Ukraine

Thursday January 9, 2020

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday January 9, 2020

2020’s Horrible First Week

Students, professors, newlyweds, friends and family members died in Wednesday’s crash of a Ukraine International Airlines flight travelling from Tehran to Kyiv.

The disaster that killed 176 people, including at least 63 Canadians, reverberated around the world and across Canada, with vigils taking place in cities with significant Iranian-Canadian communities last night.

Speaking to reporters in Ottawa on Wednesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said a total of 138 people missed a connecting flight from Kyiv that landed in Toronto on Wednesday afternoon, suggesting there may be more Canadians killed in the crash.

As a nation continues to grieve, attention will inevitably shift to how exactly the Boeing 737-800 commercial jet crashed just minutes after taking off.  (iPolitics)

President Donald Trump on Wednesday tempered days of angry rhetoric and suggested Iran was “standing down” after it fired missiles at U.S. forces in Iraq overnight, as both sides looked to defuse a crisis over the U.S. killing of an Iranian general. (Reuters)

Two thirds of Puerto Ricans remained without power and nearly a quarter lacked drinking water on Wednesday after earthquakes battered the Caribbean island, including the most powerful to strike the U.S. territory in 102 years. (Reuters)

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison was corrected by locals on Kangaroo Island on Wednesday after telling them he was thankful nobody died.

Morrison told a group of residents of the fire-ravaged island: “Well thankfully, we’ve had no loss of life”.

“Two,” one person responded. “We’ve had two.”

Looking to another person for confirmation, he quickly backtracked, claiming he meant first responders, not locals.

“Two. Yes, two, that’s quite right,” he said. “I was thinking about firefighters firstly.” (website 10 Daily)

 

Thursday October 10, 2019

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday October 10, 2019

Turkey Begins Offensive in Syria After U.S. Stands Aside

Turkey has begun its military offensive into northeastern Syria to force back Kurdish militants controlling the border area, days after President Donald Trump said the U.S. wouldn’t stand in the way.

May 3, 2017

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the start of the operation, code-named Spring of Peace, on Twitter and said it would also target Islamic State. Russia, Iran and a top EU official urged Turkey to act with restraint amid concerns that renewed chaos in Syria would lead to a jihadist resurgence and push the Kurds, America’s allies in the fight against IS, into the arms of President Bashar al-Assad.

Turkey has battled Kurdish separatists for years and had repeatedly warned it would not allow the creation of a Kurdish proto-state on its immediate border. Once it seizes the area, Turkey plans to resettle 2 million Syrian refugees, most of them Arabs, in the border zone, further complicating a combustible situation.

October 31, 2018

A small forward group of Turkish forces first entered Syria early Wednesday at two points close to the Syrian towns of Tal Abyad and Ras al-Ayn, according to a Turkish official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Turkish planes and shells pounded the towns as the incursion began. Residents fled though Kurdish forces had vacated positions before the attack, which is expected to involve tens of thousands of soldiers backed by tanks and armored personnel carriers from NATO’s second-largest army.

Turkey’s advance follows a dramatic reversal of U.S. policy. Trump told Erdogan in a phone call on Sunday that dozens of American troops who’d been working closely with Kurdish forces in the fight against Islamic State would pull back, effectively clearing the way for a Turkish incursion.

April 13, 2018

The White House statement appeared to surprise allies at home and abroad. The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces said they would defend their “own people,” potentially relegating the battle against Islamic State.

The Kurdish YPG militia that forms the backbone of the SDF has been one of America’s closest partners in the fight against Islamic State and is holding thousands of jihadist fighters and their families in camps and detention centers in northeastern Syria.

October 6, 2016

While Trump said Turkey would become responsible for the detainees, who include foreign fighters from Europe, it was not clear if there was a mechanism in place to transfer them to Turkish custody. Trump was criticized at home for a decision that could see Islamic State fighters escape or regroup.

A number of Trump allies, including Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, said the move was “a shot in the arm for the bad guys.” Analysts said a U.S. pullback could ultimately play into the hands of Russia, whose military intervention helped turn the tide of the Syrian civil war in favor of Assad. As the Turkish offensive got underway, the Associated Press reported that the YPG had asked Russia to mediate talks between them and the Assad government. (Source: Bloomberg) 

 

Friday September 27, 2019

September 27, 2019

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday September 27, 2019

Donald Trump’s bizarre New York meeting with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky: ‘I’ve made him more famous’

December 20, 2016

As an impeachment storm rages in Washington, to say that Donald Trump’s tête-à-tête with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was hotly anticipated would be the understatement of the week.

And it delivered: their appearance before the media in New York was tense, bizarre and funny all at the same time.

On the right: Trump, 73, the one-time real estate mogul and reality television star, now the Republican president of the United States.

On the left: Zelensky, 41, a one-time comedian, now president.

A summer telephone conversation between the two men is at the centre of a political firestorm in the US capital, and prompted opposition Democrats to launch an impeachment inquiry against Trump.

In his usual dark blue suit and red tie, Trump – literally sitting on the edge of his seat – was anything but relaxed.

February 26, 2014

Zelensky, sporting a three-piece black suit, seemed far less anxious and settled easily into his armchair.

The tension in the room was palpable, but the conversation started on a lighter note, and even seemed like a surreal comedy act.

“He’s made me more famous and I’ve made him more famous,” the billionaire Trump quipped at the start of the meeting, to laughs from the press corps.

“It’s better to be on TV than by phone,” Zelensky replied with a bit of a knowing grin, speaking in English, a language in which he was fairly comfortable.

Then the tone shifted significantly.

Did the leader of the world’s only superpower put pressure on his Ukrainian counterpart to investigate the family of Joe Biden, one of the Democrats vying to take on Trump in the 2020 election?

Zelensky hesitated and stammered before answering: “I think you read everything. (…) I’m sorry, but I don’t want to be involved in the democratic, open elections of (the) USA.”

Then he was more precise: “We had – I think (a) good phone call. It was normal. We spoke about many things, and … so I think, and you read it, that nobody pushed me.”

Trump chimed in: “In other words, no pressure”.

And then the Republican leader got angry. (Continued: South China Post) 

 

Tuesday December 20, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator - Tuesday December 20, 2016 Will the GOP be the pro-Putin party? Beneath the surface of the controversy overÊRussiaÕs efforts to help Donald Trump become presidentis a dramatic reconfigurationÊof opinion on foreign policy. Many Republicans who had long been critical of Vladimir PutinÕs despotic rule are adjusting their positions to accord with TrumpÕsÊmore sympathetic views. Others are hanging back, fearful of picking a fight with their partyÕs incoming president or underminingÊthe legitimacy of his election. At the same time, PutinÕs fiercest Republican critics, including leading neoconservatives, find themselves allied with HillaryÊClintonÕs supporters. They are calling out the KremlinÕs interference with the election and demanding a full accounting of whatÊhappened. Sens.ÊJohn McCainÊandÊLindsey O. GrahamÊhave been among the most outspoken. While some on the left worry about starting a new Cold War, there has been a broad toughening of liberal and Democratic opinionÊtoward Russia. This shift owes in part to outrage over PutinÕs efforts to sabotage Clinton, but the roots of the mistrust of Putin canÊbe traced back several years. PutinÕs hostility toward Clinton is widely seen as a response toÊher criticism of the 2011 Russian elections, a pointÊshe underscoredÊherself last week. Mass protests broke out against what the opposition saw as PutinÕs vote rigging. At the time, he blamed ClintonÊand the American government for the uprising. (Source: Washington Post)Êhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/will-the-gop-be-the-pro-putin-party/2016/12/18/a2d22058-c3de-11e6-9a51-cd56ea1c2bb7_story.html?utm_term=.b0976dcc87f0 USA, Russia, Syria, Ukraine, Alec Baldwin, satire, Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, blood

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday December 20, 2016

Will the GOP be the pro-Putin party?

Beneath the surface of the controversy over Russia’s efforts to help Donald Trump become presidentis a dramatic reconfiguration of opinion on foreign policy.

Many Republicans who had long been critical of Vladimir Putin’s despotic rule are adjusting their positions to accord with Trump’s more sympathetic views. Others are hanging back, fearful of picking a fight with their party’s incoming president or undermining the legitimacy of his election.

At the same time, Putin’s fiercest Republican critics, including leading neoconservatives, find themselves allied with Hillary Clinton’s supporters. They are calling out the Kremlin’s interference with the election and demanding a full accounting of what happened. Sens. John McCain and Lindsey O. Graham have been among the most outspoken.

While some on the left worry about starting a new Cold War, there has been a broad toughening of liberal and Democratic opinion toward Russia. This shift owes in part to outrage over Putin’s efforts to sabotage Clinton, but the roots of the mistrust of Putin can be traced back several years.

Putin’s hostility toward Clinton is widely seen as a response to her criticism of the 2011 Russian elections, a point she underscored herself last week. Mass protests broke out against what the opposition saw as Putin’s vote rigging. At the time, he blamed Clinton and the American government for the uprising. (Source: Washington Post)

 

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Tuesday, February 10, 2015Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Angela Merkel meets Obama, set for private briefing with Stephen Harper

For Sale from the MacKayCartoons BoutiqueGerman Chancellor Angela Merkel will be in Ottawa later today to give Prime Minister Stephen Harper an update on her frenzied transatlantic shuttle diplomacy on the Ukraine crisis.

The Canadian Press has learned Merkel’s supper-hour arrival in Ottawa for talks with Harper will allow the prime minister to receive a private briefing on the West’s renewed push to end the continued fighting in eastern Ukraine.

Monday November 17, 2014Ukraine’s military has been battling Russian-backed separatists since April in a conflict that the United Nations says has killed 5,300 people, a figure that has spiked in recent weeks.

Merkel was in Washington this morning for a previously scheduled meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama, amid reports of a rift between the U.S. and Europe over whether to arm Ukraine’s military.

Speaking at a joint news conference with Merkel, Obama said Russian aggression against Ukraine has reinforced the unity of the U.S. and its partners in Europe and around the world. If Russia continues on its current course, he added, its political and economic isolation will worsen.

Obama said Russia has violated nearly every commitment it made in a previous deal reached in Minsk. He said instead of withdrawing troops, Russian forces have continued to operate in eastern Ukraine and to co-ordinate attacks.

He says Russia has sent in more tanks, heavy artillery and armoured personnel. Obama says separatists have seized more territory with Russia’s support. (Source: Toronto Star)