When war in Ukraine is peace for us

Benaw Izzat | Exclusive to iKurd.net

In December 2021, two months before the ill-fated invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops, Qatar acquired the port of Olvia (Oktyabrsk in Ukrainian). The joint venture QTerminal consisting of Qatar Navigation and Qatar Port Management spent $140 million to have the management of the Olvia port facilities for 35 years.

This agreement is not reassuring, the staff has a job guarantee of at least 6 years and the priority in hiring is for local employment. In short, Qatar finances but the workforce remains local. Anywhere else this clause would not be a problem. But the port of Olvia is associated with all the recent conflicts, suffering and abuses around the world. It is from this port on the Black Sea that cargoes loaded with weapons and ammunition of all kinds go down to the Bosphorus Strait and then, if necessary, through the Suez Canal.

Already in the heyday of the USSR, the famous Cuban missiles of the Anadyr operation, which almost caused a third world war, came from Olvia. Closer to us, Olvia sent missiles to Iran in 2001, tanks to Yemen, 1000 tons of arms to Uganda in 2008, weapons to Sudan and South Sudan. Cargo ships have also unloaded large quantities of war material at the port of Um Qasr in Iraq. In short, Ukraine and Russia export together to all conflicts including Bashar’s Syria.

The legitimate elements of the Free Syrian Army never had any chance to get out of it. Stuck between arms deliveries to Bashar Al Assad’s regime and Operation Timber Sycamore which flooded all factions including Daech with military equipment, in the name of “everything but Bashar”.

For Africa and the Middle East, the war in Ukraine is a moment of peace to be savored. As long as it lasts, the kleptocrats who run dictatorships and rebellions of all kinds can’t get their supplies. At least not as usual.

No matter what the outcome of the fighting is, what follows will undoubtedly be more dangerous. The war will give birth to reconstruction. A monster fed on the bottle of corruption. The same corruption that has already destroyed Iraq and Afghanistan, claiming many more lives than the armed conflict.

In Ukraine for more than thirty years the activity of Donbass and Olvia is under the control of many gangs, the Muslim Tatars, the Krantz and Kushnir for the Jews, Givi Nemsadze [¹] for the Georgians. Rinat Akhmetov, born in a very poor family had no education and worked as butcher’s boy. He became one of the richest men in the world. But the Ukrainian oligarch threatens with an army of lawyers anyone who digs into his past.

He owns the most expensive villa in France in Saint-Jean Cap Ferrat, which makes him a notable person, unlike his Russian neighbors who are now personae non grata. How will he rebuild Ukraine with his colleague Vadim Novinsky? He is Russian but with a Ukrainian passport since 2012. Both owe a lot to Putin and this is just one example.

The criminal nebula operating in the region is neither Russian nor Ukrainian, just criminal, its only flag is a banknote. For intelligence agencies, it is known as the Odessa network. Nothing to do with the eponymous Nazi network. It is a nebulous network of Western offshore and onshore companies whose Gordian knot is in Odessa [²].

The whole world of intelligence is well aware of the danger that the post-war period will represent with Russian services that will not give up anything to protect their export arms industry and the Ukrainians who will find their political mafia.

For the time being, western Ministry of Defense are controlling the information and are avoiding questions on the reconstruction. One thing at a time! Fine. We are sending Milan missiles and armored vehicles to Ukraine to help our side. Full support for Zelenskyy, this is a good decision. The guideline is sober and clear.

Many countries take advantage of the opportunity to get rid of old, outdated or obsolete equipment and all claim loud and clear support for Ukraine. As an example, the French Milan missile, widely sold for export, is reformed from the Belgian army since 2010 and the French army since 2017 [³]. Many private military companies are active on the ground with relative discretion. Western support is not displayed to avoid an extension of the conflict but the war business is flourishing.

Except for the American and European arms lobby, Ukraine is not a stake, no oil or natural resources. Its economic partners are primarily Russia and China. As in Russia, the aging population does not have children and is not very productive. Azovstal was built in 1935, and despite some improvements, it was already out of breath a long time ago.

We must have the courage to admit that the hardest part will come after the end of the fighting. Qatar has financed all the God’s fools everywhere without limit. Will it make an alliance with the Odessa network, or will it choose a particular side? Will the arms industry relocate? Which dictatorship will receive the next arms shipment from the pacified Ukraine?

[1] Who is Givi Nemsadze and his “butchers”?.. | Против коррупции в ДНР | VK

[2] The Odessa Network, Mapping Facilitators of Russian and Ukrainian Arms Transfers.
by Tom Wallace & Farley Mesko September 2013 edition C4ADS

[3] The medium-range missile (MMP) is an anti-tank missile developed by MBDA to replace the Milan in the French Army from 2017. Système d’Armes Missile Moyenne Portée | Ministère des Armées (defense.gouv.fr)

Mrs. Benaw Izzat – a special reporter and senior writer for iKurd.net.

The opinions are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of iKurd.net or its editors.