With President Trump’s impeachment trial focuses on the U.S. military assistance to Ukraine, the details of U.S. support are key to understanding the debate in the Senate. The Washington-based Security Assistance Monitor explains what the aid does–and does not–do. U.S. support has grown rapidly since 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea, the easternmost part of the Ukraine. After...
Category: Ukraine
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The Weakest Link: Impeachment and National Security
In the summer of 2016 President Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump didn’t agree about much, except for one obscure issue of U.S. foreign policy: lethal military aid to Ukraine. As commander in chief, Obama objected to such assistance, even in the face of a Russian proxy war. So did candidate Trump. On...
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The Republicans’ Ukraine Conspiracy Theory Explained
Trump’s Ukraine story is a constellation of factoids that amount to a fantasy. Which isn’t to say it won’t be politically effective. One important reason Democrats must be better prepared to fend off Ukraine-related conspiracy mongering is that Attorney General Barr is preparing some kind of ginned-up report that will line up neatly with Republican...
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Manafort, the Kingmaker, Brokered a Deal With the EU
One fact that gets lost in the U.S. domestic politics of impeachment is just how large Americans loomed in Ukraine. During the Maidan revolution of 2014. Paul Manafort, President Trump’s convicted campaign manager, wasn’t just a political consultant. he was a geopolitical kingmaker with a soft touch. He brought together the pro-Russian government and the...
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Erik Prince and the Privatization of Intelligence
Mercenary Erik Prince is in negotiations to buy Motor Sich, a Ukrainian aerospace company that the U.S. government wants to prevent the Chinese government from acquiring, according to the Wall Street Journal. Jeremy Scahill, who wrote the book on Prince’s private military company, Blackwater, talks with Intercept colleague about Prince’s business model: the privatization of...