By Rostislav Ishchenko
Translated by Ollie Richardson and Angelina Siard
cross posted with http://www.stalkerzone.org/rostislav-ishchenko-by-terminating-the-treaty-of-friendship-with-russia-ukraine-renounces-its-territorial-integrity/
source: https://ukraina.ru/opinion/20180829/1020954209.html
On August 28th Poroshenko tasked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine with preparing documents on the denunciation of the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Partnership between Ukraine and Russia (it is also called the Big or Basic treaty). On the same day the Minister of Foreign Affairs Klimkin reported that Ukraine will notify Russia about the cancellation of the treaty before September 30th…
I, of course, understand that Klimkin was supposed to have the documents ready long ago, because the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine officially suggested to denounce the treaty on March 18th of the current year. But nevertheless, the ratification and denunciation of the international treaties of Ukraine is an exclusive prerogative of parliament. Neither executive power – which by the way isn’t Klimkin and even not Groisman, but the entire government in general – nor Poroshenko as the head of state have the power to dissolve the treaty without putting it to the vote in parliament. And the situation nowadays is such that collecting the majority of deputies’ votes, even during a Russophobic event, won’t be simple for Poroshenko.
The president lost control over the parliament long ago, and on the eve of elections his opponents will think three times before creating a precedent for consolidated Rada voting for the proposal of the president. Especially since Poroshenko’s opponents build their own electoral campaign on the basis of theses about the need to terminate civil war and normalise relations with Russia. It is clear that denunciation of the Treaty of friendship won’t promote the achievement of these goals. It is in the course of Poroshenko’s radical nationalist electoral program. Denunciation of the treaty will show that the Verkhovna Rada rallied around Poroshenko like around the leader of the party of war. This can give him a free hand to attack to the opposition.
And I am absolutely sure that, besides the creation of conditions for the forceful suppression of the opposition, Poroshenko, who demands to end the Treaty of friendship, has no other goals.
Firstly, Ukraine could’ve ended it long ago. In 2014-2015 moods in society were much more favourable for it, and the parliament was ready for the corresponding vote, and even western partners perplexedly asked Ukraine how it manages to affirm that it is at war with Russia if the Treaty of friendship remains inviolable. Now the situation radically changed, and the corresponding actions of Kiev won’t receive neither internal, nor international support (which Poroshenko is perfectly aware of).
Secondly, ending the Treaty gives nothing to Ukraine, but only expands Russia’s space for manoeuvre.
Let’s start with banalities. It is precisely under his Treaty that the inviolability of the existing borders is recognised, and the parties undertake to respect the territorial integrity of each other and not to use their territory to the detriment of each other’s security. Ukraine, however, accuses Russia of violating these provisions, but Moscow has more grounds to make pretensions to Kiev. In 2014 Ukrainian troops repeatedly fired artillery and small arms at the Russian border checkpoints and border settlements. One citizen of Russia was killed at a minimum. Also, back then groups of armed Ukrainian soldiers breached the Russian border in armored vehicles several times (yet not with the purpose of surrendering, as was the case later).
Nevertheless, the Treaty worked and that’s why nobody called the border into question, and the territorial integrity of Ukraine was respected so much so that the DPR/LPR still are not recognised. If Ukraine denounces the Treaty, its border will then lose international legitimacy. It will become just a conditional line on the territory that Ukraine considers as the border. But Russia in this question won’t have any more obligations.
What can this lead to? For example, to the recognition of the DPR/LPR (after all, the obligation to respect territorial integrity is absent). At the same time, it is necessary to remember that the republics consider the entire territory of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine as theirs, which currently they control only a third of. I.e., another solid piece of Ukrainian territory will immediately hang in suspense. There is also the problem of the northern part of the Arabat spit that didn’t leave [Ukraine – ed] together with Crimea, which it geographically belongs to only because it was administratively attached to the Kherson region. Not necessarily immediately, but all these questions can become actual.
However, it is unlikely Russia will immediately start making territorial claims to Ukraine. Even the question of recognising the republics can be postponed in connection with the general geopolitical situation. But it’s not a coincidence that this Treaty is called a Basic one. By declaring a strategic partnership between two countries, it in fact is the basis for agreements regulating Ukrainian-Russian relations in all spheres. The economy, finance, science, culture, the rights and freedoms of citizens of the two countries – nothing escapes the coverage of the Treaty of friendship. Any agreement in any spheres can be ended with a reference to its denunciation (or their action can be suspended).
Should the denunciation of the Treaty of friendship happen, both Russia and Ukraine – everyone on their own arbitrariness – can at will limit the crossing of their border by citizens of the other party, their right to work, and the acquisition of property and doing business on their territory. Only, if Ukraine already used this option (in those aspects in which could), then Russia hasn’t even started to use it. Now Kiev tries to create for Moscow the international legal basis for any actions concerning Ukraine.
Poroshenko’s plan is clear: denounce the Treaty to provoke Russia into taking drastic action, such as putting forward territorial claims, and thus rally radical nationalist forces around himself, and also to increase the degree of patriotic hysteria in society – if not to the level of 2014, then up to some noticeable size. This should reduce the electoral base of his opponents, having at the same time increased the number of votes for Poroshenko. Besides this, in such conditions it will be much more difficult for the opposition to demand the normalisation of relations with Russia.
But after all, Moscow in recent years gives everyone only asymmetric answers, which are even more painful as a result. After all, it can turn out that instead of Russian pretensions, Poroshenko will receive the return to Ukraine of millions of gastarbeiters, who will lose the grounds to work in Russia, and the conditions of them crossing the border and staying on the territory of the country will demand additional negotiations and the conclusion of a new agreement. I think that their “love” for Poroshenko, who deprived them and their family of a livelihood, will become so heated that Petro Poroshenko will need to think not about elections, but about fleeing (well, or about his soul).
Russia’s diapason of opportunities to react should the Treaty of friendship be denounced is wider than ever. In the end, this Treaty is something like the constitution of bilateral relations. If there is no Treaty, then the contractual-legal basis weakens. But, as was said at the beginning of the article, one shouldn’t forget also about the interests of the Ukrainian opposition, which isn’t interested at all Poroshenko unleashing a conflict with Russia (even if it isn’t a hot conflict) at the end of his reign. After all, it is they who will be obliged to restore the destroyed contractual-legal basis of bilateral relations. But times have changed. There is no more Yeltsin, who demanded from Russian officials just after they had woken up in the morning to think about “what you’ve done for Ukraine”, and who was the head of Russia when the Treaty was approved and signed by the parliaments of the two countries. The conditions of the new Treaty will be much more strict. And the opposition also is not interested in giving Poroshenko the chance to take the initiative in the internal political fight. So the first thing that Poroshenko-Klimkin’s initiative will lead to will be a growth in internal tensions in Ukraine, and all the rest – later.
Ukraine is destined for suicide by one means or another.
They are still standing, but like a man on a gallows whose hand is on the lever of the trapdoor. He can pull it or shout and scream all he wants, but one more hour of fatigue and he will fall and yank the lever sending him to his end.
Porky stands on the trapdoor, the noose around his fat neck stolen from and made in Kiev. He shouts obscenities at Russia, but the massively evil chocolate billionaire will die by his own hand, taking Ukraine, as he has led it, to its doom with him.
Thanks to Ollie and Angelina for the translation.
Ukraine is in a fine mess, politically, economically, financially, militarily, any way you look at it. Next year it is having presidential elections, which Poroshenko knows he cannot win, unless he rigs them, which would be a foolish act, as nobody would believe the results. So, what does he do ? He decides to cancel the Treaty of Friendship with Russia, obviously trying to pick a fight with both Russia and the Donbass. This is an old political trick – when in trouble at home, pick a war to draw attention away from your troubles. This way he postpones the elections and places the political opposition placed under his control.
It is not clear if Poroshenko is cancelling the Treaty on his own initiative or in conjunction with NATO. It is unimportant. No matter what Poroshenko and NATO jointly do, they will end up in even worse trouble. As I have already written, the coup d’etat in 2014 against Yanukovich started a chain reaction which cannot be stopped. Ukraine will either have to be federalized into three parts or else it will break up in three parts. It will probably break up anyway.
If Poroshenko is wise, he would resign and depart Ukraine for the US, whose citizenship he has. If he stays in the country, then in the end he will indeed be forced to flee it. At any rate, Ukraine in it’s present form cannot be saved, all the more so because it is facing a financial catastrophy. I think the EU knows this, while the US is slowly accepting this fact.
RT reports that Zacharchenko has been killed
https://www.rt.com/news/437357-head-donbass-republic-killed/
GoraKoshka
Very unfortunate. Obviously a premeditated assassination. Zacharchenko was brilliant, a true leader. I watched him. However, this will not change anything. The two republics still exist, while the killing will not be forgotten.
“I watched him.”
That’s why these leaders should be more secretive. There shouldn’t be any videos/pictures for those on the outside to see. Only the men fighting should know much about them. They are too easy to track down and assassinate when they have had publicity.
”Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Partnership between Ukraine and Russia”
Reads mostly like a silly joke. What kind of ”cooperation” and ”partnership” could possibly be envisaged between a bankrupt, Nazi-infested Ukro kleptocracy and Mother Russia in her most prosperous time in history ever? The Ukro garbage should continue enjoying their wondrous ”European Odyssey”, period.
Let Poor_Old_Shenko tear up this meaningless treaty to his heart’s content and then watch as the borders of his glorious ”country” conspicously tighten around the fatso’s belly.
Thank you to the translators, as always. Since I’ve been poorly educated and can’t read Russian, it is only by their efforts that I can read such opinions. And I am grateful.
A sad day for Ukraine having now declared their alliance with globalist forces who will plunder their resources, enslave their population via monetary means and will eventually flood their country with immigrants like Europe.
Another Soros commenced act of war on a free people.
I honestly think that settling Third World immigrants in Ukraine (and, even more, Poland) en masse would be a good thing with quite a few amusing ideological twists seriously shaking the majority population there.
Firstly, it’s good that what Saker called the Pilban syndrome is finally given a fatal blow by settling substantial numbers of people who are 100% unconcerned with Ukro/Pshek delusions of victimhood and grandeur. They won’t be paying much attention to the ”heroism” of Pilsudski/Bandera (the PilBan syndrome). Really, one could hope at least that (peaceful) demographic turbulence eventually will have a much needed sobering effect on the majority population and its, ahem, ’dated’ world outlook.
Secondly, it’s good that it’s George Soros himself who unapologetically wants to do this. Of course the Poles and Ukrainians could seek consolation by blaming Soros as a ”Putin agent”, but that will only evoke all-out derision from anyone listening.
Thirdly, and this is the supreme insult to deluded peoples — including Western Europe’s as well — which relates to the subject of Third World immigration into Europe: The globalists are concerned about Europe’s abysmal birth stats and, regarding Eastern Europe, the outright depopulation process which their neoliberal despotism has brought about. In Western Europe, Whitey has simply become too fat, too lazy, and too infatuated with faggotry to bother about physical reproduction. In Eastern Europe, Whitey is leaving and those staying won’t have children due to the socio-economic living hell of neoliberalism (with very little imperialist booty to buy off the population with). If Russia is to be subjugated, there has to be massive fighting armies — hence the globalists’ immigration schemes. Schemes that they keep going by deliberate violence and chaos in Africa and the Middle East. Put simply, more combustible people are needed to save ”Western civilization” than the Euro-trash can muster, no matter the latter’s ideological pride in doing that.
and if this is true, then the transit of gas thorough Ukraine may lose legal legitimacy and gazprom would haven no legal obligation to continue transit, or a legal route to abandon transit.
So here’s a question, If Ukraine nullifies this treaty which governs every aspect of the Ukraine-Russian relationship (international and otherwise), and If in say a year or 2 there is a coup, civil unrest/uprising, or outright revolution against the “authorities” in Kiev, Could Russia claim the Responsibility to Protect the inhabitants of its former territory and be able to openly intervene in the country? After all the “good ole” USA has claimed the Responsibility to Protect in cases such as Libya. Either way there’s no way out for Ukraine since they’ve shot themselves in the foot way too many times.