Imagine that Mexican troops, bolstered by Russian allies, amassed on the border of California and Mexico, that some in Southern California invited them into the area and that they surrounded our military bases in the region in advance of a vote by the largely Hispanic population to leave the USA and join Mexico.
That is what is going on in the Ukraine. Crimea is a part of the Ukraine. It's population is largely Russian. They voted to leave one country and join another as Russian troops stood guard.
In the wake of a March 16 referendum in which Crimeans voted to join the Russian Federation, Ukrainian leaders refused to cede any part of the peninsula, calling on their troops to prepare for war.
“Crimea was, is, and will be our territory,” said Defense Minister Ihor Tenyukh in a statement delivered at the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center on March 17.
Former heavyweight boxing champion and leader of the Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reform Vitali Klitschko announced that Ukrainian troops would remain at their bases, even after March 21, the end of a peace treaty signed by the interior ministries of Ukraine and Russia.
In accordance with the March 16 peace treaty, the Russian Interior Ministry promised to allow Ukrainian soldiers to pass freely into and out of their bases, which Russian troops had surrounded for more than two weeks. Tenyukh said that the Russian military had thus far respected the terms of the treaty.
Although tensions have de-escalated around military bases in Crimea since the signing of the treaty, neither side is prepared to back down. The Russian government expects that Ukrainian troops will surrender their military bases before the conclusion of the treaty. The Ukrainian government has said that it will not withdraw forces from Crimea, using the peace as an opportunity to replenish supplies for Ukrainian troops stationed on Crimean bases.
When asked whether Ukrainian troops would fight to defend Crimea, Tenyukh replied tersely, “The armed forces will execute their tasks, ” later adding, “Ukrainian forces will stay [in Crimea] until all their tasks have been completed.” [Kyiv Post]
And Imagine ...
Russia telling Mexico, "You are violating international law and we are going to circle the area with war ships and fighter jets to prevent a Mexican take over."
Yeah, that will go over well.
Posted by: Mr. Scott Ryan | March 20, 2014 at 07:10 AM