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Russia and its “Special Operation” in Ukraine


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12 minutes ago, bickster said:

Nowt to do with Wiki

Nice is actually my favourite foreign holiday destination, I've been at least 6 times now

Right, no more Mr Nice Guy, can we bring this back on topic please, I’d hate to start issuing warnings… 

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Quote

Roman Abramovich and Ukrainian Peace Negotiators Suffer Symptoms of Suspected Poisoning

The Russian oligarch and others developed symptoms they blamed on hard-liners in Moscow who they say want to sabotage talks to end the war

Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich and Ukrainian peace negotiators suffered symptoms of suspected poisoning after a meeting in Kyiv earlier this month, people familiar with the matter said.

Following the meeting in the Ukrainian capital, Mr. Abramovich, who has shuttled between Moscow, Lviv and other negotiating venues, as well as at least two senior members of the Ukrainian team developed symptoms that included red eyes, constant and painful tearing, and peeling skin on their faces and hands, the people said.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/roman-abramovich-and-ukrainian-peace-negotiators-suffer-symptoms-of-suspected-poisoning-11648480493

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4 minutes ago, Genie said:

Makes you wonder why, do they think there’s a credible assassination attempt? 

Coup-proofing probably by isolating away from the military, but it’s also very interesting. If he is literally in the bunker then highly curated information from a relatively small number of sources may be giving Putin an unclear picture of how things are really going. 

What analysts thought was the Russian special duties squadron doing nuclear dispersal practice as signaling to the West, might actually have been Putin relocating to the bunker because he felt personally unsafe in Moscow. 

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FT report on 'ongoing ceasefire negotiations, according to four people briefed on the discussions'. Article is here: https://www.ft.com/content/7f14efe8-2f4c-47a2-aa6b-9a755a39b626

. . . but since the FT is a pain to excerpt, a summary rundown of the state of play, according to the article:

  • There is a draft ceasefire document. It does not contain mention of any of Russia's 3 initial demands (demilitarisation, 'denazification', Russian language protections)
  • The possible deal would involve Ukraine abandoning its NATO membership ambition in exchange for security guarantees and the prospect of joining the EU
  • Ukraine would also commit to not developing nuclear weapons or hosting foreign military bases
  • Ukraine is skeptical about the agreement, believing it may be a pretext/smokescreen for re-armament
  • The countries providing the security guarantee would be Russia, the US, the UK, Canada, France, Germany, China, Italy, Poland, Israel and Turkey
  • This would need to be ratified by these countries' legislatures, but none have refused (to put it to legislatures) so far
  • Ukraine would hold a referendum to change its constitution (remove the pursuit of NATO membership)
  • Territorial questions have been parked, and would be addressed by future discussions between Putin and Zelenskyy, though this is an impasse as Russia wants recognition that Crimea is part of Russia and independence for Donetsk and Luhansk; Ukraine will not concede any of these
  • Ukraine may commit to restoring Crimea's water supply (they cut it off after 2014) and to never trying to retake the peninsula by force

These last points suggest a possible Kosovo-type solution where these incompatible territorial claims are never settled, legally, but where both sides have an agreement (however formal or informal) not to fight over it.

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