We seem finally to have reached the point of rupture and of no return - in WB Yeats' words: "the falcon cannot hear the falconer - things fall apart, the centre cannot hold.." Things have also outpaced me, failing to finish and post this piece till now, when its message has been overlaid by a number of critical events - the cluster bomb attack on beachgoers in Crimea and coincident 'Islamist' shootings and killings on the shores of the Caspian on Sunday 22nd June. In a few day's time it will be the UK election, while Israel's move against Hezbollah may come at any time and trigger mayhem. Meanwhile Gaza starves and suffers endlessly, but the Western powers just double down. Anyway, fwiw here is some of what VVP proposed, now almost forgotten: ...................... As Western leaders met in a series of fantasy events, re-enacting the D-day invasion, resurrecting the spirit of 1939 in Italy, and then presenting the 'no-piss' plan in the Swiss mountains; all this pomp and puff and 'we'll show 'em' diplomacy was for nothing and of nothing. It is as if some race fever gripped them to pile money onto a riderless horse that already halted at the jump. The best of them don't know this; the worst know otherwise and are determined to forge on with the killing regardless; to stop now means humiliation and death. But the worst are frightened; They know how shallow is the story, and fear their crimes may be exposed. So the media must be controlled; people mustn't know the truth - that Ukraine already lost the battle - and it mustn't lose control of the narrative. In the context of presenting Vladimir Putin's proposals to resolve the territorial and governmental dispute over Ukraine, delivered at a meeting of Foreign Ministry officials in Moscow on the 14th of June, I present a report on the situation in Ukraine from SBS World News, with a voice over from veteran Tim Wharton. It was unusually coarse and heavily biased, presenting the US response to Putin's proposals as fair and reasonable. It also accepted without challenge the psychopathic suggestion from Stoltenberg that Nuclear weapons should be made ready in case it were necessary to deploy them to stop Russia's advance:
The plan that Vladimir Putin presented, on the eve of the Swiss 'peace conference', was wrapped into a fearless and typically thoughtful speech. The whole of his speech is here on the Kremlin website, but some chosen extracts may be helpful: Vladimir Putin: "We last met in this extended format in November 2021, and since then, there have been many pivotal and even fateful events, without exaggeration, both in Russia and around the world. Therefore, I think it is important to assess the current situation in global and regional affairs, as well as set the appropriate tasks for the Foreign Ministry. All of these tasks are aimed at achieving our main goal: creating conditions for Russia’s sustainable development, ensuring its security, and improving the well-being of Russian families. In today’s challenging and unpredictable conditions, our work in this area demands that we concentrate our efforts, initiative, perseverance, and abilities not only to respond to current challenges, but also to set our own long-term agenda. We should propose possible solutions to fundamental issues that concern not only us, but also the entire international community. It is crucial to discuss them with our partners in an open and constructive manner. Let me repeat: the world is changing rapidly. Global politics, the economy, and technological competition will never be the same as before. More countries are striving to strengthen their sovereignty, self-sufficiency, and national and cultural identity. The countries of the Global South and East are gaining prominence, and the role of Africa and Latin America is growing. Since the Soviet times, we have always acknowledged the importance of these regions, but today the dynamics have completely shifted, and this is becoming increasingly evident. The pace of transformation in Eurasia, where many significant integration projects are underway, has also accelerated significantly. This new political and economic reality now serves as the foundation for the emerging multipolar and multilateral world order, and this is an inevitable process. It reflects the cultural and civilisational diversity that is inherently part of humanity, despite all attempts at artificial unification. These profound, system-wide changes certainly inspire optimism and hope because the establishment of multipolarity and multilateralism in international affairs, including respect for international law and broad representation, make it possible to resolve the most complex problems together for the common benefit, and to build mutually beneficial relations and cooperation between sovereign states for the sake of well-being and security of peoples. Such a vision for the future aligns with the aspirations of the vast majority of countries. This is evident, among other things, in the growing interest in the work of a universal association such as BRICS, which is based on a culture of trust-based dialogue, sovereign equality of its members and respect for each other. Under the Russian chairmanship this year, we will facilitate the smooth inclusion of new BRICS members in the association's working bodies." ............................. "Let me remind you that at the end of the 20th century, after the end of the intense military and ideological confrontation, the international community had a unique opportunity to build a reliable and just security order. This did not require much – simply the ability to listen to the opinions of all interested parties and a mutual willingness to take those opinions into account. Our country was determined to engage in constructive work of this nature. However, a different approach prevailed. The Western powers, led by the United States, believed that they had won the Cold War and had the right to determine how the world should be organised. The practical manifestation of this outlook was the project of unlimited expansion of the North Atlantic bloc in space and time, despite the existence of alternative ideas for ensuring security in Europe. They responded to our justified questions with excuses, claiming that there were no plans to attack Russia, and that the expansion of NATO was not directed against Russia. They effectively forgot about the promises made to the Soviet Union and later Russia in the late 1980s and early 1990s that the bloc would not accept new members. Even if they acknowledged those promises, they would grin and dismiss them as mere verbal assurances that were not legally binding. In the 1990s and later, we consistently pointed out the flawed approach taken by Western elites. Instead of simply criticising and warning them, we suggested options and constructive solutions, emphasising the need to develop a mechanism of European and global security that would be acceptable to all parties involved (I want to underscore this point). It would take too long to list all the initiatives advanced by Russia over the years. Let us recall the idea of a European security treaty, which we proposed in 2008. In December 2021, a memorandum from the Russian Foreign Ministry was submitted to the United States and NATO, addressing the same issues. However, all our repeated attempts (it is impossible to list them all) to convince our partners, as well as our explanations, appeals, warnings and requests, met with no response. Western countries, confident not so much in the righteousness of their cause as in their power and ability to impose whatever they wish on the rest of the world, simply disregarded other perspectives. At best, they proposed discussions on less significant matters (that did little to resolve the actual problems), or matters that only benefitted the West. It soon became clear that the Western concept, seen as the only viable option for security and prosperity in Europe and the world, was, in fact, ineffective. Let us recall the tragedy in the Balkans. While domestic issues had certainly contributed to the problems in former Yugoslavia, they were greatly exacerbated by intrusive external interference. At that time, the main principle of NATO diplomacy manifested itself most vividly – a deeply flawed principle that is of no use in addressing complex internal conflicts. In essence, this principle aims to assign blame to one party (often disliked by the West for various reasons) and unleash the full political, informational and military might of the West, including economic sanctions and restrictions against it. This detailed and fundamentally fair plan from Putin to resolve the Ukraine war has been either dismissed, ignored or forgotten in the West, while preparations for full out war continue. One of the few bodies or think tanks in the West to pick up and follow - and perhaps lead from here has been the Schiller Institute, which organised an emergency press conference and discussion on the danger of nuclear war in New York on June 12th, followed by a discussion of Putin's 'peace plan' on the 21st of June.
DM 15-27th June 2024