Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Russia - Final Countdown to War ?

Any description of the situation suggests that a Russian attack on Ukraine within the very next days is quite within the bounds of probability. I therefore ventured to compile a summary of all the dangerous facts which have emerged within the last few days.

A group of pro-democracy hackers calling themselves “Cyber Partisans” said Monday they had infiltrated the Belarusian rail network in an effort to “disrupt” the movement of Russian troops into the country as tensions over a potential renewed invasion of Ukraine grow.


The Belarusian Defense Ministry said Monday that Russian troops were already arriving in the Kremlin-aligned country, which borders Ukraine and Russia, ahead of a February training operation. That exercise has raised fears in the West that it would place Russian troops and equipment along Ukraine’s northern border, near the capital, Kyiv, further encircling the country. [Washington Post, January 25, 2022]

The United States has heightened the readiness of some 8,500 U.S. troops amid tensions between Russia and NATO over a potential invasion of Ukraine, but no decisions have been made yet to deploy them. [US media on January 25, 2022]


[腾讯网2022年01月25日]

根据媒体报道,俄罗斯驻华大使杰尼索夫在1月25日的记者会上表示,俄罗斯与北约之间的谈判不会谈到中国,但俄罗斯与中国之间的定期磋商一直在进行,中俄两国在这个问题上已经达成了一致,中国理解俄罗斯在美俄安全谈判中的立场,即北约不能允许乌克兰加入,必须停止东扩。

According to media reports, Russia's ambassador to China, Denisov, said at a press conference on January 25 that the negotiations between Russia and NATO will not talk about China, but regular consultations between Russia and China have been going on. The two countries have reached an agreement on this issue, and China understands Russia's position in the US-Russian security negotiations that NATO cannot allow Ukraine to join and must stop its eastward expansion.




The following report and evaluation has been compiled by a group of Chinese netizens interested in military affairs. In their article they are discussing the probability of different Russian advances on Ukraine's territory. The article has been marked as "individual opinion". [新浪军事2022年01月25日 - military news from mainland China]

1月17日,一些来自俄罗斯远东地区的部队开始抵达白俄罗斯,表面上是为了参加定于2月举行的军事演习。俄罗斯表示,它还将派遣12架战斗机和2套S-400防空系统。如果从北部越过白俄罗斯与乌克兰边境发动进攻,将使俄军能够从西部逼近乌克兰首都并包围它。

On January 17, some troops from Russia's Far East began arriving in Belarus, ostensibly to take part in military exercises scheduled for February. Russia said it would also send 12 fighter jets and two S-400 air defense systems. An offensive from the north across the Belarus-Ukrainian border would allow Russian forces to approach the Ukrainian capital from the west and surround it.

西方国家正在做好最坏的准备。1月17日,英国开始向乌克兰空运数千枚反坦克导弹。几天前,三艘俄罗斯登陆舰驶过波罗的海,但目的地不详。同一天,乌克兰遭到网络攻击,这些攻击破坏了乌克兰政府网站,并攻击了官方的计算机。与此同时美国表示,它掌握的情报显示,俄罗斯正计划对其在乌克兰东部采取军事行动。

Western countries are preparing for the worst. On January 17, Britain began airlifting thousands of anti-tank missiles to Ukraine. A few days ago, three Russian landing ships sailed through the Baltic Sea with unknown destinations. On the same day, Ukraine was hit by cyberattacks that took down Ukrainian government websites and attacked official computers. The United States, meanwhile, said it had intelligence showing that Russia was planning military action against it in eastern Ukraine.

然而,战争总是以不可预测的方式展开的。自第二次世界大战后,俄罗斯还从未进行过大规模的步兵、装甲部队和空中力量的大规模进攻。而受到攻击的国家可能会轻易的四分五裂,也可能会坚持下来。俄罗斯国际事务委员会专家伊万·蒂莫菲耶夫警告称,长期而缓慢的军事对抗,将让俄罗斯自身陷入不稳定的局面。

However, wars always unfold in unpredictable ways. Since World War II, Russia has not conducted a large-scale offensive of infantry, armor and air power. An attacked country may easily fall apart, or it may persevere. Ivan Timofeev, an expert at the Russian Council of International Affairs, warned that a prolonged and slow military confrontation would destabilize Russia itself.


Monday, January 24, 2022

The US Administration As Seen From China

The Biden administration in its struggle to handle a difficult competition with Russia and China, as seen from inside China. Quotations taken from a popular news feed:


[網易 Easy Net, Chinese handy news on January 22, 2022]

俄总参谋长格拉西莫夫公开表示: 你们敢动手,我就敢扔核弹

Gerassimow, chief of the Russian General Staff, openly stated:
If you dare to do anything, I will dare to drop a nuclear bomb.


美国现任总统拜登上台以来,最大的心愿之一大概就是想要离间中国和俄罗斯之间密切的外交协作了。

毕竟以美国今天只能靠印钞机发军费的方式、维持在全球同时和中国、俄罗斯的战略对峙,走上苏联老路的可能性越来越大。

俄罗斯如果倒向西方,确实可以在一夜之间改变中美竞争有利于中国的势头,这是一个能让拜登和美国人三天三夜都不用醒来的美梦。

为了达到这个目的,拜登在6月17日飞往瑞士日内瓦,和俄罗斯总统普京密谈4个小时,谋求缓和美俄之间的紧张局势。
Since the current US President Joe Biden took office, one of his biggest wishes has probably been to separate the close diplomatic cooperation between China and Russia.

After all, in the way that the United States can only rely on the printing press to pay military funds today, and maintains a strategic confrontation with China and Russia at the same time in the world, it is more and more likely to follow the old path of the Soviet Union.

If Russia turns to the West, it can indeed change the momentum of Sino-US competition, [up to now] benefitting China, overnight and which is a dream that will allow Biden and Americans not to wake up for three days and three nights.


To that end, Biden flew to Geneva, Switzerland, on June 17 to talk in secret with Russian President Vladimir Putin for four hours to ease tensions between the United States and Russia.


Saturday, January 22, 2022

US Weapons for Ukraine - Update

This is an update of my previous blog on the delivery of US weapons to Ukraine.

Published today, January 22, another Chinese language article from mainland China came with further news of US war preparations in the frame of the Ukraine conflict. [腾讯网2022年01月22日]

美国准备为乌克兰战争做准备,无人机从阿联酋跑到乌克兰侦察

The United States prepares Ukraine for war, and drones run
from the United Arab Emirates to Ukraine for reconnaissance.

最新航空消息,美国的RQ-4全球鹰挺能跑从阿联酋跑到乌克兰侦察去了,正在飞翔绕过了土耳其。这说明美国准备为乌克兰战争做准备。

According to the latest aviation news, the American RQ-4 Global Hawk was able to run from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Ukraine for reconnaissance and was flying around Turkey. This shows that the United States is ready to prepare for the war in Ukraine.

On January 22 the Ministry of the Interior of the United Arab Emirates announced that the flying of drones and light sports aircraft will be banned from now on. Agencies that need to use drones for advertising or commercial shooting must obtain a flight permit. The Interior Ministry said there had been a recent incident of drone abuse and the ban had been issued to ensure the safety of people's lives and property. It is unknown, if the flight ban is related to the reported deployment of a US made Global Hawk drone leaving the UAE for Ukraine. [环球网2022年01月23日]

In order to assure further assets for military help to Ukraine, US legislators brought about a legal construction.

同时,美国参议员起草了一项法案,允许美国总统向乌克兰提供租借武器。这份名为《乌克兰民主防务法》的文件建议向乌克兰提供军事装备,"以保护弱势乌克兰免受俄罗斯军事入侵"。

根据现行法律,美国总统有权允许向"美国伙伴和盟国"提供和租赁武器。此外,美国2022年国防预算为乌克兰提供了3亿美元,其中2.25亿美元用于训练和装备,7500万美元用于训练和装备致命武器。但是,正如该法案的起草者所认为的,这还不够。

Meanwhile, U.S. senators have drafted a bill that would allow the U.S. president to provide Ukraine with Lend-Lease weapons. The document, called the Law on Democratic Defense of Ukraine, recommends providing Ukraine with military equipment "to protect vulnerable Ukraine from Russian military aggression."

Under current law, the President of the United States has the authority to permit the supply and lease of weapons to "American partners and allies." In addition, the U.S. defense budget for 2022 provides Ukraine with $300 million, including $225 million for training and equipment and $75 million for training and equipping lethal weapons. But, as the bill's drafters argue, that's not enough.



Russia China Iran - Joint Navy Exercises

Between January 18 and 20, Russia, China and Iran held joint navy exercises. This comes at a time when antagonisms between these three nations on one side and the USA on the other side are culminating.

Here is some Chinese video which was launched yesterday, January 21. It is intended to answer US ambitions on the seven seas and offers increased security that should be allegedly provided by the Russians and their partners. Pictures are showing navy units operating in the Gulf of Oman. Other joint operations will take place in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. By the way, the three nations already held a similar exercise in 2021.

中俄伊三国举行联合军演, 这是美国自找的

" China, Russia, and Iran held joint military exercises,
which the United States asked for itself. "


中俄伊三国联合军演,将展示全球正义的强大力量

The China-Russia-Iran joint military exercise will
demonstrate the mighty power of global justice.


划重点:石油
连续发生多起针对国际商船的袭击

The Key is Oil:
There have been a number of consecutive attacks against international merchant ships.

Sequence of Video Subtitles:

阿曼湾是非常敏感的战略航道…… 它与霍尔木兹海峡相连…… 全球约五分之一的石油…… 通过阿曼湾和霍尔木兹海峡运输……

去年5月和6月…… 连续发生多起针对国际商船的袭击…… 美军是周边海域航运的主要威胁…… 他们多次强行扣押伊朗船只……

The Gulf of Oman is a very sensitive strategic waterway... It is connected to the Strait of Hormuz... About one-fifth of the world's oil... Is being shipped through the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz...

Last May and June... There have been multiple attacks on international merchant ships in a row... The U.S. military is a major threat to shipping in the surrounding waters... They have repeatedly forcibly seized Iranian vessels……


A blogspot of mine related to the same matter: US Trading Confiscated Iranian Oil.

Here is a link to the original video.

.......................


Another brandnew video published today, January 22, is showing a military operation involving the Russian navy and which took place in the Gulf of Oman during the joint exercises.


Here is a link to the original site.

........................


敌人的敌人就是朋友,中俄伊三国联合军演是美国一手造成

The enemy of the enemy is a friend, and the
Sino-Russian-Iranian joint military exercise
was caused by the United States.


Friday, January 21, 2022

US Weapons for Ukraine

Latest news on the development in Ukraine.
While US foreign secretary Blinken should be sitting around the negotiating table together with his Russian counterpart Lavrov, the Chinese newspaper 《星洲》 reported about an ongoing delivery of US weapons to Ukraine by proxy.

The Chinese news from 《星洲》 are appearing in Malaysia and are independent from Beijing. The quoted article was published today, January 21.


美同意波罗的海三国向乌克兰转交美制武器

The United States agreed to the transfer of U.S.-made
weapons to Ukraine by the three Baltic states.


美国国务院已同意拉脱维亚、立陶宛和爱沙尼亚将美制导弹等武器 运交乌克兰。立陶宛防长周四称,该国希望能威慑“侵略者”俄罗斯。

The U.S. State Department has agreed to Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia to deliver U.S.-made missiles and other weapons to Ukraine. Lithuania's defense minister said on Thursday that the country hoped to deter "aggressor" Russia.

美国总统拜登政府自去年以来已批准向乌克兰提供6.5亿美元的武器, 其中于上月批准了2亿美元的额外防御性安全援助。

U.S. President Joe Biden's administration has approved $650 million in weapons to Ukraine since last year, including $200 million in defensive security assistance that was approved at the beginning of this month.

《星洲》—马来西亚—2022年01月21日


Thursday, January 20, 2022

Ukraine - Torn between Russia and the West

Yesterday, I discovered a Chinese language article published on the same day and which sheds a light on the missing acceptance of Russian supremacy over the peoples and cultures in the western part of the Soviet Union after its foundation in 1917. According to that article, this led to an initial fraternization of these peoples with German troops after their invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941.

While the German Federal Republic, founded in 1949, finally refrained from militarism and gave way to economic partnership and a peaceful competition of political systems, Russia feels its influence on Ukraine weaken in front of Western economic and political temptations, namely an EU and NATO membership which recently appeared on the Ukrainian horizon like a mirage. This is necessarily raising fears in Moscow to lose its last grip on a former satellite and which once made up for an indispensable part of the old Russian Empire and the Soviet Union.

Here are some quotations from that remarkable Chinese evaluation of a limited popular support for German invaders in World War II. It is still a proof that unbearable suppression is steadily raising resistance against any kind of 'Big Brother' and might finally be leading to an open revolt against his system.

... , after the establishment of the Soviet Union, due to the policy of terror for many years, the Russian culture was decisive, and other cultures, such as Ukrainian culture and language, were even illegal, which also aroused their dissatisfaction with the Soviet authorities. These peoples were not particularly willing to fight for the Soviet regime, and even anti-Soviet groups in the Baltic countries had already occupied some cities before the Germans arrived. Therefore, when the Soviet-German war broke out, many fighters and commanders in the Russian, Eastern Ukrainian and Eastern Belarusian troops did not show their due combat effectiveness and easily surrendered.

... ,苏联成立后,由于多年实行恐怖政策,以俄罗斯文化为正统,其他文化,比如乌克兰文化和语言甚至被定为非法,这也激起了他们对苏联当局的不满。这些民族并不是特别愿意为苏维埃政权而战斗,甚至波罗的海沿岸各国的反苏组织在德军还没有到来之前,就已经占领了一些城市。因此,在苏德战争爆发时,俄罗斯、东乌克兰和东白俄罗斯部队中的许多战士和指挥员也没有表现出应有的战斗力,轻易就缴械投降了。


A Belarusian officer once said to the Russian Liberation Army, which aptly reflected the mentality of these Soviets at the time: "We have no choice at all to do this or that. If the Germans win, they will wipe us all out. If the Soviets win, they will wipe out our civilization and assimilate our nation... There is no third option."

However, as the German army expropriated the occupied areas, it aroused the dissatisfaction of the local people, which intensified the contradiction. The local people realized the nature of the German invaders, and some people took up arms and resisted the German army.

白俄罗斯一个士官曾对俄罗斯解放军说过的一句话,恰如其分反映了当时这些苏联人的心态,他说:“我们根本没有这样做或那样做的选择。如果德国人获胜,他们就会把我们全部消灭,如果苏联人获胜,他们就会消灭我们的文明并使我们的民族同化……没有第三种选择。”

不过随着德军对占领区横征暴敛,激起了当地人们的不满,这才激化了矛盾,当地人才认识到德军侵略者的本质,有些人才拿起武器,反抗德军。


Tuesday, January 18, 2022

5G may cause system failure in aircraft navigation.
US and Japanese airlines already cancelled flights.

Two major US cellphone carriers, AT&T and Verizon, agreed Tuesday afternoon to delay the planned roll-out of some new 5G wireless service that was intended to go into full operation tomorrow, Wednesday 19.

This comes after many US airlines like American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Southwest Airlines raised alarms about potential interference with important systems on planes. In a letter to the White House, airline CEOs asked the government for “immediate intervention,” warning that the deployment of 5G could result in massive flight disruptions nationwide.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is concerned about a narrow range of frequencies included in the package of radio frequencies used for 5G services. These frequencies should provide higher data speeds and make cellphones more reliable. But airline CEOs worry that cellphone towers on the ground emitting a 5G signal could interfere with an airplane’s altimeter.

Other than some European 5G mobile communications standard, the US based 5G standard is using a frequency above 3,7 Gigahertz which is dangerously near the operation frequency of radar altimeters (4,2 - 4,4 Gigahertz), needed for aircraft approach navigation at low altitude and low visibility.

All Nippon Airways (ANA) and Japan Airlines (JAL) announced on the evening of the 18th that they had cancelled some flights between Japan and the United States due to the possible impact of the 5G signal in the United States. The Federal Aviation Administration and several airlines have previously warned that 5G airwaves could cause malfunctions in aircraft instruments and systems.

The Japanese press reported that two Japanese airlines flying Boeing 777s on the America Line will cancel flights that cannot be changed to other models. All Nippon Airways pointed out that it learned from Boeing on the 18th that due to the influence of 5G radio waves, the system that controls the posture of the 777 aircraft may malfunction when it is flying at low altitudes.

5G恐致系统故障 全日空和日航取消部分飞美航班

According to ANA, U.S. aviation authorities pointed out in December that 5G airwaves could affect the plane's altimeter, and on Jan. 13 revealed the airports that might be affected. Boeing notified all airlines operating its 777s to limit operations because it could affect airframe control as the planes land. JAL also canceled some flights due to this impact.

Warnings from Boeing were accompanied by similar declarations from Airbus Industries.


The Arabic air carrier Emirates grounded its flights bound for North America.


Sunday, January 09, 2022

Kazakhstan Uprise Endangering
Russian and Chinese Interests

Russian sources express some second thoughts about the origin of widespread protests against Kazakhstan's autocratic leadership and which rather unexpectedly broke out some days ago.

There is no doubt that such protests are originally based on the fragility of Kazakhstan's economy, even though their violence seems to be unusual.

[“失落的卫星国”哈萨克斯坦:难以“独立行走”的通胀与坚戈 In the "Lost Satellite Nation" Kazakhstan: Inflation and [Currency] Tenge are Struggling to "Walk Independently"]



In the current global energy crisis, Kazakhstan, a net oil exporter, is struggling with rising prices and domestic fuel supplies. Kazakhstan is highly dependent on oil exports but lacks the pricing power of OPEC members, so its inflation and exchange rate are affected by the oil market and its main trading partner, the Russian currency ruble. In fact, it is a sharp increase in energy prices that finally blew the fuse of civil unrest in Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan And Western Interests

Russian experts believe that 'Western black hands' are behind the massive protests in Kazakhstan. Pictures are being distributed that should prove the distribution of guns among protesters. Russian media are pointing at US interests in the region and suspect Western NGOs, namely 'Kazakhstan Democratic Choice' and 'Wake Up, Kazakhstan', for trying to take the lead in local protests in the capital Almaty.

哈萨克斯坦不明人员发放枪支【河青新闻网】 Firearms were distributed by unknown persons in Kazakhstan [Chinese source]

Furthermore, there could be much money involved, as US authorities are being scolded for having allegedly allocated more than 1.5 million US dollars to the 'rights and freedoms protection' work of Kazakh citizens last year.

[俄专家认为哈萨克斯坦大规模抗议背后有西方黑手 Russian experts believe that there are Western black hands behind the mass protests in Kazakhstan]

After a 4-day outage, the mobile phone signal in Kazakhstan's largest city has been restored today while bitcoin mining activities in Kazakhstan have been seriously affected. They disappeared by 12% due to the repeated interruption of the Internet in Kazakhstan during the riots. Data are showing that Kazakhstan will become the second largest bitcoin mining center in the world after the United States in 2021.

[中断4天,哈萨克斯坦最大城市手机信号恢复了!全国断网,比特币全球算力消失12%]

Russia's Peace-Keeping Mission

In the frame of their peace-keeping mission requested by Kazakhstan's leader Tokayev, Russia sent about 2,500 Russian airborne troops and related equipment. It is reported that 10 Il-76 large transport aircraft and 3 An-124 strategic transport aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces participated in the troop transport mission. Judging from the models used, the Russian airborne troops obviously carried a lot of heavy equipment. A video released by Russian state TV also showed that the Russian military transport plane to Kazakhstan was equipped with BMD-3 airborne combat vehicles and BTR-82A wheeled vehicles. Infantry fighting vehicles and "Tiger" high-mobility armored vehicles, etc.

As to the peace-keeping troops, the Russian army sent the 45th Special Brigade of the Airborne Forces, the Ivanovo Airborne Forces and the famous Ulyanovsk Airborne Forces. The airborne troops are the elite troops in the Russian army, and their personnel treatment, training level and equipment level are very good.

[2500名俄军到哈平叛 "战斗民族"怎么打? 2500 Russian troops to Kazakhstan to put down the rebellion. How to fight the "fighting nation"?]



The deployment of these troops, however would certainly weaken Russia's general combat-readiness when it came to a military showdown between Russia and Ukraine, another hotspot where Russian and US interests are colliding.

China's Central Asian Strategy Affected

Russian sources have been quoted by Chinese media that are warning Chinese expatriates to take effective safety precautions and inform China's consulate and embassy in case of an urgency. China has much interest in a steady development of Kazakhstan which it sees as an important factor in its policy of 'One Road - One Belt'. That policy is intended to create a 'New Silk Road' between China and Eastern Europe via Kazakhstan and expand economic ties in the region while simultaneously developing new markets for Chinese goods.


The Kashagan oil field in the Caspian Sea and
which is partly owned by Chinese share holders.
中企拥有股份的卡沙甘油田在哈萨克斯坦的里海


Sunday, January 02, 2022

Ukraine Conflict - The Ideology of War

The State of Conflict
[Updates included]

Tens of thousands of Russian troops have gathered at the Ukrainian border, raising worries amongst the U.S. and its allies of a possible invasion. Russia has said it built up its military to prevent NATO expansion towards its borders and to defend Russian ethnic nationals living in the war-torn east Ukrainian region of Donbas.

US President Biden has said that Russia will have "a heavy price to pay" if it invades Ukraine.

Biden made his comment after reporters asked about his latest phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on December 30. During the 50-minute call, the two presidents mostly discussed de-escalation in Ukraine and U.S.-Russia diplomatic relations heading into European talks that will begin in mid-January.

Following the Biden-Putin call, a group of 24 former U.S. national security officials and Russia experts — a group that includes several officials who served in the Obama, George W. Bush and Clinton’s administrations — released a statement calling on Biden to immediately, and publicly, lay out the penalties Russia would face if Putin were to move forward with military action.

“We believe the United States should, in closest consultation with its NATO allies and with Ukraine, take immediate steps to affect the Kremlin’s cost-benefit calculations before the Russian leadership opts for further military escalation,” the group wrote. “Such a response would include a package of major and painful sanctions that would be applied immediately if Russia assaults Ukraine. Ideally, the outline of these sanctions would be communicated now to Moscow, so that the Kremlin has a clear understanding of the magnitude of the economic hit it will face.”

The Russians for their part continue to make the case that they are facing an existential threat with Ukraine.

UPDATE 04-01-2022
Russian Cyber Attacks

Ukraine has been the target of Russia’s most brazen cyber operations in recent years. Such attacks would surely accompany any land invasion launched by the roughly 175,000 Russian troops currently massed on the Ukraine border.

Cybersecurity experts are already noting an uptick in Russian cyber intrusions into Ukrainian government and civilian computer networks that could lay the groundwork for a major cyberattack. [Washington Post]

I recently learned about a cyber attack which caused a shutdown of local electricity in Ukraine. The shutdown was stopped by the aggressor only shortly before essential and long-lasting damage to the regional water supply could be caused by the freezing of idle pumping systems during the cold season. [German TV documentation]




Some Historic and Ethnic Facts
Serving Russia's War Readiness


Historic Links Between Moscow and Kiev

In the 11th century, a prince called Yaroslav the Wise united principalities lying between the Baltic and Black seas, codifying laws and forming the first political state of the eastern Slavs. Both Russia and Ukraine claim him as a forefather.

The kingdom of Yaroslav became a central part of the Russian empire during later centuries, and the axis Moscow-Kiev even served as the main line of supply for the Russian-Japanese War at the beginning of the 20th century where Russia blew most of its military and financial reserves in a colonial adventure that should provide access to coal, iron and unexpensive labour in China's eastern province of Manchuria, a region that was contested at the time between two colonial powers, Russia and Japan.

Further information is available from a brandnew Chinese article:
* 乌克兰的历史 *

The above quoted source from China and less comprehensive sources from the West are hinting at the role of national identity that is firing the Ukraine Conflict.

Ethnic Russians in Eastern Ukraine

As to the distribution of ethnic Russians in contested areas of Eastern Ukraine, there is an article I once published in this blog in order to prove the presence of a vast community of Russians in the Donbas region after World War II:
* Russlands Historische Wurzeln am Rand der Ukraine *
This article has been written in German as it refers to Russian literature, translated into German and distributed in occupied Eastern Germany after the end of World War II. At that time, nothing indicated that the Donbas region would become an object of dispute between independent states.

A related English language article on the 2014 referendum in the frame of Russia's occupation of Crimea can be found here:
* Ukraine - Crimean Referendum *

European Dreams of Love
Peace and Open Markets


Now that the Ukraine Conflict has become increasingly complicated and dangerous, the European Union needs to decide whether to leave it to US President Biden to negotiate a deal with Russia's Putin regarding an publicly requested - though hypothetic - NATO membership of Ukraine, or get involved to find new ways of further cooperation between the EU and Ukraine that could be tolerated by Putin. However, there is not much choice left. Wouldn't it be therefore more favourable to abandon the fundamental idea of making Ukraine an affiliate to the EU which could only lead to a direct confrontation with Russia. In case of an armed conflict which seems to become more and more real, this could freeze all relations with Russia for years.

To emphasize 'value based policies' in foreign politics might not be the best choice at the moment. Close economic relationship could be achieved sooner or later anyway, however not in opposition with existing treaties signed between Ukraine and Russia.

As I tried to show, both countries enjoy a long common history that was, as well, the history of the Russian Empire smashed in the revolution of 1917. When the subsequently founded Soviet Union failed in the 1980ies, Ukraine became independent, however not completely separated from Russia. There are still many links, economic and ethnic ones, which have their impact on Russian-Ukrainian coexistence. No wonder that Russia's leader looks with great suspicion at the expansion of the European Union, even though he might be aware that such expansion can include an unhealthy aspect for the EU itself.

Memories of the 'Great War of the Fatherland' are still present, especially in the disputed area of Donbas and Crimea. This is what should not be forgotten. When Russian troops finally prevailed over German invaders in the battle of nearby Stalingrad at the end of 1942, it was the result of different reasons and developments, and it was not the logical consequence of Russian supremacy.

And we don't want to see the Euro currency end like the German occupation forces' Karbowanez currency for Ukraine in 1942.




Well, the 20 Euro banknote for use in Ukraine is a fake ! But I hope I got it look real.
Or do you really wish to make Ukraine a part of the European Union and 'Euroland' ?




Sunday, December 12, 2021

Red Alert - Dangers of the Internet

Yesterday, December 11, 2021, German cyber security authority BSI launched a RED ALERT regarding the use of a certain Java based logging utility.

On December 9, 2021, a zero-day arbitrary code execution vulnerability in Log4j 2 was reported and given the descriptor "Log4Shell". It has been characterized as "the single biggest, most critical vulnerability of the last decade".



Apache Log4j is a Java-based logging utility originally written by Ceki Gülcü. It is part of the Apache Logging Services, a project of the Apache Software Foundation. Log4j is one of several Java logging frameworks.

The critical security gap caused by Log4j is now being compared with critical gaps like Shellshock or Heartbleed that already endangered hundreds of million computer systems on the internet in 2014.

Last Update (Monday, December 13):
After the BSI warning had been upgraded, cyber security units of leading German enterprises reacted immediately. VW, Lufthansa, Deutsche Telecom and Hapag-Lloyd Shipping raised their levels of security measures and watched out for possible cyber attacks. [German Press]


…..........................................................................................................................

Apart from vulnerabilities of software structures, there are increasing dangers from the outside that are using such vulnerabilities to compromise business and private data in a most extensive way.

An Israeli spyware named Pegasus has become the most dangerous example of an aggressive software that is able to target selected Android and iOS smartphones to extract and download almost any relevant data which government authorities might be interested in. Originally written to enable the tracking of criminals and terrorists, this highly expensive software is only offered to governmental clients who have to sign a document that is intended to restrict the use of Pegasus spyware to the investigation of crime and terrorism.

However, human rights organizations are providing evidence that Pegasus has been used as well to target journalists and system critics in different countries. Both Ghana and Saudi Arabia are mentioned by international media in a relation with NSO's Pegasus. In the case of Saudi Arabia, the murder of system critic Jamal Khashoggi on the premises of Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul in October 2018 is still present in the memory of many people who suspect the Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman as the initiator of that crime.

Under the Biden administration, the United States Commerce Department has now blacklisted NSO, the maker of Israeli spyware Pegasus, for maliciously targetting journalists.



According to US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, "The United States is committed to aggressively using export controls to hold companies accountable that develop, traffic, or use technologies to conduct malicious activities that threaten the cybersecurity of members of civil society, dissidents, government officials, and organisations here and abroad."

This looks very much different from earlier US security practice – even under the Obama administration - when National Security Agency NSA was sucpected of eavesdropping the smartphone of German chancellor Angela Merkel.

[Video Link: Pegasus snooping: US blacklists spyware
maker NSO Group for maliciously targetting journalists]


It seems that global distribution of high-end spyware has run out of control. Since private business took over, Israeli authorities have come under pressure for the first time to look into the proceedings of NSO on their own territory. And it should be noted that Israel, as well, is being suspected of targeting Palestinian politicians with Pegasus

................................................................................................................................

Indeed, it is from Israel that subversive software originally started. I remember having learned the expression "information mining" from an Israeli company that was offering a special software on the internet for those who were still disappointed by a too low performance of search engines in the first years of the internet.

Much later, Israel succeeded in planting its destructive virus "Stuxnet" into the hardware of Iran's Uranium enrichment facility and which led to the destruction of a certain amount of Uranium centrifuges.

[2012 Link: Iran - Before the Storm]


Now that "evil government hackers" from China, Russia and North Korea have joined the long-standing electronic spying activities of Israeli and US government services, things are out of control.

This happens at a time when communications technology has reached new levels of complexity, while online access to important infrastructure - like power and water supply -, not to mention all kinds of administrative data, has already become a matter of everyday practice.

................................................................................................................................



Those were the days when it was easy to track prominent visitors,
and easy for them to track me. Some seemed to like me, some not.


Friday, December 03, 2021

COVID - Incomplete Intestinal Flora and Vaccination

People lacking Bifidobacterium adolescentis in their intestinal flora showed subnormal antibody response to different COVID-19 vaccines. This was discovered in a cooperation between two independent research facilities at the University of HongKong.


Shenzhen News, December 3, 2021.


Joint research proved that over half of the people who received the Chinese SinoVac vaccine had a suboptimal antibody response. There was a close correlation between low antibody response and lack of a unique bacterium in our gut called Bifidobacterium adolescentis. Among BioNTech recipients, those who lacked Bifidobacterium adolescentis (and F. prausnitzii) also showed lower antibody response.

An evaluation given by a German medical journal (January 2021) is hinting at the use of antibiotics in some critical cases of Covid-19 and which was possibly leading to a disturbance of the intestinal flora.

The gut organ makes part of the human immune system and its cells can as well be infected by the corona virus. That is why a possible relation between intestinal flora on one side and antibody response to covid vaccines or the Long Covid sydrome on the other side cannot be excluded.

Friday, November 26, 2021

Global Alert - New Corona Variant

Last Update (November 27/28):
- Israel closes its borders to all foreign visitors for a period of two weeks says prime minister.
- Germany restricted air traffic coming from further African destinations like Botswana, Lesotho,
Malawi and Zimbabwe, countries situated in the neighbourhood of the South African Republic,
after the omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 was found in air passengers who recently entered
Germany. Only German citizens and other permanent residents are allowed to enter and are
subject to quarantine.
- Measures are intended to provide further time for national health authorities to evaluate the
dangers of the omicron variant and possible counter measures.
- Zhang Wenhong 张文宏, a high-ranking expert for infectious diseases and connected with
the Communist Party of China confirmed the necessity of an observation period of two weeks
for a comprising evaluation of the corona variant. He shows himself convinced that China can
cope with the omicron virus strain. PR China and Hong Kong already detected omicron infected
persons on their territories.

- News on the spotting of the omicron variant in covid infected travellers from South Africa are
developing in different European countries like Great Britain, Italy, the Czech Republic and the
Netherlands.




The original article was
continuously updated on
the day of publishing:


A brandnew fast-spreading variant of SARS-CoV-2 has been detected in South Africa. Researchers are racing to determine whether it poses a threat to COVID vaccines’ effectiveness.

An expert group of World Health Organization (WHO) is meeting today on the subject. It already labelled the strain — currently known as B.1.1.529 — as a 'variant of concern' and named it 'omicron' according to the Greek naming system for coronavirus variants.

Researchers spotted B.1.1.529 in genome-sequencing data from Botswana. The variant stood out because it contains more than 30 changes to the spike protein — the SARS-CoV-2 protein that recognizes host cells and is the main target of the body’s immune responses. Many of the changes have been found in variants such as δ (Delta) and α (Alpha) and are linked to heightened infectivity and the ability to evade infection-blocking antibodies.

But the variant’s apparent sharp rise in South Africa’s Gauteng province — home to Johannesburg — is also setting off alarm bells. Cases increased rapidly in the province in November, particularly in schools and among young people.

The variant harbours a spike mutation that allows it to be detected by genotyping tests that deliver results much more rapidly than genome sequencing.

German authorities immediately declared South Africa a 'COVID variant region' and ordered restrictions on air traffic between both countries starting tonight. This comes at a time when infection rates in Germany are peaking, due to a lack of acceptance of the prescribed corona vaccinations and other protective measures within a population group which is resistant to advice. Public vaccination centers became deserted after a 65% vaccination rate had been reached and were subsequently closed in September. In November the situation changed dramatically. As intensive care beds are now running out at some hospitals in Southern Germany, German Air Force prepares to provide transport capacities in order to transfer critical cases of covid-19 to Northern German locations.

European Union (EU) authorities triggered off a general alert for its member nations. A first case of infection with the new covid variant has already been detected in Belgium.

Israel is known for having put on traffic restrictions to some African regions much earlier. A Chinese source referring to Taiwan health authorities just reported: (The new variant) is expected to become the next wave of mainstream virus strains in South Africa .....預估可能成為下一波南非主流病毒株



Additional News on COVID Research:

A new protein vaccin, developed at the University of Tübingen (Germany), should enable an immune response to SARS-CoV-2 on the basis of detecting certain characteristic protein snippets of the corona virus. The spike protein itself, and which is being targeted by other vaccins, would not play a role in the detection of the virus and the generation of an immune response. Changes to that protein will therefore have no consequences for the vaccin's effectiveness. The protein vaccin has been developed for a group of patients already suffering from immune deficiency and is intended to be applied to certain cancer patients. However, compulsory evaluation of experimental data could take some further time.

The evaluation of an Israeli health insurer on the efficiency of vaccination has been quoted by British and German medical journals. The data are indicating that the risk of re-infection with SARS-CoV-2 increases earlier than previously assumed after a full vaccination just 90 days after the second dose of the mRNA vaccine BNT162b2 (BioNTech-Pfizer).

Thursday, November 04, 2021

US Trading Confiscated Iranian Oil

Latest News added below on 2021-11-10

Update included in the following text on 2021-11-05:

Yesterday, 2021-11-03, the international program of the Arabic news channel 《Al-Jazeera》 reported on a close encounter between US warships and vessels of the Iranian revolutionary guard near the coast of Oman. It seems, Iranian coast guard hurried to the relief of an oil tanker navigating under the flag of Vietnam. Iran says its military units thwarted a US attempt to "steal Iranian oil" by confiscating the tanker. The incident should have happened on October 24.


《Al-Jazeera》الجزيرة
2nd news video published on 2021-11-03, 1st to contain Iranian video material.


《Al-Mayadeen》قناة الميادين , a pro-Iranian TV channel broadcasting in Arabic on 2021-11-03:

جرأة إيرانية كبيرة في مواجهة الأميركيين تجبرهم على التراجع

Great Iranian courage in a confrontation with the Americans forced them to retreat.


Other Arabic language sources confirmed the Iranian news, showing matching videos of the incident that were taken from different positions (view from Iranian helicopter, view inside helicopter, view from Iranian vessel). What happened: Some helicopter operated by the Iranian revolutionary guards landed on the tanker and deployed a special forces unit to prevent US troops from taking over the ship. At the same time, a US warship close to the tanker, was confronted at very short distance by different Iranian military vessels including speedboats.

The Arabic and Iranian news make sense when related to another incident that already took place off the coast of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in February this year:

观察者网:美国扣押伊朗油轮卖掉船上200万桶原油,获利1.1亿美元
The Chinese source 《Observer Network》 reported on 2021-06-01:
The US Energy Information Administration released the US oil import and export data for March on the 28th [of May]. Some traders noticed that the import data showed US imports from Iran in March. Some 33,000 barrels of crude oil should have been imported. However, as early as 2018, the United States imposed trade sanctions on Iran's crude oil exports.

The Associated Press AP reported on the 31st, citing court documents and government statistics, that this batch of "imported" crude oil was "confiscated" from Iran. The United States seized an Iranian oil tanker off the coast of the UAE in February this year and sold 2 million barrels of crude oil on board, and finally made a profit of 110 million U.S. dollars.



Footnote added on 2021-11-10:

According to Iranian sources, the Vietnamese tanker "Sothys" was guided to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas where it was unloaded and recently released. The tanker is now anchoring near the indicated position off the coast of Oman.



_________________________



Sunday, October 31, 2021

In 2018 my blog reached 250.000 visitors. At that time, I listed some remarkable guests together with satellite images of their locations and related information. Using the official statistics, only anonymous entities like government offices, universities, civil or military units of all kind could be identified. No living humans, known or unknown to the public, were personally identified, even though, one might have second thoughts about those who visited my blog, when it comes to rare coincidence.

After presenting the results of my visitor count, I stopped publishing, because visitor identification on an advanced level was no longer available and the success of my blogspots could not be verified any longer to such extent. Things had generally become more difficult.

However, there are still many visitors from the U.S.A., France and other regions who keep visiting blueprinteditor.blogspot.com . As a proof for that development, I decided to add latest statistics.


Monday, March 15, 2021

Welcome Back !

In the second year of the pandemic, there is still such thing as "homeschooling", even at
Hogwart's where Voldemort can finally be tracked by his IP address and Dumbledore now
belongs to a Covid-19 risk group.



Friday, November 08, 2019

DDR - Kultur zum Untergang


Als am 9. November 1989 die Berliner Mauer fiel und den Untergang der DDR besiegelte, fand gerade eine Tournee des DDR-Buchhandels in der Bundesrepublik statt.

Die Ausstellung "Bücher aus der DDR" schloss am 9. November in Heidelberg um dann am 6. Dezember in München wieder zu eröffnen. Die Veranstaltung des Börsenvereins der Deutschen Buchhändler zu Leipzig war möglich auf der Grundlage eines Kulturabkommens, das DDR und BRD am 6. Mai 1986 geschlossen hatten.




Die Eröffnung in München am Nikolaustag 1989 nahm allerdings einen anderen Verlauf als geplant und ähnelte eher einer Vereinigungsfeier mit Sekt. Es soll auch Besucher gegeben haben, die sich an den ausgestellten Büchern erfreuten, die meisten aber unterhielten sich angeregt mit den aufgekratzten DDR-Damen über die Mauer-Öffnung. Nur eine von ihnen muss sich anscheinend nicht gefreut haben (Zitat: "Die hat vielleicht ein Gesicht gemacht"). Das war wohl die Aufpasserin von der Stasi.

Bei einer Durchsicht des Ausstellungskatalogs fielen mir einige Titel des DDR-Autors Volker Braun auf, die ich meinen Lesern nicht vorenthalten möchte.

Der eine oder andere Titel wäre sicher auch heute noch verwendbar:




Immer gern gelesen !


Volker Braun, Jahrgang 1939, war ein prominenter Autor der DDR und gleichzeitig jemand, der besonders schwer unter der Zensur des Systems zu leiden hatte und seine Gedichte und Prosa nur unter besonderen Schwierigkeiten veröffentlichen konnte.

Möglicherweise war es gerade diesem Umstand zu verdanken, dass seine Werke in den Katalog einer Ausstellung von DDR-Büchern im Westen aufgenommen wurden. Schließlich war der DDR daran gelegen, sich im Westen als weltoffen zu präsentieren, solange das eigene Volk selbst nicht zu viel von diesem kritischen Autor zu sehen bekam. Seine Buchtitel allein lesen sich dabei fast schon wie ein Programm.

Als ein konstruktiver Kritiker der DDR würde Volker Braun die Bezeichnung "Kultur des Untergangs" vermutlich nicht akzeptieren. Und so zeigt der folgende Vers aus einem seiner Gedichte eben nur einen Aspekt seiner Haltung, die stets auch eine gegenteilige Sichtweise beinhaltete, also ganz im Sinne des dialektischen Materialismus:

… Klein klebt die Landschaft unter den Füßen fest
Kleinlich wird der Wurf, eh die Saat den Boden trifft
Bis das Land, das allen gehört, auch auf alle hört.


Sein Kommentar zur deutschen Wiedervereinigung 1990 endete jedenfalls mit der Zeile:

„Wann sag ich wieder mein und meine alle.“


_______________________________________________


Ein umfangreicher Zeitzeugenbericht, entstanden zum 20. Jahrestag
der Wiedervereinigung, beschreibt die Wahrnehmung der DDR aus
der Sicht eines Westberliners: "Die ruinierte Auferstehung"


Thursday, October 03, 2019

China und die DDR - Zwei sozialistische Experimente


Der Oktober 1949 war ein denkwürdiger Monat für den Sozialismus.
Während in Mitteleuropa die DDR gegründet wurde, entstand in Ost-
asien die Volksrepublik China. Zwei dem Namen nach sozialistische
Staaten, die auf derselben Idee basierten, aber in ihrer Gestaltung
unterschiedlicher nicht sein konnten. Auch das klägliche Ende der
DDR und das erfolgreiche Überleben der VR China sind letztlich das
Ergebnis grundsätzlicher Unterschiede.

Die DDR war von ihrem Beginn an bereits als Satellitenstaat der
Sowjetunion
geplant, wenn auch die gemeinsame Führung durch den
Kommunisten Wilhelm Pieck und den Sozialdemokraten Otto Grotewohl
für den einen oder anderen Heimkehrer aus dem Exil noch Hoffnungen
auf den Neubeginn in einem besseren, sozialistischen Deutschland
nährte.

Der Zusammenschluss von KPD und SPD zur SED war von Beginn an eine
Zwangsmassnahme, die keinen Widerspruch duldete und die nicht
zuletzt von Stalins Statthalter Walter Ulbricht, einem kalten
Opportunisten, organisiert wurde. Darüber hinaus, führte die enge
wirtschaftliche Abhängigkeit der DDR von der Sowjetunion zu einer
Behinderung der Bemühungen, eine leistungsfähige Volkswirtschaft
aufzubauen. Eine missglückte Planwirtschaft tat ihr Übriges, und
irgendwann kam der Zeitpunkt, an dem sich alle, Bürger wie Partei-
kader, mit der Situation abfanden. Lethargie senkte sich über das
Land
, und eine vergreisende politische Führung übte sich im Prakti-
zieren von Ritualen. Dies führte 1989 bekanntlich zum politischen
und wirtschaftlichen Bankrott und in der Folge zum Kollaps der DDR.

Abb.: Der TianAnMen - Platz vor der "Verbotenen Stadt"


Anders verlief die Entwicklung der VR China. Am Ende des 2. Weltkriegs,
nachdem japanische Truppen das Land verlassen hatten, war China wieder
das, was es seit dem Zerfall des Kaiserreiches unverändert gewesen war:
Eine riesige, praktisch unregierbare Landmasse, in der regionale Herren
nach eigenem Gutdünken herrschten und immer noch Leibeigenschaft und
Skaverei existierten. Ein grosser Teil der Bevölkerung vegetierte in
extremer Armut.

Die nationale Regierung der Kuomintang kontrollierte nur bestimmte
Regionen, und ihre Armee versuchte den zunehmenden Einfluss der
Kommunisten zu bekämpfen, was ihr zunächst auch gelang. So begann
der berühmte Lange Marsch der Kommunisten in den Jahren 1934 und
1935 als eine Flucht vor den Regierungstruppen. Auf diesem Marsch
der 90.000, den nur ca. 10% der ursprünglichen Teilnehmer überlebten,
wurde Mao Zedong zum Anführer. Es gelang ihm und seinen Mitstreitern,
die Bevölkerung des Landes für seine Ideale einzunehmen. Bauern, die
fremde Soldaten bisher nur als gewalttätige Plünderer kennen gelernt
hatten, waren auf einmal bereit, deren Gedankengut zu übernehmen. Als
Mao Zedong im Oktober 1949 schließlich die Volksrepublik China ausrief,
waren immer noch wichtige Kämpfe auszufechten bis die Volksrepublik
China zu einem einheitlichen Staatsgebilde wurde. Die Einigung Chinas
ist das eigentliche Verdienst Maos, unabhängig von seinen Fehlern und
Verfehlungen, die das Land 1966 ins Chaos der Kulturrevolution stürzten.

Dabei muss betont werden, dass Mao sich schon früh von der politischen
Linie abgrenzte, die von der verbündeten Sowjetunion vorgegeben wurde.
Sein persönliches Verhältnis zu Stalin war ambivalent, das heißt er ließ
sich von Stalin nichts gefallen.

Sein Nachfolger Deng Xiaoping hatte früh erkannt, dass eine permanente
Revolution die Ressourcen des Landes sinnlos vergeudet, und verkündete
1978 seine Wirtschaftspolitik, die zu einer teilweisen Öffnung Chinas
führte. Obwohl Deng wegen seines Vorgehens gegen die Demokratie-Bewegung
Chinas im Jahr 1989 vom Wohltäter zum Unterdrücker wurde, blieb seine
Wirtschaftspolitik ein Segen für das Land.

Sieht man heute chinesische Touristen in München, die sich an den
Schaufenstern mit Luxusuhren die Nasen platt drücken, dann ahnt man,
wie sehr sich China seither verändert haben muss.

Bei meinem Besuch in Peking in den späten 1990er Jahren gab es hier
schon moderne Einkaufszentren und eine MacDonalds-Filiale mit einem
eher bescheidenen Angebot. Soweit ich mich erinnere, wurde nur ein
einfacher Burger angeboten, den man bei uns als "Basic" bezeichnen
würde, und ein paar junge Leute saßen vor ihrem Milchshake. Es schien
offensichtlich, dass der Besuch eines westlichen Burger-Restaurants
eher ein Statussymbol als Normalität war, selbst im Geschäftszentrum
der Hauptstadt.

Es gab in der Umgebung auch einige Bettler, die verstohlen in den
Abfallkörben suchten und auch ihre Landsleute ansprachen. Einen
ausländischen Touristen anzubetteln war aber anscheinend tabu.
Die Bettler gingen mir sogar aus dem Weg, vermutlich aus Angst
vor der Polizei. Aus Indien war ich da ganz andere Szenen gewohnt.
Ein blinder Bettler saß in einer dunklen Straßenunterführung und
spielte voller Hingabe auf seiner ErHu, einem traditionellen Musik-
instrument. Hin und wieder tastete er seine Umgebung nach den
Münzen ab, die ihm seine Landsleute achtlos hingeworfen hatten.
In einer gut besuchten Garküche versuchte eine ärmlich aussehende
alte Frau vergeblich, ihre dicken silbernen Armreifen an die Gäste
zu verkaufen. Einer von ihnen, ein junger Mann mit abgetragenem
Militärmantel, wies in meine Richtung, aber die Frau, die vermutlich
zu einer nationalen Minderheit gehörte, schüttelte nur den Kopf und
verließ dann auffallend schnell den Raum.

Sicher ist aber, dass es heute vielen Chinesen besser geht als
der Generation ihrer Eltern. In gleichem Maße nimmt auch die
Akzeptanz des Systems bei der beruflich erfolgreichen Elite zu,
Überwachung und Sozialpunktesystem können anscheinend
mühelos ausgeblendet werden.

Irgendwie erinnert mich das alles an eine alte Kabarettnummer der
(West-)Berliner Stachelschweine aus der Zeit des kalten Krieges.
Da hieß es, man solle sich einen demokratischen Staat vorstellen,
in dem aber die Volkswirtschaft den materiellen Ansprüchen der
Bürger nicht gerecht wird, sodass eine Mangelsituation herrscht.
Auf der anderen Seite hätte man aber ein totalitäres Regime, in
dem die materiellen Wünsche der Bürger leicht zu erfüllen wären.
Die Frage stellte sich nun, in welche Richtung man in diesem Fall
fliehen würde.

Abb.: Chinas Ministerpräsident Zhou Enlai trifft
seinen Amtskollegen Otto Grotewohl (1954)


Um den Kreis zu schließen, fehlt hier nur noch ein Schlusswort
zum Verhältnis zwischen der DDR und der Volksrepublik China.

Einige deutsche Fluggäste, die mit mir zusammen aus Peking
abflogen, kamen offensichtlich aus den neuen Bundesländern
und machten kein Hehl daraus, welcher Firma sie nahestanden.
Aus ihren Sprüchen und dem auffallend rotzigen Auftreten ging
hervor, dass sie sich im sozialistischen China zu Hause fühlten.
Einen, der zu dieser Gruppe gehörte, hatte ich schon wenige Tage
zuvor bei einem Besuch des Himmelstempels und durch puren Zufall
dabei beobachtet, wie er einem Chinesen mit Ballonmütze diskret
ein Bündel Banknoten in die Manteltasche schob. Da zu jener Zeit
kaum noch ein Bewohner Pekings solch eine Kopfbedeckung trug,
konnte man schon fast vermuten, dass es sich hierbei um eine Art
Erkennungszeichen handelte. Ich bin danach auch prompt von der
Videokamera dieses „Landsmannes“ heimlich von der Seite aufge-
nommen worden. Anscheinend war ich aber nicht der einzige, dem
diese Leute unangenehm auffielen.

Wie dem auch sei: Der Glaube an eine sozialistische Freundschaft
zwischen DDR und Volksrepublik China schien mir damals schon
eine krasse Fehleinschätzung zu sein. Es war eher so, dass China
mit den Bundesbürgern einträglichere Geschäfte machen konnte
als mit DDR-Vertretern. Immerhin muss es 1989 in China einen
Horchposten des Bundesnachrichtendienstes an der Grenze zur
Sowjetunion gegeben haben, wie in der Presse bekannt wurde.
Die Furcht vor Auslieferung an China war deshalb ein wichtiger
Grund für politische Flüchtlinge der chinesischen Demokratiebe-
wegung, eher in Frankreich als in Deutschland unterzutauchen.

Ein wenig bekannter Fall ist die Entführung eines chinesischen
Diplomaten in unmittelbarer Nähe seiner Botschaft in Ost-Berlin
durch die Staatssicherheit. Der Diplomat, dem man eine absurde
Agententätigkeit vorwarf, wurde in Isolationshaft gehalten und
erst Jahre später, nachdem die Bundesregierung von seiner Existenz
erfahren hatte, aus humanitären Gründen und zusammen mit anderen
Häftlingen frei gekauft. Hier veröffentlichte er seine Geschichte
und wurde später auch von den chinesischen Behörden, die ihn
lange für einen Überläufer gehalten hatten, rehabilitiert.

Epilog:
Während sich die DDR im Jahre 1989 bekanntermaßen selbst erledigt
hat, feiert die Volksrepublik China an ihrem 70. Jahrestag nach wie vor
wirtschaftliche und technologische Erfolge, wenn auch um den Preis
einer Einschränkung persönlicher Freiheiten als Folge ihrer ideologi-
schen Basis. Die weitere Entwicklung Chinas bleibt sicher spannend,
wohin sie auch immer führen mag.

Dagegen hat es das 40jährige Experiment DDR am 30. Jahrestag seines
Scheiterns verdient, in Vergessenheit zu geraten und sein kühles Grab in
den Geschichtsbüchern zu finden. Denn man muss hier realistisch sein:
Nachfolgende Generationen werden vermutlich jeden runden Jahrestag
des Mauerfalls und der Wiedervereinigung mit den Worten quittieren:

Das Beste an der DDR war demnach ihre Auflösung,
und die muss wirklich spektakulär gewesen sein !

Ulysses am 3. Oktober 2019


Ein umfangreicher Zeitzeugenbericht, entstanden zum 20. Jahrestag
der Wiedervereinigung, beschreibt die Wahrnehmung der DDR aus der
Sicht eines Westberliners: "Die ruinierte Auferstehung"