Billion dollars for refusal from the European integration of Ukraine. It is not that the former deputy of the Russian State Duma Ilya Ponomarev announced something that was never told. It is important that the testimony of the disgraced Russian policy was heard at the trial and became the property of law, and not just idle talk and journalistic comments.

Already on the eve of the Maidan in the Russian and Ukrainian political lobby, it was claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin had a double game against Viktor Yanukovych, on the one hand, intimidating, and on the other hand, tempting with money.

And, as it usually happened in the case of Yanukovych - and with many other Ukrainian politicians too - money was stronger than fear. But it seems that Yanukovich sold Putin not only the European integration of his country and its sovereignty. It will take several months - and he will sell Crimea to Putin.

At the trial over Yanukovych, it remains to be seen what the motives of the then president of Ukraine were, when he promoted annexation, whether only guarantees of personal security or financial incentives and preferences for the business of his family. But in that it was a sale - I do not doubt.

In order to sign the notion of appointing Sergei Aksenov (who, among other things, replaced Yanukovych's close associate Anatoly Mogilev) with the appointment of a new head of the Crimean government, needed a motive. In order to sign a letter with an appeal for the introduction of Russian troops into the territory of his country, a motive was needed.

We can, of course, consider that Yanukovych was simply afraid for his future and obediently signed what he was ordered, creating the legal basis for annexation (in Putin's understanding of law, of course). But once again I will stress: in the case of Yanukovych, the money was stronger than fear. The billionaire continued to work.

Original.