Category Turkey

Jan 30 2024

The Broker – Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Schedule Meeting in Turkey Next Month


Posted originally on the CTH on January 29, 2024 | Sundance

While Turkey is a NATO ally, Recep Erdogan strategically refused to participate in the process to ostracize Russia.  True to Erdogan’s strategic political interests of being an influence broker, Turkey is the only NATO country that does not participate in the sanctions regime against Russia.  Next month Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to Turkey for diplomatic discussions.

Turkey represents the literal gateway for most Western travel into and out of Russia.  However, first things first.  Despite the position of Turkey, notice how Hungary receives all the EU admonitions for not supporting the Ukraine side of the conflict, while NATO/EU never criticize Turkey who never even joined the EU/Western sanctions regime.  Inside that hypocritical contrast there is a revealing story.

Turkey established themselves as the neutral entity for future brokering negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.  Turkey has multiple geopolitical ties to Russia, including the purchase of Russian military equipment.  Apparently, despite the severity of the original sanction demand, Western interests -specifically the U.S. government- had no issue with Turkey proactively taking their ‘neutral’ position.  Always remember this.

Given all of the domestic headlines in the USA, there is a very good reason for Americans to keep paying attention to all things that happen in the orbit of Russia right now. Many people ponder the issue of a dollar-based central bank digital currency; however, only a few people have paid attention to the self-fulfilling prophecy of the CBDC that was created by the Russian sanctions regime.

Those who ask about the possibility/probability of a dollar-based CBDC, and the possibility of the timeframe therein, should always be referenced back to the Western financial sanctions against Russia.  It was that triggering point that put the USA and Western alliance on the irreversible path to the U.S CBDC, and the process is no longer a matter of “if” because the determining issue is no longer (primarily) in U.S. control.

The de-dollarization of half the trade globe, the general cleaving of finance that followed the Russian sanctions (see the efforts of BRICS+), has essentially created a system where major economic nations are trading between themselves in non-dollar-based exchanges.  India trades with Russia in Rupes to Rubles. China trades with Russia on old fashioned ledgers of value (due to proximity somewhat of a quasi-bartering system); Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, South Africa and a host of non-Western nations are all in various stages of direct trade in national currency outside the dollar zone.

At the core of the issue behind the question of a U.S. or dollar-based Central Bank Digital Currency, you will find this global financial cleaving.   Intra-Western trade (USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and the EU) is still done in dollars, and trade done into the Western system is still done in dollars.  Ex. if China wants to trade into the USA, they must complete transactions in dollars. However, trade from grey zone to grey zone nation is no longer contingent upon dollars.

Very few people are talking about these new financial trade alternatives. Yet ultimately, this cleaving is likely what will result in a dollar-based U.S CBDC.   Remember, the need for alternative trade currencies was triggered in time by the immediacy of the sanctions against Russia.  I do not believe the Western financial alliance thought the Russian allies could assemble the alternative so quickly.

If the DoS and CIA truly believed the sanctions would cripple Russia, it’s then likely our institutions vastly underestimated the prior diplomatic talks that preceded those sanctions.  As a big picture consequence, no geopolitical issue is as connected to your kitchen table as anything that connects with Russia.  So, pay close attention to how Russia is engaged by the rest of the non-Western world (grey zone), and you will get a good idea about the speed and timing of a pending U.S. CBDC.

As soon as the grey zone trade is predicted to take place in non-dollar terms, the U.S CBDC will be fast-tracked.  The only way for President Donald Trump to stop the CBDC process would be to immediately end the Russia-Ukraine conflict and subsequently remove the sanctions. [And that might not even work.]  As long as there are financial trade blocks based on dollars and who we like, there will be an easy justification for the financial cleaving to continue.

RUSSIA – Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Turkey next month in a rare foreign trip to a NATO nation, according to a Kremlin announcement on Monday.

Yuri Ushakov, a top adviser to Putin on foreign policy matters, told the Interfax news outlet that “a visit is being prepared.” As to the purpose of the visit, Ushakov added: “I can say that Ukrainian issues will probably be one of the main subjects of negotiations.”

Though a key NATO nation, Turkey and its president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, serve as a rare diplomatic bridge between the Kremlin and its Western rivals. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Ankara has supported Ukraine with military supplies while refusing to join Western sanctions on Moscow.

Turkey has positioned itself as a mediator between the two nations, hosting two rounds of peace talks in Antalya and Istanbul in 2022. Turkey was also key to the Black Sea Grain Initiative that temporarily facilitated the export of agricultural products from southern Ukrainian ports amid Russia’s naval blockade.

Following a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the beginning of this month, Erdoğan said Ankara remains ready to help “establish lasting peace, stability and prosperity in our region.”

“We have previously acted as a host country for direct talks between the parties to the conflict,” the president said. “We are, as before, ready to do our best in this matter and act as a mediator….Ukraine in order to take joint steps with Russia certainly needs to soften its position.”

Putin last visited a NATO nation in 2020 when he traveled to Germany to meet with then-Chancellor Angela Merkel. His Western travel options have been limited by his war on Ukraine and the arrest warrant issued for him in 2023 by the International Criminal Court over alleged related crimes. (read more)

I really do not like Turkish President Recep Erdogan.  His political policy is full of dangerous self-interest (Muslim Brotherhood) and thirst for power (recreation of the Ottoman empire).  However, on the issue of ending this Russia-Ukraine conflict, I will admit Erdogan has positioned himself very well.

If Trump wins in November, Erdogan will play a major role in the end of hostilities.

You might even say Erdogan holds the key to eliminating the self-fulfilling prophecy of a US CBDC that Obama/Biden created.

May 30 2023

Turkey & the Election


Armstrong Economics Blog/Turkey Re-Posted May 30, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

QUESTION: Mr. Armstrong; I’m not sure if you remember me. I was with the Islamic bank that our board ordered we were to open a branch in Turkey and we turned to you to create a hedge since the Turkish Lira was not a tradable market. You saved the bank a fortune and I think that was the first synthetic hedge anyone ever created back in the ’80s thanks to your computer correlations.

The press was claiming that Erdogan would lose and that would be a victory for democracy that would send a message to strongmen rulers in other parts of the world. Well, they got that one wrong and we have the same type of democracy that the rest of the West has – career politicians entrenched for life. Now the press is all flustered saying this victory for Mr Erdogan is sending a message to people like Modi in India as he faces his third general election within the next year that he too can win.

I remember the forecast you told the bank back then that come 2026, Turkey might break with NATO and align with Russia in hopes of restoring its former glory of the Ottoman Empire. Well, I thought that was rather way out there back then. Today, I see how that is now perhaps a 50/50 bet.

Has anything ever changed in your computer on that very long-term forecast since the other one you had said the British pound would fall from $2.40 to par and that seemed farfetched as well but the computer was correct.  Would you care to comment on Turkey?

ABD

ANSWER: Oh yes, I remember you. The ’80s were the wild times. If I am correct, we bumped into each other in the early ’90s in an elevator in London. No, nothing has changed. This was the turning point and it still appears to be building up but a break with NATO is still possible post-2024 increasing in intensity for 2026. Your memory is very good still. Erdogan is not a fool. He sees the Ukraine mess and how the West is deliberately creating WWIII. He sees the opportunity ahead even if he does not articulate it publicly. We have reached the 340-year mark from the 1683 attempt of the Ottoman Empire to conquer Europe. We are approaching the 4th wave from 1683 and that is 344 years. So we are on target and nothing has changed.

May 14 2023

Strange “Democracy” – Govt of Turkey Demands Twitter Remove Political Opposition, Elon Musk Agrees


Posted originally on the CTH on May 13, 2023 | Sundance 

The authoritarian government of Turkish President Recep Erdogan, a man of notoriously manipulative and unstable disposition intent on recreating the Ottoman empire, demanded that in advance of their elections Twitter remove the voice of the opposition party.  Elon Musk complied:

This decision is interesting because it shows that despite his questions about the need to defend democracy and free speech, Twitter owner Elon Musk is willing to support the removal of opposition political parties during elections.

Musk justifies this decision by saying the choice was between shutting down a political viewpoint or shutting down all of Turkish Twitter access.  Musk chose to simply eliminate one set of voices in opposition to the existing government in Turkey.

When Rumble was faced with a similar threat from France, Rumble stood with the principle of freedom and refused to block content the administration of Emmanuel Macron did not like.  Rumble left France rather than comply with authoritarian censorship demands.  Twitter remains operational in Turkey, willing to support the authoritarian censorship demands.  An interesting contrast.

I have fielded many calls in the past few days about this seemingly 180° reversal from Elon Musk in his ‘speech’ positions.  The hiring of Linda Yaccarino was one massive datapoint that seemed to indicate the priorities of Musk had changed.  The acquiescent to Turkish government requests less than 24 hours later is another datapoint.

The general questions all fall in the spectrum of ‘what has changed’?

I will answer here, what I have answered privately.

When I published my thesis on the background of Twitter called Jack’s Magic Coffee Shop, the essential outline contained two basic cornerstones.

First, the United States government was operating to control the information on the Twitter platform with direct access to the content.  Second, the USG was subsidizing it.

Two years ago, people thought I was nuts about government control over content.  However, in the last several months the information from within Twitter, specifically the Twitter Files outlining the DHS influence and control, has verified exactly the issue CTH noted in the very first outline of Jack’s Magic Coffee Shop.

However, it is the second aspect behind the platform that people have yet to recognize.  When the fulsome story is told in hindsight, you will see that I am correct.

The second aspect is that Twitter cannot financially exist as a viable communication platform without government subsidy.

As it is currently structured, including the AWS cloud-based services for data processing, the costs associated with handling 30 million active simultaneous users (24/7) exceeds the business model for self-sufficiency.  It simply costs too much without ownership of the metal.

Amazon Web Services (AWS), and other cloud-based services (Microsoft etc), are efficient for platforms who do not then need to employ as many engineers to keep the data processing operational; but they are very costly.

Data processing for 30 million simultaneously active users engaging with the platform is extremely expensive.  Every engagement feature makes this issue worse. It is simply an issue of scale.  Unfortunately, unlike traditional business models, the per user costs do not decrease as the number of simultaneous users increase.

There is no viable business model for a ‘free’ or low-cost user-based platform that requires data processing for this scale of simultaneous users without a massive amount of money to create the actual servers (metal-based operations).  A cloud service (AWS) is expensive, and Musk is on the hook for every penny in data processing cost.

There have also been many reports that AWS is technically an endpoint U.S. government operation. Meaning the actual data processing is done by systems attached to U.S. government operations.  While staying away from the granular tech on this issue, it remains most likely that government subsidy underpins the ability of Twitter to exist and function as a platform.

The motive behind the public-private partnership is symbiotic and long precedes Musk purchasing the platform.

The evolution of Twitter from a private to a quasi-public institution under the control of DHS took place over a decade.  Essentially from 2012 (Arab Spring), and the first requests of the U.S. government for assistance, to the present day.  As the public-private partnership relationship grew, Twitter was viewed as beneficial to the interests of the U.S. government as a controlled communication platform, and the financial subsidy to retain the viability of the platform was predictable as an outcome.

As with all things connected to the deep state IC, over time controlling content on the platform became increasingly obvious.  The Twitter files reveal the scale of this issue as it was available to understand via internal communication correspondence. However, as admitted by the journalists requesting the searches of the Twitter database, they really don’t know the full scale and scope of the government involvement in Twitter.  My personal suspicions of govt scale greatly exceed those journalistic reviews, driven in part by my experience as a target of the background actors.

Which brings me back to the question that everyone asks me about the motive for Musk’s ideological reversal.   Surprise, it’s the money!

There is only one force more powerful than the firmly committed and espoused ideology of an altruistic mind, ECONOMICS.

The economics of the thing always supersedes and overpowers the other issues related to the thing.   If the U.S. government wanted to shift the full scale of cost to operate Twitter onto the shoulders of Musk, the platform would not survive.

Tap Musk on the shoulder, or allow Musk to discover this financial dependency organically, and suddenly the reality of the thing changes. Nothing changes espoused opinion faster than money, just ask Steve Cortes.

It is a simple truth in everything: if you see a person change opinion quickly and radically, look at the money behind them.

There are two vectors for economics to change things.  First, the gain of money as an enticement. Ex. you do this, you get paid. The second vector is more powerful, the removal of money as an enticement. Ex. you do this, or the existing payment stops.

If you look at the financial background of an abrupt change, almost every time you will find the answer to the motive that puzzles you.

Feb 10 2023

Death Toll in Turkey/Syria Earthquake Climbs Above 20,000 – With an Estimated 6,500 Buildings Collapsed


Posted originally on the CTH on February 9, 2023 | Sundance 

Hopes are fading amid the rescue and recovery workers in the aftermath of the horrific earthquake that hit southern Turkey and northern Syria.  Reuters is providing an update on the devastation in the region.  The scale of the impact is widespread and devastating as even more recovery workers continue arriving.

ANTAKYA, Turkey/JANDARIS, Syria, Feb 9, (Reuters) – Cold, hunger and despair gripped hundreds of thousands of people left homeless after the earthquakes that struck Turkey and Syria three days ago as the death toll passed 20,000 on Thursday.

The rescue of a 2-year-old boy after 79 hours trapped in the rubble of a collapsed building in Hatay, Turkey, and several other people raised spirits among weary search crews. But hopes were fading that many more would be found alive in the ruins of towns and cities.

[…] Hundreds of thousands of people in both countries have been left homeless in the middle of winter. Many have camped out in makeshift shelters in supermarket car parks, mosques, roadsides or amid the ruins, often desperate for food, water and heat.

[…] Authorities say some 6,500 buildings in Turkey collapsed and countless more were damaged.

The death toll in Turkey rose to 17,406, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said. In Syria, already devastated by nearly 12 years of civil war, more than 3,300 people have died, according to the government and a rescue service in the rebel-held northwest.

In the devastated Syrian town of Jandaris, Ibrahim Khalil Menkaween walked in the rubble-strewn streets clutching a white body bag. He said he had lost seven members of his family, including his wife and two of his brothers.

“I’m holding this bag for when they bring out my brother, and my brother’s young son, and both of their wives, so we can pack them in bags,” he said. “The situation is very bad. And there is no aid.”

Turkish officials say some 13.5 million people were affected in an area spanning roughly 450 km (280 miles) from Adana in the west to Diyarbakir in the east. In Syria, people were killed as far south as Hama, 250 km from the epicentre.

Rescue crews looked for survivors at the site of a collapsed building in the dark in the city of Adiyaman with temperatures below freezing, Turkish broadcasters showed.

[…] There were still some signs of hope.

A 2-year-old boy was picked out of the rubble by a Romanian and Polish rescue team in Hatay 79 hours after the earthquake, video released by Turkey’s Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) on Thursday showed.

The boy, wearing a blue, white and black striped sweater, cried as he was gently lifted from the hole where he had been trapped. He was carried away on a blanket. No other details were immediately available.

Another video from IHH showed a helmeted and dust-streaked rescuer weeping with emotion after successfully freeing a little girl from the rubble of a collapsed building in Kahramanmaras. (read more)

All-powerful Father, as we see all of the destruction caused by this natural disaster, we mourn for all that has been lost and the fragility of this life.

Lord God of mercy, please comfort those who have lost somebody they love, and those who are yet still searching. Give them comfort and peace.

Heavenly Father, be a protective wing for those who have survived, but lost their home. Grant the men, women and children the needed fortitude and assistance they need to recover and rebuild.  Show me how best to pray for their needs and guide my prayer. 

Lord God of all creation, be strong with directed purpose for those whose job it is to search through the rubble for those lost.  Give them endurance and strength as they complete their responsibilities.

God of comfort and mercy, help us come together as one body in You during this time of tragedy.

You are the redeemer, the source of all strength and courage, please provide us with reassurance, humanity and faith. 

In Your holy and merciful name, we humbly kneel and pray. 

~ Amen.

Feb 9 2023

Earthquakes in Turkey/Syria


Armstrong Economics Blog/Nature Re-Posted Feb 8, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

The Double Earthquake that hit Turkey & Syria has been extraordinary. The first quake was a 7.8 magnitude sticking in southeastern Turkey and northwestern Syria early Monday morning local time. Then 9 hours later, a second quake, which recorded a magnitude of 7.5, struck hard. Both countries have witnessed the devastating aftermath as rescue workers on the ground are reporting that nearly 12,000 people have been killed as a result of the quakes, and tens of thousands more have been injured. Thousands of buildings have also been reduced to rubble.

This region is prone to these major DOUBLE earthquakes. Overall, since the major earthquake of 17AD that was so created a financial panic in Rome and forced Emperor Tiberius to issue these coins noting that they were for the relief of that region,  there have been 81 major earthquakes. There have been many double earthquakes and the previous was in 2017 June 12th and July 21st. Before that in 2011, there was a Double Earthquake on the 23rd of October and then on November 9th.

What is unusual this time is the time differential was only 9 hours rather than days. This raises the concern that this event may not be over just yet.

Feb 7 2023

Horrific Death Toll Continues Rising from Earthquake in Turkey/Syria as Aftershocks Continue – So Far 5,600 Buildings Have Collapsed


Posted originally on the CTH on February 6, 2023 | Sundance

I did not have internet access for most of today, another long-term recovery issue.  However, now that I am seeing the footage of the earthquake in Southern Turkey and Northern Syria, my prayers are for all of those in the region.  The devastation is just incredible.

According to the Associated Press, 5,600 buildings have collapsed and several of them came down today during aftershocks amid search and rescue operations.  The current recorded death toll is over 4,300 people, with the World Health Organization (WHO) predicting the total loss of life could exceed 20,000.  This is just horrific.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=buLMbZhp5rI%3Ffeature%3Doembed

The estimated 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit over an area of several major population centers. The Guardian reports, “the population of the ten provinces in southern Turkey affected by the earthquakes are home to 13.5 million people. So far, according to the Andalou agency, more than 5,600 buildings have collapsed.

It is just after 6am in Turkey, and we’re seeing stories of people rescued after a very long day and night, which means they survived not only the rubble’s collapse but the cold. There are many, many more who have not yet been found, with the WHO predicting the death toll could reach 20,000 in the coming days. For now, here are videos of a three-year-old toddler and a woman who were freed from collapsed buildings by rescuers.” (link)

(Via Reuters) […] The magnitude 7.8 quake brought down whole apartment blocks in Turkish cities and piled more devastation on millions of Syrians displaced by years of war. It struck before sunrise in harsh weather and was followed in the early afternoon by another large quake.

In Diyarbakir in southeast Turkey, a woman speaking next to the wreckage of the seven-storey block where she lived said: “We were shaken like a cradle. There were nine of us at home. Two sons of mine are still in the rubble, I’m waiting for them.”

She was nursing a broken arm and had injuries to her face.

“It was like the apocalypse,” said Abdul Salam al-Mahmoud, a Syrian in the northern town of Atareb. “It’s bitterly cold and there’s heavy rain, and people need saving.” (more)

All-powerful Father, as we see all of the destruction caused by this natural disaster, we mourn for all that has been lost and the fragility of this life.

Lord God of mercy, please comfort those who have lost somebody they love, and those who are yet still searching. Give them comfort and peace.

Heavenly Father, be a protective wing for those who have survived, but lost their home. Grant the men, women and children the needed fortitude and assistance they need to recover and rebuild.  Show me how best to pray for their needs and guide my prayer. 

Lord God of all creation, be strong with directed purpose for those whose job it is to search through the rubble for those lost.  Give them endurance and strength as they complete their responsibilities.

God of comfort and mercy, help us come together as one body in You during this time of tragedy.

You are the redeemer, the source of our strength and courage, please provide us with reassurance, humanity and faith. 

In Your holy and merciful name, we humbly kneel and pray. 

Amen.

Jan 21 2023

Why Would Poland Ever Support Ukraine?


Armstrong Economics Blog/Ukraine Re-Posted Jan 21, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

QUESTION: Hello Mr. Armstrong.
I am from Poland and I know the history and our differences with Russia, but in this war, I’m against Ukraine. They don’t even want to apologize for atrocities committed on civilians but want us to help them. The west of Ukraine was always Polish but in our mind, it no longer belongs to us because everyone there was killed or run away. Donbas is different for the population is still Russian.

Three times a charm. After you wrote about Napoleon and Hitler trying to invade Russia, I wonder if you know about the year 1610 when Poland conquered Moscow, and of course, if Socrates has this data in.
Thank you for what you do.
LM

REPLY: Oh yes. Even the first date in the list of International Panics was 1683 when the Turks invaded the region with the intent of conquering the Holy Roman Empire. What we call Ukraine today was the territory of other empires – never Ukraine. The Battle of Poltava on June 27th, 1709 was a turning point in Russian history.

This was a battle, where Peter the Great (1672-1725) and the Russians defeated the Swedish army at a turning point in the war with Sweden. Poltava is actually in Ukraine, and Ivan Mazepa (1639–1709), was the Cossack Hetman in Left-bank Ukraine, from 1687–1708. He remains a Ukrainian hero and a traitor to Russia to this very day. This was the decisive battle that placed Russia as a major power on the European stage of politics.

In 1569, the Union of Lublin created a dynastic link between Poland and Lithuania that established a constitutional union of the two States as the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Ukraine simply became part of Poland at this time and we see an influx of more people from Poland moving into Ukraine establishing Polish rule of law. Poland began to grant to Polish nobles and Ukrainian princes loyal to the king, territory that was controlled by the Cossacks. There was rising discontent regarding the treatment by Cossacks and this led to a rebellion in about 1590. Ukrainian princes were mostly replaced by Polish. Peasants lost their land ownership and civil rights to the Polish and we see European serfdom transforming Ukraine.

Ukrainian Cossacks were actually emerging as the defender against the invasion of the Turks and Tatar hordes. To this day, Crimea has a large population of Tatars. The Cossacks were causing diplomatic problems for Poland since the Turks in the Ottoman Empire has used the Cossacks as an excuse for wars against Poland. When Cossack’s leader, Ivan Pidkova, conquered Moldova in 1577, Poland captured and executed him in order to appease the Turks. Poland’s power was clearly declining. They tried to control the Cossacks by recruiting some of them into the Polish military system. However, this never really worked very well.

Ukraine was NEVER a country – EVER! They joined the German Nazis because Hitler promised to carve out a country for them. I have assembled the entire monetary history of the world. There were NEVER any coins ever issued by some pretend Ukrainian government. The first coinage that ever said the word Ukrain was issued during the German Nazi occupation.

This war in Ukraine is an invasion of Ukrainian into the regions that were formerly the Russian Empire. They were never under some sovereignty of Ukraine that never existed. The West simply wants to destroy Russia, This has been on the agenda for decades and the fall of communism never changed that policy. They will do the same with China. In truth, this is Ukrainians invading Russian terrorism where Russians have lived for centuries. The propaganda has flipped this completely around claiming Putin is invading Ukrainians when they began this civil war in 2014 and launched the first attacks on the Donbas.

The treatment of Polish, Jews, and Russians during WWII even horrified the German Nazis. What would Poland ever support Ukraine can only be that its leaders are told what to say and do by those behind NATO seeking World War III. The Polish people should wake up for they will be the next to be thrown on this altar of geopolitical sacrifice.

The Polish Association of Memory of Victims of Crimes of Ukrainian Nationalists documented 135 methods of torture and murder practiced by Ukrainian Nazis. Poland officially called the Ukrainian actions genocide. The Ukrainians have been protected by the CIA for decades ONLY because they hated Russians. They continue to protect the Ukrainian Nazis only because they are waging war against Russia. No Ukrainian was ever prosecuted for war crimes that made the Nazis look like amateurs.

The Ukrainians were unprecedented in their war crimes during WWII and the sheer outright cruelty has NEVER been addressed. They above all should have been hunted down more so than the Germans. The torture Ukrainas inflicted even on Polish and Hungarians along with Russians and Jews included:

  • Running children through with stakes
  • Cutting a person’s throat and pulling their tongue out through the hole
  • Sawing a person’s torso in half with a carpenter’s saw
  • Cutting open the belly of a woman in an advanced stage of pregnancy, removing the fetus, and replacing it with a live cat, before sewing up her abdomen.
  • Cutting open a pregnant women’s abdomen and pouring in broken glass
  • Nailing a small child to a door.

All the various wars and history of this region are included in the databanks of Socrates. That is how it was able to pinpoint Ukraine as the hot spot where all this will unfold. There is no account of war crimes that has EVER surpassed those inflicted by Ukrainians. It is an embarrassment that Europe and the USA would support Ukraine in this land grab. As for those that blame everything on Putin, get your head out of the sand and open your eyes for you are a casualty of this propaganda to promote WWIII.