Video Link

Stephen Cohen criticized the US government on Monday for its unwavering support of the Kiev government. Appearing on Democracy Now!, Cohen addressed this weekend’s hastily convened referendum on self-rule in Eastern Ukraine, calling it “no more or less legal than the government in Kiev,” which seized power in February. Cohen condemned the US response to attacks by Ukrainian troops in the Eastern cities of Mariupol and Odessa, where dozens of pro-Russian protesters were killed in a fire two weeks ago. “What did the US government say?” Cohen asked, “Did it say ‘we regret the loss of life?’ Did it say, ‘there should be an investigation?’ No. It said, ‘Kiev has the right to restore law and order.’” If a war crime was committed in Eastern Ukraine, warns Cohen, “we applauded it.”
—Sam Adler-Bell