Emmy-Nominated Simon Ostrovsky on Russia's Game in Syria and Ukraine

Simon Ostrovsky is a reporter for Vice News' Emmy-nominated Russian Roulette series. Ostrovsky spoke to Hromadske International about the future status of the Donbas region, consequences of the MH-17 investigation, the tenuous “cease-fire” in eastern Ukraine, the affect of sanctions on Russia, and Putin’s new posturing and objectives.

“Putin wants to have as much influence over Ukraine as he can. He sees any movement westward against Russia’s interests. But at the same time, he doesn’t have a lot of room for maneuvering and I think he’s actually trying to deflect attention from Ukraine by sending troops and equipment to Syria recently, and recalibrating a shift in the Middle East where he can be seen as broker and goodwill actor,” he said.

“In the Donbas region it’s been the men with guns making all of the decisions… we might have a situation where on paper it’s in fact a part of Ukraine, but the real power lies with men loyal to Moscow.”

Hromadske International's Ian Bateson spoke with Simon Ostrovsky in Kyiv, Ukraine on September 11, 2015

Emmy-Nominated Simon Ostrovsky on Russia's Game in Syria and Ukraine by Hromadske International on Mixcloud