Will War in Ukraine Lead to a US Confrontation with Russia?

April 15, 2014 in Montana

by lizard

Not good. Ukraine just took a big step on the road to civil war today:

Ukraine’s acting President Olexander Turchynov has announced the start of an “anti-terrorist operation” against pro-Russian separatists.

He told parliament it was being conducted “stage by stage, in a responsible… manner”.

Hours later, gunfire was heard at an airbase which officials said had been in the hands of militants.

Mr Turchynov said the airbase at Kramatorsk had been “liberated” from “terrorists”.

The White House is now supportive of a violent state crackdown on protestors:

The United States is giving its tacit support to Ukrainian military action against pro-Russian separatists.

White House spokesman Jay Carney says such action isn’t the preferred option, but that the Ukrainian government has to respond to what he says is an untenable situation.

At Moon of Alabama you can take a trip down memory lane to a time (2 months ago) when Obama sang a very different tune about how the Ukrainian government should respond to protestors:

Obama says the U.S. urges Ukraine’s military not to get involved in a conflict that must be resolved politically. He’s expressing outrage about images of Ukrainian security forces firing automatic guns on Ukrainian people.

Obama says in a statement that Ukraine should respect the right of protest and that protesters must be peaceful. He’s calling for dialogue to reduce tensions and address the people’s grievances.

I guess now that the US has its guy in power, the time for addressing grievances has passed. It’s spring time. Time for war.

How will Russia respond? Will Putin take the bait? Will war in Ukraine lead to a US confrontation with Russia?