An innocent field nurse shot through the neck. Yes, 21-year-old Olesya Zhukovskaya was certainly that. An ultranationalist anti-Russian Western Ukrainian who posted numerous links from Right Sector on her VKontakte (Russian Facebook) wall? Check.
She’s alive, too, despite having tweeted about her imminent death. She’s even been tweeting once or twice from her hospital bed.
Where does she fit in, in this proxy war between the East and West?
Is she a martyr? And if so, for whom?
Except that she’s alive even though everyone assumed she was not. So, I guess her martyrdom must be revoked. Is she still a hero?
What are we to make of Right Sector and their role in the Ukrainian uprising? They are anti-Russian but they are opposed to the European Union, too. Do they really think the Svoboda Party is too moderate? In what sense? Not anti-Jewish enough? Something else?
Olesya Zhukovskaya was tending to the wounded when a sniper shot her in the neck. I think we all can condemn that, still without knowing what to make of the conflict or the character of its participants.
I just listened to a live broadcast of the speeches before a large crowd at Independence Square in Kiev. I made a diary entry here @BooMan – Ukraine: Extremists Reject EU Deal, Demand Violent Overthrow.
A subdued crowd listened to opposition leader and Western favorite son Klitschko who got a luke warm response. The right-wing extremist leader took the stage and in fascist style brought the crowd to an uproar. He set a deadline for president Yanukovich resignation by 10am tomorrow morning or he will move a armed mob to the presidential palace and force his dismissal. Many months ago, the protests turned violent and has all the properties of a revolution: agitators in the crowd and propaganda war with support of Western media. Ukraine’s Russian speaking eastern part will be loyal to Russia and listen to Putin’s propaganda.
See my earlier diary – Regime Change In Ukraine – Who Bugged Nuland, An Embarrassment plus a desription of some right-wing fascists leaders who entertained John McCain during his visist to Kiev. Just checking whether US Congress’ money from the NGO NED and USAID’s $1 billion were well spend.
From the photo-op with McCain in Kiev, I now recognise the fascist leader who rejected the EU deal and threatened to march on the presidential palace tomorrow morning: Andriy Tyagnybok from Svoboda party.
The confusion comes from the one-sided reporting we get here in the US.
The easiest explanation is to have people go to a map of Europe as of early 1942. Yugoslavia had been divided up among the various ethnic territories and were at each others’ throats. The German armies had taken over Ukraine and the reactionary ultra-nationalist Ukrainians were doing their “Nightingale” work disposing of the region’s Jews.
At the end of WWII Reinhard Gehlen, who ran the Nazi spy operation in Eastern Europe, had joined forces with the conquering US army to continue his spy operation under their command. Much of the Cold War rhetoric and false reporting of the Soviets’ military strength came from the slanted spying reports of Gehlen’s Org. With the Treaty of Fort Hunt a few years later Gehlen and his Org were officially absorbed into the CIA. Eventually, the Org migrated back to become Germany’s BND, but the CIA, especially after Allen Dulles took over, was simpatico with the Nazis. After all, what was WWII but the Germans trying to conquer Europe for its own fascist corporate benefit. Considering that Dulles had been prominent in Sullivan & Cromwell between wars, and their economic connections to fascist regimes, it’s not surprising.
Ukraine is not black and white. The people of Ukraine have a lot of legitimate beefs, both historically and currently, against the Russians. But Ukraine’s embracing Germany (i.e., the EU) is essentially the finalization of Hitler’s dream of absorbing Ukraine into greater Germany. Essentially, German bankers and corporations are doing what the SS couldn’t do. And while the rest of Europe is splintering into its smallest ethnic enclaves what is the only country there to have grown?
I would note that recently our beloved John McCain posed for pictures with Oleh Tyahnybok, a leader of the protests. A couple of years ago Tyahnybok was making speeches blaming Ukraine’s problems on the Russians and Jews.
If you google pictures of the street protesters you will see lots of goosestepping and Nazi salutes and swastikas and swastika-like symbols carried by the rioters/protesters. I read something last night that initially socialists were part of the protests but that they were beaten up by members of Svoboda and the Fatherland Party and sent packing.
Here’s a map of Europe from early 1942:
http://maps.omniatlas.com/europe/19420120/
I’m sure my Tyahnybok is the same as Oui’s tyrant.
Yes, I’m afraid you’re right about the situation in Ukraine. And also about the one-sided, Mockingbird-style reporting we’re getting.
Wow, it’s like the rest of the world is confusing or something. If only someone in Ukraine could bring some reporters to his tire swing or “show leadership”. Maybe they could “reach across the divide.”
Ukraine is confusing because A) we haven’t given a shit about it since the Orange Revolution went off the TeeVee and B) those who would report it to us are a bunch of Communications majors with minors in Film and Television studies.
So they get John McCann, Lindsey Graham and the disembodied voice of Christopher Hitchens to come on “Old White Men Shouting At Things”, which can be seen on your local CBS…er…NBC…um ABC affiliate every Sunday at 9AM.
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○ Ukraine dismisses fears of Crimea separatist crisis – 2008
Cross-posted from my new diary – Ukraine’s Holodomor of 1933 and the Maidan Revolution.