Comments by "bart thomassen thomassen" (@thomassenbart) on "Grenell Asked: Why Did Trump Falsely Claim Ukraine Started War With Russia u0026 Call Zelensky Dictator?" video.

  1. Asking hard questions is a good idea. It does not mean she believes them but if you are a real journalist or interviewer, these are exactly the Qs, that must be asked.
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  2. There was no US backed coup. Another fake claim. The Ukranian people threw out their govt., it had nothing to do with the USA. Also, the ethnic Russians were infiltrated by Putin's 'little green men' who began the fighting in Donbass and Luhansk. Your history is wrong and largely Russian propaganda.
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  3. That is a foolish comment and completely ignores almost all of history. I suggest a bit of reading.
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  4. Nonsensical comment and also ahistorical. You don't get to leave a country vote or not. Did Russia accept Chechnya leaving? No. Putin put his little green men into Donbass and provoked war. We know this. You are spouting Russian propaganda.
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  5. There was no agreement that Ukraine would never be admitted to NATO. This is a false idea.
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  6.  @KnutBalle-b4n  It does not matter what Baker said, he was in no position to make the call for the USA and he immediately revised his statement only days after making it. Also, Gorbachev himself said no promises were made about NATO expansion, so I again, say your analysis is off despite the words of various high level folk, which I furnish below, beginning with Baker: “We understand the need for assurances to the countries in the East. If we maintain a presence in a Germany that is part of NATO, there would be no extension of NATO’s jurisdiction for forces of NATO one inch to the east.” (Source: U.S. Department of State, Memorandum of Conversation, February 9, 1990). Here is German Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher (January 31, 1990) quote: “The fact that NATO would not expand its territory eastward is a firm agreement with the Soviet Union.” (Source: British diplomatic cable, January 31, 1990). Helmut Kohl said this: “We believe that NATO should not expand its scope.” (Source: German records, February 10, 1990). Mitterand said this: “We must ensure that NATO does not expand eastward.” (Source: National Security Archive, 1990 diplomatic records). Margaret Thatcher said: “We must find ways to give the Soviet Union confidence that its security is not threatened.” (Source: British Cabinet records, March 1991). NATO Secretary-General Manfred Wörner (1991) said: “The very fact that we are ready not to deploy NATO troops beyond the territory of the Federal Republic gives the Soviet Union a firm security guarantee.” (Source: National Security Archive, 1991 records). So, all of the above contradict Gorbachov who says the opposite and of course, no document was signed. All of the above are utterances without force, and the Russians knew this as well, given their long history with the West and constant violations of every treaty they signed with the USA. Also, Baker Revised His position By February 12, when he had discussions with West German officials and changed his approach. By February 13, while meeting with Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze, Baker no longer used the "one inch eastward" language and instead focused only on Germany, avoiding any discussion about Eastern Europe. He also emphasized that any assurances applied only to the Soviet military presence in East Germany, not the rest of Eastern Europe. By March 1990, U.S. and German officials fully dropped the idea of restricting NATO’s expansion eastward. U.S. National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft and President George H.W. Bush made clear that the U.S. would not limit NATO’s future expansion. So, given the above it seems ludicrous for anyone to take the position you advance. Though statements were made, they were almost immediately retracted and no agreements were signed to that effect rendering the entire argument mute. Here are the Gorbachev quotes: “The topic of ‘NATO expansion’ was not discussed at all, and it wasn’t brought up in those years. I say this with full responsibility. Not a single Eastern European country raised the issue, not even after the Warsaw Pact ceased to exist in 1991. Western leaders did not bring it up either.” (Source: Russia Beyond, October 16, 2014). In a 2009 interview with the German newspaper Die Welt, Gorbachev explicitly stated: “The question of NATO expansion was not discussed at all during those talks [1990 negotiations over German reunification].” (Source: Die Welt, November 2009). In a 2008 interview, Gorbachev stated: "There was no promise that NATO would not expand eastward. James Baker’s statement about ‘not one inch eastward’ was related only to Germany in the context of reunification negotiations.” (Source: Russia in Global Affairs, 2008). In 2017, Gorbachev again clarified that there was no formal agreement or legally binding promise on NATO’s non-expansion: “All discussions about a guarantee of NATO not expanding eastward are myths. There was no such agreement.” (Source: RIA Novosti, February 7, 2017).
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