Re: "Beware Ukraine Experts" in the St. Albert Gazette, Wednesday, May 28 edition (page 28) commentary by Dr. Irena Shilova.
In it, Dr. Irina Shilova claims "the news is filled with so-called experts brandishing such language as "I feel it in my gut" or "Putin is so vicious," then fails to provide any evidence who the "so-called experts" were making these statements. She continues by calling this "language which is emotionally driven and empty of facts." She then turns around and in an utter act of hypocrisy three paragraphs later herself uses similar adjectives to describe "the new shady 'government' in Kiev" that is itself a statement using "language which is emotionally driven and empty of facts." What is Dr. Shilova basing this on, something she feels in her gut perhaps?
What "intricacies of Ukrainian internal politics" could justify former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych to order snipers to murder his own citizens, then abandon his elected position to flee into the night to Rostov, Russia with a suitcase full of stolen cash like he did? On May 25th, a legitimate and legal democratic election was held resulting in Petro Poroshenko winning 55 per cent of the popular vote to replace the abandoned presidency. I don't understand how anyone claiming such exclusive academic credentials could call this consequence "shady," considering what preceded it.
Dr. Shilova needs to be reminded that U.S. Senator John McCain lost the 2008 presidential election to Barrack Obama. As a senator, McCain may have opinions, but in reality has very little authority or influence in "arming the Ukrainian regular army with sophisticated weapons." Maybe if Jeb Bush beats out Hillary Clinton in the next U.S. presidential election, McCain might get appointed to be the next Secretary of State or Defense, but until that happens, I'm not sure why Dr. Shilova is worried about his opinions or who is advising him. Another item that Dr. Shilova needs to be reminded about is that her so-called "right wing Ukrainian party 'the Right Sector'" that she is worried about only managed to get 0.7 per cent of the popular vote on May 25th for their presidential candidate. In fact, Dr. Shilova sure seems to focus a lot on losers in the democratic process and who is advising them in her commentary. For someone with her academic credentials, she sure seems to be falling for the mass hysteria being spread by the Russian media.
I would also like to challenge Dr. Shilova's description that "those people are mostly civilians" in her so-called "Ukrainian resistance." If she is referring to the armed and sometimes masked "green men" in Donetsk and Luhansk provinces, for starters they are not Ukrainian but are mostly Russian and Chechen. They are not civilians or resistance but are invaders and terrorists. They consist largely of "Terek Wolves" or "Wolves Hundred" Cossack militia from the Kuban region of Russia, "Vostok Battalion" of Spetznaz from Chechnya, and Chechen mercenaries. Their noted accomplishments since attempting to seize power in eastern Ukraine have been to hand out anti-Semitic leaflets, fight among themselves, and loot local grocery and liquor stores. Hardly the noble sounding "Ukrainian resistance" that Dr. Shilova tries to portray.
Dr. Shilova spends half of her commentary discussing academic credentials then concludes with several ridiculous and inaccurate statements about the current situation in Ukraine. Like it or not, after all the fuss and bloodshed, it is now inevitable that in one form or another, Ukraine will be entering the European Union.
Zenon W. Wojnowskyj, Sturgeon County
