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This broadcast was recorded in one, 60-minute segment
Introduction: The title of the program references former Trump campaign manager and former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovich’s advisor Paul Manafort as “Lee Harvey Manafort.”
Far from being a “Russian/Putin/Kremlin agent,” Paul Manafort is a U.S. intelligence officer, who was charged with the task of teasing Ukraine from the Russian into the Western orbit. Heeding polls that found Ukraine’s citizens to oppose the country’s inclusion into NATO and midwiving a report that exonerated then Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovich of criminal excess in the jailing of his predecessor and rival Yulia Timoshenko, Manafort undertook political activism on behalf of both causes in order to effect his goal of Westernizing Ukraine.
When the combination of popular dissatisfaction with the austerity-laden EU association proposal and Russian pressure led to Yanukovych’s cancellation of the deepening of Ukrainian/EU relations, the Euromaidan coup sealed the fate of the Yanukovych government. “Plan B” for the integration of Ukraine into the Western camp was the Euromaidan coup, which culminated in the sniper killings of numerous civilians. As discussed in FTR #‘s 982 and 993, those sniper attacks may well have been a provocation, effected by Ukrainian fascist and OUN/B successor Andriy Parubiy christened “The Captain of the Maidan” and–very possibly–Manafort himself.
Plan B, for the maneuvering of Ukraine into the Western camp might be termed “Plan OUN/B.”
Manafort–like Lee Harvey Oswald and Edwin Wilson before him–has been “left out in the cold” by his spymasters, left to take the fall for an operation he undertook on their behalf. Hence, our christening of Trump’s former, unfortunate campaign manager as “Lee Harvey Manafort.”
A major factor in the events highlighted in our last program, this broadcast and the forthcoming program is the Habsburg (also spelled “Hapsburg”) dynasty and related elements. The Habsburgs are the royal family that presided over the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which ruled Central and much of Eastern Europe for 600 years.
In addition to the Habsburg power political forces, our analysis focuses on the tiny, Habsburg-affiliated European principality of Liechtenstein. With a population of just 32.000, Liechtenstein is a vertically-integrated lean, mean money-laundering machine.
Overlapping the Liechtenstein connection is the Alfa Group–a Russian conglomerate, the most important component of which is the Alfa Bank.
For purposes of clarity, we present synoptic analysis of key points of discussion and analysis in FTR #‘s 1007 and related programs.
- The Alfa conglomerate maintains the Alfa Fellowship program, a subsidiary of the Carl Duisberg Society’s new umbrella the Cultural Vistas organization.
- The Carl Duisberg Society was the vehicle that shepherded 9/11 hijacker Mohamed Atta around Germany and the U.S.
- Alfa subsidiary Crown Alfa had dealings with commodities Marc Rich, whose pardon was investigated by James Comey.
- In FTR #930, we noted that another Alfa associate Mikhail Fridman did purchase Marc Rich assets.
- Also in FTR #930, we noted an Alfa Bank server communicating with the Trump organization.
- in 2001, Crown Alfa associate Norbert Seeger’s Progressive Citizens Party of Liechtenstein gave Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein unprecedented power, making him, in effect, Europe’s only absolute monarch. Hans-Adam’s new powers gave him control over the courts and judicial system just as the 9/11 attacks and resulting Operation Green Quest investigations were moving in the direction of the Lichtenstein-based Al-Taqwa nexus.
- An Al-Taqwa subsidiary, the Asat Trust had links to the House of Liechtenstein–the ruling family of Liechtenstein.
- Robert Mueller helped derail the Operation Green Quest investigation while serving as head of the FBI.
- The House of Liechtenstein is a subsidiary of the House of Habsburg.
In this program, we set forth elements overlapping the dynamics presented above, including:
- Manafort’s networking with the “Habsburg Group” of European politicians to effect Ukraine’s integration into the EU orbit: ” . . . . . . . . A second Washington lobbying firm hired by Mr. Manafort, the Podesta Group, also said last year that it had ‘arranged meetings and media opportunities’ for visiting European leaders regarding Ukraine, starting in 2012, including for Mr. Gusenbauer, Mr. Prodi and two former presidents, Aleksander Kwasniewski of Poland and Viktor A. Yushchenko of Ukraine. . . . The group of senior former politicians, according to the indictment, was informally called the Hapsburg Group, after the Austro-Hungarian dynasty, the Habsburgs. . . .”
- Lee Harvey Manafort and the Habsburg Group enlisted Alex van Der Zwaan, son-in-law of German Khan the (Kiev) Ukraine-born founder of Alfa Bank: ” . . . . Alex van der Zwaan was charged with lying to the FBI about his contacts with Rick Gates, who served as a top official on President Trump’s campaign and a longtime business partner of former campaign chairman Paul Manafort. Based in London, van der Zwaan worked for the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, which worked with Manafort and Gates when they served as political consultants in Ukraine. Van der Zwaan is the son-in-law of German Khan, a billionaire and an owner of Alfa Group, Russia’s largest financial and industrial investment group. . . . Like the Manafort and Gates charges, van der Zwaan’s case is rooted in Ukraine, where Manafort worked as an international political consultant starting in 2005. . . .”
- Members of the Habsburg dynasty have been involved in the context in which Lee Harvey Manafort and the Habsburg Group were operating, in order to ease Ukraine into the Western, rather than the Russian orbit. ” . . . .The most striking example of the trend is the appointment this week of Georg von Habsburg, the 32-year-old-grandson of Emperor Karl I, to the position of Hungary’s ambassador for European Integration. In neighbouring Austria, the traditional heart of Habsburg power, Georg’s brother, Karl, 35, was recently elected to represent the country in the European parliament. In addition to this, he serves as the president of the Austrian branch of the Pan-European movement. . . . .”
- Jumping forward some 14 years from our previous article, we see that a Habsburg princess was anointed as Georgia’s ambassador to Germany. Note that [now former] Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili endorsed her. Saakashvili became, for a time, the governor of the Ukrainian province of Odessa! Note, also, the role of the Habsburgs in the final phase of the Cold War: “. . . . The heirs to the Habsburg emperors helped speed the downfall of the Soviet empire, particularly by arranging the cross-border exodus from Hungary to Austria in the summer of 1989 that punched the first big hole in the iron curtain. . . .”
- Karl von Habsburg has been active in Ukraine for some years before establishing a radio station. Karl von Habsburg is the head of the UNPO. Note the Ukrainian orientation and influence of Wilhelm von Habsburg, in World War I through the World War II eras, as well as his anti-Soviet activism: ” . . . . A military officer by training, Wilhelm supported Ukraine’s independence struggle during World War I. He fought with Ukrainian troops against the Russians, and had schemed and cajoled a myriad of politicians to support his monarchial aspirations. Almost until his death at the hands of the Soviets in 1948 – he was snatched off the streets of Vienna and transported to a prison in Kyiv for working as an agent against the Soviet Union – Wilhelm believed this slice of the family’s empire could be his. . . .”
- Fast-forwarding again some five years from our previous two articles and one year after the EuroMaidan coup we see that actions speak louder than words, and Karl’s new Ukrainian radio station says a lot: “Since 20 January, a truly European radio station [Note this–D.E.] is broadcasting in Ukraine, its main sponsor, Karl-Habsburg Lothringen, told EurActiv in an exclusive interview . . . . Karl Habsburg-Lothringen is an Austrian politician and head of the House of Habsburg. Since 1986, he has served as President of the Austrian branch of the Paneuropean Union. . . .”
- As we noted, “Plan B” for Ukraine might be termed “Plan OUN/B.” Otto von Habsburg formed the European Freedom Council with Jaroslav Stetzko, the wartime head of the Ukrainian Nazi collaborationist government that implemented Third Reich ethnic cleansing programs in Ukraine. The EFC was closely aligned with the Anti-Bolshevik Bloc of Nations, headed by Stetzko. The ABN, as we have seen in the past, is a re-naming of the Committee of Subjugated Nations, a consortium of Eastern European fascist groups formed by Hitler in 1943.”. . . . The Hapsburg monarchy helped guide the leadership in their former possessions. The Freedom Council was formed by Otto von Hapsburg and Jaroslav Stetzko at a conference in Munich on June 30-July 2 1967, as a coordinating body for organizations fighting communism in Europe. EMP H.R.H. Otto von Hapsburg was honorary chairman of the European Freedom Council, based in Munich, during the 1980s and allied to the Anti-Bolshevik Bloc of Nations (ABN). . . .”
An important consideration in the context of his program is the career and position of Roman Zvarych. In addition to being the spokesman for the Nazi Azov Battalion, Zvarych was:
- Minister of Justice under Viktor Yuschenko.
- Minister of Justice under both Tymoshenko governments.
- An adviser to Petro Poroshenko.
- In the 1980’s, the personal secretary to Jaroslav Stetzko, the wartime head of the Nazi collaborationist government in Ukraine. Stetzko implemented Nazi ethnic cleansing in Ukraine during World War II.
Program Highlights Include:
- Ukraine’s suspension of cooperation with the Mueller probe, in order to avoid endangering Trump’s arming of Ukraine.
- Manafort and the Habsburg Group’s networking with Andrei Artemenko, a Pravy Sektor affiliate whose operations with Felix Sater and Michael Cohen were described as part of a Russian conspiracy but were, in fact, part of an anti-Russian conspiracy. This is discussed at length in FTR #967.
- Review of Felix Sater’s intelligence background. Sater is the point man for Trump’s dealings with Russia. ” . . . . Sater reported back to intelligence agencies on the results of coalition bombings, kills on the battlefield, the financial networks behind the 9/11 bombers and other al-Qaeda members worldwide, and even the identity of a New Mexico company believed to be laundering terror funds in the US. . . .”
1a. Analysis begins with discussion of the Habsburg group, a group of European politicians networking with Manafort and Viktor Yanukovych in attempting to tease Ukraine into the Western camp. Central to this was the representation of Yanukovych’s arrest of predecessor Yulia Timoshenko as lawful and proper. (The Timoshenko arrest was seen by the EU and its representatives as a major obstacle to the melding of Yanukovych’s Ukraine to the rest of Europe.)
Manafort’s networking with the “Habsburg Group” of European politicians to effect Ukraine’s integration into the EU orbit: ” . . . . . . . . A second Washington lobbying firm hired by Mr. Manafort, the Podesta Group, also said last year that it had ‘arranged meetings and media opportunities’ for visiting European leaders regarding Ukraine, starting in 2012, including for Mr. Gusenbauer, Mr. Prodi and two former presidents, Aleksander Kwasniewski of Poland and Viktor A. Yushchenko of Ukraine. . . . The group of senior former politicians, according to the indictment, was informally called the Hapsburg Group, after the Austro-Hungarian dynasty, the Habsburgs. . . .”
Former European leaders who tried to bring Ukraine closer to Europe before a 2014 uprising there reacted with shock on Saturday after a federal indictment accused Paul Manafort, President Trump’s former campaign chairman,of secretly paying former European officials some two million euros in 2012 and 2013 to lobby on the country’s behalf.
Ukraine at the time was led by Viktor F. Yanukovych, who first agreed to closer ties to Europe and then reneged under Russian pressure and was toppled in the uprising. . . .
. . . . A second Washington lobbying firm hired by Mr. Manafort, the Podesta Group, also said last year that it had “arranged meetings and media opportunities” for visiting European leaders regarding Ukraine, starting in 2012, including for Mr. Gusenbauer, Mr. Prodi and two former presidents, Aleksander Kwasniewski of Poland and Viktor A. Yushchenko of Ukraine.
Mr. Manafort did not inform the Washington lobbyists with whom they worked that the European politicians were being paid for their efforts, according to people familiar with the work done by the two firms, who said the lobbyists had presented the European politicians as unbiased validators of Mr. Yanukovych’s efforts.
The group of senior former politicians, according to the indictment, was informally called the Hapsburg Group, after the Austro-Hungarian dynasty, the Habsburgs. The plan, according to the indictment, was for the group to “appear to be providing their independent assessments of Government of Ukraine actions, when in fact they were paid lobbyists for Ukraine.”. . . .
1b. Lee Harvey Manafort and the Habsburg Group enlisted Alex van Der Zwaan, son-in-law of German Khan the (Kiev) Ukraine-born founder of Alfa Bank: ” . . . . Alex van der Zwaan was charged with lying to the FBI about his contacts with Rick Gates, who served as a top official on President Trump’s campaign and a longtime business partner of former campaign chairman Paul Manafort. Based in London, van der Zwaan worked for the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, which worked with Manafort and Gates when they served as political consultants in Ukraine. Van der Zwaan is the son-in-law of German Khan, a billionaire and an owner of Alfa Group, Russia’s largest financial and industrial investment group. . . . Like the Manafort and Gates charges, van der Zwaan’s case is rooted in Ukraine, where Manafort worked as an international political consultant starting in 2005. . . .”
The Dutch son-in-law of one of Russia’s wealthiest men pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in Washington to making false statements in special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s probe of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Alex van der Zwaan was charged with lying to the FBI about his contacts with Rick Gates, who served as a top official on President Trump’s campaign and a longtime business partner of former campaign chairman Paul Manafort.
Based in London, van der Zwaan worked for the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, which worked with Manafort and Gates when they served as political consultants in Ukraine.
Van der Zwaan is the son-in-law of German Khan, a billionaire and an owner of Alfa Group, Russia’s largest financial and industrial investment group. . . .
. . . . Like the Manafort and Gates charges, van der Zwaan’s case is rooted in Ukraine, where Manafort worked as an international political consultant starting in 2005.
. . . . The subject of the 2016 recorded phone call, prosecutors said, was a 2012 report prepared by van der Zwaan’s law firm about the jailing of former Ukrainian prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko. Yanukovych had imprisoned Tymoshenko, a political rival, after a gas supply controversy in 2009 involving Russia.
The Skadden report has been controversial in Ukraine in part because its findings seemed to contradict the international community’s conclusion that Tymoshenko had been unjustly jailed.
In addition, the Ukrainian government claimed to have paid only $12,000 for the report, an amount that put it just below the limit that would have required competitive bidding for the project under Ukrainian law.
Prosecutors have alleged that Manafort and Gates used an offshore account to secretly pay $4 million for the report.
Weissmann said Tuesday that Manafort and Gates hoped to get the Times to cover the report before its contents were revealed in Europe, potentially to improve the reputation of Yanukovych in the United States, where his image had taken a hit after the jailing of Tymoshenko.
As part of that lobbying effort, Weissmann said van der Zwaan had taken an advanced copy of the report in 2012 without authorization and provided it to a public-relations team, then providing Gates with talking points about it. . . .
Khan, van der Zwaan’s father-in-law, is a native of Kiev, Ukraine. . . .
———-
1c. In March of 2014, Gallup found that Ukrainians still weren’t generally interested in joining NATO even after the collapse of the Yanukovych government following the sniper attacks. So Manafort’s anti-NATO ‘genius’ advice was still Politics 101 even in 2014.
It is important to note that Manafort’s anti-NATO advice was coupled with his pro-EU trade union advice. Atlantic Council member Dan Fried said that Manafort was telling the US government that Yanukovych was “the guy” who could move Ukraine closer to the West, at a pace Putin could stand. [The Atlantic Council is a right-wing “think tank” with strong ties to NATO, the OUN/B milieu–D.E.] Based on Fried’s palpable sense of betrayal, it would seem that the US government more or less accepted that assessment. It’s another reason why Manafort’s anti-NATO advice shouldn’t necessarily be seen as an indication that Manafort was some Kremlin crony the whole time, in addition to the general unpopularity of the idea among Urkaine’s populace.
It’s in that larger context that we now learn about the mysterious flight to Frankfurt on a private plane owned by the father of Andrii Artemenko in the middle of the “Hapsburg Group” lobbying effort to get Ukraine into that trade union. Which raises an interesting question: Artemenko entered the Ukrainian parliament in 2014, and according to the parliament’s website Artemenko was the deputy head of the European Integration Committee.
Artementko was involved with diplomacy with the US while in parliament and this flight on Artemenko’s dad’s company plane in July of 2013 happened right before he joined the parliament and right in the middle of the big “Hapsburg Group” diplomatic push with the US. Was Artemenko himself part of the “Hapsburg Group” lobbying effort too?
As we saw in FTR #967, Artemenko was a member of the OUN/B successor organization Pravy Sektor and was involved with Felix Sater and Michael Cohen in an ANTI-RUSSIAN conspiracy.
. . . . “You can make a case that all along he …was either working principally for Moscow, or he was trying to play both sides against each other just to maximize his profits,” said Daniel Fried, a former assistant secretary of state who communicated with Manafort during Yanukovych’s reign in President George W. Bush’s second term.
“He’s at best got a conflict of interest and at worst is really doing Putin’s bidding,” said Fried, now a fellow with the Atlantic Council. . . .
. . . . Another Manafort trip that could interest investigators took place in July 2013 when Manafort and Kilimnik flew from eastern Ukraine to Frankfurt on a private plane owned by Belbek Avia, according to the flight records. The aircraft company’s founders included the father of Andrey Artemenko, a Ukrainian legislator.. . . .
. . . . Manafort, 68, had claimed Yanukovych was the one Ukrainian who could lead his country closer to the West at a pace Putin could stand, according to Dan Fried, a former U.S. assistant secretary of state for the region which includes Ukraine. But that proved false.
“Manafort’s guy turned out to be not the guy Manafort said he was,” Fried said. “Either Manafort was unable to deliver the guy or he was spinning us and had no intention of doing anything but collecting his very large fees.”
Jason Maloni, a Manafort spokesman, denied that his work helped Russia. He said, “Although Mr. Manafort’s focus was always domestic Ukrainian politics, that work did make a difference and helped move the Ukraine towards a Western orbit and further from a Russian orbit.” . . . .
. . . . The idea of working in Ukraine first came to Manafort in 2004 from Oleg Deripaska, a Russian billionaire who controls aluminum producer Rusal, according to a person familiar with the situation. Ukraine was in the throes of the Orange Revolution—protests over allegations of electoral fraud in Yanukovych’s November 2004 victory. The Supreme Court ordered a new election. Manafort’s then-partner, Rick Davis, went to Kiev and concluded it was too late to help. Yanukovych’s pro-Western rival Viktor Yushchenko won. . . .
. . . . Crucial to the strategy—and new to Ukraine—was research from focus groups and better polling to drive messaging. Among the issues: the rights of Russian-speakers and opposition to Ukraine’s joining NATO.
“He was going for visceral issues and an emotional reaction,” says Kateryna Yushchenko, the American-born wife of former President Viktor Yushchenko and a onetime State Department and White House official. [and a top UCCA personage. The UCCA is the top OUN/B front organization in the U.S.–D.E.] “When I confronted his people about it, they said, ‘That’s politics.’ I said this isn’t like gun rights or abortion. Here it could lead to war.” . . . .
In 2008, then-President Yushchenko announced a campaign for eventual Ukrainian membership in NATO. To exploit widespread opposition to NATO, Manafort’s team brought a truck to the parliament filled with anti-NATO balloons and instructed parliamentarians to each take one into the chamber.
Ukraine’s hope of joining NATO ended with its 2010 presidential election. With Manafort guiding him, Yanukovych won narrowly. . . .
. . . . Within months of his victory, Yanukovych ordered criminal investigations into Tymoshenko, culminating in a sentence of seven years in jail. Condemned around the world, her prosecution would become a flashpoint in negotiations between Ukraine and the European Union on an association agreement.
Manafort was closely involved in recruiting the firm of Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLC on behalf of the Ukrainian Justice Ministry to write a lengthy report on Tymoshenko’s prosecution.. . .
. . . . Prosecutors believe Manafort drew up a six-page media strategy plan with FTI Consulting on how to use the Skadden report, based on documents they have examined. The report, released at the end of 2012, criticized some aspects of the case but concluded that the evidence supported her conviction and that her due process rights hadn’t been violated. . . .
. . . . Manafort advised Yanukovych to push ahead with an association agreement with the EU. But the EU insisted he release Tymoshenko, while Putin pressured him to abandon the deal. In November 2013, Yanukovych terminated negotiations with the EU. The move triggered widespread protests.
Thousands camped out on Kiev’s Independence Square. More than 100 were killed in 2014 right before Yanukovych fled to Moscow. Ukrainian prosecutors are investigating who’s responsible and have combed through hacked text messages from Manafort’s daughter, Andrea, about her father’s role in cracking down on the uprising. Her texts say their money is “blood money.” Andrea Manafort didn’t respond to requests for comment.
2. Whereas most people see the U.S. as dominant in its relationship with Ukraine, Ukaine’s recent decision to suspend cooperation with the Mueller probe indicates the degree of gravitas that Ukraine has in this dynamic.
In the United States, Paul J. Manafort is facing prosecution on charges of money laundering and financial fraud stemming from his decade of work
for a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine.But in Ukraine, where officials are wary of offending President Trump, four
meandering cases that involve Mr. Manafort, Mr. Trump’s former campaign
chairman, have been effectively frozen by Ukraine’s chief prosecutor.The cases are just too sensitive for a government deeply reliant on United States
financial and military aid, and keenly aware of Mr. Trump’s distaste for the
investigation by the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, into possible collusion
between Russia and his campaign, some lawmakers say.The decision to halt the investigations by an anticorruption prosecutor was
handed down at a delicate moment for Ukraine, as the Trump administration was
finalizing plans to sell the country sophisticated anti-tank missiles, called Javelins. . . .. . . . Volodymyr Ariev, a member of Parliament who is an ally of President Petro O.
Poroshenko, readily acknowledged that the intention in Kiev was to put
investigations into Mr. Manafort’s activities “in the long-term box.”“In every possible way, we will avoid irritating the top American officials,” Mr.
Ariev said in an interview. “We shouldn’t spoil relations with the administration.”The Ukrainian investigators had been tracing money paid to Mr. Manafort and a
New York law firm, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, by figures in the political
party of Viktor F. Yanukovych, the Russian-leaning Ukrainian president who was
ousted by street protesters and fled the country in 2014.Mr. Manafort was a longtime adviser to Mr. Yanukovych, working with him to revamp his public image
and acquire a pro-Western patina that helped him win the presidency in 2010. . . .
3a. Before turning to the Habsburgs’ influence and current activities in Ukraine, we note the renascent Habsburg power in Eastern Europe. Note, for our purposes, Georg’s position, as well as that of his brother. “European integration and the Pan-European movement” entail the context in which Lee Harvey Manafort and the Habsburg Group were operating, in order to east Ukraine into the Western, rather than the Russian orbit. ” . . . .The most striking example of the trend is the appointment this week of Georg von Habsburg, the 32-year-old-grandson of Emperor Karl I, to the position of Hungary’s ambassador for European Integration. In neighbouring Austria, the traditional heart of Habsburg power, Georg’s brother, Karl, 35, was recently elected to represent the country in the European parliament. In addition to this, he serves as the president of the Austrian branch of the Pan-European movement. . . . .”
In what must rank as one of the most unlikely political comebacks of the century, the descendants of the last Habsburg emperor are once again making their mark in the Central European territories that their family ruled for hundreds of years.
Not surprisingly, the comeback revolves around the cities of Vienna and Budapest, the twin centres of power in the latter years of the Austro– Hungarian empire, which at its peak stretched from the Adriatic to what is now Ukraine.
The most striking example of the trend is the appointment this week of Georg von Habsburg, the 32-year-old grandson of Emperor Karl I, to the position of Hungary’s ambassador for European Integration.
In neighbouring Austria, the traditional heart of Habsburg power, Georg’s brother, Karl, 35, was recently elected to represent the country in the European parliament. In addition to this, he serves as the president of the Austrian branch of the Pan-European movement. . . . .
. . . . Otto von Habsburg, 83, himself a keen advocate of the Hungarian cause, has long since renounced any claim to his father’s throne.
But the same is not true of all the members of the family. Before his election to the European parliament in October, Georg von Habsburg’s older brother, Karl, refused to be drawn when he was quizzed on the issue.
When he was asked if he believed the Habsburg monarchy could return, his circumspect reply was: “Never say never again.”
3b. Jumping forward some 14 years from our previous article, we see that a Habsburg princess was anointed as Georgia’s ambassador to Germany. Note that [now former] Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili endorsed her. Saakashvili became, for a time, the governor of the Ukrainian province of Odessa! Note, also, the role of the Habsburgs in the final phase of the Cold War: “. . . . The heirs to the Habsburg emperors helped speed the downfall of the Soviet empire, particularly by arranging the cross-border exodus from Hungary to Austria in the summer of 1989 that punched the first big hole in the iron curtain. . . .”
“The Princess and the Bear” ; The Economist; 2/18/2010.
Georgia struggles to make its case in Germany, which sees trade ties with Russia as vital and the ex-Soviet Caucasian republic as troublesome. So who better to burnish Georgia’s image there than a German-educated Habsburg? Georgia’s new ambassador to Berlin, once she presents her credentials to the president next month, will be Gabriela Maria Charlotte Felicitas Elisabeth Antonia von Habsburg-Lothringen, princess Imperial and Archduchess of Austria, Princess Royal of Hungary and Bohemia. A name like that, says Georgia’s president Mikheil Saakashvili, should open doors. . . .
. . . . The heirs to the Habsburg emperors helped speed the downfall of the Soviet empire, particularly by arranging the cross-border exodus from Hungary to Austria in the summer of 1989 that punched the first big hole in the iron curtain. Among Ms von Habsburg’s six siblings, her younger sister Walburga is a leading conservative politician in Sweden; her brother Georg is an ambassador-at-large for Hungary. Another used to be in the European Parliament.
3c. Karl von Habsburg has been active in Ukraine for some years before establishing a radio station. Karl von Habsburg is the head of the UNPO. Note the Ukrainian orientation and influence of Wilhelm von Habsburg, in World War I through the World War II eras, as well as his anti-Soviet activism: ” . . . . A military officer by training, Wilhelm supported Ukraine’s independence struggle during World War I. He fought with Ukrainian troops against the Russians, and had schemed and cajoled a myriad of politicians to support his monarchial aspirations. Almost until his death at the hands of the Soviets in 1948 – he was snatched off the streets of Vienna and transported to a prison in Kyiv for working as an agent against the Soviet Union – Wilhelm believed this slice of the family’s empire could be his. . . .”
“Karl von Habsburg Keeps Ancestors’ Profile Alive in Lviv” by Natalia A. Feduschak; Kyiv Post; 4/20/2010.
Karl von Habsburg laughed heartily when asked what it feels like to walk the streets of Lviv, a city that was once ruled by his ancestors. “I look at it from an academic point of view,” he said with a smile. “It had nothing to do with me.”
Despite his easy manner, however, von Habsburg evidently has no intention of letting the past, particularly his ancestors’ role, remain lifeless in history books. Nearly a century after the Habsburg monarchy’s rule ended in Europe, he is dedicating himself to ensure its legacy lives on in western Ukraine.
The 49-year-old von Habsburg was in Lviv in March to announce the creation of a foundation that carries his family’s name. Based in Ivano-Frankivsk, the Habsburg Foundation will promote and preserve the cultural legacy that for centuries shaped and gave Central and Eastern Europe its identity. . . .
. . . . “In this area, we need to do something about keeping the heritage alive, the history and the intellectual history. Authors came here because they got their inspiration here,” he told the Kyiv Post in an interview. . . .
. . . . At the turn of the twentieth century, the Austro-Hungarian Empire – which gave Central and Eastern Europe much of its art, culture and architecture – spanned from Ukraine’s Carpathian Mountains, down to the Adriatic Sea in the south. It encompassed more that twelve European peoples and its monarchy, the Habsburgs, had enjoyed over six centuries of uninterrupted power.
A recent book by renowned historian Timothy Snyder chronicles the life of Wilhelm von Habsburg, the member of the Habsburg family who was closest aligned with Ukrainians. Titled The Red Prince, it brought renewed attention to the family’s connections with the region. . . .
. . . . Wilhelm, however, had his own goal: He wanted to establish a monarchy on the territory of what is today’s western Ukraine. Snyder writes that the idea was well-received, particularly among some Ukrainian military leaders and the Church.
A military officer by training, Wilhelm supported Ukraine’s independence struggle during World War I. He fought with Ukrainian troops against the Russians, and had schemed and cajoled a myriad of politicians to support his monarchial aspirations. Almost until his death at the hands of the Soviets in 1948 – he was snatched off the streets of Vienna and transported to a prison in Kyiv for working as an agent against the Soviet Union – Wilhelm believed this slice of the family’s empire could be his. . . .
. . . . The Habsburg era has undergone somewhat of a renaissance lately in western Ukraine; the new foundation is just the latest in that trend. A conference held late last year brought scholars from around the country to Chernivtsi, which along with Lviv was considered an important city in the region. . . .
3d. It’s apparent that Ukraine is a top global priority for expanding the Habsburg’s influence. Fast-forwarding again some five years from our previous two articles and one year after the EuroMaidan coup we see that actions speak louder than words, and Karl’s new Ukrainian radio station says a lot: “Since 20 January, a truly European radio station is broadcasting in Ukraine, its main sponsor, Karl-Habsburg Lothringen, told EurActiv in an exclusive interview . . . . Karl Habsburg-Lothringen is an Austrian politician and head of the House of Habsburg. Since 1986, he has served as President of the Austrian branch of the Paneuropean Union. . . .”
“Karl Habsburg-Lothringen: We Now Have a Truly European Radio Station in Ukraine” by Georgi Gotev ; Euractiv; 1/22/2015.
Since 20 January, a truly European radio station is broadcasting in Ukraine, its main sponsor, Karl-Habsburg Lothringen, told EurActiv in an exclusive interview
Karl Habsburg-Lothringen is an Austrian politician and head of the House of Habsburg. Since 1986, he has served as President of the Austrian branch of the Paneuropean Union. Habsburg-Lothringen was an MEP between 1996 to 1999. He is Chairman of Blue Shield, the organisation for protection of cultural heritage in armed conflicts.
He spoke to Senior Editor, Georgi Gotev.
You are behind a new radio station that was launched in Ukraine yesterday (20 January), a European station, as it is called, broadcasting on 100.00 FM. Can you describe it?
We now have a truly European radio station in Ukraine. There was already a radio station, but it was rebranded in such a way that now it bears the name of the EU, it has the connotation; it is known as the European station. And of course, what it really has as a goal is to create a bit of the European spirit in Ukraine, which I think is quite important, because in communications with Ukraine, a lot of things have gone badly or wrongly lately, so I think it would be very good to have an outlet there that carries a strong European message. . . .
And are you getting some support from the EU or elsewhere? You should be transparent, or you will end up being branded as an American outlet….
. . . . Currently, the project is funded entirely by individuals. There is no state involved, there are no institutions involved. There is a group of really interested individuals that have brought it together, and we will definitely try to keep our independence, by all means.
Are you personally interested in Ukraine?
I have a family link to Ukraine, because part of Ukraine was very closely linked to Austria not that long ago. I think that radio is a very interesting media, with the possibility to reach a lot of people in an immediate way. So it is of personal interest to me that I have the chance to continue being active in Ukraine. I was very active there when I was an MEP, on the question of EU enlargement. I never had this reduced view of Europe being just the EU. I think it is very important to say that we have a greater Europe.
3e. As we noted, “Plan B” for Ukraine might be termed “Plan OUN/B.” Otto von Habsburg formed the European Freedom Council with Jaroslav Stetzko, the wartime head of the Ukrainian Nazi collaborationist government that implemented Third Reich ethnic cleansing programs in Ukraine. The EFC was closely aligned with the Anti-Bolshevik Bloc of Nations, headed by Stetzko. The ABN, as we have seen in the past, is a re-naming of the Committee of Subjugated Nations, a consortium of Eastern European fascist groups formed by Hitler in 1943.
. . . . The Hapsburg monarchy helped guide the leadership in their former possessions. The Freedom Council was formed by Otto von Hapsburg and Jaroslav Stetzko at a conference in Munich on June 30-July 2 1967, as a coordinating body for organizations fighting communism in Europe.
EMP H.R.H. Otto von Hapsburg was honorary chairman of the European Freedom Council, based in Munich, during the 1980s and allied to the Anti-Bolshevik Bloc of Nations (ABN). The EFC was founded in 1967 and in 1987 celebrated its 20th anniversary. The Executive President at that time was British M.P Mr. John Wilkinson, and one of two Vice-Presidents was Mrs. Slava Stetzko, M.A. (ABN).
The European Freedom Council (EFC), which Jaroslav Stetzko co-founded and participated in, operated in close conjunction with ABN. Annual conferences for the ABN and EFC were often held together, and the leadership of both organizations knew each other and corresponded regularly. . . .
This was the best of the best, Dave! I would like to add an important though commonly unknown stipulation regarding the EU Association Agreement. The EUAA requires that the signatories share a ‘common security and defense policy’, aka, NATO. These are not mutually exclusve, but a cooperative mandate. Thus, Manafort and Yanukovych knew full well! I know it may ‘appear’ that Manafort was trying to help ease Ukraine into the West’s orbit, minus NATO and that Yankovych was oblivious... I dont think so. Clearly they knew that NATO was an added hitch to signing the EUAA and perhaps they agreed that a coup would be the only way to fulfill that. The more I look into the details surrounding Maidan and the contradictory actions that Yankovych made,I believe he was just a poser and was onboard with what happened. Strange and sad, but true.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine%E2%80%93European_Union_Association_Agreement
Perhaps another interesting to the Hapsburg Revival is Hungary’s recent suggestions of annexing Transcarpathia Ukraine. I’ve been watching this phenomenon carefully for over a year now.
https://www.jobbik.com/another_provocation_by_ukraines_anti_hungarian_media_outlets_using_jobbik_as_pretext
Another reference to the Transcarpathian Hungarians push for succession from Ukraine.
Transcarpathian Hungarians call to introduce OSCE mission to the region: https://t.co/tcwOKA66Us via @En_EurasiaDaily
Note: Transparpathian Ukraine is a very heterogenous mix of peoples, including Slovaks, Magyars, Romanians, Roma, ancient Celts & a unique ethnicity called ‘the Rusyns’ for which my grandparent’s heritage is derived. The Transcarpahian society differed much from their northern Galych neighbors, in that the various peoples lived quite harmoniously among each other & didn’t subscribe to the nationalistic bigotry often found in West Ukraine. They were mountain people where intermarriage was common, and they traditionally gave refugue to many diverse people’s fleeing injustice. A bizarre fact is that a specific gene-marker only found in Central Africa is prevalent within the population in Transcarpathia! For many centuries, Transcarpathians sought to free themselves from Hapsburg rule, even many Hungarians! However, in light of the fascistic revival in post-Maidan Ukraine and the repressions foisted upon the ethnicities in Transcarpathia, many are looking for succession again. At the same time, however, it appears that Hungary is taking advantage of this situation for its own expansion & perhaps a Neo-Hapsburgian excroachment to reclaim that lost territory.