DISINFO: Colour revolutions led countries to captivity rather than freedom
SUMMARY
It is impossible to impose anything from the outside. Objective and logical reasons for change to occur must exist, so that change comes from within, and not intrusive from outside using the technology of colour revolutions. We see its examples embodied in Ukraine and before that in Georgia and Moldova, as we see the tense political conditions and the collapsed economies of these countries. Their misleading political elites thought that they were leading their countries towards “freedom” and “democracy” to only find themselves falling into the trap of the IMF's control, dependence on the West, and being captive to the political will of the European Union and NATO.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring pro-Kremlin narrative that paints all manifestations of popular discontent as colour revolutions orchestrated from abroad.
Some of the so-called "colour revolutions" in former Soviet Union countries include the "Rose Revolution" in Georgia in 2008, the Moldovan protests in 2009 and Maidan protest in Ukraine in 2014, which are explicitly mentioned in the article.
Behind the "Rose Revolution" in Georgia, there were different political, economical and social reasons. The protests in Tbilisi continued from 2 November to 23 November 2003 and, as the result, the former president of Georgia Eduard Shevardnadze resigned and Mikheil Saakashvili came to power.
The protests against the 2009 parliamentary elections result in Moldova were a spontaneous outbreak of popular discontent. However, findings by European institutions, including the European Parliament, the OSCE and the Council of Europe concluded that "elections took place in an overall pluralistic environment, offering voters distinct political alternatives and meeting many of the OSCE and Council of Europe commitments".
At the time, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana urged protesters to avoid violence and encouraged authorities to let peaceful demonstrations go ahead. The US also called on all parties to refrain from violence and declared that it shares the OSCE's assessment about the elections. After massive protests, repeated parliamentary elections were held in Moldova and centre-right and pro-European parties came to power.
Finally, in Ukraine the spontaneous onset of the Euromaidan protests was a reaction from several segments of the Ukrainian population to former President Yanukovych’s sudden departure from the promised Association Agreement with the European Union in November 2013, after pressure from Russia.
Peaceful protests, cooperation with the West, and NGOs do not lead to the destruction of states in the post-Soviet region. Many conflicts in the region are a result of direct armed aggression of Russia, such as in the case of Ukraine or Georgia. Russian involvement in the military operations in Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Crimea and Eastern Ukraine has been established.
Read similar stories that Colour revolutions and NGOs lead to the destruction of states, Armenia is an example, Conflicts in post-Soviet space are part of the policy of containment of Russia, The Western-backed coup in Ukraine has torn the country asunder.