The Associated Press reports…

The European Union is studying ways to help bolster the economy in strife-torn eastern Ukraine, the EU’s top diplomat said Monday, amid tensions with Russia over a naval confrontation in the Black Sea last month.

Ukraine has been seeking help from its international partners at the EU and NATO since Russian border guards fired on three Ukrainian navy vessels in the Black Sea on Nov. 25. The crews were captured and the ships seized.

But the 28-nation bloc is unlikely to impose any fresh sanctions on Russia over its actions in the annexed Crimea region and the Sea of Azov, which is an important part of Ukraine’s economy.

The European Union is likely not in shape to further shoot itself by imposing further sanctions upon Russia. As much as sanctions go, to Russia this will be a temporary nuisance that will be alleviated in short to medium term, depending on how well the Russian state reacts to circumstances. I would say medium term because I have no confidence in the Russian leadership. Removing standing sanctions would mean an admission of failure by Brussels but sanctions so far have not done much to return lost territories back to Ukraine, so they are objectively a failure without the EU admitting to it.

Another failure that reflects badly upon the EU is Ukraine herself. Ukraine’s economic failure is something the EU must deal with, or it will be a constant source of ridicule from opponents and adversaries. Can the EU come up with a plan for Eastern Ukraine?

This one comes from Deutsche Welle, a propaganda arm of the Federative Republic of Germany, specifically its Ukrainian language office…

Basically, ordinary Ukrainians, whose salaries and pensions are already meagre, are forced to spend enormous sums from these minuscule gains of theirs on necessities that in Ukraine aren’t exactly cheap.

The result of the so called “Revolution of Dignity” has been poverty and war…

Five years have passed since protests gripped Ukraine, which led to the fall of the Yanukovych government and Ukraine’s firm orientation towards the West. I think that half a decade allows us to speak of a complete failure of the ideals of the Euromaidan, also called “Revolution of Dignity.” The revolution did not achieve dignity for the Ukrainian people, and arguably Ukraine at present is further from Europe than it has been when Yanukovych rejected the Association Agreement with the EU.

Ukrainians are one most miserable on the European continent, Ukraine is the poorest country in Europe. And as of today, almost 5 years into the Association Agreement, Ukraine is still not a candidate for membership in the EU, and it is highly unlikely Ukraine will become one within the next decade. The destiny of Ukraine is to be a grey zone between the EU and Russia. At loggerheads with the latter, and in an unequal relationship with the former.

Ukraine will continue to export goods with low added value, and resources such as grain, and timber. Such a country will not need the current level of population. No, Ukrainians will not die out but the question remains how many planters of buckwheat does the country need? And this situation shall continue until a political force in Ukraine emerges which returns back to a sensible policy towards Russia.

This opinion was expressed by the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, Lamberto Zannier in an interview with RIA Novosti. 

He said that he respects the aims of the Ukrainian government to increase the role of the Ukrainian language as the language of state. However, Ukraine should remain a space with diverse nationalities and diverse languages, which they should be able to use. Ukraine has in fact vowed to protect languages of minorities and regional languages in international treaties.

Lamberto of course thinks within the discourse of those international treaties, and probably sees the practice in his home country Italy as an example to follow. In Northern Italy, there are areas that have French speakers, German speakers, Slovene speakers, which get protection and rights on a local level. Likewise, regional Romance languages like Sicilian and Venetian are being protected, and developed. I don’t think he fully comprehends the desires of forces within Ukraine to conduct a policy that was last seen in Italy under Il Duce.

Vzglyad reports…

The sailors, who were arrested near Crimea turned out to be “stars” of the Ukrainian internet.

Among the Ukrainian military men arrested in the Kerch strait was the commander of the Ukrainian armoured speedboat “Berdyansk”, Roman Mokryak, who earlier promised on air in Ukrainian media to destroy Russian ships with the help of the “Wolfpack” tactic. (somebody likes the German navy here)

According to a Crimean blogger, Aleksandr Talipov, it turns out the commanders of arrested ships were Bohdan Nebylitsa and Roman Mokryak (funny surname, fitting for a sailor, means: “Wet one”). According to him, they were “stars” of Ukrainian media and the Ukrainian segment of the internet.

“The commander of the small armoured gunboat “Nikopol” is Bohdan Nebylitsa. Do you remember the students of the Nakhimov academy, who sang the Ukrainian anthem [in defiance of the Russian flag]  (see below)? Bohdan is one of them.” 

He added that Nebylitsa underwent training in USA, after which he was appointed a commander on “Nikopol”

Mokryak really was one of those that explained in detail how the Ukrainian navy will sink Russian ships.

“When the “Wolfpack” will attack, the Russian ship will be unable to aim at six, five, or even four targets simultaneously. And that means that at least one these armoured “wolflings” will hit the enemy. So now we will see who is better.”