By Theodore Shoebat

The Ukrainian government desperately wanted a White House meeting between Trump and the president of Ukraine,  Volodymyr Zelensky, in order to look strong against Russia with American support. The Trump administration, obviously, knew this. Now, according to Lev Parnas, Trump and his circle offered what Ukraine wanted like a carrot before a horse in order to get Zelensky to announce an investigation of Hunter Biden. As we read in a report from Vice:

[Rick] Perry was the replacement for Vice President Mike Pence to attend the May inauguration of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, after Pence pulled out in what Parnas described as a power move meant to force an announcement of the probe.

American diplomatic support is seen as vitally important in Ukraine as it struggles to end a bloody conflict with Russian-backed separatists in its eastern regions. Ukraine wants the symbolism of Washington’s backing to show strength to Moscow as it tries to reach a negotiated settlement.

Parnas says he told a senior advisor to Zelensky in May that the U.S. would cut all financial and diplomatic support for the war-torn country if the investigation announcement didn’t come soon. Ukraine didn’t make a statement, so Pence pulled out of the trip to Zelensky’s inauguration, Parnas says.

Rick Perry went to Ukraine instead — and at some point, he delivered the message to Zelensky about the investigations, according to Parnas.

Before the inauguration, Perry called Giuliani, who told Perry what to say, Parnas said. Afterwards, Perry called Giuliani again and said Zelensky agreed to make the announcement.

But Zelensky didn’t deliver: He made a bland announcement about battling corruption in general, according to Parnas.

“Giuliani blew his lid on that, saying, ‘That’s not what we discussed,’” Parnas told Maddow. “It wasn’t supposed to be a corruption announcement. It has to be about Joe Biden and Hunter Biden and Burisma.”

From current information that has been provided to the public, the Trump administration was dangling the prospect of a White House meeting to bait Zelensky into announcing an investigation. But Zelensky didn’t fall for it, probably in fear that if he did he would look like a capitulator. The US knew Zelensky was desperate for a meeting with Trump and did not give him a meeting, and this, possibly, pressured Zelensky to make a deal with Putin, Germany and France since American security aid was not guaranteed, since Trump froze aid allocated to Ukraine. This deal was made through his signing onto the Steinmeier Formula which may just give autonomy to two regions in Donbas mainly inhabited by ethnic Russians which, in this case, would help Russia gain a foothold in eastern Ukraine. Once Zelensky signed Steinmeier it triggered a nationalist backlash against Zelensky who has now being seen by ultra nationalists as a capitulator to Russia. We will see how this story unfolds as new information gets presented to us. One question I have is: did the US deprive Zelensky of a White House meeting in order to get him to sign the deal with Russia in order to spark a Ukrainian nationalist backlash against Zelensky, and ultimately against Russia?