Normalizing Ukraine

"The first steps that we will take at beginning of presidential office should be focused on stopping the war, to put an end to this chaos and bring peace to a united Ukraine."
Ukrainian president-elect Petro Poroshenko

Petro Poroshenko held up his fist during his press conference in Kiev, Ukraine, on Sunday after exit polls showed the candidate was poised to win Ukraine's presidential elections without having to enter a second-round runoff. The Wall Street Journal

Pro-Moscow separatists prevented many citizens from fulfilling their wishful obligations to vote on Sunday in Ukraine's presidential election. The thugs ordered election organizers -- in violence- plagued cities close to the Russian border where an element of sympathy for the strident demands to join the Russian federation exists among the population -- to leave their polling stations, at the point of a gun.

Broken ballot boxes in front of #Donetsk regional administration building. Twitter

They smashed the ballot boxes and hauled away with them voters' lists. Roughly five million of Ukraine's 35-million voters are contained in the east where previous referenda in early May gave controlled 'evidence' that the majority were anxious to have their geography annexed to Russia, following the violation of Ukraine's sovereignty with the Russian annexation of Crimea.

In Donetsk, no voting took place though in about 200 of Ukraine's 215 electoral districts voting was determinedly robust. In Donetsk, a million people were shut out of the opportunity to cast their lawful votes.  Vladimir Putin, while claiming he is prepared to "respect the choice of the Ukrainian people", said nothing with respect to his earlier statements reserving the 'right to intervene' in Eastern Ukraine should he view the rights and well-being of Russian-speakers threatened.

It's difficult to recall whether Ukraine officially protested when the Kremlin sent its military into Chechnya, to violently react to an insurrection. Or when Vladimir Putin impugned Georgia for threatening the safety and security of Russian-speakers in South Ossetia and Abhkazia, marching into the country to militarily counter Georgian forces putting down their own apprehended insurrection with unconscionable force.

The strong voter turnout for this election by Ukrainians anxious to avoid a second round of voting boded well strategically for Petro Poroshenko, the strongest of the 20 candidates to run for the presidency. People were fearful that a delay to June 15 would only hand more time and opportunity over to the militants to plan additional ambushes on Ukrainian soldiers. Should Kyiv see the need to order its military to strike back hard, that would offend the Kremlin.

Яценюк стоит в очереди, общается с народом:) pic.twitter.com -- Yatsenyuk is in the queue, people :)

Hoping to heal the deep wounds that have been inflicted on his country by the devious machinations of the Russian president, Mr. Poroshenko stated his determination to reach out to the Dunbas region as president. Cities such as Donetsk and Luhansk where separatists have seized public buildings and gained control of many of the roads leading in and out, are to be liberated by the assurance that they will be offered greater autonomy and protections.

Canada's contribution to the overseeing of the voting process resulted in over 350 election scrutineers being dispatched, many from among Canada's large Ukrainian-Canadian community. Natalia Toroshenko, Vegreville Alberta Councillor, had taken her sixth trip to Ukraine as an election observer over the years. 

"I have definitely noticed that every time they run an election they are getting better at it. Ukrainians desperately want this election to take place so that they can express their opinions."

Consider it done.