chance of Russia actually invading Ukraine. Russia might be forced to stop the slaughter of these Russian people who are in provinces that once were part of Russia.
I do not think that the NATO countries, the governments of the NATO countries want a conflict. Now the military leaders of the military arm of NATO they may talk big because they are Washington's tools but the governments themselves I do not think want a conflict with Russia much less than artificial conflict that is orchestrated by Washington.
Press TV: And yet Dr. Roberts and quickly if you can, when it comes to the sanctions, well we have heard of reports of way that that has affected countries in the eurozone, Germany for example, Italy and one analyst particularly saying that it is going to [fuel 05:18] the eurozone back into perhaps a severe crisis.
It almost is compared to of what Peugeot Citroen of France did when it well shot itself in the foot when he came to importing, exporting cars to Iran for the sake of US-led sanctions. I mean why would Europe be willing to take such a hit?
Roberts: Well they are not but the government leaders are but the people themselves are not and there have been strong protests from those sectors of these European states that are affected by the American sanctions and one result is that now the governments such as Poland are demanding that Washington pay compensation to Poland fro accommodating Washington's sanctions.
For example Poland wants Washington to purchase the agriculture products that they are now prohibited by the Russian response to the sanctions from selling. So all of the costs that Washington is imposing on Europe with the sanctions, Europeans now are telling Washington well you caused this trouble so you give us the money.
The EU is being led by the nose, all the while underwriting the American sanctions game against Russia. Mr. Vacationing Golf pay the EU for it's 'sacrifice'? So you gotta ask yourself "Do I feel lucky today?".