Polish Foreign Minister Says New Russia Sanctions Not Necessary; More Deaths Recorded In Eastern Ukraine

According to Poland’s foreign minister, the world does not need to discuss increasing sanctions against Russia, because the Ukrainian conflict that sparked the sanctions is essentially stalled. Grzegorz Schetyna, who made the comments while in Brussels on Monday, said that nothing has happened in recent weeks that would warrant an increase in the U.S.- and European Union-imposed sanctions.

"Now it seems that the conflict is frozen, and we have to respond flexibly to this situation. It is not necessary to radicalize it," Schetyna said. "For today, the EU countries have faced an issue of extending the existing sanctions, which is to be considered at the summit of the EU leaders this week."

Schetyna said that new solutions must be found if the conflict is to reach a peaceful conclusion.
"The thing is that we must use the most effective means for the resolution of the conflict,” Schetyna said. “The implementation of the Minsk agreements is important, but we need to look for another format ... and it is a challenge for those who are currently engaged in talks with Russia for a peaceful resolution of the Donbas conflict." The Minsk agreements are the February deal that led to a ceasefire between the Ukrainian army and pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine. That ceasefire, however, is being violated with skirmishes almost every day.

Schetyna’s comments came as the government in Kiev reports that the pro-Russian rebels fired on Ukrainian military positions 30 times in 24 hours, and that three soldiers have been killed. According to Andriy Lysenko, a spokesman for the National Security and Defense Council, the men were killed after driving over a land mine. “Another five were injured as a result of military clashes," Lysenko said.

While the government offered no details of where the land mine exploded, clashes took place near the city of Donetsk, the de facto capital of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic.

Complete story at - Polish Foreign Minister Says New Russia Sanctions Not Necessary; More Deaths Recorded In Eastern Ukraine

The Good Fight of the Polish Farmers | New Eastern Outlook

Poland’s farmers are in a very important and very good fight with their government and with their parliament. They are literally fighting for the future health and safety of their families, their grandchildren’s generation, their countrymen and even for the health and safety of the rest of the European Union that believes they have a right to enjoy eating healthy, nutritious food. That’s good and in my view should get more attention for the good it is.

In the week of February 12, all across Poland, thousands of farmers with tractors protested the right-wing Polish government’s planned farm legislation. Many were organized by the farmers’ arm of the Solidarność trade union organization. More than 150 tractors have blockaded the A2 motorway into Warsaw since February 3, hundreds more have closed roads and are picketing governmental offices in other regions. The farmers are vowing to continue the struggle until the government agrees to enter talks with the union and commit to addressing what they see as a crisis in Polish agriculture. And they are right.

ICPPC directors, Jadwiga Lopata and Julian Rose, joined more than 200 farmers at a Solidarity protest in Kielce, South East Poland. The actions represent a dramatic escalation of protests that have been taking place on a smaller scale across the country over the last year. Edward Kosmal, chairman of the farmers protest committee for West-Pomeranian Region said: “We are ready for dialogue. We look forward to meeting with you Prime Minister and beginning a comprehensive government commitment to solving the problems of Polish agriculture. If you do not enter into a dialogue with the Union, we would be forced to tighten our forms of protest.”

• What is of vital importance are the demands of the farmers to the new government of Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz. They are four:

• Land rights: implement regulation to prevent land-grabs by Western companies and to protect family farmers’ rights to land. Beginning 2016 the government plans to allow foreign buyers to buy Polish farmland for the first time.

• Legalize direct sales of farm produce: the government must take action to improve farmers’ position in the market, including the adoption of a law enabling direct sales of processed and unprocessed farm products (Right now Poland has the most exclusionary policies in Europe around on-farm processing of food products and direct sales, making it impossible for family farmers to compete with bigger food companies. Oppressive ‘food hygiene’ and other regulations effectively prevent small scale farmers from selling their produce on-farm and in local markets, where their mostly organic but ‘uncertified’ produce is widely respected as of higher quality than food gown on modern industrial agribusiness farms.

• Ban the cultivation and sale of Genetically Modified Organisms in Poland. A new EU rule passed in the European Parliament in January essentially leaves it up to national governments to permit GMO planting or not.

• Extend inheritance laws to include land under lease as a fully legal form of land use.

Complete story at - The Good Fight of the Polish Farmers | New Eastern Outlook

The Good Fight of the Polish Farmers | New Eastern Outlook

Poland’s farmers are in a very important and very good fight with their government and with their parliament. They are literally fighting for the future health and safety of their families, their grandchildren’s generation, their countrymen and even for the health and safety of the rest of the European Union that believes they have a right to enjoy eating healthy, nutritious food. That’s good and in my view should get more attention for the good it is.

In the week of February 12, all across Poland, thousands of farmers with tractors protested the right-wing Polish government’s planned farm legislation. Many were organized by the farmers’ arm of the Solidarność trade union organization. More than 150 tractors have blockaded the A2 motorway into Warsaw since February 3, hundreds more have closed roads and are picketing governmental offices in other regions. The farmers are vowing to continue the struggle until the government agrees to enter talks with the union and commit to addressing what they see as a crisis in Polish agriculture. And they are right.

ICPPC directors, Jadwiga Lopata and Julian Rose, joined more than 200 farmers at a Solidarity protest in Kielce, South East Poland. The actions represent a dramatic escalation of protests that have been taking place on a smaller scale across the country over the last year. Edward Kosmal, chairman of the farmers protest committee for West-Pomeranian Region said: “We are ready for dialogue. We look forward to meeting with you Prime Minister and beginning a comprehensive government commitment to solving the problems of Polish agriculture. If you do not enter into a dialogue with the Union, we would be forced to tighten our forms of protest.”

• What is of vital importance are the demands of the farmers to the new government of Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz. They are four:

Land rights: implement regulation to prevent land-grabs by Western companies and to protect family farmers’ rights to land. Beginning 2016 the government plans to allow foreign buyers to buy Polish farmland for the first time.

• Legalize direct sales of farm produce: the government must take action to improve farmers’ position in the market, including the adoption of a law enabling direct sales of processed and unprocessed farm products (Right now Poland has the most exclusionary policies in Europe around on-farm processing of food products and direct sales, making it impossible for family farmers to compete with bigger food companies. Oppressive ‘food hygiene’ and other regulations effectively prevent small scale farmers from selling their produce on-farm and in local markets, where their mostly organic but ‘uncertified’ produce is widely respected as of higher quality than food gown on modern industrial agribusiness farms.

• Ban the cultivation and sale of Genetically Modified Organisms in Poland. A new EU rule passed in the European Parliament in January essentially leaves it up to national governments to permit GMO planting or not.

• Extend inheritance laws to include land under lease as a fully legal form of land use.

Complete story at - The Good Fight of the Polish Farmers | New Eastern Outlook

Ukraine's economy is starting to disintegrate: Polish Deputy PM | Reuters

Notes: You should have thought of this before backing an illegal coup, don't you think? Enjoy your refugee problem Poland!

(Reuters) - Ukraine's economy is starting to disintegrate, creating a risk of hundreds of thousands of immigrants flowing into Poland, Polish Deputy Prime Minister Janusz Piechocinski said.

Piechocinski, leader of the centre-right junior coalition partner PSL, told Reuters he thought Ukrainian elites had made disappointing progress in building a Western-style democracy.

He defended comments by PSL presidential candidate Adam Jarubas who called for a softer stance toward Russia over Ukraine, signaling frictions in a government coalition that ranks as one of Kiev's most outspoken supporters in its battle with pro-Russian insurgents.

"These signals which are coming from Ukraine are very disturbing, because the economy there is beginning to disintegrate, economic ties are beginning to disintegrate," Piechocinski said in an interview.

“In a black scenario of developments in Ukraine, one cannot exclude an inflow of a few hundred thousand emigrants to Poland. Looking at what has happened during the last year, one has to take into account all scenarios and be ready.”

The strongly pro-Kiev line is firmly backed by the ruling Civic Platform (PO) party and the largest opposition party and seems unlikely to change. But the PSL comments could win support among voters concerned about the possible security implications for Poland of the Ukraine crisis.

Complete story at - Ukraine's economy is starting to disintegrate: Polish Deputy PM | Reuters

Russia Admonishes Attempts to Rewrite Auschwitz History / Sputnik International

Moscow has expressed surprise about Poland's assertion that the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp was liberated by Ukraine.

Russian Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin warned against revising history, as it pertained to the liberation of the infamous death camp Auschwitz, the Russian TV channel RT reports.

Churkin made the remarks after an eyebrow-raising claim by Polish Foreign Minister Grzegorz Schetyna, who said that the camp had allegedly been liberated by Ukrainian troops from the First Ukrainian Front.

Speaking at a UN conference commemorating the liberation of the camp in New York on Wednesday, Churkin reminded that it was Soviet Army soldiers who liberated Auschwitz concentration camp.

He added that the Red Army gave the First Ukrainian Front its moniker "as it liberated Ukraine from the Nazis before reaching Poland through battles."

"Like all other parts of the Red Army, [the front] was multinational and consisted of Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Georgians, Armenians, Azerbaijanis, representatives of the peoples of Central Asia, and many others [from the] more than 100 ethnic groups of the Soviet Union," Churkin said.

Asking his Polish counterpart Bogusław Winid to tell the Polish Foreign Minister about his mistake, Churkin expressed hope that Schetyna "didn’t intend to offend so many peoples."

Complete story at - Russia Admonishes Attempts to Rewrite Auschwitz History / Sputnik International

Two minutes Hate – Emanuel Goldestein in Eastern Ukraine. | New Eastern Outlook

I’ve been a journalist for about 25 years, I have been educated in how to lie, cheat, and not to tell people the truth. “I was supported by the Central Intelligence Agency, the CIA. Why, because I’m pro-American.”

“German and American media are trying to bring the war to the people in Europe, leading to war with Russia. We passed the point of no return, and I’m going to stand up and say it ..is not right what I’ve done in the past to manipulate people to sow propaganda against Russia. ” said Udo Ulfkotte, former editor of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

The so-called common people mostly don’t know where to find reliable information about what is happening in East Ukraine. The reason for this may be the quote cited above. Any information which validates in any way Russia, or east Ukraine’ is vilified, ridiculed, ignored or considered to be from the Russian intelligence agencies. I can see it from my country, Poland, where information even questioning the American political view is considered to be Kremlin propaganda. This creates a situation in which no one trusts anyone. The very process of independent thinking becomes very ‘suspect’ and perplexing. We have a common, singular correct version of events in Ukraine and anyone who even asks any questions is immediately called an ‘agent of the Kremlin’. Maybe this would not be strange were it not for the fierceness of those who defend this one ‘correct’ truth. This suspicious to me unanimity and social ferocity in defending this one ‘correct’ version of events reminds me of Orwell’s 1984 and ‘Two Minutes Hate’, a daily period in which Party members of the society of Oceania must watch a film depicting the Party’s enemies (notably Emmanuel Goldstein ) and express their hatred for them.

In my country (Poland) these topics do not exist:

- Neo-Nazis in the Ukraine

- Newly discovered mass graves of civilians near pro Kyiv battalions

- The bombing of civilians by Azov and Ajdar battalions

- Massacre in Odessa

Complete story at - Two minutes Hate – Emanuel Goldestein in Eastern Ukraine. | New Eastern Outlook

Fragile fact-checking: How the media fell in and out of love with the Sikorski ‘revelations’ — RT Op-Edge

What’s worse than a junior neocon? A junior neocon trying to make a name for himself. Ben Judah’s meteoric rise, aided by his staunch anti-Russian credentials in a climate of fear, has imploded as quickly as it began.

As I learnt the hard way, when you are a young man in a hurry it’s easy to trip up. The first few times you’ll, probably, be forgiven but once it becomes a trend, even the most ardent supporters will abandon you. The fewer redeeming features you possess, the faster it’ll happen. When it has the potential to create an international diplomatic crisis, I can only assume it’s fatal to that once promising career.

On Sunday, the niche US journal Politico published a piece which, briefly, rocked the Russia-related media world. In a rambling, rabble-rousing diatribe by Ben Judah came a, seemingly amazing, scoop - Vladimir Putin had allegedly proposed, in a 2008 Moscow meeting, that Russia and Poland divide Ukraine between them. The source for this, supposed, latter-day Molotov-Ribbentrop pact was given as ex-Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski. Carl Bildt was also included – but the less said about him the better – in a veritable neocon tea party. After reading about the ostensible carve-up, I was wondering what century I was in.

Following some nonsense about Napoleon, Sikorski was quoted as saying: “He (Putin) wanted us (Poland) to become participants in this partition of Ukraine.”

“This was one of the things that Putin said to my prime minister, Donald Tusk, when he visited Moscow. He went on to say Ukraine is an artificial country and that Lwow (sic) is a Polish city and why don’t we just sort it out together? Luckily Tusk didn’t answer. He knew he was being recorded,” Sikorski, supposedly, added.

Complete story at - Fragile fact-checking: How the media fell in and out of love with the Sikorski ‘revelations’ — RT Op-Edge

Russian Retaliation Begins: Gazprom "Limiting EU Gas", Cuts Poland Supplies By 24% In Past Two Days | Zero Hedge

Update: Bloomberg notes that Russian gas deliveries to Europe are suddenly in accelerating flux.

Ukraine today received request from Poland to ship 11mcm/d of Russian gas, Ihor Prokopiv, CEO of Ukraine’s pipeline operator Uktransgaz, says in Kiev. Gazprom sent note it’s ready to supply just 7mcm, Prokopiv says

Poland halted reverse gas flow to Ukraine of 4mcm/d by 3pm Warsaw, later than initially planned, Prokopiv

And yet:

GAZPROM SAYS GAS FLOWS TO POLAND REMAINING AT 23MCM/D

So all is well on the surface. Just don't look underneath.

Over the weekend, we commented that in response to Europe's latest, and most serious, sanction round which would finally impact Russian energy giants Rosenft, Gazprom Neft (but not Gazprom) and Transneft, "suddenly the stakes for Russia, and thus Europe, just got all too real, as Putin will now have no choice but to really ramp up the retaliatory escalation, which following the food ban can only mean one thing: a staggered reduction in gas flow to Europe."

And while Europe appears to have blown its load prematurely, with the sanctions leaked before Europe actually has the consensus to implement them (it is now a daily threat by Europe which is screaming that it will impose the sanctions any minute yet not actually doing so), Russia has no such moral quandaries and three days following our forecast, here comes Gazprom confirming once again that it is perfectly happy to play the "mutual defection" strategy in the ongoing and ever escalating game theory between Europe and Russia for one simple reason: it has all the leverage.

From Bloomberg:

RUSSIA LIMITING EU GAS TO RESTRICT REVERSE SUPPLY TO UKRAINE

In other words, this is only the beginning as Ukraine has clearly made the case that it will plug its gas reserve gap using "reverese flow" of Russian gas in transit to Europe. More importantly, this follows news earlier today from Poland’s PGNiG which said Gazprom lowered supply by 20%-24% in past 2 days.

So is this the beginning of the quite literal, ahead of the winter, European cold war? It looks like it, although for now it is all covered up in diplomacy with Bloomberg reporting that the Russian exporter "set volumes of daily natgas deliveries to Poland at level of end of last week due to preparations for heating season in Russia, Gazprom official says by phone, asking not to be identified in line with corporate policy." That, and conveniently Gazprom decided to "carry out some maintenance work at its pipeline system in Russia." Some maintenance work which suddenly saw Poland, which is 80% reliant on Russian gas, receive up to a quarter less Russian gas...

Complete story at - Russian Retaliation Begins: Gazprom "Limiting EU Gas", Cuts Poland Supplies By 24% In Past Two Days | Zero Hedge

Poland’s Role in Destabilizing Ukraine: Polish Military Trained Neo-Nazi Militants for EuroMaidan Protests | Global Research

Polish media outlet Nie has published a bombshell account about direct Polish involvement in Ukraine’s destabilization. Its source alleges that the Polish Foreign Ministry had invited Ukrainian militants into the country and trained them outside of Warsaw in September 2013. Considering the destructive actions and fatalities they would later be responsible for during the EuroMaidan riots, such a connection would directly link Warsaw to the pandemonium. It would also implicate Poland in being the “Slavic Turkey” of NATO in Eastern Europe. The impact of Nie’s reporting can also affect domestic Polish politics, as it would prove that the political elite misled members of Parliament, which could later have direct political repercussions for Tusk’s ironically named “Law and Justice Party”. This scandal serves to highlight that Poland is starting to emulate the methods of its invited neo-colonial headmaster, the US, thereby deepening the puppet-master relationship between Warsaw and Washington.

According to the report, 86 Euromaidan militants, some of whom appeared to be over 40 years old, came to Poland under the invitation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The pretext for plausible deniability was that they were in the country to promote cooperation between the Warsaw University of Technology and the National Technical University in Kiev. In reality, however, these individuals were whisked away to Legionowo, a town on the outskirts of Warsaw. There, at the police training center, they spent four weeks engaged in a regiment of destabilization training.


The source goes on to state that pictures of the participants show them clothed in Nazi regalia and tattoos, with their Polish military instructors lacking any outward identification as such. At the facility, militants learned the following techniques: crowd management; target identification; tactics; leadership; behavioural management under stressful conditions; protection against police gasses; building barricades; and importantly, they engaged in shooting classes, which incidentally included sniper rifles. Quite clearly, the “students” who came to Warsaw were there for war, not academic work, and their training there resulted in the christening of Bandera’s spiritual descendants.

Complete story at - Poland’s Role in Destabilizing Ukraine: Polish Military Trained Neo-Nazi Militants for EuroMaidan Protests | Global Research

Ukraine: Poland trained putchists two months in advance | "Caught red-handed"

The Polish left-wing weekly Nie (No) published a startling witness account of the training given to the most violent of the EuroMaidan [1] activists.

According to this source, in September 2013, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski invited 86 members of the Right Sector (Sector Pravy), allegedly in the context of a university exchange program. In reality, the guests were not students, and many were over 40. Contrary to their official schedule, they did not go to the Warsaw University of Technology, but headed instead for the police training center in Legionowo, an hour’s drive from the capital. There, they received four weeks of intensive training in crowd management, person recognition, combat tactics, command skills, behavior in crisis situations, protection against gases used by police, erecting barricades, and especially shooting, including the handling of sniper rifles.

Complete story at - Ukraine: Poland trained putchists two months in advance | "Caught red-handed"