Changes

When Washington’s regime change overthrew the democratically elected government in Ukraine, the Russian populations in Crimea, and in the new republics of Luhansk and Donetsk, were attacked and threatened by the neo-nazi elements in eastern Ukraine that had fought for Hitler against the Soviet Union.{{fact}} The populations of these areas voted overwhelmingly to reunite with Russia, from whence they had come. The votes were fair and open. As Crimea is the Russian Navy’s Black Sea base, Crimea was already occupied by Russian forces. For Comey and Rogers to call this an “invasion” displays either ignorance or a lack of integrity. http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2017/03/20/conspiracy-president-trump/ </small></ref> As in Syria and other "Arab Spring" uprisings, ''agent provacateurs'' begin shooting and killing people on both sides to provoke a civil insurrection.

When Washington’s regime change overthrew the democratically elected government in Ukraine, the Russian populations in Crimea, and in the new republics of Luhansk and Donetsk, were attacked and threatened by the neo-nazi elements in eastern Ukraine that had fought for Hitler against the Soviet Union.{{fact}} The populations of these areas voted overwhelmingly to reunite with Russia, from whence they had come. The votes were fair and open. As Crimea is the Russian Navy’s Black Sea base, Crimea was already occupied by Russian forces. For Comey and Rogers to call this an “invasion” displays either ignorance or a lack of integrity. http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2017/03/20/conspiracy-president-trump/ </small></ref> As in Syria and other "Arab Spring" uprisings, ''agent provacateurs'' begin shooting and killing people on both sides to provoke a civil insurrection.

:*In February 2014, Russian soldiers landed in [[Crimea]]. Because some of the people currently living in Crimea are ethinic Russians, there is a dispute whether Crimea belongs to [[Ukraine]] or to [[Russia]].<ref>https://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/obama-warns-russia-over-military-moves-crimea</ref> On March 11, 2014, Crimea declared its indepence from Ukraine.<ref>https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2578160/Ukraines-fugitive-president-blasts-bandit-regime-says-country-heading-civil-war.html</ref> On March 16, 2014, Russia sponsored a referendum in Crimea about joining Russia. The United States and the  [[European Union]] called the referendum "illegal".<ref>https://www.voanews.com/content/eu-crimea-referendum-illegal/1865590.html</ref> Because the referendum gave voters only two choices: join Russia now or later, experts already declared that most Crimeans will vote for the connection to Russia.<ref>http://bostonherald.com/news_opinion/international/europe/2014/03/experts_russia_will_take_crimea</ref> As a result of it 95.5% of voters supported joining Russia.<ref>https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26599776</ref> Since March 18, 2014, Russia claims Crimea as a part of its territory.<ref>https://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/03/18/russia-moves-to-annex-crimea-laughs-at-us-sanctions/</ref> Only [[Afghanistan]], [[Cuba]], [[Nicaragua]], [[North Korea]], [[Russia]], [[Syria]] and [[Venezuela]] recognize Crimea as a part of Russia.<ref>https://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/24/world/asia/breaking-with-the-west-afghan-leader-supports-russias-annexation-of-crimea.html?ref=asia&_r=1</ref> On March 27, the U.N. General Assembly passed a non-binding resolution (100 in favor, 11 against and 58 abstentions) declaring Crimea's referendum invalid.<ref name="CHARBONNEAU AND DONATH">{{cite news|lcoauthors=Charbonneau M and Donath L|title=U.N. General Assembly declares Crimea secession vote invalid|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/27/us-ukraine-crisis-un-idUSBREA2Q1GA20140327|newspaper=Reuters|date=Mar 27, 2014}}</ref><ref name="Felton and Gumuchian">{{cite news|coauthors=Marie-Louise Felton and Alex Gumuchian|title=U.N. General Assembly resolution calls Crimean referendum invalid|url=https://www.cnn.com/2014/03/27/world/europe/ukraine-crisis/|newspaper=CNN|date=March 27, 2014}}</ref><ref name="un.org">{{cite news|title=Backing Ukraine’s territorial integrity, UN Assembly declares Crimea referendum invalid|url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=47443&Cr=ukraine&Cr1=|newspaper=UN News Center|date=27 March 2014}}</ref><ref name="foxnews.com">{{cite news|title=UN General Assembly approves referendum calling Russia annexation of Crimea illegal|url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/03/27/un-general-assembly-votes-yes-on-ukraine-unity/|newspaper=Associated Press|date=March 27, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Ukraine: UN condemns Crimea vote as IMF and US back loans|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26776416|newspaper=27 March 2014|date=BBC}}</ref> In response, the United States and Europe have imposed sanctions against Russian trade. In February 2017 [[President Trump]] accused Russia of taking Crimea by force and asked whether Obama was too soft on Russia.<ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/donald-trump-russia-latest-tweet-accuse-crimea-obama-too-soft-distance-campaign-team-white-house-a7581511.html Donald Trump accuses Russia of taking Crimea by force in attempt to distance himself from campaign allegations]</ref></font>

*'''21 February.''' ''USNews:'' Ukraine's American Imports. American political consultants and lobbyists have been working on all sides of the tempestuous Ukrainian situation.<ref>https://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/robert-schlesinger/2014/02/21/ukraines-long-history-with-us-political-consultants-and-lobbyists</ref>

{{quotebox-float|"[[Manafort]] isn’t alone in plying his trade in the former Soviet republic; as the Times noted in 2007,<ref>https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/30/world/europe/30ukraine.html</ref> former Bill Clinton pollster [[Stan Greenberg]] was working for Ukraine’s then-president, Viktor Yushchenko, as were GOP operatives [[Steve Schmidt]] and Neil Newhouse. By the 2010 presidential campaign, the Times reported, Yuschenko had retained another former Clinton strategist, [[Mark Penn]], while then-Prime Minister [[Yulia Tymoshenko]] had hired [[David Axelrod]]’s old firm, AKPD Media. (It’s a small world after all: Schmidt would go on to manage [[John McCain]]’s 2008 presidential campaign against AKPD client Barack Obama; Newhouse would in 2012 poll for long-time client [[Mitt Romney]] in his presidential bid.)

*NSA and UK's GCHQ reportedly monitored traffic to the WikiLeaks website and considered a move to monitor communications going to or from WikiLeaks and the Pirate Bay.  

The U.S.-Ukraine political nexus hasn’t just involved campaign work. As ''[[Reuters]]''’ Mark Hosenball and Warren Strobel reported last December, the European Centre for a Modern Ukraine, “a [[Brussels]]-based organization sympathetic to [Yanukovych] and his political party” had paid nearly $1.5 million over the preceding two years to the firms of lobbying heavyweights like Republican former Reps. [[Vin Weber]] and [[Billy Tauzin]] and Democrat [[Anthony Podesta]] (whose brother John is a senior counselor in the White House). Where the Centre gets its funding is unclear, Reuters reported: “In a filing with the European Union, the group listed its budget for the financial year ending in November as 10,000 euros, or about $14,000 – a fraction of the $1.46 million it paid the Washington [[lobbyist]]s.}}

*'''22 February.''' <font color="blue">Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych is ousted from power in a U.S. backed [[coup]].</font>

 

 

*'''22 February.''' Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych is ousted from power in a U.S. backed [[coup]].

*'''24 February.''' UK's GCHQ conducts covert operations to disrupt and shape online discourse.<ref>https://theintercept.com/2014/02/24/jtrig-manipulation/</ref>

*'''24 February.''' UK's GCHQ conducts covert operations to disrupt and shape online discourse.<ref>https://theintercept.com/2014/02/24/jtrig-manipulation/</ref>