This Ukrainian Politician Tries To 'Straddle' Both Sides

Ukrainian politician Viktor Medvedchuk (right) and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Kyiv on July 27

David M. Herszenhorn, New York Times: Friend of Putin Assumes Role of Negotiator in Ukrainian Conflict

KIEV, Ukraine — Viktor V. Medvedchuk often turns up in places where only buddies of President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia get to go, like the V.I.P. section at a Formula One championship in Sochi, Russia, in October. He sat just a few feet from Mr. Putin next to the actor Steven Seagal, another pal of the Kremlin leader.

Mr. Medvedchuk’s close ties to Mr. Putin are no secret, and he was in Belarus on Wednesday for negotiations between the Ukrainian government and Russian-backed separatists waging war in eastern Ukraine. But in a sign of the inscrutable nature of Ukrainian politics, he was there not on behalf of the Russian leader or the separatists but for President Petro O. Poroshenko of Ukraine and the Ukrainian State Security Service.

WNU Editor: Viktor V. Medvedchuk reflects on how screwed up the Ukraine situation has become. He has family on both sides of the border .... and he is distressed to see the conflict escalate to the level that it has. He tries to do something to alleviate the suffering .... but it is not enough. He knows all the players, he knows why they are fighting, and he has influence .... but that is also not enough. This is why the conflict in Ukraine is going to take a long time to settle down and correct itself .... no one has control of the situation anymore .... it has to burn itself out before people like Viktor V. Medvedchuk can play a role in mediating the different sides.