US hawkish policies on Russia to herald WWIII: Analyst

The United States’ radical policies against Russia over the crisis in Ukraine will plunge the world into World War III, an analyst tells Press TV.

Michael Billington told Press TV in a Thursday interview that WWIII has “effectively” started as Washington is escalating tensions in Ukraine, where pro-Russian protesters are facing a military crackdown.

“What is at stake here is not a war over Ukraine; it is not even a war with Russia; this is a war demanded by the British and the [US President Barack] Obama administration, who takes orders from the Wall Street and the City of London bankers, who want a war. And this is not going to be a war in Europe; this is going to be a global war,” said the analyst.

Billington said Obama remains “committed to war” as long as he is in office.

“There is nothing that is going to stop this war other than impeaching Obama and immediately dealing with the financial collapse of the entire European and American banking system in order to, basically, take the power out of the hands of this financial cartel which is driving this push for war,” he added.

The analyst said CIA Director John Brennan ordered the post-coup Ukrainian government to quell pro-Russian protests during his weekend visit.

During a United Nations Security Council meeting on Wednesday, Russia’s UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin took the floor to criticize Kiev’s military operation against the protesters in the eastern provinces of Ukraine.

US Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power, however, defended the actions of the newly-installed pro-West Ukrainian government against the activists, claiming that the protests are ‘being incited by Moscow.’

Meanwhile, reports have surfaced that some Ukrainian soldiers who have been sent to the east of the country have laid down their weapons and joined the protesters.

The protesters continue to occupy government, police and other administrative buildings in nearly 10 cities close to the Russian border. The pro-Russia activists have been demanding local referendums on independence from Ukraine.