(Czech) President Zeman calls for lifting of Russia sanctions at event organized by Putin associate

[uhnope]

Source: Radio Praha

Czech President Miloš Zeman has come under criticism for denouncing sanctions against Russia – in Russian – at an event organised by a close associate of Vladimir Putin’s. Mr. Zeman described the conflict in Ukraine as a civil war and said the situation was a mere “flu” compared to the threat of Islamic terrorism.

The Czech president addressed the Dialogue of Civilizations conference on the Greek island of Rhodes in fluent Russian. The annual event is organized by a Vienna-based group called World Public Forum. Its president is the Russian oligarch Vladimir Yakunin, who has himself been targeted by US sanctions.

In his 17-minute address on Friday, Mr Zeman criticized the sanctions imposed by the EU and US on Russian over Moscow’s support for pro-Russian rebels in Ukraine and its annexation of Crimea.

“We have to remove the sanctions which are not only useless but they cause a reverse effect than their authors hoped to achieve. We need to develop a dialogue based on the exchange of people, commodities and capital as well as completely uncensored information,” Mr Zeman said.

Read more: http://www.radio.cz/en/section/curraffrs/president-zeman-calls-for-lifting-of-russia-sanctions-at-event-organized-by-putin-associate

---

Pity the poor Czechs. A president who lets Russian oligarchs fly him out to a staged "conference" in order to kiss Kremlin ass--less than 3 decades after the Czechs kicked the Russians out of their country.

[cosmicone]

1. Zeman has common sense and is not itching for a war. n/t

[uhnope]

2. Neville Chamberlain had that same kind of "sense"

and the Czechs paid for it dearly

[happyslug]

4. Chamberlain's position was dictated by the need for time....

Britain and France were NOT ready for war in 1938, both were working on that problem but France knew it needed till 1941 before it would be ready. Hitler also knew this, thus his demands in 1938 and 1939. France was NOT ready when it did declare war in 1939 nor was in ready when Hitler attacked in May 1940. Britain had a much smaller army to get up to readiness but Britain was NOT equal to Hitler till 1941 itself (By which time Poland AND France were under German Control).

The French and British plans for 1940 was first to stay on the defensive while they built up their military, and then talk Stalin into an alliance against Hitler. When this was approached to the Poles in 1939, they rejected it and the British and French withdrew their efforts to get Stalin to join them. Stalin then protected himself (so he thought) but agreeing to work with Hitler. Stalin knew he was next, but thought Hitler would wait till 1942.

Stalin was a numbers man, he could recite how much a factory could produce, he would even give suggestion on how to be more productive. Thus when Stalin looked at the numbers he decided Hitler would NOT attack Russia till 1942. The problem Hitler was NOT a numbers man but a demigod and as such Hitler told his Generals to attack Russia in 1941 for that is what Hitler wanted. Hitler actually did better then even his Generals thought he would do, but the results were as predicted, quick movement in the first six months, then a slow retreat as the Russians recover and push to Berlin.

Russia had been Germany's source of oil and once German attack Russia that source was gone. Thus if Moscow AND Leningrad were NOT taken in the First Six Months, the German Army would be destroyed in Russia do to a lack of fuel. Stalin understood that, Hitler never did.

One of the great ironies of history, is WWII started as an effort to keep Poland free, but by 1945 that was NO LONGER A WAR GOAL. It was understood that Poland and Czechoslovakia would be under Russian domination. It is an example of the one of the Rules of War "Why you go to War, is Political decision, how you fight that war is a Political decision, and why you end the war is a Political decision AND can be THREE DIFFERENT POLITICAL DECISIONS". i.e. WWI started to keep "Poland Free", that was gone with the Fall of France in June 1940. To Free Western Europe became the Political aim after June 1940 but that only became possible with Hitler's attack on Russia (and the Failure of that attack), and thus Free Western Europe was the the Political Goal after June 1941, with the understanding that Stalin would get Poland and the rest of Eastern Europe. That was the final political goal of WWII and on that basis WWII ended.

Side Note: Chamberlain REMAINED Prime Minister of the United Kingdom till May 1940. Chamberlain was the Prime Minster who declared war on Hitler NOT Churchill. It was understood that Britain would have a unity government during the War, but Labour refused to enter any government with Chamberlain as Prime Minster. Thus Chamberlain REMAINED head of the Majority party in Parliament in 1940 (The Conservatives) but was replaced by Churchill as Prime Minister to get Labour to enter the Government. Chamberlain would remain head of the Conservative Party till his death in the Fall of 1940, when he was replaced by Churchill.

[Adrahil]

5. I see, common sense means doing whatever Putin says. Right. NT

[happyslug]

3. The Czechs "Kicked the Russians out"???????

Last edited Tue Oct 7, 2014, 10:19 AM - Edit history (1)

Sorry, the Russians LEFT on their own as they went bankrupt. The Czechs were happy to see them leave, but they did nothing to kick them out.

This is a fact most Czechs accept, that the Russians pulled out for Russia could no longer afford to maintain the costs of occupying Eastern Europe. The reforms that lead to the fall of the Communist Government of the Soviet Union also lead to the fall of the Communist Governments of Eastern Europe but again it was the result of Russian bankruptcy not active fighting by anyone in Eastern Europe.

As to the Ukraine, President Zeman is correct, it is an Ukrainian Civil War that everyone should stay out of, but it is also a Civil War among Eastern Slavs, which by definition includes the Russians AND the Ukrainians. Where the Ukraine ends and Russia begins is and always will be a line drawn in the dirt. It is arbitrary and capricious for there is NO natural border between the two nations (i.e. where ever you draw the line, you will have some people of each "Nationality" in the other country). A Pole is someone whose main river is the Vistula, a Ukrainian is someone whose main river is the Dnieper, a Russian is someone whose main river is the Volga (Belarusians is someone who lives in the Pripet Marshes).

The problem with these trends is there are NO solid border between these areas (unlike the Mountains that separate the Czech Republic from Poland). Thus you have always had massive over lap of the people between the Vistula and the Volga and the people in between (Poles and Ukrainians mix in Eastern Poland and Western Ukraine, and Ukrainians and Russian mix in the Western Russia and Eastern Ukraine. The Pripet Marshes gave the Belarus its separation from the Poles, Ukrainians and Russians, The Carpathian Mountains gave the Slovaks their separate identity. Even for the Czechs, Slovaks and Belarusians you have overlaps with each other and Poles, Ukrainians and Russians (These are all "Slavic" People, for this discussion I am ignoring the non-slavs in Eastern Europe). Some of the these people, being slavs, what variation of slavs is a question (on the borders, they do intermix and interbreed, thus someone may be a Ukrainian with a Russian Parent or vica versa).

Side note: Under the Soviet Union, you had to state your Nationality on your internal passport that everyone had to have. If your parents were of two different nationalities when you turn 18 you had to pick one as your own nationality and could NOT change it afterward. From what I have read that is still the rule in Russia and the Ukraine.

Thus, what is an internal Civil War, may not be one. The border of the Ukraine and Russia is much like the border between Indiana and Ohio, a line drawn in the dirt. If Ohio or Indiana would go into Civil War (and the the Federal Government no longer existed), both sides would draw from friends, relatives, co-workers and other people from the other state. The same for the Ukraine (and even Russia), people will come to the assistance of Friends, relatives, coworkers and other people they deal with on a constant basis. Thus Russian intervention should have been expected, just like Polish intervention if the fight involved the Western Ukraine.

Thus the Ukraine is a mess, a mess that could be resolved if people would work together, but to many people want someone else to accept they demands and refuse to even considered the concerns of the other side. That has to stop. both sides have to work together to come to a solution to the problems of the Ukraine, and so far I have NOT seen any such effort except by Putin. Some sort of deal has to be agreed upon.

[MBS]

6. disappointing and infuriating and puzzling, all at once

If any country should know the cast of characters, and have unwelcome insight into Putin's all-too-familiar motivation and M.O., it should be the Czech republic.

FYI, Hungary is even worse, with their very own mini-Putin suddenly "concerned" about the rights of Hungarian minorities in neighboring Slovakia and Rumania.

Not to mention this doesn't help the EU present any semblance of a united front.
Sigh.

[uhnope]

7. Zeman is the old guard who goes back to the Commie days

and he knows where his bread is buttered. But it's a sad case for democracy there that this guy is a recurring political figure

[MBS]

8. that sure explains it.

But as you said, a sad case for democracy, especially for the Czechs, who, unlike the Russians and the rest of Eastern Europe, have a history of real democracy (before WWII). . so it's not as if they don't know the difference.

[uhnope]

9. 40+ years of killing the pro-democracy movement thru executions, prisons and

forced labor in uranium mines, as well as brain drain after 1990--all in a small country--took quite a toll.

[MBS]

10. yup, you're right. n/t

[True Blue Door]

11. The sanctions should have been a full embargo from the moment

Putin's storm troopers invaded Crimea, and it should not end until they leave.

And if that didn't lead to embargo, the downing of the airliner should have.

Not one dollar, not one pound, not one Deutsch mark should enter that shithole of a country while Vladimir Putin rules.