Posts
It's worth hearing. I agree with both these men.
Ian Proud points out that European leaders have completely abandoned real diplomacy, demanding an unconditional Russian ceasefire while refusing to talk directly to Russia or address her long-standing concerns—such as Ukraine's NATO ambitions.
He emphasises that Ukraine was ready to concede its NATO ambitions during the March 2022 Istanbul negotiations with Russia.
Anti-Russian sanctions have failed to cripple Moscow's war effort or force them into submission but have made the Western powers and Ukraine avoid compromise.
Russia will not accept a ceasefire because they fear it will simply be used by the West to rearm Ukraine.
Military defeat of Russia by Ukraine is impossible. The Ukrainian economy is too small.
Hits by Ukrainian drones make good television but simply invite retaliation tit for tat and don't affect the war.
Russia is fighting to drain European money and kill Ukrainian soldiers rather than to take land.
Pascal Lottez:
'I would say the largest change we are we've seen in the last 10 years compared to previous decades is that at least in my perspective in previous decades the whole human rights discourse the rule of law discourse the diplomacy discourse was more or less believable. It was kind of you know there werealways these gray areas. There was always these kind of things where you had academics who could go and drill down and and write books about the hypocrisy of the whole whole system. But overall it looked believable. And now we're just at the point where it's absolutely ludicrous, right? It's so so far removed from reality that we actually understand. Ah no, these are speech acts that have nothing to do with what's happening and everything with who does it. Our friends can do whatever they want. They could go out and murder children in the street, which they literally do in Gaza, right? And we are still calling them the only democracy in the Middle East. Peter Magyar could do the same in Hungary. We would still call him a good good friend of democracy and whatnot but if if anyone of the of the political opposition in somewhere does something even just slightly similar, they will be called out as the greatest dictators and and threats to democracy.'
Pascal Lottez:
'I would say the largest change we are we've seen in the last 10 years compared to previous decades is that at least in my perspective in previous decades the whole human rights discourse the rule of law discourse the diplomacy discourse was more or less believable. It was kind of you know there werealways these gray areas. There was always these kind of things where you had academics who could go and drill down and and write books about the hypocrisy of the whole whole system. But overall it looked believable. And now we're just at the point where it's absolutely ludicrous, right? It's so so far removed from reality that we actually understand. Ah no, these are speech acts that have nothing to do with what's happening and everything with who does it. Our friends can do whatever they want. They could go out and murder children in the street, which they literally do in Gaza, right? And we are still calling them the only democracy in the Middle East. Peter Magyar could do the same in Hungary. We would still call him a good good friend of democracy and whatnot but if if anyone of the of the political opposition in somewhere does something even just slightly similar, they will be called out as the greatest dictators and and threats to democracy.'
Ian Proud said he recognised the Western discourse was hypocritical and nonsensical more than ten years' ago 'because ten years ago I was in Moscow'.
The two men agree that Peter Magyar and Zelensky's human rights abuses are ignored by the European Commission and European powers because they support war in Ukraine, which is what the EU wants. Why? Because political regimes need an enemy and Russia makes a good one.
He sadly says that most people get their news from the media and not from 'dissident realists' like him though this will change.
It must change. People aren't stupid. Fear of Muslims, the Cold War fear of Russia and the old habit of thinking America benign mislead people still, but less and less.
Sanctions have failed to cripple Russia’s war effort. So the inability of Russia to achieve its war aims must lie with Russians.
ReplyDelete