Live updates Ukraine - Crimea crisis.

Ukraine - Crimea cricis Live updates from France 24 , Interpreter , Kyevpost and RT Russian.

BIG QUESTION OF THE DAY ! WHY IS CHINA SILENT AND WHAT ARE THEY UP TO?

My thoughts: 

"I'm not a fortune teller, but if Putin go's 'All the way' one of the first things he'll do is shut off the gas supply to Europe and the UK. don't expect any 'presents' from this Guy......he means Business.

Secondly if war breaks out we might see China move in on the Diaoyu islands and even Taiwan - Japan.

Turkey will come to the aid of the Tartars and this will drag in the Islamic World and of Course Israel.  We're at the brink of WWIII if cool heads don't prevail.

Updates:

Putin to Obama: "Russia retains right 2 protect its interests & Russian-speaking population" in E. Ukraine and Crimea. http://eng.kremlin.ru/news/6752


Blog: Does the 1994 'Budapest Memorandum' obligate the US to intervene in Ukraine? 

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2014/03/does_the_1994_budapest_memorandum_obligate_the_us_to_intervene_in_ukraine.html

Obama Skips National Security Team Meeting on Russia, Ukraine.

Putin made an appeal in the Federal Council on the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine.

Putin made an appeal in the Federal Council on the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine (RN).

Earlier, the State Duma Council and the Federation Council Vladimir Putin urged to use all available means to protect the population of Crimea from tyranny and violence. Senators expressed the view that this can be entered in Crimea limited contingent of troops.

MOSCOW, March 1 - RIA Novosti. Russian President Vladimir Putin made ​​an appeal to the Federal Council on the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine to the normalization of the political situation in the country, according to the Kremlin press service.

"Due to the extraordinary situation on Ukraine, threatened the lives of citizens of the Russian Federation, our compatriots, the personnel of the military contingent of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation located in accordance with the international agreement on the territory of Ukraine (Autonomous Republic of Crimea), on the basis of paragraph" d " Part 1 of Article 102 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation am submitting to the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation appeal for use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine to the normalization of the political situation in this country, "- the statement says. (RN).

РИА Новости http://ria.ru/politics/20140301/997687424.html#ixzz2uifp3KnQ

latest Russian fourth-generation Strategic nuclear submarine "Vladimir Monomakh" will remain at sea to continue tests.

latest Russian fourth-generation Strategic nuclear submarine (NPS) "Vladimir Monomakh" will remain at sea to continue tests. (Flot)

Strategic nuclear submarine (NPS) of the latest fourth-generation Project 955 "Borey" "Vladimir Monomakh" from the beginning again continue to test navigation in the sea.

On February 27 this corr. ITAR-TASS reported the press service of the military shipyard "Sevmash" in Severodvinsk, where he built a submarine, after a meeting of the interdepartmental working group.

"Spotlight representatives shipbuilding companies, designers, counterparty organizations were issues concerning the construction of nuclear submarines of new generation projects," Ash "and" Northwind ", - said the press service. workshop in the stack" Sevmash "is working in a submarine project" Borey "" Prince Vladimir "and the project" Ash "" Kazan "and" Novosibirsk "." Overall submarine construction of these projects are on schedule, "- stressed on the" Sevmash ".

"Vladimir Monomakh" - the third ship of the "Northwind." It belongs to a class of missile strategic submarine cruisers. nuclear ice was laid on the "Sevmash" March 19, 2006 year - to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Russian submarine fleet. shipbuilders in 2013 "Sevmash" was transferred to Russian Navy, the lead ship of Project 955 "Borey" "Yury Dolgoruky" and the first production ship of this project "Alexander Nevsky." In 2006 and 2012 on "Sevmash" were laid two serial ship of this project: "Vladimir Monomakh" and "Prince Vladimir" (the latter for improved design 955A. - ITAR-TASS).

"Vladimir Monomakh", is expected to be adopted in 2014. Submarine class "Northwind" designed to CDB Marine Engineering "Rubin" (St. Petersburg). In their construction applied advancements improve hydrodynamics body and significantly reduce noise. The main armament of warships - the new missile "Bulava". Each submarine project 955 can carry 16 intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) for solid fuels P-30 "Bulava" with a range of more than 8 thousand km, equipped with MIRV individual targeting.

Submarine rescue chamber equipped with a pop-up designed for the entire crew. Length "Boreas" - 170 m, width - 13.5 m, maximum depth - 450 m, submerged speed - 29 knots (about 54 km / h), displacement overwater - about 14.7 tons, scuba - 24 tons, autonomy - 100 days, the crew - 107 people. "Borei" armed ICBM "Bulava", designed to become the basis of the naval strategic nuclear forces of Russia in the coming decades. Total planned to build up to eight 2020 "Boreas" - three of them, and five Project 955 - 955A (upgraded with power weapons - 20 ICBM "Bulava" each). Hmmmmmm.....Run Silent Run Deep.

Ukraine - Crimea cricis Live updates.

Ukraine - Crimea cricis Live updates from France 24 , Interpreter , Kyevpost and RT Russian.

Blog: Does the 1994 'Budapest Memorandum' obligate the US to intervene in Ukraine? 

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2014/03/does_the_1994_budapest_memorandum_obligate_the_us_to_intervene_in_ukraine.html

Putin submitted to the Federation Council appeal to use the armed forces of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine to the normalization of the situation in the country - the Kremlin. RT.


Russia's parliament calls early elections in Ukraine set for May 25 'Illegitimate', will not recognize them -  http://ria.ru/world/20140301/997674647.html?utm_source=tw1#ixzz2uiJEFatw …

Moscow Times reporter Ivan Nechepurenko speaks to FRANCE 24 .






Urgent! Federation Council of Russia allows entry of Russian troops in the Crimea! 

Federation Council is subject to input a limited contingent of Russian troops in the Crimea for the security of the Black Sea Fleet, and there are Russians.

This statement was made on Saturday, speaker of the upper house of the Russian parliament, Valentina Matvienko.

 "Perhaps in this situation, going to a government request Crimea even enter our limited contingent in order to ensure the safety of the Black Sea Fleet and Russian citizens residing in the territory of Crimea. Solution, of course wives, the president of our country, for the supreme commander. But Today, given the situation, even this option can not be ruled out. We must protect the people, "- said Matvienko.

Editor in chief of National Defense, Director of the Center for Analysis of World Arms Trade Moscow · I-korotchenko.livejournal.com : 

Russian Duma calls on Putin to use all means necessary to protect the Crimean population from "tyranny and violence." http://m.gazeta.ru/politics/news/2014/03/01/n_5984249.shtml




Ukrtelekom says Internet, phone connections cut between Crimea and rest of Ukraine

Update: "Ukrtelecom" restored fixed telephony and Internet access almost the entire territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea - Interfax.

Moscow gravely concerned about developments in Crimea – Russian FM (VOR).

Russia is extremely concerned by the latest events in Crimea, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"Unidentified armed men sent from Kiev attempted to seize the building of the Interior Ministry of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea in the early hours of March 1. The treacherous provocation resulted in casualties. Self-defense units' resolute actions helped avert the attempt to seize the Interior Ministry building. These events confirm the desire of well-known political circles in Kiev to destabilize the situation on the peninsula," says the statement available on the Russian Foreign Ministry website. "We are calling on those who issue such orders from Kiev to exercise restraint. We view the attempts to further escalate the already tense situation in Crimea as extremely irresponsible," it said.

Following an appeal by the Prime Minister of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Sergei Aksenov, to the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, for assistance in securing peace and quiet in Crimea the Russian presidential administration said Russia would not disregard the request.

Earlier this Saturday, Sergei Aksenov asked the Russian President to render assistance in ensuring peace and quiet in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. Aksenov also said he had subordinated all of the republic's security agencies to himself. Meanwhile, the cordoned-off area around the eastern and southern parts of the Crimean Council of Ministers building has been enlarged by one street block, so the closest one can now approach the building is 300 metres. Police and Road Traffic Police prevent motor vehicles and pedestrians from entering the area, but allow street-cleaners to work there, and let everyone living in the nearby houses out.

The Simferopol streets are currently half-deserted, and almost no motor vehicles have been seen around. Crimea leader asks Russia's Putin for help in restoring peace and calm

The newly-chosen prime minister of the Ukrainian southern region of Crimea on Saturday called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to held restore "peace and calm" to the Black Sea peninsula, amid a standoff with the new authorities in Kiev.

"Taking into account my responsibility for the life and security of citizens, I ask Russian President Vladimir Putin to help in ensuring peace and calm on the territory of Crimea," Sergiy Aksenov said in an address quoted by local media and broadcast in full by Russian state television.

Sergey Aksenov, the prime minister of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, has announced his decision to temporarily put all security and law enforcement agencies in the republic under his own control.

Aksenov also appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin to provide assistance in maintaining peace and accord in Crimea. "As the chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, exercising the powers delegated to me by the Supreme Council of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, I make the decision to temporarily put the armed units and groups of the Interior Ministry, the Security Service, the armed forces, the Emergency Situations Ministry, the fleet, the Tax Service, and the border guards under my direct control. All commanders shall follow only my orders and instructions, and I ask those who disagree to retire from service," Aksenov said in a statement Interfax obtained from Crimean Supreme Council secretariat chief Olga Sonnikova.

In motivating his decision, Aksenov said, "Despite the agreements with the central authorities on not appointing law enforcement and security chiefs without the Crimean Supreme Council's consent and not violating the Republic of Crimea's regulations stipulated by Ukrainian laws and the law on police, Ihor Yakovlevych Avrutsky was appointed chief of the Crimean police department yesterday, on February 28, 2014."

The security and law enforcement agencies stationed in Crimea are unable to efficiently control the situation in the republic, where riots have sparked with the use of firearms, the statement says.

"Taking into account the abovementioned, understanding my responsibility for the people's lives and security, I am appealing to Russian President Vladimir Putin to provide assistance in ensuring peace and accord on the territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea," Aksenov's statement says.

Ukraine's main problem isn't Russia, but Kiev-Crimea relations - Russian MP The Head of the State Duma International Affairs Committee, Alexei Pushkov, has said Ukraine's main problem is not Russia, but Kiev’s relations with the regions, above all, Crimea.

"The main problem is not Russia, the main problem is that several regions, above all Crimea, refuse to recognize the legality of Supreme Rada decisions", Pushkov wrote on his Twitter microblog.

Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Crimea: The referendum on the status of autonomy will be held March 30 in the Crimea.

Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Crimea: The referendum on the status of autonomy will be held March 30 in the Crimea. (RT).[Googletranslate].

"Due to the need we have decided to accelerate the holding of a referendum on the status of an autonomous republic of Crimea. Referendum appointed for March 30, "- said Aksenov during the first meeting of the Council of Ministers of Crimea in the new structure. 

Recall the morning of 1 March, Prime Minister of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea Sergey Aksenov asked President Vladimir Putin to assist in bringing peace to the ARC. Chairman of the Council of Ministers made an official emergency appeal to employees of all power units of the republic after reassigned directly all the units and structures of the Interior Ministry, CVM, Sun, MOE and navy.

"Russia will not ignored this appeal" - ​​quoted by ITAR-TASS administration's response, citing a source in the Kremlin.

"Moderate" Iran says nuclear program to stay 'intact'.

"Moderate" Iran says nuclear program to stay 'intact'.(IF).

Iran is willing to address international concerns about its atomic activities but will keep its nuclear program "intact", not close it down, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Thursday.

His remarks signaled that Tehran will not agree to dismantle any of its atomic facilities in talks with six world powers on a final settlement of the decade-old dispute over its nuclear activity.

Zarif, speaking to reporters during a visit to New Delhi, said he hoped a deal would be reached by the July deadline, although talks could be extended by another half year if both sides agreed.

"I am hoping by the first deadline we will reach a final deal and to start implementing it," he said. "And I can assure you that Iran has that political will and good faith that is required in order to achieve that."

However, he also said there was a "problem in terms of both substance and approach", apparently referring to the other side in the talks.

U.S. officials have made clear Iran's planned Arak heavy water reactor - which could yield bomb-grade plutonium once operational - must be dealt with under any settlement and Washington has also questioned Iran's need to have a uranium enrichment site buried deep underground at Fordow.

Zarif said Iran was "prepared to make sure that the program is exclusively peaceful and create the necessary understanding for the West. I believe there are multiple ways of doing that and we are willing to entertain those ways."

But, he added: "I can tell you that Iran's nuclear program will remain intact. We will not close any program."Hmmmm........"plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose"

"Afghans" and veteran paratroopers surrounded the Interior Ministry building in Simferopol.

"Afghans" and veteran paratroopers surrounded the Interior Ministry building in Simferopol.

Crimean volunteers and people's militia lined chain in front of the building of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea in Simferopol

Gathered in front of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are Crimean Union of Afghan Veterans, Veterans of airborne troops, representatives of other public organizations of Crimea. They hold flags Airborne, St. Andrew's flag, pinned to their clothes St. George ribbons and ribbons in the form of the flag of Russia.

In this passage of police officers in the Interior Ministry building is carried out smoothly. According to the participants, they express their solidarity with police officers and try to avoid any provocations in front of the office.

The overall situation remains calm in Simferopol: people going about their usual business, often of limited interest to the recent developments in the country, reports ITAR-TASS.

Читать полностью: http://rus.ruvr.ru/news/2014_03_01/Afganci-i-veterani-desantniki-ocepili-zdanie-MVD-v-Simferopole-3766/

Video - Head of the Crimean Supreme Council: Crimea is not going to be separated from Ukraine

Video - CCTV video purports to show heavily armed, well-prepared men taking over Crimea Council of Mins bldg

Video - CCTV video purports to show heavily armed, well-prepared men taking over Crimea Council of Mins bldg on Feb 27th. HT: Correspondnet. Twitter @YanniKouts

BREAKING Crimea leader asks Russia's Putin for help in restoring 'peace and calm'

Crimean Prime Minister appealed to Russia to help ensure peace,(RT).

"Given the above, the understanding of their responsibility for the lives and safety of citizens, I appeal to Russian President Vladimir Putin asking for assistance in ensuring peace and tranquility in the ARC," - said in a statement.

Furthermore, Aksenov temporarily reassigned all the power structures and appointed chief of the Crimean militia Igor Avrutskaya.

"As chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, implementing powers conferred on me by the Supreme Council of Crimea, I decide to temporarily resubordination formations, units, Interior Ministry security forces, armed forces, emergency, fleet, tax, border directly to you. All commanders only perform my orders and instructions. Dissent ask to leave the service ", - stated in circulation Sergei Aksenov.

As the February 28th Permanent Representative of President of Ukraine in Crimea Sergey Kunitsyn, Head of the Crimean police department chief Valery Radchenko wrote in his resignation. Appointed to this post Igor Avrutsky, formerly head of the Crimean Directorate for Combating Organized Crime, as well as the acting mayor of Feodosia.

BREAKING Crimea leader asks Russia's Putin for help in restoring 'peace and calm' HT: Agence France press.

Comments by Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the @UN Vitaly Churkin on the situation in Ukraine http://webtv.un.org/watch/vitaly-churkin-russian-federation-on-ukraine-security-council-media-stakeout-28-february-2014/3272527595001/


Council of Ministers of Crimea temporarily subdued unit power structures autonomy.

Connection of the power structures and will temporarily be in direct supervision of the authorities of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the chairman of the Council of Ministers Sergey Aksenov autonomy. We are talking about structures MIA, SSU, Sun, MOE, navy, tax service and border guards.

"All commanders only perform my orders and instructions Dissent ask to leave the service," - said in a statement Aksenov, quoted by Interfax-Ukraine.

Video - Movie trailer : "SON OF GOD"

HT: Son Of God.

The 'Cavalry' has Arrived! The Night Wolves, Pro-Kremlin Bikers to The Rescue in Crimea.

The 'Cavalry' has Arrived! The Night Wolves, Pro-Kremlin Bikers to The Rescue in Crimea.HT: Interpreter.

Night Wolves leader Aleksandr Zaldostanov, known as “Surgeon,” has arrived in Simferopol and is asking local residents “what they need.”

He said his club plans to “deliver humanitarian aid,” and told RIA Novosti that medicine and other goods will be “brought to Sevastopol from Stalingrad.” (Yes, that’s what he called the city which is usually named “Volgograd” in modern Russia). 

Zaldostanov also said his club would bring ATVs, which would be helpful to Ukrainians “to maintain connections between checkpoints.” Earlier today the motorcycle gang helped Russian forces to take over airports and buildings in Crimea  by blocking off roads, the Guardian reported. 

The Night Wolves are notorious for their close ties to the Kremlin; last year President Vladimir Putin awarded Zaldostanov the prestigious Order of Honour for his “active work in patriotic upbringing of the young” and for helping search for the remains of missing World War II soldiers,
More here from Time.                                                           The 'Cavalry' has arrived !

Video - Euromaidan top-leader Poroshenko being chased by pro-Russia crowd through Crimea capital.

Ukrainian lawmaker and businessman Petro Poroshenko is being chased by an angry crowd in Simferopol, Crimea.

Unconfirmed report - Russian Ultimatum & Russian Gvozdikas (self-propelled artillery) arriving in the Crimea.

Unconfirmed report - Russian Gvozdikas (self-propelled artillery) in Crimea.HT: UkrainianUpdates.

Russian ultimatum: Ukrainian troops in Crimea must leave bases by 2am local time (2:37 now) - via HromadskeTV MT.

  Meanwhile in The US: 

Video - UKIP leader Nigel Farage says he feels awkward when he doesn't hear English on the train.

Advance Praise for Andrew Bostom New Book: “Iran’s Final Solution For Israel”

Advance Praise for Andrew Bostom New Book: “Iran’s Final Solution For Israel” HT :AndrewBoston.

“A brilliant, compendious and exceptionally well-written piece of work, Iran’s Final Solution for Israel is Andrew Bostom’s most recent and probing analysis of Islamic Jew-hatred, as practiced by the so-called Islamic Republic of Iran.

Bostom scrupulously examines the evidence for the pervasive duplicity underlying and facilitating Iran’s nuclear program, along with American and Western delusional naivety in complying with Iranian diplomacy.

He is very clear on “the chronic plight of Iranian Jewry” and “Iran’s relentless effort to obtain nuclear weapons for the stated purpose of destroying Israel.” Bostom’s exegesis and warning should be heeded if we wish to avert a future few of us would like to contemplate.”

—David Solway, author of Hear, O Israel!

“Working from history, Islamic sacred and juridical writings, and the statements and actions of the current Iranian regime, Andrew Bostom lays out a compelling case that the current Iranian “moderation” so widely touted in the mainstream media — and upon which Barack Obama is betting nothing less than the future of the free world — is a not-so-thinly-disguised exercise in divinely-sanctioned Islamic deception designed to co-opt and victimize a complacent and willfully ignorant West. If our Senators and Representatives absorbed and acted upon the lessons of this monograph, we would not be in the fix we’re in.”

—Robert Spencer, author of the New York Times bestsellers The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (and the Crusades) and The Truth About Muhammad

“A must read warning about the Iranian Shi’ite theocracy, and its trustworthiness as a negotiating partner. The extensive research and analysis presented in this monograph should provide the West with an understanding of the Iranian threat, and its ideological motivations: jihadisim, annihilationist Islamic antisemitism, and general hatred of non-Muslims. There is no excuse for being entrapped into useless agreements with Iran.”

—Nonie Darwish, author of The Devil We Don’t Know: The Dark Side of Revolutions in the Middle East

“Dr. Andrew Bostom is undoubtedly the leading academic authority on all pertinent matters of Jihadist doctrine. He is a rare scholar, one who has been willing to undertake meticulous and exhaustive examination of what lies at the very core of consciousness of Israel’s recalcitrant enemies, including, most prominently, the contemporary Shiite theocracy of Iran.”

Read more at Andy Bostom’s

Russian Lawmakers Push to Simplify Annexing New Territories......Like the Crimea for example?

Russian Lawmakers Push to Simplify Annexing New Territories......Like the Crimea for example?(RN).

Lawmakers in Russia introduced a bill in parliament on Friday to simplify the absorption of new territories into the country in what will be widely interpreted as a signal that Moscow may be planning to gain control over Ukraine’s mainly ethnic Russian-populated region of Crimea.

The legislation comes as Russian troops reportedly blockaded an airport in the Crimean city of Sevastopol in what Ukraine’s acting interior minister, Arsen Avakov, has described as an armed invasion.

Under the bill, authored by the Kremlin-loyal opposition party A Just Russia, the decision on the accession of a part of a foreign state to Russia should be taken through a referendum.

“There have been cases in international practice when a part of a state joined another state without an international treaty being signed. Moreover, international law does not require the conclusion of such a treaty with a foreign state,” the lawmakers said. Its authors said the legislation, which comes amid political turmoil in Ukraine, stems from Russia’s obligations under a friendship agreement signed in 1997.

Under the deal, Russia and Ukraine agreed to take measures aimed at preventing actions inciting violence against groups of citizens over national, ethnic or religious intolerance.

Video - Yanukovich denies ouster, says 'ashamed & guilty' for not preventing chaos

Ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich pledges to fight for Ukraine. He addressed a press conference in southern Russia, appearing in public for the first time since he fled Kiev amid bloody riots.

“No one has ousted me,” Yanukovich told reporters. “I had to leave Ukraine because of a direct threat to my life and the lives of my family.”

According to Yanukovich, “nationalist fascist-like fellows representing the absolute minority of Ukrainians” took over power in Ukraine.

He described the situation in Ukraine as “complete lawlessness,” “terror” and "chaos", saying that the politicians, including MPs, have been threatened and are working under threats.

It has nothing to do with the unity government that was negotiated with the opposition, he said.

The violence and deaths in Ukraine are the “result of the irresponsible politics of the West, which has encouraged Maidan,” Yanukovich stressed.

US and other Western countries’ representatives “must take full responsibility” for the fact that the agreement between Yanukovich and the opposition leaders was not held, the ousted president stressed. Western powers’ “patronage” of Maidan makes them directly responsible for the situation in Ukraine, he claimed.

The current Ukrainian parliament is “not legitimate,” and the people in power are spreading the propaganda of violence, Yanukovich asserted.

When asked if he feels ashamed of his actions, Yanukovich replied that he feels ashamed and sorry for “not having been able to stabilize the situations and stop the mayhem” in Ukraine.

“I want to apologize to the Ukrainian people for what has happened in Ukraine and that I lacked strength to maintain stability.”

Yanukovich also apologized to the Ukrainian riot police, Berkut, for having to “suffer” while doing their duty of maintaining peace and order. Police officers had to stand their ground while rioters set them on fire with petrol bombs, he reminded.

Yanukovich stressed he had not given any order for police to shoot live fire until the rioters started using firearms, putting the officers’ lives under threat.

According to Yanukovich, the early Ukrainian elections announced for May 25 are “illegitimate” and he will not take part in them.

However, he said that he will “remain in politics.”

Video - Live feed of the Yanukovych press conference.

’Israel’: Hezbollah Acquired, Deployed Yakhont Cruise Missile, with 300 Km Range.

’Israel’: Hezbollah Acquired, Deployed Yakhont Cruise Missile, with 300 Km Range.(AlManar).

Israeli navy officers said Hezbollah has already deployed the Russian cruise missile, Yakhont, with a range of 300 kilometers and capable of striking Israel’s entire Mediterranean coast, World Tribune reported.

“We assume that advanced Yakhont missiles have also reached the hands of Hezbollah, and we are preparing for that,” Rear Adm. Eli Sharvit, commander of the naval base in Haifa, said.

The Israeli officers said Hezbollah deployed Yakhont in 2013 about a year after the Syrian Navy received the P-800. They said repeated Israeli efforts to block the delivery of the weapon from Syria to Lebanon were partially successful.

“Hezbollah is a highly functional organization, active in its sector,” Sharvit told a briefing on Feb. 25. “It continues to arm itself with strategic weapons, and has not stopped trying to get its hands on weapons that will influence [future warfare].”

The officers said the navy was being trained and equipped to foil the Hezbollah or Syrian missile threat against Israel. They said Hezbollah could use Yakhont to attack Israel’s new natural gas facilities in the eastern Mediterranean.Hmmmm.....'Wishful thinking'.

International female delegation to visit Gaza.

The International Solidarity Movement - a group whose goal is to support the Palestinians through non-violent protest

International female delegation to visit Gaza.(PresTv).

A delegation of more than 100 women is planning to visit the Israeli blockaded Gaza Strip to meet Palestinian women in the coastal enclave on International Women's Day.

The members of the delegation come from countries such as France, Belgium, the United States and Ireland.

The participants are part of an international campaign called "Women Against the Blockade of Gaza." The group aims to discuss and address the difficulties faced by Palestinian women in the besieged Gaza Strip.

Non-governmental organization Code Pink: Women for Peace has said it is forming a US delegation of 15 women, who will join the international coalition.

The purpose of the delegation, it has said, is to show solidarity with the women of Gaza, to bring attention to the unbearable suffering caused by the Israeli blockade, to educate people back in their home countries, to push for opening the Gaza borders, and to bring solar lamps to help with the electricity shortage.

Gaza has been blockaded since June 2007, a situation that has caused a decline in the standard of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty.

The humanitarian crisis facing Gaza has escalated as the only power plant in the Palestinian territory has stopped working since November 1 last year due to severe fuel shortage.Hmmmm......no word if they return as future mothers?

Meanwhile....in 'moderate' Iran: President Rouhani tours Iran Navy and IRGC Navy bases.

Meanwhile....in 'moderate' Iran: President Rouhani tours Iran Navy and IRGC Navy bases. HT and more pictures here at Uskowi On Iran.

Video - Video clip of "DOZENS OF MIL MI-24 COMBAT HELICOPTERS OVER BELBEK, NORTH OF SEVASTOPOL"

Update: More than 80 Mil Mi-24 and Mi-8 helicopters of Russian Western Military District head to emergency airfields during drills

Ukraine parliament appeals for UN Security Council to discuss crisis.

Ukraine parliament appeals for UN Security Council to discuss crisis.Live updates from here from BBC.

Update: Ukraine says Russian forces block airport


Good Crimea analysis and recs from Carnegie.  … "What was once seen as impossible has now become all too conceivable."

MT  Seems to be new Russian Army uniform: http://en.ria.ru/photolents/20121225/178388360_4.html … Any other suggestions?

Putin seeks Ukraine financial aid consultations with IMF and G8; will consider Crimean authorities' request of humanitarian aid

Putin seeks Ukraine financial aid consultations with IMF and G8; will consider Crimean authorities' request of humanitarian aid.(RBTH).

Russian President Vladimir Putin has instructed the government to continue to work together with its Ukrainian partners in order to further promote trade and business ties between the two countries, hold consultations with Russia's international partners, including the International Monetary Fund, concerning the issue of financial assistance for Ukraine, as well as consider the possibility of sending humanitarian supplies to Ukraine's Autonomous Republic of Crimea in response to an appropriate request from it, presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said.

"President of Russian Vladimir Putin instructed the government of Russia to continue contacts with its partners in Kyiv on matters surrounding the development of trade and business ties between the Russian Federation and Ukraine," Peskov said.

The president also ordered that consultations be held with Russia's foreign partners, among them the IMF and G8 member countries, concerning the issue of financial aid for Ukraine, he said.

"Apart from that, bearing in mind the Crimean authorities' request of humanitarian aid, the president of Russia instructed the Russian government to consider this issue, including on the part of regions of the Russian Federation," he said.Read the full story here.

Turkey ‘aims to wrap up missile talks by April’, still 'Turkish bazaar bargaining' on A400 military transport.

Turkey ‘aims to wrap up missile talks by April’, still 'Turkish bazaar bargaining' on A400 military transport.(Taz).

Turkey is aiming to achieve results in April on its talks with China over the purchase of long-range missile defense systems, a move highly criticized by Turkey's NATO allies, Turkey's undersecretary for state-run defense industries Murad Bayar said Feb. 27 Hurriyet Daily News reported.

Turkey announced in September it had chosen China's FD-2000 missile-defense system over rival offers from Franco-Italian Eurosam SAMP/T and U.S.-listed Raytheon Co. It said China offered the most competitive terms and would allow co-production in Turkey.

U.S. and NATO officials have raised concerns with Turkish officials about the decision to buy the system from CPMIEC, a company hit by U.S. sanctions for sales of items to either Iran, Syria or North Korea that are banned under U.S. laws to curb the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

"Our talks with China are ongoing. We have extended the bidding until the end of April. We are aiming to get results in early April on this," Bayar said.

Separately, Bayar said Turkey is likely to start ordering F-35 fighter jets built by Lockheed Martin Corp from 2015 onwards and it will start with two orders initially.

"We will start F-35 orders either this year or the next. Right now, it is likely to be next year," Bayar told reporters. "We will initially order two. The delivery time will be, depending on the orders, probably in 2017-2018."

Bayar also said Turkey will seek compensation over the late delivery of the A400 military transport plan after Airbus failed to meet some of its obligations in its contract.

"My message to Airbus is that it should first focus on fulfilling the terms of the contract. There is no additional bargaining here. The contract, even with the amended version, requires the fulfillment of certain technical qualities and we have had to hold these talks because these requirements were not completely fulfilled," Bayar said.

On Feb. 26, Airbus chief executive Tom Enders said 'bargaining' was behind the delay and that it was 'unbearable' that the company was still negotiating with Turkey over the plane.
"The aircraft is ready to go. It is instantly, operationally fit for flight. I find the situation increasingly unacceptable," Enders told reporters.

Meanwhile, Bayar said Japan had told Turkey that it will not allow the export of a Japanese tank engine to third parties without its permission.

His comments came after Japanese media reported that a deal between Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe was struck in May, during Abe's visit to Turkey, on the supply of engines, but that Turkey's desire to export to third parties was likely to block the deal.
Bayar said that the potential purchase of the engine for Turkey's Altay tank was dropped for now.Hmmmm......Turkish 'Vorsprung durch technik'....Tanks with no engines, drones without engines.

Ukraine Accuses Russian Soldiers in Crimea of armed 'Invasion' and 'occupation'.

Update:

Ukraine Accuses Russian Soldiers in Crimea of armed 'Invasion' and 'occupation'.(RN).

The interior minister of Ukraine accused Russian troops Friday of blockading an airport in the Crimean city of Sevastopol in what he has described as an armed invasion.

While stressing that no direct violent confrontations had taken place, Arsen Avakov said the matter should be dealt with on a diplomatic level before armed clashes broke out.

Avakov said on his Facebook account that troops from the Black Sea Fleet, which is stationed in the city, could be seen outside Belbek airport, although the inside of the terminal was controlled by Ukrainian troops.

“The airport is not operating. At the external perimeter there are Ukrainian Interior Ministry checkpoints. There have been not been armed clashes,” Avakov said.

The alleged presence of Black Sea Fleet troops at the airport, if confirmed, would be in direct defiance of a demand by Ukrainian interim authorities Thursday for Russian troops to refrain from leaving their quarters. That appeal apparently echoed international concern that Moscow may choose to throw its weight behind pro-Russian groups in Crimea seeking to defy interim authorities in Kiev.

“Any movement, particularly with weapons, outside official residences regulated by our agreement will be interpreted by us as military aggression,” interim President Oleksandr Turchynov said.

Russia, which has a substantial military presence at its leased naval base in Sevastopol, has insisted it will not interfere in its neighbor’s affairs, while at the same time voicing worries about possible discrimination against ethnic Russians in the country.

About half of Crimea’s population identifies as ethnic Russian. Ousted President Viktor Yanukovych drew much of his support from Ukraine’s Russian population, which has reacted with alarm at what it perceives as an aggressively nationalistic rule now installed in Kiev.

In his statement Friday, Avakov said that 100 men that he said identified themselves as Cossacks attempted overnight Thursday to occupy the airport in Simferopol, which is 80 kilometers northeast of Sevastopol, but were repelled. “The territory of the airport was vacated by the ‘Cossacks’ at one o’clock – they boarded covered Kamaz trucks and left,” he said. He said that 119 armed soldiers in camouflage apparently belonging to the Russian armed forces arrived at the airport building at 1:30 a.m. and settled in an airport restaurant.

The soldiers refused to respond to queries from Interior Ministry officers about whether they were soldiers and if they had permission to be in the airport.

“I assess what is happening as an armed invasion and occupation. It is in violation of all international treaties and norms. This is a direct provocation to armed bloodshed on the territory of a sovereign state,” Avakov said.