TND Article Spotlight: Eric Dubin |

George Friedman heads Stratfor, the well known private US-based intelligence firm. His perspective on geopolitical matters are generally respected. I do not take at face value everything that comes out of Stratfor, nor do I agree with all of Friedman’s views in the following interview. But it is certainly noteworthy that Friedman, a man of the establishment, is essentially willing to call out the mountains of propaganda the West has been peddling about Russia’s purported actions in Ukraine. He makes the argument that Russia wasn’t able to respond in time to conditions the US instigated.

Friedman recently visited Russia and was interviewed by Kommersant. The interview has received considerable attention. This excerpt will demonstrate why:

GEORGE FRIEDMAN

…At the beginning of this year there existed in Ukraine a slightly pro-Russian though very shaky government. That situation was fine for Moscow: after all, Russia did not want to completely control Ukraine or occupy it; it was enough that Ukraine not join NATO and the EU. Russian authorities cannot tolerate a situation in which western armed forces are located a hundred or so kilometers from Kursk or Voronezh.

The United States, for its part, were interested in forming a pro-Western government in Ukraine. They saw that Russia is on the rise, and were eager not to let it consolidate its position in the post-Soviet space. The success of the pro-Western forces in Ukraine would allow the U.S. to contain Russia.

Russia calls the events that took place at the beginning of this year a coup d’etat organized by the United States. And it truly was the most blatant coup in history.

KOMMERSANT: You mean the termination of the agreement of February 21, or the entire Maidan?

GEORGE FRIEDMAN: The whole thing. After all, the United States openly supported human rights groups in Ukraine, including financially. Meanwhile, Russia’s special services completely missed these trends. They didn’t understand what was taking place, but when they did realize what was going on they were unable to take action to stabilize the situation, and then they misjudged the mood in East Ukraine.

KOMMERSANT: In other words, the Ukrainian crisis is the result of the confrontation between Russia and the United States?

GEORGE FRIEDMAN: Here you have two countries: one wants a Ukraine that is neutral. The other wants Ukraine to form part of a line of containment against Russian expansion. One cannot say that one party is mistaken: both are acting based on their national interests. It’s just that these interests don’t jive.

To read the entire English translation, click here.

Robert Parry has written extensively about Ukraine since the crisis began. Recently, he authored “NYT Still Pretends No Coup in Ukraine.” The article offers an effective introduction to this conflict. Check it out and share it with others.