USA accuses Russia of serious nuclear treaty violation, EU looking to increase sanctions, while fighting continues in Donetsk
Signing of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty in 1987
The USA came out and publicly accused Russia of violating part of a 1987 nuclear arms deal:
WASHINGTON — The United States has concluded that Russia violated a landmark arms control treaty by testing a prohibited ground-launched cruise missile, according to senior American officials, a finding that was conveyed by President Obama to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia in a letter on Monday.
It is the most serious allegation of an arms control treaty violation that the Obama administration has leveled against Russia…At the heart of the issue is the 1987 treaty that bans American and Russian ground-launched ballistic or cruise missiles capable of flying 300 to 3,400 miles…
Russia first began testing the cruise missiles as early as 2008, according to American officials, and the Obama administration concluded by the end of 2011 that they were a compliance concern. In May 2013, Rose Gottemoeller, the State Department’s senior arms control official, first raised the possibility of a violation with Russian officials…
enior officials said the president’s most senior advisers unanimously agreed that the test was a serious violation, and the allegation will be made public soon in the State Department’s annual report on international compliance with arms control agreements.
“The United States has determined that the Russian Federation is in violation of its obligations under the I.N.F. treaty not to possess, produce or flight test a ground-launched cruise missile (GLCM) with a range capability of 500 kilometers to 5,500 kilometers or to possess or produce launchers of such missiles,” that report will say…
The Russians have also raised their own allegations, a move that American officials believe is intended to muddy the issue and perhaps give them leverage in any negotiations over compliance. One month after Ms. Gottemoeller raised the American concerns, the Russians responded by pointing to the United States plans to base the Aegis missile system in Romania. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/29/world/europe/us-says-russia-tested-cruise-missile-in-violation-of-treaty.html
Some believe that the 1987 agreement was a major factor in ending the cold war between the USA and the old Soviet Union. One may wonder if part of the reason this was publicly announced yesterday was to add public pressure on European politicians to agree to stronger sanctions against Russia, as EU leaders are supposed to do that today, while fighting continues in eastern Ukraine:
July 29, 2014
(Reuters) – Intense fighting between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine killed dozens of civilians, soldiers and rebels, as Kiev pressed on with an offensive on Tuesday including near the wreckage of Malaysian flight MH17.
Shells hit the centre of Donetsk, a city with a pre-war population of nearly a million people where residents fear they will be trapped on a battlefield between advancing Ukrainian troops and Russian-backed rebels who have vowed to make a stand.
In Brussels, European officials met to discuss imposing the first broad-based sanctions aimed at sectors of the Russian economy, a step that would start a new phase in the biggest confrontation between Russia and the West since the Cold War…
European officials were meeting in Brussels to debate the measures on Tuesday, seeking steps that would hurt Russia without causing too much damage to their own economies.
Meanwhile on the ground, fighting has only intensified since the air crash, with Ukrainian government forces trying to press on with an offensive that saw them push rebels out of their bastion of Slaviansk at the start of the month.
Rebels who retreated from Slaviansk to Donetsk say they will make a stand inside the city. Fighting has also intensified in towns and villages near the border, where the government says it aims to assert control to block rebel reinforcements and arms shipments from Russia. http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/29/us-ukraine-crisis-east-idUSKBN0FY0OX20140729
July 29, 2014
European Union countries reached agreement on Tuesday to impose new economic sanctions against Russia, targeting its oil industry, defense, dual-use goods and sensitive technologies, according to diplomats.
The measures will also shut state-owned Russian banks out of European capital markets.
The decision was reached by EU ambassadors at a meeting in Brussels.
The new sanctions, imposed on Russia over its role in the conflict in Ukraine, will be subject to review after three months, according to one diplomat. http://www.voanews.com/content/eu-set-to-impose-tougher-sanctions-on-russia/1967118.html
The White House said Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin is “losing” the war in Ukraine and that the European Union was set to target Moscow’s economy with new sanctions…http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jul/28/white-house-says-russia-losing-war-ukraine/
The Europeans are hoping that Russia will not push further, while Russia is trying to decide what to do. Russia can decide that it may want to officially and publicly support the separatists in Ukraine and send in its own troops. So far, it has resisted that because of concerns about sanctions, trade, and international relations.
Notice also the following:
Putin’s Strategy Is Complicated by Rebel Setbacks in Ukraine, Sanctions
Pro-Russia Rebels Suffer Setbacks as West Readies Tougher Sanctions; Kremlin Prepares for Deeper International Isolation
July 29, 2014
Moscow appears to be digging in, even as the situation for the pro-Russia rebels in Ukraine deteriorates.
At a hastily called news conference, Igor Girkin, a Russian citizen who is the top defense official in the separatist Donetsk People’s Republic, said his forces had evacuated more than 100 wounded fighters to Russia because “I can’t rule out the total siege of Donetsk from all sides.”…
Although Russia offered modest concessions for international monitoring, it has actually substantially stepped up supplies of weapons to rebels across the border, according to Western officials.
“We expect the European Union to take significant additional steps this week, including in key sectors of the Russian economy,” said Tony Blinken, Mr. Obama’s deputy national security adviser. “In turn, and in full coordination with Europe, the United States will implement additional measures itself.”
The Kremlin has taken steps to prepare Russians for deeper international isolation. On Monday, Mr. Putin gathered top defense-industry officials at his residence to discuss how to replace imported technologies amid “risks of a political nature.”
In a nationally televised speech to security chiefs last week, he warned that while Russia’s nuclear deterrent protects it from military conquest, rivals still seek to undermine the country “in the economic sphere and politically.” Mr. Putin vowed to work to head off any such threats to Russia’s “sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Mr. Putin’s balancing act over the past several months—keeping the pressure on Kiev with covert support for the rebels while avoiding serious economic penalties from the West—had managed to satisfy both the nationalist hard-liners and the business elite within Russia…
Broadening the sanctions “will be in some way a disaster,” economically and politically, for both sides, said one longtime European diplomat. “But we cannot be indifferent. We had to react.”…
“The situation is much more ominous than it was a week ago,” said Thomas Graham, a former White House Russia-policy chief. “Putin is underestimating the West. But are we underestimating how much he will risk in Ukraine?” http://online.wsj.com/articles/russia-digs-in-as-western-pressure-mounts-over-ukraine-1406573577
Many in the West do not realize that Vladimir Putin considers that Ukraine is part of Russia. He has long wanted it to be part of his upcoming Eurasian Union. He believes it was a mistake that Ukraine was even allowed to be a separate state in the old U.S.S.R.
Vladimir Putin considers that allowing Ukraine to be part of the European Union makes it an enemy instead of an ally–that is not acceptable to him. Thus, he wants Ukraine, or at least parts of the eastern Ukraine. He is not going to allow that region to slip away without action. While he has ended up with Crimea, that is likely not enough for him.
In the long-run, those who are descended from the Medes, which includes various ones in Russia, Crimea, and at least parts of the Ukrainian lands, will align together in the future (Jeremiah 51:27-29).
Those called Medes are also shown to destroy the final Babylon according to both Isaiah and Jeremiah:
1 The burden against Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw…
17 “Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them,
Who will not regard silver;
And as for gold, they will not delight in it.
18 Also their bows will dash the young men to pieces,
And they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb;
Their eye will not spare children.
19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms,
The beauty of the Chaldeans’ pride,
Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. (Isaiah 13:1, 17-19)11 Make the arrows bright!
Gather the shields!
The Lord has raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes.
For His plan is against Babylon to destroy it,
Because it is the vengeance of the Lord,
The vengeance for His temple. (Jeremiah 51:11)27 Set up a banner in the land, Blow the trumpet among the nations! Prepare the nations against her, Call the kingdoms together against her: Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. Appoint a general against her; Cause the horses to come up like the bristling locusts. 28 Prepare against her the nations, With the kings of the Medes, Its governors and all its rulers, All the land of his dominion. 29 And the land will tremble and sorrow; For every purpose of the Lord shall be performed against Babylon, To make the land of Babylon a desolation without inhabitant. (Jeremiah 51:27-29)
The fact that there are multiple kings of the Medes indicates that multiple powers involved in this end time confederation represent multiple governments. Perhaps, such as Russia, Belarus, Crimea, etc.
Catholics may find it of interest to note that even among their scholars, it is taught that the “Babylon” of Jeremiah 51:11 is referring to a European power: “the Roman Empire” (Kurz W. What Does the Bible Say About End Time? A Catholic View. Nihil Obstat: Hilarion Kistner, Imprimatur: +Carl Moeddel, July 19, 2004. Servant Books, 2004, pp. 48-49). The European Union is an attempt to revive a version of the old Roman empire.
Russia will remember the sanctions and other difficulties the West imposes.
Some items of possibly related interest may include:
Russia and Ukraine: Origins and Prophesied Future Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? You can also watch the short video Ukraine in Prophecy?
Russia in the Bible and in Prophecy Is Russia mentioned in the Bible? It it is where is it? Is there any evidence of a people moving to the land that the Russians now occupy? What do Catholic and other prophecies say about Russia? What does the Bible teach? How are Protestants often in error on this? Is there more in biblical prophecy for Russia than war? Does God have a plan to save Russia and her allies? Does Russia have a history involving Sabbath keepers? Does scripture tie Russia in with Armageddon? Will Russia help defeat the end time Babylonian power? What did the Apostle John, and the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Daniel, write about Russia? This is a sermon-length video.
Ezekiel 38: For Russia & Iran in Our Day? Is Ezekiel 38 about to be fufilled? A related video is available titled Ezekiel 38: For Russia, Ukraine, & Iran Now?
Bible News Prophecy July-Sept. 2014: The Coming Eurasian Union Here is the latest magazine from the Continuing Church of God. The cover of which shows Vladimir Putin and features an article about the coming Eurasian Union.
Hillary Clinton in Prophecy Prophecy, Hillary Clinton? Are there prophecies that Hillary Clinton may fulfill? Are there any prophecies that she has already helped fulfill? Could Hillary Clinton be apocalyptic? Could Hillary Clinton be the final Antichrist?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2014, 2015, or 2016? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede comenzar la Gran Tribulación en 2013 o 2014? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? You can also see the English language sermon video: The Great Tribulation from the Mount of Olives.
The ‘Peace Deal’ of Daniel 9:27 This prophecy could give up to 3 1/2 years advance notice of the coming Great Tribulation. Will most ignore or misunderstand its fulfillment? Here is a link to a related sermon video Daniel 9:27 and the Start of the Great Tribulation.
Blood Moons and Prophecy There are four ‘blood moons’ expected in 2014 and 2015. Do they signal the Day of the Lord or the return of Jesus Christ? A related YouTube video is also available: Blood Moons, Prophecy, 2014, and 2015.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God was the Emphasis of Jesus and the Early Church Did you know that? Do you even know what the gospel of the kingdom is all about? You can also see a YouTube video sermon The Gospel of the Kingdom.
Just What Do You Mean the Kingdom of God? A booklet that was written by Herbert Armstrong answers questions about the Kingdom.
Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations? Some claim that these passages refer to a gathering of 10 currently existing nations together, while one group teaches that this is referring to 11 nations getting together. Is that what Revelation 17:12-13 refers to? The ramifications of misunderstanding this are enormous.
World War III: Steps in Progress Are there surprising actions going on now that are leading to WWIII? Might a nuclear attack be expected? Does the Bible promise protection to all or only some Christians? How can you be part of those that will be protected? A related video would be Is World War III About to Begin? Can You Escape?
Wars, rumors of wars, and the Apocalypse Jesus foretold a time before the end where there would be wars and rumors of wars. The Apocalypse (the Book of Revelation) warns of the red horseman of war. Now, even secular writers, like Larry Edelson, are worried that wars and rumors of war are the most menacing problem that now haunts the earth? Are they right? What is the solution? This is a sermonette-length video.
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?
The Eurasian Union, the Kings of the East, and Bible Prophecy Is there a Eurasian union that will be formed? Is one being formed right now? Are any leaders working on that in the 21st century? Does the Bible teach that there will be a Eurasian union? If some type of Eurasian union is formed, who might it benefit and who will it destroy? A related video would be Is The Eurasian Union Rising?
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here is a link to a video titled: The Future King of the North.
Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States-Second Edition for Second Obama Term This is a 160 page book for people truly interested in prophecies related to Barack Obama and the United States, including learning about many that have already been fulfilled (which the book documents in detail) and those that will be fulfilled in the future. It also has a chapter about a Republican choice. This book is available to order at www.barackobamaprophecy.com. The physical book can also be purchased at Amazon from the following link: Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States: Is Barack Obama Fulfilling Biblical, Islamic Catholic, Kenyan, and other America-Related Prophecies? What About Republican Leaders? Second Edition for Second Obama Term.
Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States-Second Term-Amazon Kindle edition. This electronic version is available for only US$2.99. And you do not need an actual Kindle device to read it. Why? Amazon will allow you to download it to almost any device: Please click HERE to download one of Amazon s Free Reader Apps. After you go to for your free Kindle reader and then go to Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States-Second Term-Amazon Kindle edition.
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