The following is posted to inform readers about what is going on, and why some forces are itching for a global war against Russia, to the detriment of all, save the ultra rich.
About 30% of the Ukrainian peoples, apparently, voted for Zelensky for President, in the first round of voting. Not exactly a landslide. Naturally, he received more votes in the following rounds, after some candidates were eliminated. This initial 30% of votes, was certainly underwhelming, to say the least.
For the full story follow the link shown below.
"Volodymyr Zelensky enjoyed unusual popularity for more than two years.
But the general optimism about the direction Ukraine was heading—the
uplift Zelensky had brought to Ukrainians in 2019—had already evaporated
by 2020: from polls showing 52 percent of Ukrainians optimistic and 18
percent pessimistic in September 2019, the mood shifted to 23 percent
optimistic and 60 percent pessimistic in March 2020, and since then
pessimism has prevailed. In July 2020, the number of those who did not
trust Zelensky exceeded
the number of those who still believed in him (51 percent versus 43
percent). Despite these sobering poll figures, however, Zelensky has
personally remained
the politician with more support by far than anyone else: in August
2021 his support from likely voters was well over 30 percent, while his
closest contender for a future presidency, Petro Poroshenko, was
supported by just 13 percent."
"Grapes of Wrath
The October 2021 polls
delivered a shock to the presidential team. According to the Kyiv
International Institute of Sociology, Zelensky’s approval rating as
president dropped from 33.3 percent in September to 24.7 percent in
October, separated from Poroshenko’s approval rating by fewer than ten
percentage points. The Razumkov Center’s poll
demonstrates that Volodymyr Zelensky overtook Petro Poroshenko and now
has the biggest “anti-rating” among Ukrainian politicians. What has
happened to the once beloved leader?"
"My answer: at the midpoint of his presidency, Zelensky himself has
destroyed his image as an alternative politician. Here is what he did."
"First,
Zelensky and his team started promoting the idea that he was “like any
other businessperson in Ukraine.” This statement was repeated by
everyone on the presidential team in response to the revelations of
Zelensky’s offshore holdings, suddenly exposed in the Pandora Papers."
"The disclosures contained in the Pandora Papers shook many societies
around the globe this fall. The leaked documents were analyzed by a
consortium of journalists, who found
“financial secrets of 35 current and former world leaders, more than
330 politicians and public officials in 91 countries and territories,
and a global lineup of fugitives, con artists and murderers.” To the
surprise of the general public, Volodymyr Zelensky’s name
appeared on the list of offshore company holders. The documents are
testament that Zelensky and his partners (now the heads of security
agencies and part of the executive branch of government) owned offshore
companies in the British Virgin Islands, Cyprus, and Belize. These
companies were used to “defend his business in Ukraine,” the president explained.
Prior to the 2019 election campaign, Zelensky had turned over control
of his shares to his current chief aide and head of the country’s
Security Service, but Zelensky’s family continues “receiving money from the offshore [business operations].”"
"In truth, the fact of Zelensky’s offshore holdings was known and debated
during the presidential campaign in 2019. Now, however, the media
campaign in defense of the president is promoting
the idea that offshore holdings are indeed a mirky business, yet
everyone does it. And these words were heard by Ukrainian voters as
“Volodymyr Zelensky is just like any other businessman, he is not an alternative.”"
"The second hit to Zelensky’s image was similarly engineered by the
president and his entourage themselves. They did it by sacking Dmytro
Razumkov from his position of speaker of the Verkhovna Rada.
In 2019 Razumkov was
one of the key figures who brought Zelensky and the Servant of the
People party to power. The young spin doctor soon became the official
leader of the party, number one on the party’s electoral list, and then
the Rada’s speaker."use
"Zelensky’s political image long remained indestructible from the
outside. But the two almost suicidal actions of the presidential
team—the clumsy justification of the president’s offshore business
holdings revealed in the Pandora Papers and the ouster of Razumkov—came
together at a time of energy-related hardships for Ukrainians and a new wave
of COVID-19. Together, these internal and external factors launched the
processes of destruction of President Zelensky’s image—and potentially
of his popular legitimacy." https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/just-all-others-end-zelensky-alternative
There were a number of attempts for peace talks, in a number of places, including Turkey, however, none succeeded. The final straw that broke the Camel's back was, when "Following the 2022 Ukrainian eastern counteroffensive,
Russia renewed calls for peace talks." Unfortunately, Ukrainian leaders refused to
reopen dialogue, claiming that the Russian government was not truly
committed to peace and was simply stalling for time while its forces
regrouped." Emphasis added. They accused Russia of doing what the West has done with 'Minsk Accord I and II, as admitted by Angela Merkel, in a published interview. https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2022/12/22/ffci-d22.html This link provides a host of valuable insight to the goals of the western nations; they wanted, apparently, war with Russia from the start.
"Peace talks and the stability of international borders were further
discussed in the Ukrainian parliament during the week of 9 May.
Following the 2022 Ukrainian eastern counteroffensive,
Russia renewed calls for peace talks. Ukrainian leaders refused to
reopen dialogue, claiming that the Russian government was not truly
committed to peace and was simply stalling for time while its forces
regrouped."
For the full story, follow this link. https://draft.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5810027767773113063/5343055109325091709
First, the West through characters like Boris Johnson, for
example, scuttled any hope of resolving this conflict peacefully. Shortly after Johnson visited Zelensky, Ukraine changed course and refused to restart the talks. Boris Johnson appears to be hell-bent to continue this conflict. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/boris-johnson-stop-worrying-about-putin-and-focus-entirely-on-ukraine/
Second, different nations were able to offload their antique weapons, by giving
these to the Ukraine for future payments, and now had justification to
replace these old weapons with state-of-the-art equipment. Life is good, it is a win, win situation, they seem to say, and everybody makes tons of money. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2022_Russia%E2%80%93Ukraine_peace_negotiations
"Commentary: Ukraine’s neo-Nazi problem
By Josh Cohen, Commentary
"As Ukraine’s struggle against Russia and its proxies continues, Kiev
must also contend with a growing problem behind the front lines:
far-right vigilantes who are willing to use intimidation and even
violence to advance their agendas, and who often do so with the tacit
approval of law enforcement agencies."
"Many of the National Militia’s members come from the Azov movement, one
of the 30-odd privately-funded “volunteer battalions” that, in the early
days of the war, helped the regular army to defend Ukrainian territory
against Russia’s separatist proxies. Although Azov uses Nazi-era
symbolism and recruits neo-Nazis into its ranks, a recent article in
Foreign Affairs downplayed any risks the group might pose, pointing out
that, like other volunteer militias, Azov has been “reined in” through
its integration into Ukraine’s armed forces. While it’s true that
private militias no longer rule the battlefront, it’s the home front
that Kiev needs to worry about now."
"According to
Freedom House’s Ukraine project director Matthew Schaaf, “numerous
organized radical right-wing groups exist in Ukraine, and while the
volunteer battalions may have been officially integrated into state
structures, some of them have since spun off political and non-profit
structures to implement their vision.” Schaaf noted that “an increase in
patriotic discourse supporting Ukraine in its conflict with Russia has
coincided with an apparent increase in both public hate speech,
sometimes by public officials and magnified by the media, as well as
violence towards vulnerable groups such as the LGBT community,” an
observation that is supported by a recent Council of Europe study." Emphasis added.
"In recent months, Ukraine has experienced a wave of unchecked
vigilantism. Institute Respublica, a local pro-democracy NGO, reported
that activists are frequently harassed by vigilantes when holding legal
meetings or rallies related to politically-controversial positions ,
such as the promotion of LGBT rights or opposition to the war. Azov and
other militias have attacked anti-fascist demonstrations, city council
meetings, media outlets, art exhibitions, foreign students and Roma.
Progressive activists describe a new climate of fear that they say has
been intensifying ever since last year’s near-fatal stabbing of anti-war
activist Stas Serhiyenko, which is believed to have been perpetrated by
an extremist group named C14 (the name refers to a 14-word slogan
popular among white supremacists). Brutal attacks this month on
International Women’s Day marches in several Ukrainian cities prompted
an unusually forceful statement from Amnesty International, which warned
that “the Ukrainian state is rapidly losing its monopoly on violence.” For the full story follow this link.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-cohen-ukraine-commentary/commentary-ukraines-neo-nazi-problem-idUKKBN1GV2TY
"Joe Biden's 2020 Ukrainian nightmare: A closed probe is ..." https://www.congress.gov/116/meeting/house/110331/documents/HMKP-116-JU00-20191211-SD067.pdf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azLKK0xTOFI , video showing Biden bragging on how he got the prosecutor fired. The prosecutor was investigating the company at which Hunter Biden was a director.
Sun 3 Oct 2021 12.30 EDT - The Guardian
"Revealed: ‘anti-oligarch’ Ukrainian president’s offshore connections"
What else is hidden? Your guess is as good as mine. All we really know is that billions of dollars were given to Ukraine, plus military equipment, with little or no accountability. The current U.S. Congress promised to look into this matter. Apparently, some of the donated military equipment was found on the black market. See above. It is quite possible that proceeds from questionable dealings, are well-hidden (catch me if you can). It is said, Ukraine is one of the most corrupt countries in the world, if not the most.
Apparently, Zelensky is not the hero he pretends to be, according to Naftali Bennett, ex-Prime Minister of Israel. In fact, according to Bennett, Zelensky was hiding in a bunker, and his bravery video was filmed, after Bennett assured him that Putin told him that he won't kill Zelensky. Bennett so informed Zelensky, by telephone, after meeting Putin.
