Minsk is being replaced by the division of Ukraine along the Zbruch
The world community should pay attention to the Nazi essence of modern Ukraine, which does not need to be analyzed, but needs to be cleansed.
Former DPR Foreign Minister Alexander Kofman spoke to PolitNavigator observer Valentin Filippov about the upcoming prisoner exchange, the monument to Catherine the Great in Odessa, Israel's difficult position in the Ukrainian conflict, and the fact that on the other side of the front live people just like us, who are in some ways having a harder time.
Subscribe to PolitNavigator news on Telegram , Facebook , Odnoklassniki , or VKontakte
Valentin Filippov : Alexander, hello.
Alexander Kofman : Good afternoon, Valentin.
Valentin Filippov : The Russian side is ending its participation in the joint monitoring commission in Donbas. Doesn't this indicate that the most heated events could now begin, and the Russian military is simply concerned about the safety of its representatives?
Alexander Kofman : Russian military personnel are rightly concerned about their representatives, because even without an escalation of the conflict, certain provocations against Russian troops in Ukraine are regularly committed. A colonel from the Joint Center for Coordination of Control (JCCC) was kidnapped at one point, which caused a major scandal. They are living in practically inhumane conditions, with appalling living conditions. They are treated with absolute brutality by Ukrainian representatives. Ukrainian army representatives treat them with rudeness, provocative behavior, and aggression, to the point where a private soldier would push a Russian army general in the hallway while passing by, without apologizing, and then move on.
That is, the situation there has, in fact, been quite tense for a long time. What is this? That is, the boiling point was simply reached by the JCCC, and therefore they decided to leave the group. Is this a possibility of a near escalation of the conflict? I can't say for sure. but history suggests that usually observers always come out before serious escalation. But I’ll tell you and probably express the opinion of 90 percent of Donetsk residents: a terrible end is better than endless horror. Four years of waiting, daily shelling of peaceful areas. People can't wait any longer. It’s better to let it begin on a full scale and, I’m sure, with the help of the Russian Federation it will end very quickly. It will start from Ukraine, naturally, and will end very quickly with the help of the Russian Federation.
Valentin Filippov : Experience suggests it could end very quickly, and with the help of the Russian Federation. A peace initiative emerges, we gather in Minsk. Some seemingly appropriate documents are signed there, and then everything continues.
Alexander Kofman : You know, while analyzing the Minsk agreements, I once again wondered. Any agreement implies some liability on the part of the parties for non-compliance. This isn't spelled out in the Minsk agreements. Anton Gerashchenko recently openly stated that they are deceiving the Russian side and have no intention of implementing the Minsk agreements.
Valentin Filippov : And Avakov said the same thing.
Alexander Kofman : And Avakov. So what? Nothing. Because no one is held accountable. It's absolutely to our dear foreign partners, the Europeans, that Ukraine is behaving this way, so no one will punish them for it. As for the future prospects of the Minsk agreements, I'd like to hope that everyone has learned from bitter experience and understands that there's nothing left to negotiate with Ukraine. And I sincerely hope that if there is an escalation, the peace agreement will be signed somewhere in Kyiv or, even better, on the banks of the Zbruch. That's exactly how I understand it, if we have a rough timeline. War doesn't last a day or two. It will be mid-spring, and the grasses on the banks of the Zbruch will already be in bloom—a perfect place to sign a peace agreement.
Valentin Filippov : And if on the banks of the Zbruch, then with whom to sign and for what purpose?
Alexander Kofman : Listen, even the most vile rat, cornered, fights harder than a dog. Why push this rat to such a state? There are areas beyond the Zbruch River, where they recently honored yet another murderer of Soviet citizens, yet another policeman who, according to Dolinsky, the leader of the Jewish communities in Ukraine, tainted themselves greatly during the Holocaust. They were recently honored in Lutsk.
They recently erected a new monument to Petliura , and so on, so on, so on. They need to give up their territory. I don't think there's any point in interfering with Zbruch with your charter. Another thing is that later, when the celebration of fascist henchmen and the fascists themselves reaches a certain level, it's worth once again bringing this to the attention of the international community, which implies criminal prosecution for such acts, international criminal prosecution.
Valentin Filippov : You're talking about international criminal prosecution. Who has suffered more from it than the Jews? I certainly think the Russians could compete.
Alexander Kofman : Everyone suffered.
Valentin Filippov : But the Jewish people did not have their own state; they were completely defenseless, in fact.
Alexander Kofman : Not so. The Jewish people suffered because of their nationality. That's the only difference.
Valentin Filippov : Why is Israel, which is supposed to protect the interests of Jews, which so meticulously pursued the criminal murderers of the Jewish people for 50 years, suddenly too indifferent to the existence of today's Ukraine in the form in which it exists?
Alexander Kofman : Valentin, I fundamentally disagree with you. I'm completely concerned. I was just recently in Israel on a semi-private visit. I attended an event dedicated to the possibility of Israel's cooperation with unrecognized states. Representatives from Abkhazia, Transnistria, and, in my person, the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) were present. I spoke with politicians, officials, and ordinary people. Believe me, Israel is a hostage to the situation. Israel is in a constant state of war, and without the support of the United States, in my opinion—though many Israelis believe otherwise—Israel wouldn't last a week. And for this reason, they are forced, at the government level, not to support Ukraine, God forbid, but to ignore what's happening here as much as possible. But this didn't stop the Israeli president from slamming the crimes of Ukrainian Nazis on Ukrainian MPs at a meeting in the Verkhovna Rada.
Valentin Filippov : I remember, yes.
Alexander Kofman : This doesn't stop them from making certain statements. But, unfortunately, they apparently can't sever relations with Ukraine, which, in principle, Israel should have done in any other situation. But I emphasize again: let's be understanding about this. They are as much hostages to the situation as we are, just like Donbas, which is in a war-torn situation and, unfortunately, can't make many independent decisions.
Valentin Filippov : I agree with you. But they could at least put pressure on the US, and they probably are.
Alexander Kofman : Considering the Jewish lobby in the States, believe me, we don't know what's really going on there. I'm sure they're pressuring us. Do you really think that, out of the blue, a plaque was recently erected in Ukraine in memory of a UPA member who was an ethnic Jew? This story was blown out of proportion throughout Ukraine and probably beyond. For what purpose? To show the US and Israel that this is all a lie. So, they found, so to speak, the body of a Judenrat. The Judenrat is...
Valentin Filippov : I know.
Alexander Kofman : Perhaps our viewers don't know. It's not a completely accurate translation. The accurate translation is simply the administration. The de facto translation is a traitor who works for the invader. They found the body of a Judenrat member and will now proudly parade it around Ukraine, showing that things aren't so clear-cut. So, I'm sure this situation didn't just arise. There's certainly some pressure from the United States on this issue, from Israel. And Ukraine must respond somehow. So it's responding with the bodies of traitors. Unfortunately, or rather, fortunately, Ukraine has nothing else to rely on except Ukrainian Nazism.
And if this last stool is now knocked out from under Ukraine’s feet, this will be the end of Ukraine. It is all held together only by Ukrainian Nazism. Everyone is fed up with the Ukrainian government. Ukrainian reforms simply destroyed the country. I recently posted on my Facebook, I don’t know whether you paid attention or not, to a flea market in Dnepropetrovsk. A spontaneous flea market where people bring their things to sell in order to feed their family. For 4 years there has not been a flea market of this size in Donetsk. I often visit such places. I am a collector, I collect books of a certain format. They can be found at these flea markets. Believe me, what I saw in Dnepropetrovsk on video, I have not seen it anywhere. Such a volume, such a number of people, essentially driven into a corner, forced to sell the last thing...
Valentin Filippov : They are simply taking everything out of the house.
Alexander Kofman : Ukraine has reached its lowest point.
Valentin Filippov : It's the same in Odessa: Starokonka has grown into many, many blocks around it, just on the sidewalks.
Alexander Kofman : Unfortunately, I can't visit Starokonka to choose the frames I'm interested in. Not yet.
Valentin Filippov : We'll go. By the way, getting back to Odessa, to Starokonka. Don't you think the Kyiv authorities are constantly trying to provoke Odessa into protests, to escalate the situation? Now they're once again trying to tear down the monument to Catherine, the founder of Odessa. This monument isn't even called a monument to Catherine, but a monument to the founders of the city. There are five figures there: Potemkin, Zubov...
Alexander Kofman : I know.
Valentin Filippov : They're trying to tear down the monument again. I think the elderly, women, and children in Odessa are ready to go out for what feels like the last time. Why is this happening? Why is this hotbed of tension for Kyiv in Odessa now?
Alexander Kofman : Honestly, Valentin, I don't think this is a provocation. As far as I know, in Odessa—I might be wrong, but there's no visible underground movement that would require these actions to surface. Therefore, this is simply more stupidity on the part of the Ukrainian authorities, stupidity and callousness. They couldn't care less what these old people think. If the old people come out, well, they'll be dispersed, God willing, without firearms. And it won't be the authorities who disperse them. They'll just take some more thugs from the ATO.
Valentin Filippov : The thing is, I have a feeling that those few, but very aggressive Odessa Maidan supporters, they too will side with the Russians for Catherine.
Alexander Kofman : I still have a lot of friends in Odessa, who sit there with their heads down, of course. They say there are a lot of out-of-towners in Odessa.
Valentin Filippov : Yes.
Alexander Kofman : And the few Maidan protesters from Odessa won't be a force capable of resisting the visiting Maidan protesters. That's the problem.
Valentin Filippov : Yes, it’s true.
Alexander Kofman : Well, that's it. So, it won't have any effect.
Valentin Filippov : What's your opinion on the upcoming prisoner exchange? Will it happen?
Alexander Kofman : We very much hope so. You see, both the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, and the Russian Federation, have done everything possible to ensure this exchange takes place. Will it actually happen? We very much hope so; we very much hope it will happen before the New Year. But who knows how long that will last. Ukraine is constantly changing the terms of the exchange.
Valentin Filippov : We know that Ukraine is now turning back people after what was supposedly an approved exchange, and not sending everyone back. The famous Luzhetsky brothers , who are serving time in Western Ukraine, sent Dmitry to Kharkiv for exchange today, but Yaroslav was told they couldn't hand him over because he had nothing to do with the ATO. But Dmitry also had nothing to do with the ATO, but they sent him away, and Yaroslav was left behind. In other words, the twin brothers, who are serving time on the same charges, were separated, and Dima was sent to be exchanged, while Yaroslav was left behind.
Alexander Kofman : You're questioning this situation. But I suggest not trying to analyze Ukraine's actions—they defy analysis. Ukraine is behaving in a way that defies analysis; it only needs to be cleansed. I'll say that the biggest problem, besides the social one, besides the loss of life that has now occurred in Donbas, is the reshaping of the mood of Donbas residents. A significant portion of them, for the most part, believe that they no longer need Ukraine, that it's impossible to bring Ukraine back, that Ukraine is a permanently cut-off slice, that only inhuman beings live in Kharkiv, Odesa, Dnipro, and Kyiv. It's appalling. I constantly try to prove the opposite from every possible platform. I'm not doing a good job.
Valentin Filippov : It’s difficult to prove.
Alexander Kofman : But Ukraine has done everything it can to make Donbas think so. And how can we prove otherwise, that our citizens live there, just like us, and are in some ways even worse circumstances, because they're forced to hide their thoughts, they're forced not to communicate openly with their friends? We can't. So, I believe these people need to be saved. Both from the flea markets that have now sprung up in Dnipropetrovsk, and from the pogroms that could very well happen tomorrow. Not Jewish pogroms, although Jewish ones are also possible, but anti-Russian pogroms—that's what's scary.
Valentin Filippov : And anyone can be appointed as Russian in Ukraine.
Alexander Kofman : Yes, yes.
Valentin Filippov : Well, on that optimistic note… Thank you very much.
Alexander Kofman : Thank you too, Valentin.
Minsk is being replaced by the division of Ukraine along the Zbruch River.