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Press TV has conducted an interview with Danny Schechter, an editor of Media Channel.org, from New York, about the refugee crisis created out of the war inside Ukraine and the paranoia obstructing humanitarian intervention.

Press TV: NATO's Secretary General has accused Russia of going in under the ‘guise’ of a humanitarian mission to describe Russia’s role in this – What does that mean?

It’s not like they could hide their weapons were they to be boarded on the trucks or hide their uniforms or other military equipment perhaps that they are accusing these convoys to carry?

Schechter: I can’t think of an international agency that enjoys more prestige in this very cynical and skeptical time than the Red Cross.

The Red Cross has a history of intervening or providing humanitarian aid in conflict situations. It knows how to do it; it has trained personnel, it should be allowed to do it.

If verification is what’s needed, provided verification – I’m not quibbling on that; but it seems like every time we raise these new issues what it does is it just calls more attention to the mutual suspicion and the fact that we’re not talking about the nature of the humanitarian crisis, but how to deliver aid.

So what is being obscured here is the casualties of this war, which is pretty terrifying and is ongoing in eastern Ukraine.

People are being displaced from their homes. You’ll notice they’re not fleeing to Kiev they are fleeing to Russia, which says something about their outlook about where they’re likely to get the most protection.
So again, we’re in a world of Alice in Wonderland with paranoia on both sides, but certainly on the Ukrainian side where an effort to provide food for hungry people is immediately construed as a sneaky attempt by the Russians to bring tanks in.

This exaggeration is almost caricature and it’s just delaying what is really the inevitable – people will die without humanitarian help. And they need it now not in the future.

So if it requires some verification, sure, what’s wrong with that? But at the same time I don’t think the people asking for that really want the aid, they want to starve these people out.

And I think that’s what this is about; it’s about a war, not an attempt to help people in need.

Press TV: I assume when you talk about starving them out you’re talking about the central government?

Schechter: No, the people in the eastern Ukraine who are confronting the Ukrainian military.

You’ll notice last Sunday the New York Times – and I’d like to ask my friend Brent (Brent Budowsky Press TV guest) about this – the New York times reported extensively from that area and they talked about the increasing appearance of neo-Nazis in the Ukrainian militias - The first time I’ve seen that openly discussed in the New York Times – who are being used as shock troops to try and kill people in that area.

First the Ukrainian army lobs in mortars and the like and then these shock troops on the ground who are made up of neo-Nazi configurations then rush in. Now... the New York Times reported it, but the US government makes no reference to it.

Press TV: Our guest Mr. Budowsky in Washington says if there are neo-Nazis acting in Ukraine they should be removed; that the Malaysian commercial plane was shot down by Pro-Russian allies; that Russia should pull their troops backs from the border to ease concerns; that aid should be delivered by the Red Cross immediately. Your response?

Schechter: Here’s my problem with it and it involves three of your points: ‘If’ there are neo-Nazis - The New York Times just reported that there ‘are’ Neo-Nazis. So many other outlets have reported that there ‘are’ neo-Nazis and they were involved in the Kiev uprising and they were very much part of the toppling of the last government.

So, using ‘if’ is a way of avoiding the issue rather than acknowledge a fact that’s been reported, you raise new questions – if... if... maybe... God knows what. You know... I think that’s a way of obscuring.

Secondly, the plane crash... To my knowledge there has been no international investigation, as called for by Putin and Angela Merkel, of that crash in Ukraine. There has been no independent neural force that has been looking into it. You say there were obstructions put in the way of that, but in any even there was no effort by all the parties and the United Nations to actually call for and ensure an independent investigation of that. So the facts about who did what and how are still contested.

You may believe one set of facts, but not everybody does – and that’s a reason why you can’t just say that as if it’s proven. It isn’t proven and there is lots of information of allegations that were made that were later discredited or weren’t true.

On the third point here, the Russian troops on the border - How many times have we hear predictions from you and others that the invasion was imminent? Even as Putin said no I don’t want to invade, I’m not planning to invade; but nevertheless we’ve heard this for over two months now almost every day, the same charge. So I would be a little bit hesitant to cast the impression of an imminent invasion.

The reality is that there is a war going on. It’s a brutal war and it’s a war that’s being funded in large part by the United States. There are, I’ve read, covert forces of the United States involved in this in training and perhaps on the ground as well.

So this is not just a Ukrainian affair, it’s a global affair. Now we have NATO spouting off about this, we have the European Union spouting off about this... This is not just a question of Ukrainian politics and of course Russia is involved, too.

I would like to know the facts before I reach my opinions and broadcast them.

We do agree on some things, but what we disagree on is facts / what are the facts – you invent facts, I try to be respectful of them.

Press TV: If Russia invades Ukraine Mr. Budowsky says it would be illegal and while it’s not imminent he says it could happen and this is the concern of NATO. They don’t need Russian troops to deliver the aid it should be done by the Red Cross.

Schechter: I just want to stick to this point. I’m sure that when Mr. Putin hears your advice...

The New York Times is not my bible; I’m just referencing a report, which was a little bit delayed in terms of the Nazi role there because everybody else was reporting it a long time ago.

But my point is I’m sure that when Mr. Putin hears your advice as relayed to him in Russian by the people in Moscow who are transcribing your every word he will act immediately along the lines that you’re suggesting, but until he does, you also have to try to recognize - why are those troops there? What are their fears?

Unfortunately in war there is no one truth, there are many people with different truths and different ways of looking at it. And they have uncertainties and fears as well. What they see is not just the military side of this, but the economic side of this, which you have not really referenced at all.

The role of the World Bank; the role of the IMF not only making giant loans, but imposing economic conditions, which might include the introduction of GMO foods and other ways in which the market solution/neo-Liberal solutions are imposed on the people of the Ukraine – in the name of reform.

That’s another aspect of this that needs to be thought through. I don’t have all the facts on it, but it seems it is another dimension of what’s happening. It’s not just a military conflict it’s also an economic battle that’s going on.

Press TV: Concerning the humanitarian aid wrangle between all parties involved in Ukraine, Mr. Budowsky likens it to the humanitarian aid obstructions for Israeli-occupied Gaza to which he proposed a type of billion dollar Marshall plan...

Schechter: Well, let’s also open up the borders with Gaza so that they can have trade back and forth and they’re not put in a prison. That’s the other aspect of this, everybody wants more aid, but they also want free exchange of goods and services and to stop Israel basically enforcing a prison concept for occupied Gaza. I mean... I’ve gone cosmic here forgive me we’ve strayed off the point...

But back to Ukraine I think it’s clear that this conflict is really threatening world peace not just central European peace. This is an extremely difficult thing, introducing a second cold war; introducing nuclear nations that are at each others’ throats once again and we don’t need that in the world want to move forwards not backwards.

Press TV: We have British army general and NATOs number two saying the alliance needs a more response quick reaction force; Samantha Power saying Moscow is going to make a grave mistake under the guise of a humanitarian pretext – It seems like they are ready and that this is somewhat imminent. They must have told Putin that this is going to happen if you go in. What’s going to happen – are we going to get that military engagement?

Mr. Budowsky says the solution is to get humanitarian aid through immediately verified by the Red Cross. Your views?

Schechter: Well, on that point maybe we’ve solved the problem here on Press TV.

But clearly all of the rhetoric, the war-type rhetoric fuelled by the United States by Obama by Kerry, even by Samantha Power who I knew at one time as a human rights activist is not contributing to a peaceful resolution here.

And that’s what we need, we need to find a way for the parties to sit down and work out their differences without mortars and airstrikes.