Ukraine Protest

[Serra]

73% of Russians are opposed to involvement in Ukraine -- and that's with a pretty loaded question.
http://world.time.com/2014/03/03/put...crimea-russia/

The Kremlin’s own pollster released a survey on Monday that showed 73% of Russians reject it. In phrasing its question posed in early February to 1,600 respondents across the country, the state-funded sociologists at WCIOM were clearly trying to get as much support for the intervention as possible: “Should Russia react to the overthrow of the legally elected authorities in Ukraine?” they asked. Only 15% said yes — hardly a national consensus.

Then again, I doubt public opinion is a major concern to Putin..

[ringthree]

73% of Russians are opposed to involvement in Ukraine -- and that's with a pretty loaded question.
http://world.time.com/2014/03/03/put...crimea-russia/


Then again, I doubt public opinion is a major concern to Putin..

Also consider that they will use this as support for the idea that they have not actually invaded (even though there are these Russian troops that no one is currently claiming in the Crimea).

[kuronosan]

Like I said. They're no different than us.

[octopus]

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/05/world/...rticle_sidebar

Beijing (CNN) -- Vladimir Putin is seeking China's support in Russia's standoff with Western powers over Ukraine. In a rare phone conversation Wednesday, Putin briefed his counterpart in Beijing, President Xi Jinping, on "Russia's position on the issue and measures Russia had taken to tackle the crisis," the state-controlled Xinhua news agency reported.

President Xi said the situation in Ukraine is "highly complicated and sensitive," which "seems to be accidental, (but) has the elements of the inevitable."

He added that China believes Russia can "push for the political settlement of the issue so as to safeguard regional and world peace and stability" and he "supports proposals and mediation efforts of the international community that are conducive to the reduction of tension."

The Chinese leader's comments followed similarly guarded statements by Chinese diplomats earlier this week, which neither criticized nor supported Moscow's actions over Ukraine.

Unsurprisingly, Russia has attempted to depict China's position as more supportive than it actually is.

In describing an earlier phone call between the foreign ministers of China and Russia, the foreign ministry in Moscow said Monday that there was "a broad convergence of views between Russia and China in connection to the situation in Ukraine and around it."

[Outlaw]

Thought I would post this here:

[tyven]

I live next to the Russian Embassy. Protestors arrived today by the busload. It's nuts

[Kuya]

are you a russian spy or an american spy though

[tyven]

I'm a federale

[Serra]

So, secession vote. I'd be shocked if the public supported secession, but I also doubt any vote would be legit -- not that I think there will actually be one..

[ringthree]

So, secession vote. I'd be shocked if the public supported secession, but I also doubt any vote would be legit -- not that I think there will actually be one..

You doubt that an ethnically Russian former Russian state would support secession? I am not saying that it would be legit or not, but the voting map shows a unified block of Russian support.

[archibaldcrane]

A Ukrainian vote would not support Crimean secession, but if only Crimeans vote then sure they'd approve secession.

[Bregor]

I live next to the Russian Embassy. Protestors arrived today by the busload. It's nuts

Buy them drinks at Good Guys

[Tarage]

Why oh why did we(humanity) give ANYONE at the United Nations permanent veto power?

It essentially means that the UN can do nothing here.

[Serra]

I was under the impression that there is a vocal minority in Crimea who were upset, but not a majority. Then again, I guess a majority of the region voted for Yanukovych..

[ronin sparthos]

The UN Security Council is merely a victory circle is why.

[Kuya]

UN conceivably wouldn't be possible without a way for the stronger countries to keep their interests safe from the UN.

[Andalusian girls]

being a victory circle explains why the United Kingdom and France are represented when more significant players in Germany, Japan, and India are not, but the origins of the veto was the desire of the primary constituent members to retain all sovereign rights and to ensure the U.N. cannot act against the principal interests of its founding members. to wit Truman reported that the decision to join the U.N. would never have passed the U.S. Congress without the veto provision, just as Congress had previously rejected entry into The League of Nations for fear of international infringement of domestic sovereignty.

one of the lessons U.N. drafters took from its failed predecessor, The League of Nations, is that if an international organization begins to explicitly work against the interests of one of its member-states that state will simply leave the organization, as Germany, Italy, Japan, and the Soviet Union did when The League condemned their expansionism.

the notion is that it is better to allow even antagonistic members diplomatic recourse within the organization rather than ostracize them to the point of abandoning the organization and becoming pariah states, presumably leading to the formation of rivalrous blocs of nations, thereby increasing rather than diminishing the possibility of another major conflict, which is the U.N.'s fundamental raison d'etre.

[Xno Kappa]

Doubt a secession would be formally recognized by the UN from what I've read. At best you'd have a China/Taiwan like situation.

[Athas]

So there's a succession vote on the 16th for Crimea to join Russia? Wouldn't a such a vote need to be held nationally? And if not, could such a vote be declared free and fair with the conditions there are in Crimea now?

[ringthree]

So there's a succession vote on the 16th for Crimea to join Russia? Wouldn't a such a vote need to be held nationally? And if not, could such a vote be declared free and fair with the conditions there are in Crimea now?

Also the vote is between succession and a return to the 1992 autonomy arrangement after the break up of the Soviet Union before Crimea was integrated into Ukraine. There is basically no "no" vote on the ballot. It's a joke.