|
|
President Putin in Crimea: Russia Will Continue Relations with Ukraine Despite Kiev’s Provocations
21 August 2016
PRESS RELEASE EIRNS—Today, President Vladimir Putin met in Crimea with members of Russia’s Security Council, and spoke of Russia’s commitment to continue relations with Ukraine, despite Kiev’s provocations, and its refusal, or inability, to follow the Minsk Accords, as Putin put it. In fact, he announced the appointment of a special envoy from Russia to Ukraine, to deal with trade, economic, scientific and technical relations. Putin said, according to Tass, "We are not planning to roll back our ties despite the unwillingness of the current authorities in Kiev to have full-fledged diplomatic relations at the level of ambassadors; we will still create possibilities for developing contacts and maintaining them." A focal point of the Security Council discussion was the matter of providing safety to Crimean residents and visitors. Recently, a sabotage attempt was deployed by Kiev into Ukraine, which the Russians foiled. Putin put this into the context of Kiev’s actions against the Minsk Accords. He said, "It is clear that we [Security Council] have gathered for a well-known reason and after a well-known incident—the abortive penetration of Ukrainian saboteurs. It looks like our partners in Kiev have made a decision to aggravate tensions, and it is clear why they did that." He said, "Fanning tensions is a well-known trick. It has been used from time immemorial. Sometimes successfully, and sometimes not." Why did Kiev try this? Putin said, "It is clear why that was done. They [Ukraine] are reluctant or unable to implement the Minsk Accords. They are unable to explain to their own people the considerable mistakes in socio-economic policies." The new Russian envoy to Ukraine is Dmitry Livanov, former Minister of Education and Sciences. Once again, Putin, in his actions today, outflanks the "face-off" dynamic of the London/Obama geopoliticans, trying to pit Russia against Ukraine and the world. Lyndon LaRouche commented, "This will cause an uproar." |