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Elevated from the Diaries - MB. There's more packed into this little space than in 50 news reports on the subject. The only thing missing is a map like one of those purple ones of the States, which shows a bit more nuance than red-blue. Would Ukraine's be fuchsia?]
Yep, we're up to Part 9. If you want to know the latest, most comprehensive news about what's going on in the Ukraine, read this Diary.
First though, props to other Ukraine diaries in the past 24 hours - here, here, here, here and last but not least, here.
The first diaries I ever wrote on Daily Kos were on the revolution in Georgia, one year ago. I am so grateful that now I am covering yet another peaceful transition of a former Communist country towards democracy right here on my favorite blog.
It's Thanksgiving in the States but it's protests as usual on another bitterly cold day with plenty of snow in the Ukraine.
The coverage concerning what's going on in the Ukraine seems to have taken a surreal, schizophrenic turn. Russian news sources and statements from Russian politicians and experts take the position that nothing was amiss in the Ukrainian elections while the rest of the world has been finding diplomatic ways to say "utterly fraudulent".
For part 9 we'll start with the Russian point of view.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, currently in the Netherlands for a summit with the European Union, called Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych to congratulate him on his win for a second time:
"I congratulate you on being elected President of Ukraine.
"The Ukrainian people made their choice which is the choice for stability, stronger statehood and the further development of democratic and economic reforms. The majority of Ukrainians supported your intention to develop good-neighborly and multifaceted cooperation with Russia, all CIS members and other countries of Europe and the world.
"Russia and Ukraine are enjoying every possibility of raising their strategic cooperation to a higher level. The citizens of our countries who are linked by common historical and cultural ties are, thereby, becoming even closer to each other.
"The emerging Common Economic Space is gaining momentum. Realizing its potential has yielded good results already and it is promoting an increasingly more impressive commodity turnover and is providing new opportunities for the peoples of Russia and Ukraine. Our countries are parties to major international projects in the sphere of outer space, energy, aircraft building and transport. By joining our efforts we can do a lot to ensure European and international security and build a united, prosperous Europe.
"I appreciate your resolve to maintain cooperation in specific spheres and I am pleased to note the helpful contacts we have developed. Our further intensive dialogue will, undoubtedly, promote bilateral cooperation for the good of the two fraternal nations."
Putin then blasted the EU and western countries for trying to "push" the Ukraine into mass-scale unrest:
"I am deeply convinced that we have absolutely no moral right to push the large European country [Ukraine is] into mass-scale unrest of any sort."
"We must not adopt the practice of settling such controversies through street protests. We must make every effort to ensure that such controversies are settled in a constitutional way, in compliance with the law," the Russian leader pointed out.
"I do not think other countries can recognize or refuse to recognize the elections in Ukraine. This is the Ukrainian people's business. Their polls need no recognition from the outside"
Of course Putin neglected to mention his TWO separate campaign appearances to stump for Yanukovych and the fact that Moscow was filled with pro-Yanukovych billboards before the elections. Both Russia as well as western organizations have spent a lot of money in the Ukraine.
Mosnews is reporting that a Russian political scientist named Sergei Markov is now convinced that the pro-Yuschenko rallies are part of a "Polish conspiracy". Markov seems to have forgotten that it was current Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma who invited both former Polish president and Nobel Peace Prize winner Lech Walesa and Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus to come to the Ukraine as mediators.
Before Walesa left Poland, he told Polish news agency PAP:
"I hope that Ukraine can avoid the mistakes that Poland made, such as the imposition of martial law.
Walesa left later the same day for Portugal but left behind his representative Zbignev Buyak, whom Walesa characterized as a "great fighter".
The presidents of Kazakhstan, Armenia and Uzbekistan, all three pillars of democracy, phoned in today to congratulate Yanukovych for his "victory".
Yuschenko's camp today filed a petition with the Supreme Court to review the official voting results. They're hoping to have some 1.5 million ballots declared invalid, most of them from the pro-Yanukovych areas. Some analysts feel however that the Supreme Court will be unable to address the voting results as a whole and that Yuschenko's lawyers need to file appeals in each disputed district.
The Supreme Court later announced that it would "freeze" the the official, official, official results until next Monday so it can review Yuschenko's petition. A woman identify herself as a wife of a Supreme Court justice later called a radio show and said the judges are being threatened.
Yuschenko's followers, heeding his call for a general strike, have begun blocking off highways leading in from the eastern pro-Yanukovych areas. There are fears that coal miners from the pro-Yanukovych region of Donetsk might be on their way in to be used as "heavies" against the Yuschenko folks, which reminds me of when Iliescu in Romania bused in rowdy miners from the Jiu valley to crack down on protestors. Under Communism, in many countries miners were among the best paid and most respected people but now many have fallen on hard times.
The downtown Kiev webcam is still showing thousands of people gathered there. Reports are coming in that there are an equally large number of people surrounding the presidential building as well.
Yuschenko spent the day on the horn with Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski and German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer trying to drum up support. As a counter move, there are reports that Yanukovych is going to swear himself in as the next president Friday at the parliament building. Indy news source Maiden is now reporting Yanukovych just swore the presidential oath in an emergency member of parliament but the speaker said it was invalid due to a failure to achieve a quorum.
The good news is that the Ukrainian military union issued a press release saying that the Ukrainian military:
will keep faith with their military duty and Ukraine's Constitution, will do their best to prevent bloodshed and will never bear arms against Ukrainian people.
The bad news is that Yuschenko's "Our Ukraine" party website has reported that Russian special forces are now in Kiev:
Earlier today Oleksandr Zinchenko, the head of Victor Yushchenko's election campaign, declared that Russian Special Forces "Vityaz", up to 1000 strong, have been deployed in Kyiv. They had been brought to Ukraine from Russia on the eve of 21 November elections and remain in Kyiv, it is alleged. "All members of the Russian Special Forces are dressed in Ukrainian uniforms and none of them have any identification documents" announced Zinchenko.
Zinchenko stated that "Vityaz" special-forces have three main tasks: "first - ensuring the disappearance of 10-15 key opposition leaders. Second - isolating via arrests several influential members of the Victor Yushchenko's team, who are not people's deputies of Ukraine and do not have immunity. Third - provoking violent confrontations and conflicts in the streets of the capital to create conditions for introducing an emergency situation". The presence of Russian military personnel is viewed as the last resort of Kuchma's personal security, because, according to sources, he is not confident in the loyalty of Ukraine 's Security Service personnel in case of actions of mass protest.
According to information from dwellers of Irpin city outside of Kyiv, a big unit of Russian Vityaz special forces are being deployed near Ukrainian capital. Local town residents witness that Russian special forces are known for their brutal operations in Chechnya and are being equipped with Ukrainian special police force uniforms as well as civil dress.
"Vityaz" special forces that landed at a military airport near the Ukrainian capital yesterday, are supposedly based in Bryansk (Russia). According to experts they also specialize on carrying out special operations abroad, but most widely known for their operations in Chechnya and defending the Moscow TV Tower in 1993. The ex-commander of Vityaz unit was awarded the "Hero of Russia" award for operation against Russia's Duma in 1993.
According to the Ukrainian Constitution, foreign armed forces can be located on the territory of Ukraine only if granted permission by Ukraine's Parliament.
Official sources deny Russian forces are deployed in Ukraine. According to the Member of Parliament Yuliya Tymoshenko, foreign armed forces are located in the courtyards of the presidential administration, currently surrounded by protesting citizens.
Turkey has now said they are "carefully monitoring" the developments in the Ukraine and France has expressed "serious doubts" about the validity of the election results:
Paris "urges the Ukrainian authorities to ensure that the will as expressed by the Ukrainian people is properly taken into account," the foreign ministry spokeswoman added.
She said that France accepted the preliminary findings of an OSCE observer mission at the elections, which concluded that the presidential election did not meet democratic standards.
Canada's House of Commons meanwhile is debating a motion to impose sanctions if Kuchma does not remedy the "coup d'etat" of proclaiming Yanukovych the winner.
A pro-Yuschenko rally in Brussels, Belgium waved orange flags and one sign spotted read "Mr. Putin, No More USSR".
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan meanwhile urged all sides to exercise restraint while the Catholic Pope meanwhile offered up a prayer for the "well-loved country" (the Ukraine).
Yuschenko's crew meanwhile has created both a "Committee of National Salvation" to "defend the constitution" and more ominously, a "ukrainian Guard" - dubbed a "people's self-defense force".
Maiden is reporting several hundred police officers have appeared before the downtown crowd and pledged support, kissing the Ukrainian flag.
And finally, there is a report that the Transportation Minister lost two teeth after getting into a fistfight with Yanukovych over proposed bus and train strikes.
Will keep you updated.
Update - Up to 237 journalists on state-run television media are now ON STRIKE and are refusing to broadcast government propaganda anymore. Simply inspirational!
Peace