Victoria Nuland and Jeffrey Pyatt handing out candy to security forces in Kiev a month before the neo-Nazis their government funded would attack and kill many of those same forces.
On Thursday March 6th President Obama spoke at the White House on the referendum and the issue of Crimea. In his prepared remarks, Obama stated categorically that the United States would not recognize the results of the Crimean referendum. He argued that the it would violate both the "Ukrainian Constitution and international law." Obama kept the comedy coming when he noted that, "In 2014 we are well beyond the days when borders can be redrawn over the heads of democratic leaders." As with all statements made by the US government, and the President specifically, this must be contextualized and deconstructed in order to be effectively critiqued.
First and foremost is the question of democracy and, more specifically, how exactly Washington is choosing to define this gravely abused word. In referring to the so-called "interim government" in Kiev, headed by Yatsenyuk and his associates, as "democratic leaders", Obama demonstrates either a complete lack of understanding of the word democracy, or as I think is more likely, an utter contempt for democratic principles. By referring to an unelected entity that has seized political power in Kiev by force, and through collaboration with Nazi elements, as "democratic leaders," Obama exposes himself and his administration to be cynical opportunists whose interests rest not in democracy but in a geopolitical agenda guided solely by strategic interests.
Naturally, the references to the Ukrainian Constitution and international law are also deeply disingenuous. Obama, and the US imperial system more generally, speak of international law purely when it suits their interests, eschewing it completely when it does not. This fact has been illustrated quite clearly with Washington's wars of aggression throughout that last two decades, including the illegal wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya, not to mention the habitual violations of international law in Somalia, Yemen, Pakistan and around the world.
The most significant point here is that the US recognizes democracy and international law only when it suits their interests. Moreover, US hypocrisy regarding democracy becomes self evident if one examines the recent historical precedents of Kosovo and South Sudan. In both these cases, precisely the same individuals who today cry about international law and argue against the democratic right of Crimea to determine its own future, were then eloquently and unabashedly in favor of precisely the same sort "democratic aspirations."
Kosovo, South Sudan, and Washington's Amnesia
Serbia, a European country 'shock-and-awed' by the US
In 2008, Kosovo, the region formerly part of Serbia, held a referendum on the question of independence. Because the United States had, for nearly two decades, worked diligently to carve up the former Yugoslavia, and the states that emerged from it, it was seemingly a given that the US would be a vocal supporter and guarantor of the referendum on Kosovo's nationhood. In fact, members of the Obama administration, including Obama himself, all made statements declaring Kosovo's independence to be a triumph of democracy.
Then Illinois Senator and presidential candidate Barack Obama came out in full support of Kosovo's referendum. In a letter to the National Council of U.S. Albanians, candidate Obama wrote:
I support Kosovo's independence and her desire to move towards full sovereignty. I believe that the U.S. should help develop a strong democracy in Kosovo that will be guaranteed by the application of laws that safeguard the interests of all people. I support Kosovo's integration in Euro-Atlantic institutions, and that will best be accomplished by creating a free, tolerant and wealthy society that promotes minority rights and protects religious and cultural monuments.It would seem that, for Obama, Kosovo's "sovereignty," "independence," and "democracy" were of the utmost importance, despite its being part of Serbia. Somehow, "integration in Euro-Atlantic institutions" trumped whatever sovereignty Serbia had, and whatever international law might have dictated. Of course, the incredible amount of willful self-deception required to make such statements should come as no surprise. The US establishment understood full well that there would be no tolerance or protection of minority rights in Kosovo. On the contrary, the US supported the independence of Kosovo, knowing that it would be purged of Serbian influence and would become the de facto NATO protectorate that it has become.
And so, the principles of international law were of no consequence to Obama in 2008 when, as per his establishment advisors, he came out in full support of the Kosovo referendum. So then, it would be fair to say that Obama supports independence and sovereignty only when it is at the expense of oppositional nations and to the benefit of the US-NATO alliance. It should also be pointed out that those who now accuse Russia of "aggression" in Crimea (despite there being no evidence of any violence perpetrated by Russian forces) and the violation of international law were the same individuals arguing in favor of a vicious bombing campaign against Serbia for "humanitarian reasons." In 1999, then Senator and current Secretary of State John Kerry wrote:
Salva Kiir Mayardit feted by Obama in Washington, DC
Broader national interests are at stake as well. There is cause enough for American intervention on the basis of security issues, our commitment to NATO, and overwhelming humanitarian needs...the United States and its NATO allies are working to preserve international law and a standard of civilized behavior shared by the vast majority of our neighbors and allies around the globe.So, just to be clear, the United States and NATO have the mandate to both bomb Serbia and support Kosovo's secession, and both of these are "preserving international law." However in Crimea, where there is actually a Russian population, Russian military assets, a long-standing cooperation treaty, and a historic connection to Russia, somehow it is a violation of international law? Such staggering double standards are hard to ignore.
This point is further illustrated by Obama's unwavering support for South Sudan's independence. Carved out of the Republic of the Sudan, one of Washington's only remaining foes in Africa, South Sudan is the world's youngest country, having declared its independence in a referendum in 2011. The United States and its allies had been leading the charge to split Sudan into two nations, lending their full political, economic, and diplomatic support to the South to move toward full independence.
At a UN summit on Sudan in 2010, President Obama stated that "the referendum on self-determination...must take place peacefully and on time...and the will of the people of southern Sudan and the region of Abyei must be respected regardless of the outcome." Obama unequivocally demonstrated his support for the right self-determination for the people of South Sudan. Naturally, he used the rhetoric of democracy and human rights in order to do so. However, as with all conflicts around the world, Washington's language regarding democracy and human rights was merely a cover for their geopolitical agenda.
In Sudan, the United States sought to break apart an oil-rich nation that was a critical trading partner for China, a country whose economic interests and investment in Africa had made it a rival of the United States on the continent. In Kosovo, the United States carved up a close ally of Russia for the purposes of expanding NATO hegemony in the Balkans - creating a de facto NATO colony where once there had been a Russian partner. All the talk of democracy was simply window dressing.
In contrast to Kosovo and South Sudan however, US policy on Crimea has been precisely the opposite. Rather than recognizing the rights of the Russian majority in the region and their historical, cultural, political, military and economic ties to Russia, the US cries foul. Obama's declaration that the referendum is illegal and cannot be recognized is not only an insult to the people of Crimea, it is an insult to all those who have a historical memory and a conscience. Quite frankly, it seems about time that the US learned what democracy truly looks like.
About the author
Eric Draitser is an independent geopolitical analyst based in New York City, he is the founder of StopImperialism.org and OP-ed collumist for RT, exclusively for the online magazine "New Eastern Outlook"
"By referring to an unelected entity that has seized political power in Kiev by force, and through collaboration with Nazi elements, as "democratic leaders," Obama exposes himself and his administration to be cynical opportunists…"
The interim government in Kiev did not seize power by force. Yanukovych and his regime fled Kiev. As for "collaboration with Nazi elements" what nonsense is this? Perhaps the author is referring to the Right Sector organization, which is a loose grouping of some far-right organizations as well as leftists, moderates, and people from all points on the political spectrum. Its leader, Dmytro Yarosh, is indeed a radical revolutionary, but his politics would most fairly be described as Christian Democrat.
The new government was voted into office by the Vekhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, by MPs who were all democratically elected in 2012. After Yanukovych fled, it was the most legitimate body of power in Ukraine, and acted entirely in line with the Ukrainian Constitution in electing a new speaker of parliament, who, following Yanukovych's abandonment of office, was elected acting president. These votes were achieved with sizable majorities, with members of Yanukovych's own Party of Regions participating in the votes.
"However in Crimea, where there is actually a Russian population, Russian military assets, a long-standing cooperation treaty, and a historic connection to Russia, somehow it is a violation of international law?"
Absolute rubbish. The Crimean population is 60% ethnic Russian, about 25% ethnic Ukrainian, and about 15% Crimean Tatar – the latter group probably have the strongest claim to Crimea, as they were there long before the Ukrainians and Russians. Stalin ethnically cleansed them from the peninsula in 1944, but they have been returning since 1991 and even before. In polling before the Russian occupation of Crimea, around 30% of the population favored Crimea joining Russia. In Ukraine as a whole, support among ethnic Russians for Ukraine uniting with Russia is at most 36%, while support in the population as a whole is 12.5%, according to a poll by the Democratic Initiatives Foundation carried out in late February, before the Russian invasion of Crimea.
Russia also has treaty obligations under the 1994 Budapest Memorandum to protect Ukraine's territorial integrity, which it has flagrantly flouted. It also broke the terms of its treaty with Ukraine on the basing of the Black Sea Fleet, which prohibits the operation of elements of the fleet operating outside certain zones without the prior approval of the Ukrainian authorities.
As for the Crimean referendum being "democratic." How democratic is a poll held at the point of a Kalashnikov. Ethnic Ukrainians and Tatars are having their passports seized and destroyed so they can't vote. The puppet Crimean government was installed by force, and is led by a small-time criminal whose party got 4% of the vote at the last Crimean elections. Duplicates of Crimean MPs' voting cards are being used to push through secessionist bills, with the MPs themselves absent from the parliament.
Under Ukrainian law, which Crimea is for the moment still nominally under, the referendum is illegal according to Article 73 of the Ukrainian Constitution: "Alterations to the territory of Ukraine shall be resolved exclusively by the All-Ukrainian referendum." Crimea is not allowing the rest of Ukraine's 44m people to weigh in on the fate of the peninsula, so the March 16th vote will violate Ukrainian law.
This article is shockingly poorly researched and misinformed, and repeats Kremlin propaganda about a "fascist takeover" in Kiev, which is pure nonsense. Don't you fact check at SOTT? Aren't you supposed to be telling people the truth, rather than spreading lies and disinformation? Shame on you SOTT!