[JohnRawls]

Your mea culpa game is weak.

His own people largely support him, which is why he remains in power.

Oh how naive you are sometimes. If you think that rulers like Maduro, Kim, Castro, Lukashenko, etc rely mostly on their population to stay in power.... well i don't know. Not all places are Western Democracies.

[skinster]

Keep bootlicking the empire's boots and lapping up its corporate media, as if you know anything about how elections work in the countries you've been brainwashed to hate.

I mean, give me some more predictions please, they're really good!

[Rugoz]

Ya Venezuela is a crazy dictatorship. That's why that dipshit Guaido who is behind at least 2 coup attempts is a free man

Modern dictators have learned from past mistakes. They don't pretend to win with 99% of the votes and keep an opposition as long its controllable. That doesn't change the fact that they're dictatorships and there's nothing more pathetic than left-wingers pretending otherwise or pretending to care.

[skinster]

Maduro was democratically elected. You're not doing yourself any favours by lying constantly.

[Oxymoron]

But this is likely to provoke a NATO response isn't it?

This is of course if they go all the way to Minsk.

NATO will not respond, Belarus is not a NATO member. If they respond they are the aggressors.
Plus how would they respond, going to war with a Nuclear power?

[JohnRawls]

Keep bootlicking the empire's boots and lapping up its corporate media, as if you know anything about how elections work in the countries you've been brainwashed to hate.

I mean, give me some more predictions please, they're really good!

Are you having a panic attack because twitter can't get you any info on Belarus or something?

[skinster]

[Political Interest]

Implementing reforms means liberalising the economy and the monopolies. Removing financial and political power from his crony circle. As a dictator, one might see why that might be bad for dictators ability to rule and stay in power. Same situation is in Russia, Ukraine and many other places.

I see.

NATO will not respond, Belarus is not a NATO member. If they respond they are the aggressors.
Plus how would they respond, going to war with a Nuclear power?

It's important not to underestimate NATO. If Putin had gone to Kiev in 2014 it is quite possible there would have been an engagement. It was still possible even if Russia annexed just Donetsk and Luhansk. Why did Russia only take Crimea?

NATO do not care if Russia is a nuclear power. Western politicians do not care. Going in there will provide casus belli for war. Putin will not attempt it.

[JohnRawls]

@Political Interest

NATO is not going to respond. Unless a genocide happens of some sort which it won't. There is no particular reason for it to happen. NATO is misunderstood a bit regarding this. NATO does intervene but it makes those choices as a necessity for themselves when they see that they will eventually have to do it. This is the lessons that NATO has learned from 92-95 situation. Since then, the lessons have been applied to Kosovo. It does give NATO a bad reputation but NATO finds it less constly long term. In the same sense, NATO would not intervene in Kiev also circa 2014.

But overall, NATO is the most succesful alliance in the world to date. There has not been a military conflict of any kind in any member state of NATO for the last 70 years since its creation or so. What i am trying to say here is that NATO doesn't care that it might be misunderstood. It serves it purpose, NATO is rock solid and there is no fool who would even consider leaving NATO or attacking NATO.

[Oxymoron]

I see.



It's important not to underestimate NATO. If Putin had gone to Kiev in 2014 it is quite possible there would have been an engagement. It was still possible even if Russia annexed just Donetsk and Luhansk. Why did Russia only take Crimea?

NATO do not care if Russia is a nuclear power. Western politicians do not care. Going in there will provide casus belli for war. Putin will not attempt it.

NATO is a joke... it ran out of bombs fighting Gadaffi....If Russia invaded Kiev, NATO would not lift a finger military to assist them. Like they didnt do shit during Georgia. Come on what are you going to do attack Russian troops? Risk all out Nuclear exchange over Ukraine?

As far why Russia did not that back Donetsk and Luhansk... its strategic, Crimea was a no brainer you must protect access to Black sea and use its military port. Now the other territories have no strategic interest to Russia aside..... being a warm conflict that prevents Ukraine from joining Nato, and even possibly the EU. As long as there is fighting, Europe will not risk entanglements. If Russia on the other hand took those territories over then Ukraine can have better chance of European support...

[annatar1914]

I see.



It's important not to underestimate NATO. If Putin had gone to Kiev in 2014 it is quite possible there would have been an engagement. It was still possible even if Russia annexed just Donetsk and Luhansk. Why did Russia only take Crimea?

NATO do not care if Russia is a nuclear power. Western politicians do not care. Going in there will provide casus belli for war. Putin will not attempt it.

Indeed. The final object of all this is the breaking apart of the Russian Federation itself, and the reduction of the whole former Tsarist Russian Empire/Former Soviet Union geopolitical space, into weak resource colonies of the West. I'm not saying that's going to happen, but that's what the Western Elites want, in my opinion from what I've seen over the years.

[Rugoz]

Indeed. The final object of all this is the breaking apart of the Russian Federation itself, and the reduction of the whole former Tsarist Russian Empire/Former Soviet Union geopolitical space, into weak resource colonies of the West. I'm not saying that's going to happen, but that's what the Western Elites want, in my opinion from what I've seen over the years.

The West has not been encouraging separatism in Russia. I remember Western silence on Russian brutality in Chechnya very well.

Instead, Russia simply can't get over its loss of empire. We've seen that kind of pathetic behavior from former imperial powers again and again.

[Beren]

countries you've been brainwashed to hate.

He doesn't hate countries, Venezuela and Belarus at least, but their regimes and leaders. I don't think you made that mistake accidentally, though.

[Political Interest]

Indeed. The final object of all this is the breaking apart of the Russian Federation itself, and the reduction of the whole former Tsarist Russian Empire/Former Soviet Union geopolitical space, into weak resource colonies of the West. I'm not saying that's going to happen, but that's what the Western Elites want, in my opinion from what I've seen over the years.

Most likely it is so. They want to split up the Russian Federation and create NATO and EU member states. A Muscovite republic would also be allowed to join but only after it is completely beholden to the Western order.

Western elites have not calculated that the collapse of Russia might not be as smooth as they think. The instability could be very dangerous for Europe. But if they are happy to see Islamist insurrections on the border of Europe I suppose this will not stop them.

[annatar1914]

The West has not been encouraging separatism in Russia. I remember Western silence on Russian brutality in Chechnya very well.

Instead, Russia simply can't get over its loss of empire. We've seen that kind of pathetic behavior from former imperial powers again and again.

It's been clear where you stand on the issues of this geopolitical region, for years now. There was no ''silence'' regarding Chechnya from the West, there was encouragement.

But you know that, you're fighting an information war however.

[Rugoz]

It's been clear where you stand on the issues of this geopolitical region, for years now. There was no ''silence'' regarding Chechnya from the West, there was encouragement.

The West has done nothing with regard to Chechnya, I don't know what "encouragement" you speak of. In contrast, the relatively peaceful takeover of Crimea led to all kinds of diplomatic, economic and military actions, because Russia overstepped a boundary with that conflict.

[JohnRawls]

Leading Belarus opposition politician Nikolai Statkevich was jailed on Monday amid a crackdown on protesters who rallied against President Alexander Lukashenko's re-election bid.

Statkevich was handed a 15-day jail term after taking part in Sunday's protest in Minsk, according to Belarusian human rights group Viasna.

In 2011, Statkevich was sentenced to six years in prison for involvement in protests after the 2010 presidential election - where he had unsuccessfully run as a candidate - and is barred from running again

Amnesty International reported in 2012 that he was facing 10 days in a punishment cell "for refusing to sign a confession".


According to Viasna, other 50 opposition activists were arrested by police last week while they were gathering signatures to allow opponents to participate in the presidential election, bringing arrests to more than a hundred in May.


People arrested included supporters of blogger Sergei Tikhanovsky, who was banned from running in the elections, too.

Viasna said the interior ministry told them that a criminal investigation had been opened into an alleged act of violence against police officers, in which Tsikhanouski and other detainees were allegedly involved.

With regards to the upcoming election, Viasna has in particular criticised the formation of the election commissions, the bodies overseeing the voting process.

The human rights group condemned the lack of "legal guarantees for the representation in the election commissions of all political entities participating in the election results in an arbitrary and discriminatory approach to opposition parties and groups".

Viasna's criticism is echoed by the EU, which condemned the crackdown on "peaceful" protesters and said to be "worried" about Belarus' Central Election Commission's decision to bar "prominent opposition figures" from registering for the election.

Lukashenko has been Belarus' president since the office was established, in 1994, and is seeking a sixth term in the presidential vote scheduled for August 9.

During legislative elections last year, the opposition did not win any seats in parliament.

The electoral process was criticised by a joint observation mission formed by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Council of Europe.

"Fundamental freedoms were disregarded and the integrity of the election process was not adequately safeguarded in the early parliamentary elections in Belarus even if the number of registered candidates increased," it said.

“These elections have demonstrated an overall lack of respect for democratic commitments,” special Co-ordinator and leader of the OSCE short-term observer mission Margareta Cederfelt said.

“In a country in which the power and independence of parliament are limited and fundamental freedoms are restricted for both voters and candidates, parliamentary elections are in danger of becoming a formality.”

Link: https://www.euronews.com/2020/06/03/pro ... approaches

[Patrickov]

Oh how naive you are sometimes.

He is not naive. He is wicked. He wholeheartedly supports oppressive regimes just because they "uphold sovereignty against the West". These people do not deserve whatever freedom they currently enjoy. The same goes for those so-called "anti-imperialists"

Well, if I have to live under constant fear just for some hollow sovereignty, but in fact just the sorry ass of the tyrants, fuck sovereignty. I rather have the likes of Winston Churchill or Cecil Rhodes in charge, than the fucking assholes who are in power of so many so-called "independent" countries.

EDIT: Still, my ideal case is the likes of Chris Patten, who did enhance democracy of the place.

EDIT 2: Or at least be someone like Crawford Murray MacLehose, although he, like many of his time, was too frightened by China.

[JohnRawls]

He is not naive. He is wicked. He wholeheartedly supports oppressive regimes just because they "uphold sovereignty against the West". These people do not deserve whatever freedom they currently enjoy. The same goes for those so-called "anti-imperialists"

Well, if I have to live under constant fear just for some hollow sovereignty, but in fact just the sorry ass of the tyrants, fuck sovereignty. I rather have the likes of Winston Churchill or Cecil Rhodes in charge, than the fucking assholes who are in power of so many so-called "independent" countries.

EDIT: Still, my ideal case is the likes of Chris Patten, who did enhance democracy of the place.

EDIT 2: Or at least be someone like Crawford Murray MacLehose, although he, like many of his time, was too frightened by China.

May be. It is hard to say what skinster is at times because her ideology is inconsistent, but then again, i can be inconsistent at times also. For example Israel which skinster hates for being a ethno-nationalist state but skinster doesn't apply same hate for China which is an even worse ethno-nationalist dictatorship instead of being an ethno-nationalist democracy like Israel. I defend Israel at times but i do not defend China. At least i have an easy explanation for this which is that i dislike ANY kind of dictatorships.

As for Belarus. Lukashenko has jailed 3 main opposition leaders who could pose a threat before the elections on 9th of august. Sadly, the only sources are in Russian which will be no good. So basically the 3 main camps of opposition are now leaderless. This is even before the election itself. As much as i understand, they are sitting in the local KGB office under strict arrest.

[Patrickov]

As for Belarus. Lukashenko has jailed 3 main opposition leaders who could pose a threat before the elections on 9th of august. Sadly, the only sources are in Russian which will be no good. So basically the 3 main camps of opposition are now leaderless. This is even before the election itself. As much as i understand, they are sitting in the local KGB office under strict arrest.

If Belorussians do not resort to mass protest or riots then nothing can be said for them. They would deserve whatever shit coming, including the disestablishment of their country when Putin decides to cancel its independence (although both of us would agree Putin is actually the worse monster here).