NEWSLINK: Mr. Putin resumes his chipping away at Ukraine
[“Mr. Putin resumes his chipping away at Ukraine” – Washington Post editorial – Nov. 3, 2014]
The Washington Post editors characterize unauthorized elections held by pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine as another stage in Russian aggression:
Russia has taken another significant step toward creating a puppet state inside Ukraine. Over the weekend the Moscow-controlled cities of Donetsk and Luhansk and nearby areas staged “elections” for the leaders of what Russian President Vladimir Putin calls Novorossiya. In so doing, they directly violated a Sept. 5 cease-fire agreement for eastern Ukraine that Mr. Putin had endorsed. Having promised to respect Ukrainian sovereignty (not counting Crimea), Russia now supports the renegade election and says the Ukrainian government should negotiate with separatist leaders.
The Post editors also attacked the Obama administration for playing down the severity of the Russian threat:
… Biden went out of his way to correct himself after saying that Russia had “invaded” Ukraine; the White House still bans that term, as if lexicological make-believe will somehow erase the thousands of Russian troops stationed inside Ukraine. More worrying is the administration’s make-believe about its policy, which officials actually seem to believe has been a success. … a big chunk of eastern Ukraine is now under the control of Mr. Putin — and it will be Moscow, not the White House, that determines what happens next.
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