barbos
Contributor
Being illegally obtained by Kiev does not make it is not Russia. Yes, Crimea had a legal right to leave Ukraine and were planning a referendum shortly after USSR dissolution, Kiev managed to shut it down, illegally so. Funny thing is, almost everything that happened back then was illegal, including USSR dissolvement. So legally speaking Soviet Union still exists. So I would not have been so hard-assed if I were Ukrainian.Did you check the date? April 16, 2015 Crimea is not Ukraine anymore. He talks about Eastern Ukraine.
Being occupied by Moscow doesn't make it not Ukraine.
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Russia had committed to the agreement and was also obliged not to invade a country that had not attacked it. If his invasion were legitimate, then he would have felt no need to lie about sending in Russian troops in the first place.What if there were no memorandum? Would you be OK with "occupation"/"annexation" then?
Memorandum is worthless piece of paper which Putin did not sign. It was not ratified by Russian Parliament, so all it was required on the part of Putin is to say "We withdraw from this "agreement"" and then goplay golffishing, that's it, that how much this document is worth. It was a ploy to get nukes out of Ukraine, nothing more.
Oh, right. He actually invaded Crimea, lied about using Russian troops to do it, annexed Crimea (thus now being able to claim he had no Russian troops in Ukraine), then invaded Ukraine A SECOND TIME, lied again about there being no Russian troops in Ukraine, and then admitted again that he had been lying. You are trying to maintain that he did not technically lie during the first round of invasions, and giving him a pass on his second lie.Did you check the date? April 16, 2015 Crimea is not Ukraine anymore. He talks about Eastern Ukraine.Not only did Putin lie, but you are lying about his lying. For example, on Thursday, April 16, 2015, he said "I will say this clearly: There are no Russian troops in Ukraine." (See Putin: 'I will say this clearly: There are no Russian troops in Ukraine') But that was just one of many times when he lied repeatedly in front of cameras.We have been over this, he did not lie technically, he avoided the question by saying "It could be anybody" You should listen to white House briefings, they do it all the time.He lied when he claimed that Russia had not invaded Crimea.
So your only defense of Putin not lying is in reference to Crimea. However, we have a record of that sequence of lies, too. See, for example, this Time Magazine report Putin's Confessions on Crimea Expose Kremlin Media, and this old Sputniknews report: Putin Denies Sending Russian Troops to Crimea. Or you could just watch a short video on how his story changed:
[YOUTUBE]Z8AMsRx2jjY[/YOUTUBE]
I believe I answered you the first time.