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In Ukraine, UN's Ban Ki-moon Met Tyahnybok of Svoboda, Beater of News Exec

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, March 23, updated -- In Kyiv UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon met with controversial Svoboda Party leader Oleh Tyahnybok, Ban's spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told Inner City Press on Sunday night, some 50 hours after saying he'd provide a list of those Ban met with. Dujarric's full statement is below. Here is Svoboda bragging of the meeting.

   Tyahnybok, the leader of All-Ukrainian Union 'Svoboda,' has repeatedly been quoted that the country was led by a "Moscow-Jewish mafia." In the last week, parliamentarians from his party beat up a television news executive to make him resign. (Dujarric on March 21 told Inner City Press neither he nor, he thought, Ban had watched this widely available video.)

   What would Ban Ki-moon as UN Secretary General have to say to Svoboda's Tyahnybok, he of the "Moscow-Jewish mafia"? Dujarric's e-mail to Inner City Press does not say.  The e-mail came after Ban had left Ukraine for The Hague, and Inner City Press repeatedly noted that the promised list had not been provided, for example in connection with a Ban read-out from The Hague.

  Inner City Press on March 21 asked Dujarric, video here

  But more than 50 hours later, the "list of party members" who met with Ban had still not been provided or shared, nor was an explanation provided. Inner City Press asked, what should one infer from that?

  Then on the evening of Sunday, March 23 at 6:50 pm in New York, hours later in The Hague, Dujarric sent Inner City Press this e-mail:

  While there's more to be said of Ban's other interlocutors, Svoboda's Tyannybok stands out.  Did Ban have any input into with whom he met?

   Also on March 21, on the new US sanctions on Russia described on March 20 by four Senior Administration Officials, including on Bank Rossiya, Dujarric had no comment when Inner City Press was able to ask him.

  Notably a bank NOT on the US sanctions list, SMP Bank, has been cut off from payments services by Visa and MasterCard. Apparently Visa and MasterCard are part of US foreign policy

  On March 20, another US Senior Administration Official spoke of restrictions on goods from Ukraine and said this might violate Russia's World Trade Organization obligations. But what about the unilateral sanctions?

  The US said it wants the International Monetary Fund to move fast, and during the background call the IMF put out a press release, that its review is going well and its mission will wrap up on March 25.

   On March 19 after US Ambassador Samantha Power said Russia's Vitaly Churkin was creative like Tolstoy or Chekhov, Churkin asked for a right of reply or additional statement at the end of the March 19 UN Security Council meeting on Ukraine.

   Churkin said that from these two literary references, Power has stooped to tabloids, and that this should change if the US expected Russian cooperation. The reference, it seemed, was to Syria and Iran, and other UN issues.

   One wanted to explore this at the stakeout, but neither Power nor Churkin spoke there. In fact, no one did: even Ukraine's Yuriy Sergeyev left, down the long hallways with his leather coat and spokesperson. One wondered why.

   There were many questions to ask. Why did Ivan Simonovic's UN human rights report not mention the Svoboda Party MPs beating up the head of Ukrainian national television?  Will France, despite its Gerard Araud's speech, continue selling Mistral warships to Russia? What of France's role in the earlier referendum splitting Mayotte from the Comoros Islands?

  Araud exchanged a few words with those media he answers to while on the stairs, then left. The UK's Mark Lyall Grant spoke longer, but still left. Why didn't Simonovic at least come and answer questions? Perhaps he will, later this week, including on Svoboda.

   It's worth remembering Moscow's anger at who called Ban's tune on Kosovo. What will be different now? After Russia, Ban will head to Kyiv to meet Yatsenyuk and the UN human rights monitors.

  It was at 6:20 am in New York when BBC said that "UN Moscow office confirm that Ban Ki Moon coming to Moscow tomorrow. Will meet Putin and Lavrov."

  But no announcement by Ban's Office of the Spokesperson, which has repeatedly refused to confirm Ban trips even when the country visited has already disclosed it.

  And so the Free UN Coalition for Access wrote to Ban's new spokesperson Stephane Dujarric:

   Forty five minutes later, after a mass e-mail, Dujarric replied:

  But it wasn't a "leaked report" -- BBC said that UN Moscow had CONFIRMED it. We'll have more on this. For now it's worth reviewing Ban Ki-moon's response to Abkhazia and South Ossetia in 2008...

   The day after the Crimea referendum, the US White House announced new sanctions and Russia said Ukraine should adopt a federal constitution.

   Inner City Press asked UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's spokesperson Stephane Dujarric for Ban's or the UN's comment on either, if Ban thinks sanctions should ideally be imposed through the UN and not unilaterally, and if this might lead to a tit for tat.

  Dujarric said Ban's focus is on encouraging the parties to "not add tensions;" on Russia's federal constitution proposal he said the UN is "not going to get into judging every step."  Video here.

  With Serry gone from Crimea and Simonovic called unbalanced by Russia, what is the UN's role? Is it UNrelevant?

   While in Washington, Yatsenyuk said he knows the International Monetary Fund program is "not the sweet candy." Inner City Press covers the IMF and can only say: ask Greece.

  Here is video of the IMF's March 13 briefing, see Minutes 12:05 and 31:12.

  Asked about allowing any referendum in Crimea, Yatsenyuk said the legislature in Kyiv would have to permit it; he said there could be dialogue about increased autonomy from Crimea, on taxes and language rights.

  He was asked about Jihadis going to Crimea and he answered about the Tatars. He bragged that a deputy prime minister in the new government "represents the Jewish community."  But what about Right Sector?

  The US State Department announced for example that the Department of Defense will be giving Meals Ready to Eat or MREs to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

   Over on Capitol Hill, the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee marked-up the "Support for the Sovereignty, Integrity, Democracy, and Economic Stability of Ukraine Act of 2014."

  Absent on jury duty, Senator Marco Rubio had a proposed amendment about the G8 and not invading your neighbor read out; it was agreed to.

  Senator Rand Paul proposed an amendment to remove loan guarantees and the International Monetary Fund from the bill. He said the loans would go to back Russia back and noted that the proposed IMF reforms would raise Russia's power in the IMF from 2.5% to 2.71%

  Senator Bob Menendez replied that the IMF wouldn't give a dime unlesss Ukraine commits to changes. Can you say, austerity? Watch this site.