The matter is still the same, the RF is not only showing disrespect for PoWs, they are even making a point of killing them in public. What can you expect if you are an RF captured soldier and there are no officers present?
You've got it all mixed up again. The trial of the mercenaries took place in the DPR, from the point of view of Russia it is an independent state, from the point of view of Ukraine it is the Donetsk region within Ukraine. Putin is a powerful man, but he has no power over the Supreme Court of a sovereign state (he doesn't even have power over Russia's Supreme Court).
Of the countries that really matter to the case, this
"independent state" is only recognised by RF and only sustained thanks to the RF money and weaponry. Stop pretending that something in the RF or the "republics" is done without the seal of the Tzar, nobody is going to believe you.
Again, you can make any argument you want, it does not change the chances for the RF invading army PoWs.
Ukraine may actually be following it at government level - you can follow the convention even if you do not recognise it.
The matter is still the same, the RF is not only showing disrespect for PoWs, they are even making a point of killing them in public. What can you expect if you are an RF captured soldier and there are no officers present?
I heard its even worse if officer is present
Officers of the Ukrainian defence army are there to implement the official policies. As of now, the official policy is to follow the rules of war and the Geneva Convention as far as I know. There may be groups in Ukraine that may not have such a degree of discipline, but that is a completely different matter from having an official policy of classing PoWs as "terrorists" and kill them.
All in all, this simply makes life much harder for both RF and Ukrainian soldiers.
I'd be careful challenging independence on the grounds of being sustained thanks to other nation's money and weaponry.
...
The latest bill, which had been delayed for a week by the objection of Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, includes money for logistical support and training for Ukrainian military and national security forces, and for a fund intended to secure the continuity of Ukraine’s government.
https://web.archive.org/web/20220609211642/https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/05/20/upshot/ukraine-us-aid-size.htmlAs far as mercenaries, I believe to become Ukrainian citizen they would have to give up their previous citizenship as Ukraine doesn't allow dual citizenship, which apparently didn't happen. How are they different from other mercenaries, or is the claim that there are no mercenaries at all in Ukraine and all foreign fighters fall under Geneva convention now because they signed some paper with UA army? Following that logic Aiden Aslin wasn't a mecenary in Syria as well if he also signed some form there?
Are you misinterpreting what I say on purpose or is it that you are really missing the point? The "statelets" were created by the RF invading them and declaring them as "independent" - AKA stealing the territory from Ukraine.
Ukraine is independent because the majority of Ukrainians would rather not be under Adolf Putin's thumb but mainly because it is a country that is widely recognised as such by most, if not all, nations. The "independent" satellite regions of the RF empired have simply been invaded by the RF and then "declared" independent. Again, just a handful of countries recognise them - all pretty much directly linked to Adolf Putin. It is just plainly ridiculous that you try to compare that with Ukraine.
As for your display of "evidence" of western support to a widely recognised independent country... nothing new. This war is burning many supplies from both many estates and particularly the US. This includes training in some quite new and sophisticated systems.
...
It's easy: If the main criteria for you is "to be paid" it's easy to say that every russian soldier is a mercenary in terms of international law. russia didn't declare a war to Ukraine, only some kind of "special operation", so all it's soldiers on ukraine territory it's a mercenaries. Without a proper (in terms of russian law) procedure they are going to another country to fight because of the fat they get paid for it.
Bla bla bla
So, as i see, you don't mind and agree with the idea that of russia didn't proclaime a war to Ukraine we can consider russian soldiers as mercs and can sentence them to death? Ok. Fair deal i think. If russians will shot this guys we should do the same with russian mercenaries.
And this is something that Adolf Putin may even be happy to hear about if it happened. Most of the young Russians that are stupid or desperate enough to join the RF army have already been killed, captured or are at the front wishing to be back home. The only chance of getting new recruits is trying to generate hate - as of now he only has indifference and opposition and that does not win wars.
Ukraine's goal is to #1 survive, #2 hold on to as much land as it can with minimal losses. US's goal is to
'weaken' Russia, Do you not see a conflict of interest with such arrangement? Knowing USs track record, do you think it's supporting and sending $50B out of goodness of its heart with no strings attached? How high (if at all) do you think Ukrainian soldier lives rank in US calculations to weaken Russia? If a goal is just to weaken Russia without defeating it, wouldn't supply of weapons look exactly as it does today, trickling in enough to cause higher losses (on both sides) and drag things on yet not enough to really change the ultimate outcome. Given the following option guess who would prefer what, think RU position is clear here, they're committed regardless.
-Outcome X with Y UA losses and Z RU losses
-Same outcome X only with >Y UA losses and >Z RU losses
A puppet state, puppet régime, puppet government or dummy government is a state that is de jure independent but de facto completely dependent upon an outside power and subject to its orders. Puppet states have nominal sovereignty, but a foreign power effectively exercises control through means such as financial interests, economic, or military support. By leaving a local government in existence the outside Powers evade all responsibility, while at the same time successfully paralyzing the Government they tolerate.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puppet_stateNo need for "or", all boxes financial, economic, military are definitely checked off. Now you can claim that being under one power is more preferential than the other in certain sectors, but calling Ukraine independent at this stage is naïve
US is on a dilemma. I am quite sure that, if the US de-facto powers wanted this war to end in a couple of months it would happen. Zelensky is right in essence: send me the weapons we need, keep the intelligence support, train the Ukrainian soldiers and we are likely to recover ground and eventually reach a point in which the RF comes to the table with a "minimize loss" mandate or "lift sanctions and forget about all this" attitude. An you are right, that is not the current way of thinking for the US - it would be the UK that actually would rather finish the war ASAP, RF money is much loved in "Londongrad".
Why is that not happening?
- Being brutally honest, I think that the US would not mind having a couple of statelets between Ukraine and the RF, particularly if Ukraine joins NATO.
- One of the reasons is that Putin's regime, until now, has ensured that the old USSR nuclear arsenal does not fall in the wrong hands.
- Another is that Putin is actually an ally or an useful guy in other aspects, like fighting the PBS - Psychos Blaming God, AKA Daesh, Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram and friends...
- Lastly, while Putin's regime is internally managed as a Mafia Family, it generates plenty of business for those who live on the plutocrats style of life outside the RF.
Putin, until now, was not really troubling the US nor Europe until now, even the annexation of Crimea was not responded as it should have, but he has miscalculated the effects of this war on Europe, including UK and Germany and including other countries that are not in the EU. Putin considers that the RF still has a similar sphere of influence as the USSR did, which I think is no longer the case - simply because the RF is not even close to the economic and cultural influence that was the USSR.
I think we agree on something, the US may be a winner on this war, the EU is not in the short term (there may be beneficial effects to the energetic transition in the long term), Ukraine is not a short term winner (there will be a push to his status in EU after the war) and, lastly, the RF.
The RF may or may not get some (devastated) territory from Ukraine at the expense of crippling its economy and diplomatic stance for a long, long, long time.
Re Ukraine becoming a "Puppet", I think it would not be the case. All the west is pretty much interdependent and economic ties are strong and certainly some countries have more weight than others, but there are continuous negotiations and trade-offs that usually result in progress for all.
