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Russia Begins Integration Of Crimea Amid Sanctions

One week after the referendum in Crimea, Russia has already begun integrating the peninsula with people there already turning in their Ukrainian passports for that … Continue reading Russia Begins Integration Of Crimea Amid Sanctions


Russia-CrimeaOne week after the referendum in Crimea, Russia has already begun integrating the peninsula with people there already turning in their Ukrainian passports for that of Russia and Russian flags have now been hoisted at 189 Ukrainian military units and facilities in Crimea.

The EU has accused Russia of pre-planning this move, but according to Russia’s ambassador to the EU, the ‘reunification’ had not been pre-planned, but was the end of what it called an ‘abnormality’ which had lasted for 60 years.

The United States, having imposed sanctions on Russia’s main leaders, has ruled out sending US troops to Ukraine, which has gone ahead to sign that long awaited deal with the European Union.

Meanwhile, Nato is worried about the growing number of Russian soldiers on Ukraine’s eastern border.

What’s going on between Russia, Ukraine, the United States and the European Union, only reminds us of the period just after the end of the cold war, when both sides continued their show of force for who was better.

Analysts believe the tensions surrounding the Crimea have further degraded relations between Russia and the United States.

The US and its allies thought the tension would all end at the negotiating table, which is why a series of warnings came from all parties opposed to the Russian take over.

Moscow however, has shown it is not afraid of sanctions or repercussions, and instead, pushed ahead, signing the declaration annexing Crimea, backed by the country’s parliament.

As with all things in international politics, there are actions and counter-actions. One of them is the sanctions imposed by the United States and the EU.

Will they bring Russia to its knees?

A Professor with the Political Science Department, Covenant University in   Ota, Ogun State, Kayode Soremekun, says there were several dimensions and views to the issue, ranging from what could be called ‘Russian aggression, Washington’s hypocrisy.’

He said that what has happened has been likened to an earlier throw back to what happened in the time of Adolf Hitler.

“When you are talking of international politics, every country has its own interest to protect and in this case Russia’s interests run counter to Washington’s interest.

“Russia has some Russians living in Crimea and what Russia did was a irredentist’s move,” Professor Soremekun.

He explained that the sanction would not only have effect on Russia but also on the countries that had issued the sanctions.

Mystery Of Missing Malaysian Flight MH370

malaysiaDiplomatic Channels also considered the circumstances surrounding the missing Malaysian plane, MH370 that has left the whole world amazed for over two weeks of the plane’s disappearance off the radar at the control tower in Kuala Lumpur.

The plane was on its way to the Chinese capital, Beijing, but disappeared after one hour of take-off time.

On board were 239 people and Malaysian authorities believe it was deliberately taken off course.

Since the middle of last week, the search has been in two distinct corridors, one stretching to the north-west of the last known location in the Malacca straits, and one to the south-west.

Rescuers are now working with leads from satellite images, believed to be debris from the missing plane, but even that has proved inconclusive.

Every minute and every hour is crucial in the search for the missing plane, especially the data recorder, which has a battery lifespan of 30 days.

On March 24, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Najib Razak, informed the families of those missing on flight MH370 that the plane likely crashed in the Indian Ocean west of Perth. Now the search will concentrate on the Southern part of the Indian Ocean.

With 26 countries involved in the search, using the latest technological equipment for an extensive search, there are still no answers on debris.