Ukraine: Invasion Imminent?

[L00b 441]

Putin: Russia has no problems with Finland and Sweden, so their entry into NATO does not pose an immediate threat. https://t.me/tass_agency/134340

There you go, Putin has no problem with Finland and Sweden joining NATO 😉

[trastrick 866]

Looks like the West has a problem with banning Russian Oil.

 

Hungary ‘holding EU hostage’ over sanctions on Russian oil - The Guardian

 

"EU unable to agree on sixth package of sanctions as Budapest continues to block proposed oil embargo

 

"Hungary, nearly completely dependent on Russian oil, is holding up an EU-wide embargo that requires unanimity from the 27 member states.

 

"The EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said there were no guarantees the issue would be resolved at a meeting of EU foreign ministers on Monday. “We will do our best to unblock the situation,” he said. “I cannot ensure this is going to happen because positions are quite strong.”

 

"Meanwhile, landlocked countries that are heavily dependent on Russian oil were offered a delay in joining the EU embargo. Hungary and Slovakia were given until the end of 2024, while the Czech Republic has been offered a June 2024 deadline".

 

Ukraine War Likely to Last Years, Top US Military Officer Says

 

Sad!

 

Leadership by bureaucratic committee!

[hauxwell 243]

 

It looks like the UK is still at the top of Russia’s list to test his new  nuke.

 

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/russia-makes-threats-over-satan-111602321.html

 

[L00b 441]

14 minutes ago, trastrick said:

Looks like the West has a problem with banning Russian Oil.

 

(…)

It’s not really any worse of a “problem”, that the UK’s own “problems” with facilitating Russian money/asset handling and with welcoming Ukrainian refugees.

 

Shall we go on?

[cuttsie 1,090]

17 minutes ago, CaptainSwing said:

Erdogan does though.

We  should not trust Erdogan , his Country continues to invade its neighbours to this day , no protests from NATO though , strange that int it .

[trastrick 866]

1 hour ago, cuttsie said:

We  should not trust Erdogan , his Country continues to invade its neighbours to this day , no protests from NATO though , strange that int it .

Lots of strange stuff going on in the Ukraine, Cuttsie.

 

Those "brave soldiers" holed up in the Mariupol steel plant are AZOV battalion.

 

According to Al Jazeera:

 

Profile: Who are Ukraine’s far-right Azov regiment?

The far-right neo-Nazi group has expanded to become part of Ukraine’s armed forces, a street militia and a political party.

 

Who founded Azov?

The unit was led by Andriy Biletsky, who served as the the leader of both the Patriot of Ukraine (founded in 2005) and the SNA (founded in 2008).  The SNA is known to have carried out attacks on minority groups in Ukraine.

In 2010, Biletsky said Ukraine’s national purpose was to “lead the white races of the world in a final crusade … against Semite-led Untermenschen [inferior races].

Biletsky was elected to parliament in 2014. He left Azov as elected officials cannot be in the military or police force. He remained an MP until 2019.

The 42-year-old is nicknamed Bely Vozd – or White Ruler – by his supporters. He established the far-right National Corps party in October 2016, whose core base is veterans of Azov.

 

Before becoming part of Ukraine’s armed forces, who funded Azov?

The unit received backing from Ukraine’s interior minister in 2014, as the government had recognised its own military was too weak to fight off the pro-Russian separatists and relied on paramilitary volunteer forces.

These forces were privately funded by oligarchs – the most known being Igor Kolomoisky, an energy magnate billionaire and then-governor of the Dnipropetrovska region.

 

Neo-Nazi ideology

 

In 2015, Andriy Diachenko, the spokesperson for the regiment at the time said that 10 to 20 percent of Azov’s recruits were Nazis.

 

The unit has denied it adheres to Nazi ideology as a whole, but Nazi symbols such as the swastika and SS regalia are rife on the uniforms and bodies of Azov members.

For example, the uniform carries the neo-Nazi Wolfsangel symbol, which resembles a black swastika on a yellow background. The group said it is merely an amalgam of the letters “N” and “I” which represent “national idea”.

Individual members have professed to being neo-Nazis, and hardcore far-right ultra-nationalism is pervasive among members.

In January 2018, Azov rolled out its street patrol unit called National Druzhyna to “restore” order in the capital, Kyiv. Instead, the unit carried out pogroms against the Roma community and attacked members of the LGBTQ community.

“Ukraine is the world’s only nation to have a neo-Nazi formation in its armed forces,” a correspondent for the US-based magazine, the Nation, wrote in 2019.

 

Human rights violations and war crimes

A 2016 report by the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OCHA) has accused the Azov regiment of violating international humanitarian law.

The report detailed incidents over a period from November 2015-February 2016 where Azov had embedded their weapons and forces in used civilian buildings, and displaced residents after looting civilian properties. The report also accused the battalion of raping and torturing detainees in the Donbas region.

What has been the international response to Azov?

In June 2015, both Canada and the United States announced that their own forces will not support or train the Azov regiment, citing its neo-Nazi connections.

The following year, however, the US lifted the ban under pressure from the Pentagon.

In October 2019, 40 members of the US Congress led by Representative Max Rose signed a letter unsuccessfully calling for the US State Department to designate Azov as a “foreign terrorist organisation” (FTO). Last April, Representative Elissa Slotkin repeated the request – which included other white supremacist groups – to the Biden administration.

Transnational support for Azov has been wide, and Ukraine has emerged as a new hub for the far right across the world. Men from across three continents have been documented to join the Azov training units in order to seek combat experience and engage in similar ideology.

 

The oscillation of Facebook

In 2016, Facebook first designated the Azov regiment a “dangerous organisation”.

Under the company’s Dangerous Individuals and Organizations policy, Azov was banned from its platforms in 2019. The group was placed under Facebook’s Tier 1 designation, which includes groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and ISIL (ISIS). Users engaging in praise, support or representation of Tier 1 groups are also banned.

However, on February 24, the day Russia launched its invasion, Facebook reversed its ban, saying it would allow praise for Azov.

“For the time being, we are making a narrow exception for praise of the Azov regiment strictly in the context of defending Ukraine, or in their role as part of the Ukraine national guard,” a spokesperson from Facebook’s parent company, Meta, told Business Insider.

“But we are continuing to ban all hate speech, hate symbolism, praise of violence, generic praise, support, or representation of the Azov regiment, and any other content that violates our community standards,” it added.

The reversal of policy will be an immense headache for Facebook moderators, the Intercept, a US-based website, said.

“While Facebook users may now praise any future battlefield action by Azov soldiers against Russia, the new policy notes that ‘any praise of violence’ committed by the group is still forbidden; it’s unclear what sort of nonviolent warfare the company anticipates,” the Intercept wrote.

 

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/1/who-are-the-azov-regiment

[cuttsie 1,090]

6 minutes ago, trastrick said:

Lots of strange stuff going on in the Ukraine, Cuttsie.

 

Those "brave soldiers" holed up in the Mariupol steel plant are AZOV battalion.

 

According to Al Jazeera:

 

Profile: Who are Ukraine’s far-right Azov regiment?

The far-right neo-Nazi group has expanded to become part of Ukraine’s armed forces, a street militia and a political party.

 

Who founded Azov?

The unit was led by Andriy Biletsky, who served as the the leader of both the Patriot of Ukraine (founded in 2005) and the SNA (founded in 2008).  The SNA is known to have carried out attacks on minority groups in Ukraine.

In 2010, Biletsky said Ukraine’s national purpose was to “lead the white races of the world in a final crusade … against Semite-led Untermenschen [inferior races].

Biletsky was elected to parliament in 2014. He left Azov as elected officials cannot be in the military or police force. He remained an MP until 2019.

The 42-year-old is nicknamed Bely Vozd – or White Ruler – by his supporters. He established the far-right National Corps party in October 2016, whose core base is veterans of Azov.

 

Before becoming part of Ukraine’s armed forces, who funded Azov?

The unit received backing from Ukraine’s interior minister in 2014, as the government had recognised its own military was too weak to fight off the pro-Russian separatists and relied on paramilitary volunteer forces.

These forces were privately funded by oligarchs – the most known being Igor Kolomoisky, an energy magnate billionaire and then-governor of the Dnipropetrovska region.

 

Neo-Nazi ideology

 

In 2015, Andriy Diachenko, the spokesperson for the regiment at the time said that 10 to 20 percent of Azov’s recruits were Nazis.

 

The unit has denied it adheres to Nazi ideology as a whole, but Nazi symbols such as the swastika and SS regalia are rife on the uniforms and bodies of Azov members.

For example, the uniform carries the neo-Nazi Wolfsangel symbol, which resembles a black swastika on a yellow background. The group said it is merely an amalgam of the letters “N” and “I” which represent “national idea”.

Individual members have professed to being neo-Nazis, and hardcore far-right ultra-nationalism is pervasive among members.

In January 2018, Azov rolled out its street patrol unit called National Druzhyna to “restore” order in the capital, Kyiv. Instead, the unit carried out pogroms against the Roma community and attacked members of the LGBTQ community.

“Ukraine is the world’s only nation to have a neo-Nazi formation in its armed forces,” a correspondent for the US-based magazine, the Nation, wrote in 2019.

 

Human rights violations and war crimes

A 2016 report by the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OCHA) has accused the Azov regiment of violating international humanitarian law.

The report detailed incidents over a period from November 2015-February 2016 where Azov had embedded their weapons and forces in used civilian buildings, and displaced residents after looting civilian properties. The report also accused the battalion of raping and torturing detainees in the Donbas region.

What has been the international response to Azov?

In June 2015, both Canada and the United States announced that their own forces will not support or train the Azov regiment, citing its neo-Nazi connections.

The following year, however, the US lifted the ban under pressure from the Pentagon.

In October 2019, 40 members of the US Congress led by Representative Max Rose signed a letter unsuccessfully calling for the US State Department to designate Azov as a “foreign terrorist organisation” (FTO). Last April, Representative Elissa Slotkin repeated the request – which included other white supremacist groups – to the Biden administration.

Transnational support for Azov has been wide, and Ukraine has emerged as a new hub for the far right across the world. Men from across three continents have been documented to join the Azov training units in order to seek combat experience and engage in similar ideology.

 

The oscillation of Facebook

In 2016, Facebook first designated the Azov regiment a “dangerous organisation”.

Under the company’s Dangerous Individuals and Organizations policy, Azov was banned from its platforms in 2019. The group was placed under Facebook’s Tier 1 designation, which includes groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and ISIL (ISIS). Users engaging in praise, support or representation of Tier 1 groups are also banned.

However, on February 24, the day Russia launched its invasion, Facebook reversed its ban, saying it would allow praise for Azov.

“For the time being, we are making a narrow exception for praise of the Azov regiment strictly in the context of defending Ukraine, or in their role as part of the Ukraine national guard,” a spokesperson from Facebook’s parent company, Meta, told Business Insider.

“But we are continuing to ban all hate speech, hate symbolism, praise of violence, generic praise, support, or representation of the Azov regiment, and any other content that violates our community standards,” it added.

The reversal of policy will be an immense headache for Facebook moderators, the Intercept, a US-based website, said.

“While Facebook users may now praise any future battlefield action by Azov soldiers against Russia, the new policy notes that ‘any praise of violence’ committed by the group is still forbidden; it’s unclear what sort of nonviolent warfare the company anticipates,” the Intercept wrote.

 

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/1/who-are-the-azov-regiment

 

I know all about the East European Nazi parties , they are rife in Poland, Hungary and Ukraine among others . also there are elements in Russia . 

I do not believe that Putin has attacked Ukraine because of this ,   its more personal to him and his cronies who still believe The Ukraine is part of Russia .

[altus 540]

14 minutes ago, trastrick said:

Lots of strange stuff going on in the Ukraine, Cuttsie.

 

Those "brave soldiers" holed up in the Mariupol steel plant are AZOV battalion.

Do keep up, we've done the Azov battalion multiple times. If you are really interested in Nazis in this conflict, check out Putin's Wagner Group and their founder with the Waffen SS insignia tattoos. As cuttsie says, Putin hasn't invaded Russia because of this. They do make a useful fake justification for telling the easily lead though.

[whiteowl 54]

6 hours ago, hauxwell said:

 

It looks like the UK is still at the top of Russia’s list to test his new  nuke.

 

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/russia-makes-threats-over-satan-111602321.html

 

It used to be a four minute warning, it's now 3 mins 20 seconds 🤷‍♂️

 

I just hope our trident boats are fully out to sea (I'm sure they are) ready to retaliate.

[L00b 441]

12 hours ago, CaptainSwing said:

Erdogan does though.

Does he have nukes, though? 😉

 

Erdogan is just Erdogan, ever the opportunistic populist: he’s just playing hard to get, seeking enough bribing for a yes vote. Probably some backchannel economic prop-up from the EU and the US, given the parlous state of Turkey’s economy. Which he’ll get, and all.

 

Another oxygen-stealing waste of DNA whom I wouldn’t p*** on if he was on fire. Like Putin, Orban and few more, his time can’t come soon enough.

Edited May 17, 2022 by L00b

[Magilla 510]

*delete

Edited May 17, 2022 by Magilla

[trastrick 866]

14 hours ago, altus said:

Do keep up, we've done the Azov battalion multiple times. If you are really interested in Nazis in this conflict, check out Putin's Wagner Group and their founder with the Waffen SS insignia tattoos. As cuttsie says, Putin hasn't invaded Russia because of this. They do make a useful fake justification for telling the easily lead though.

Nobody believes Putin's propaganda "reasons" for invading the Ukraine

 

But I was refering to Cuttsie's "strange" comment.

 

As in "war makes strange bedfellows".

 

Here we are sending arms to folks who are far right white supremacists, a few of whom may be Nazis, and accepting Erdogan's Turkey NATO membership, who has just come out against allowing Sweden and Finland to join NATO.

 

It's not just simply good guys against bad guys.  "The enemy of my enemy, is my friend', can be good (temporary) military strategy, but it carries no moral imperative.

Edited May 17, 2022 by trastrick