But at nearly every turn, Ukraine demonstrates that it is not worthy of one drop of American blood or one penny of American treasure.
Though our corrupt media and leaders tell us that Ukraine is "democratic," its leader, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, repeatedly proves he is every bit as much the same authoritarian as his nemesis, Russian President Vladimir Putin.
According to reports. several breakaway regions in Ukraine's east have begun voting on whether to become part of Russia officially, but Zelenskyy's government is warning that whoever supports the referendum will face five years in prison. This warning comes as the country's legislature is pushing through a measure criminalizing obtaining a Russian passport in the current occupied territories, according to Yahoo News.
There are a number of proposed punishments in the measure, including permanent loss of Ukrainian citizenship as well as long jail terms. Some Ukrainian members of the legislature, however, are more reasonable and are arguing for the government to take a much more compromising position given that many citizens are likely acting out of a need to survive. In response, however, the Zelenskyy regime has repeated a willingness to impose very stiff penalties on any citizen who takes part in the referendums, which are being pushed by the Kremlin.
Putin, in a prerecorded announcement on Wednesday where he announced the call-up of 300,000 conscripts and threatened a nuclear response against the West if countries continued providing weapons to Ukrainian troops trying to retake the occupied regions, also affirmed plans to move forward with the referendums in the the LPR, DPR, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions. If the regions vote in favor of joining the Russian Federation, as expected, then they will instantly become Russian territory that Moscow will be obligated to "defend," regardless of whether the international community thinks the referendums are legal under international law or not.
Ukraine has responded by warning its citizens that any official who promotes or organizes the voting faces a "prison term of five to ten years" - as well as possible asset seizure by the state, and being barred from employment in select positions for up to 15 years.
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshchuk announced this week that a five year prison term is currently being considered for anyone caught participating in "sham referenda" by government authorities.
"Some lawyers believe that those actions fall under Article 110 part 1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, ‘Infringement on Ukraine’s territorial integrity,’ punishable with a prison term of up to five years," she told the Strana portal earlier this week.
She also called on Ukrainians living in the occupied zones to "leave if possible."
According to a Russian translation of her words, Vereshchuk also said: "This [may] mean imprisonment for up to five years. So, once again I strongly advise residents of the temporarily occupied territories: do not take a [Russian] passport, do not go to referendums, do not cooperate with the occupiers and leave, if it’s possible."
NATO chief calls Russian-backed separatist referendums in occupied regions of Ukraine a "sham" and "further escalation" of Putin's war. https://t.co/xkjx8G5JyM
— Jake Epstein (@byjepstein) September 20, 2022
Here is what a law that was proposed in Ukraine last week would stipulate:
- acquisition of citizenship or obtaining a Russian passport by state officials or representatives of local self-government in the absence of signs of high treason;
- propaganda, public appeals, and coercion to act correspondingly;
- restriction of the rights of people who have not received citizenship or passports from the Russian Federation.
There was one caveat, however.
"The Ministry of Reintegration of the Temporary Occupied Territories noted that obtaining a Russian passport in the temporarily occupied territories is justified only if a person thus tries to return to the territory controlled by Ukraine through Russia and third countries," a Ukrainian report republished in Yahoo noted.
The longer the war drags on, the more obvious it becomes that Ukraine isn't the 'model country' it is being made out to be. The fact that Joe and Hunter Biden were making money there is proof of that.
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