Russia alleged today that Ukraine was using forces from Blackwater in an effort to quell secession protests in East Ukraine.
As parts of Ukraine push for greater autonomy – with Donetsk and Kharkov declaring independence on Monday – the self-imposed government in Kiev is reportedly dispatching additional forces in turbulent regions to avoid potential disobedience by local law enforcements.
“We are particularly concerned that the operation involves some 150 American mercenaries from a private company Greystone Ltd., dressed in the uniform of the [Ukrainian] special task police unit Sokol,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. “Organizers and participants of such incitement are assuming a huge responsibility for threatening upon the rights, freedoms and lives of Ukrainian citizens as well as the stability of Ukraine.”
Greystone is a subsidiary of Blackwater.
Greystone, Ltd. is a division of Blackwater USA formed to market Blackwater's services to governments and other entities outside the United States. Its website describes it as "...an international supplier of turn-key security solutions. Greystone focuses on providing stability to locations experiencing turmoil whether caused by armed conflict, epidemics, or natural or man-made disasters. Greystone has the ability to quickly and efficiently deploy anywhere in the world to create a more secure environment for our customers. We take pride in our agility, speed, and ability to execute – taking into account the surrounding culture."
The question is, who is paying for Blackwater people, if they are in fact in Ukraine? We know that Ukraine is broke and forced to implement massive austerity measures.
Russia is warning that Ukraine's actions could lead to Civil War. Russia Today:
According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, special forces backed by militants from the Right Sector are being tasked with suppressing protests in the southeastern regions of Ukraine, which for weeks have been calling for a referendums on the regions' statuses within Ukraine. Moscow called on the government in Kiev to refrain from actions that could spark a civil war in Ukraine.
Phantom Report, a military blog dealing with geopolitical issues, quoted a Russian news site last month alleging that the number was around 300.
Website politikus.ru reported, on the night of 2-3, the flight landed at the airport Borispol and Zhuliany , Ukraine carrying many men in civilian clothes but carrying large bags (similar to type bag that the U.S. military used to store equipment).
All these people were identified as employees of private security companies Greystone Limited. It is a subsidiary of Vehicle Services Company LLC (which is a private security company Blackwater USA’s notorious was renamed in 2009). Currently, the number of employees of this company in Ukraine is said to be up to 300 people.
The presence of the security personnel are specially trained in Ukraine this will enhance protection for the new administration in the area east and southeast, where the anti-government protests erupted powerful new .
Politikus posted videos which they say are of Blackwater agents. This was picked up by
RT and
Daily Mail. From the Daily Mail:
Since the videos emerged, Twitter has been alive with speculation that mercenaries linked to Blackwater, now known as Academi, are active in Ukraine, helping to prop up the embattled new pro-western government.
And a Russian diplomat in Kiev told the Interfax news agency on Wednesday that 300 employees of private security companies had arrived there.
'These are soldiers of fortune proficient in combat operations. Most of them had operated under private contracts in Iraq, Afghanistan and other states,' the source said. Interfax reported that the diplomat did not disclose the nationalities of the mercenaries but said, 'Most of them come from the United States'.
Asked whether the soldiers seen in the videos could be from Academi, Dr Nafeez Ahmed, a security expert with the Institute for Policy Research & Development, said: ‘Difficult to say really. It's certainly not beyond the realm of possibility - Academi have been deployed in all sorts of theatres.
'I think the question is whether the evidence available warrants at least reasonable speculation.
‘On the face of it, the uniforms of the people in the videos are consistent with US mercs - they don't look like Russian soldiers mercs. On the other hand, why run around in public making a show of it?’
He added: ‘Of course the other possibility is it's all Russian propaganda.’
Malaysian Insider argues that the reason that there is such instability around the Caspian Sea is that it is one of the world's most untapped areas remaining.
Due to its unique formation and present water composition variations, the Caspian hosts rare biodiversity and many endemic species of flora and fauna (presently, threatened by rising exploration and exploitation of vast oil and gas reserves).
The so-called 'Inner Circle' of the Caspian Basin consists of the five littoral (riparian) states, namely Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan, sharing the common coastline.
As much as the geographically distant, as well as different by their distinctive geomorphology and hydrology, the Arctic and Caspian – when contrasted and compared – however resemble several critical similarities.
Both theatres are grand bodies of water surrounded by 5 riparian/littoral states. (Meaning both are water surrounded by landmass, while Antarctica represents landmass surrounded by water.) Both of them are of huge and largely unexplored natural resources and marine biota.
Both the Artic and Caspian have numerous territorial disputes and are of geopolitical importance for their respective littoral states, and well beyond.
Finally, both theatres are also of unsolved legal status – drifting between an external quest for creation of special international regime and the existing Law of Sea Convention system (UNCLOS).
The collapse of the USSR has created a huge power vacuum, which explains the massive looting of Ukraine that is taking place by both the IMF and by Russia. It also explains why there has been such a concerted effort in certain quarters to get Georgia and other countries into NATO as a check against Russian influence. The US is calling for talks in an effort to defuse the situation. But if these allegations about Blackwater turn out to be true, they will have a lot of explaining to do.
