With hawkish US Senator John McCain having inadvertently (or purposefully) joined the Ukrainian government [13] this week as a member of Poroshenko’s new advisory committee — which incidentally is headed by former Georgian President and current international fugitive Miheil Saakashvili — one might be inclined to say the odds have just increased in favor of the Ukraine ‘conflict’ transforming into an all-out US-Russia proxy war.
As we discussed on Thursday, McCain is no stranger to Ukrainian politics, having pledged in 2013 to stand with protesters demonstrating against then-President Viktor Yanukovich (who was supported by Russia) and having recently voiced his extreme displeasure at what he perceives as foot-dragging on Washington’s part as it relates to providing lethal aid to Kiev. Of course McCain swears he’s only interested in helping the “poor people” of Ukraine defend themselves from ubiquitous “Russian aggression”, but as RT gently points out [14], the Senator isn’t exactly the type to exhaust all peaceful measures before resorting to a military solution:
In 1999, he not only supported the illegal NATO ‘humanitarian’ bombardment of Yugoslavia - but also wanted boots on the ground. He was up - big time- for the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 and for the Iraq war two years later. He joked about bombing Iran - putting the words “Bomb, Bomb, Bomb, Bomb, Bomb, Iran” to the Beach Boys hit ‘Barbara Ann….
In 2006, casting himself as a humanitarian, he called for NATO to impose a no-fly zone over Darfur. The same year he supported Israel’s bombardment of Lebanon. In 2011 he was a bellicose supporter of the war against Libya….
After Libya, the next country on his ‘To Do’ list was Syria. In May 2012, he became the first Senator to call for the bombing of “Assad’s forces”.
In May 2013, he did his usual routine and visited ‘rebels’ fighting the secular government. At a time when people of good will were trying to bring the conflict to an end, McCain not only called on the US to arm the “brave fighters” who he was photographed with, but for cruise missiles to be used against Syrian government forces.
So as Kiev selects “advisers” with a penchant for supporting NATO military action as a go-to conflict resolution mechanism, and as NATO supreme allied commander Philip Breedlove assures congress [15] that Russia is prepping an offensive, the US army has a "simple message" for Russia: “We are ready if ever called upon but we hope to be able to reside peacefully with our allied partner nations.”
Yes, "reside peacefully", which we presume is why the military is driving a column of humvees and tanks through Romania:
While this latest example of war games in Europe may seem provocative, rest assured that at the end of the day, all NATO wants is peace, as is clear from the following clip, which shows European officials singing Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie’s “We Are The World” at a NATO meeting in Turkey on Wednesday.
Here’s an amusing bit of color from The Seattle Times [16]:
In a distinctly different note for a military alliance meeting, European officials ended a NATO meeting with a spirited rendition of “We Are The World.”
Taking a break from issues such as the war in Ukraine and instability in the Middle East, NATO and other officials accepted an invitation by a Turkish band to sing a “last song for peace” at a dinner Wednesday hosted by Turkey as the alliance’s foreign ministers met near the Mediterranean city of Antalya.
Considering the NATO troop presence [17] along the Russian border and the snap drills [18], “exercises”, and other war games being conducted against the backdrop of an exceedingly fragile ceasefire, we think it rather inauspicious — if entirely appropriate — to call the singalong “a last song for peace.”
Meanwhile: RIA reports that Russia is to increase the presence of ground troops in Crimea to counter recent NATO plans.
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Bonus humor: official press release from John McCain, who has reluctantly been forced to decline the offer to advise Poroshenko due to ethics "and all that kind of stuff."
May 14 2015
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) released the following statement today on an invitation to join Ukraine’s International Advisory Council on Reforms:
“I was honored to be asked to join Ukraine's International Advisory Council on Reforms, a forum for discussing ways to ensure Ukraine’s territorial integrity and security and support the country’s democratic future in the face of Russian aggression. However, under provisions of the U.S. Constitution concerning the interaction of Members of Congress with foreign governments, I am obligated to decline the invitation.
“I am deeply proud to be a friend to Ukraine in their fight against Vladimir Putin’s dismemberment of a sovereign nation. As I have since the first days of the Maidan protests, I will continue to do everything I can to stop Vladimir Putin’s unabated aggression, and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with free Ukraine, supporting the efforts of this new Council, and the government and people of Ukraine in these very difficult times.”
