Bush Abandons the Orange Revolution
December 31st, 2005 at 3:18 pm by SmantixThe Ukraine’s Orange Revolution is in jeopardy as it’s been some time since we’ve witnessed President Junior donning the orange neckties. A year ago we were treated to this lip service following Yushchenko’s stunning Pro-Western victory after almost being assassinated several times by the Kremlin:
“The United States wants to do everything we can to help you meet the expectations of the Ukrainian people after this turmoil,” (Colin) Powell said at the start of the meeting.
“I’m sure that on Independence Square you will see hundreds of thousands of people with very bright eyes,” Yushchenko said. “None of that would have been possible without our partners who share the same democratic values as we do, in which I include President Bush and you.”
Bush called Yushchenko on Saturday to congratulate him on his election and on “democracy’s victory” in Ukraine, White House spokesman Brian Besanceney said in Washington.
“The two leaders also discussed their support for the people of Iraq and for democracy in that country,” Besanceney said.
As of a few weeks ago, former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder was given a sweetcake position in the recently nationalized Russian oil firm Gazprom as remuneration for abusing his position to push for the Northern European Gas Pipeline and to use his Euro connections to apply pressure on former Soviet republics to stay loyal to Snake Pootie-Poot. Ray D. at Davids Medienkritik is, of course, all over it like kraut on a bratwurst:
It is so heart warming to see Gerhard Schroeder looking out for the little guy this holiday season. Not long after leaving office this past November, he took on two lucrative jobs, one with his old Maennerfreund Vladimir Putin at Russia’s state-controlled gas giant “Gazprom.” Of course while he was in office, Schroeder was instrumental in negotiating a multi-billion dollar pipeline deal with Russia and Gazprom on behalf of the German state. His decision to join the company was met with a bit of token outrage in the German media before the subject was promptly dropped. No Watergate knives were brandished and the ex-Chancellor has been largely left to continue about his merry business.
And Schroeder is certainly a busy man these days. As always, he’s deeply committed to the ideals of democracy and social justice. Now his new company, Gazprom, is being used by the Putin government to twist the arm of the newly elected, democratic Ukrainian government led by Victor Yushchenko.
In a few hours, Yushchenko’s fledgling democracy will have to respond to the extortion letter delivered from the Kremlin with the help of Herr Schroeder. They can either accept an almost 500% arbitrary increase (from $50 to $230 a cubic meter) for Russian oil imports or they can have the gas spigot cut off at the start of winter. Snake Pootie-Poot has magnanimously offered the Ukraine a $3.6 billion loan to help cover his punitive pricing that has been rejected just moments ago. Indeed, the borrower would be slave to the lender.
The mods at the Pravda forums have dubbed the situation as the start of “A New Cold War”. Get it? They’re going to freeze them to death. Last century they were just starving them to death. My how times change.
From mod Chornyvolk who is creepily “watching your every move”:
PICTURE the families shivering in apartments without heating, factories grinding to a halt, frozen water pipes bursting in the depths of winter. Welcome to the new Cold War.
At 10am on Sunday, Russia is threatening to unleash the most powerful weapon in its post-Soviet arsenal: unless Ukraine agrees to a fourfold increase in the price it pays for gas, Russia will simply turn off the tap.
We expect no better from the murderous rotten commies but is this the repayment the Ukraine gets who, at one time, held the 4th largest contingent of foreign troops in Iraq? Silence from across the ocean from the President who wants to talk like Reagan, walk like Reagan, but Mister – you are no Reagan.



























