Lyovochkin, oppos bloc
<font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">corrupt yanukovich oligarch (killed protestoers) party of regions recycled/rebooted by manafort against long odds</font></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
</font></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">gop platform on crimea sanctions 180'd
</font><div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html+&cd=10&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html%2B%26cd%3D10%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=2ahUKEwiMnbPL3JzdAhVRnKwKHTREA4EQIDAJegQIAhAE" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4" color="#000000"></font></a><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html+&cd=10&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html%2B%26cd%3D10%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=2ahUKEwiMnbPL3JzdAhVRnKwKHTREA4EQIDAJegQIAhAE" style="text-decoration-line: none; outline: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px;" /><div style="font-weight: 400; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html+&cd=10&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html%2B%26cd%3D10%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=2ahUKEwiMnbPL3JzdAhVRnKwKHTREA4EQIDAJegQIAhAE" style="text-decoration-line: none; outline: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font></a></div><div style="font-weight: 400; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/31/us/politics/patten-fara-manafort.html">https://www.nytimes.com<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">/2018/08</span>/31/us/politics/patten-fara-manafort.html</a></div><div style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="" /><div style="font-weight: 400;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></font></font></font></div><div style=""><b>Lobbyist Sam Patten Pleads Guilty to Steering Foreign Funds to Trump Inaugural</b></div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">By Kenneth P. Vogel, Sharon LaFraniere and Adam Goldman</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Aug. 31, 2018</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">WASHINGTON — An American lobbyist on Friday admitted brokering access to President Trump’s inauguration for a pro-Russian Ukrainian oligarch in a scheme that highlighted the rush by foreign interests to influence the new administration.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">As part of a plea agreement under which he pledged to cooperate with federal prosecutors, the lobbyist, Sam Patten, pleaded guilty to failing to register as a foreign agent for a Russia-aligned Ukrainian political party, and to helping the Ukrainian oligarch who had funded that party illegally purchase four tickets to Mr. Trump’s inauguration.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Although the charges were not brought by the special counsel investigating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, Robert S. Mueller III, they stem from his team’s work, and overlap substantially with its continuing investigation, suggesting that Mr. Patten could be a useful witness.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">The case sketched out by prosecutors encompassed Mr. Patten, a respected Republican operative and consultant whose family was once part of Washington’s social elite; money transfers from a Cypriot bank; and a Russian national who had also worked for Paul Manafort, Mr. Trump’s former campaign manager, and been accused of maintaining ties to Russian intelligence.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">The charges against Mr. Patten also represented the first public acknowledgment that prosecutors are looking into efforts by foreign interests to funnel money into Mr. Trump’s political operation, including his inaugural committee.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Prosecutors did not present any evidence that the inaugural committee was aware of the scheme. Questions to representatives of the inaugural committee on Friday about the illegal purchase of tickets went unanswered.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Mr. Trump’s inauguration came at a moment when some international figures were paying large sums to Mr. Trump’s associates in an effort to curry favor with an administration that came into office with few ties to established players on the world stage, and with an uncertain foreign policy agenda. That was particularly true in matters related to Russia and its neighbors.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">During his campaign, Mr. Trump flouted traditional foreign policy by praising President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia and suggesting that if elected he might be willing to ease sanctions levied against Russia over its aggression against Ukraine.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">That alarmed allies of Petro O. Poroshenko, the Ukrainian president, who is generally regarded as more pro-Western, and it emboldened his pro-Russian opponents, who had held power from 2010 to 2014 partly through the efforts of Mr. Manafort and his former right-hand man, Rick Gates.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Forced into the opposition, the oligarchs formed a political party called Opposition Bloc, which worked with Mr. Manafort and Mr. Gates in 2014, before largely shifting its political consulting and <b>lobbying business to a company started by Mr. Patten and Konstantin V. Kilimnik.</b> He is a Russian national who had worked closely with Mr. Manafort in Ukraine and is suspected by the United States of having ties to Russian intelligence.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><b>The company was paid more than $1 million through an <span style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">offshore Cypriot bank</span> account to advise the party and its members, including a “prominent Ukraine oligarch”</b> between 2014 and this year, according to a court document filed on Friday.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Prosecutors contend that Mr. Patten should have disclosed the work, which included lobbying and public relations assistance intended to “influence United States policy,” with the Justice Department pursuant to the Foreign Agents Registration Act.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Mr. Patten also attended an unspecified inaugural event with the oligarch, according to prosecutors. They contend that Mr. Patten arranged for the purchase of four tickets for<b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);"> $50,000 by funneling the oligarch’s money through an American “straw” purchaser</span> in violation of rules barring the inaugural committee from accepting money from foreign nationals.</b></div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Mr. Patten intentionally withheld documents from the Senate Intelligence Committee that could have revealed that foreign money was used to purchase the tickets, according to court filings.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Mr. Patten’s lawyer declined to comment after a Friday court hearing in which Mr. Patten entered his guilty plea. He faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. He was released after the hearing and awaits sentencing.</span></div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Prosecutors did not identify the American who purchased the tickets, the oligarch or Mr. Patten’s Russian business partner by name.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">But people familiar with the work said the Russian is Mr. Kilimnik, who formed a company called<b> Begemot Ventures International</b> with Mr. Patten in February 2015, according to corporate records filed in Washington.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Roger Stone and Everyone Charged in the 2016 Election Investigations</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Roger Stone is the sixth Trump adviser who has been found or pleaded guilty of crimes stemming from the Mueller investigation.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><b>And the <span style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">description of the oligarch matches that of Serhiy Lyovochkin,</span> </b>who serves in the Ukrainian parliament and is an official in the Opposition Bloc, according to interviews and documents. Prosecutors say that Mr. Patten arranged meetings with congressional officials for the oligarch, and one former congressional aide recalled being introduced to Mr. Lyovochkin by Mr. Patten.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Prosecutors also said that Mr. Patten helped the oligarch draft and place an op-ed in an American media outlet in February 2017 “to address concerns regarding Ukraine’s ability to work effectively with the new United States administration.”</span></div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">An op-ed under Mr. Lyovochkin’s name appeared in U.S. News & World Report at that time arguing that Mr. Trump could be good for Ukraine, while accusing elements of Mr. Poroshenko’s government of trying to boost Hillary Clinton, including by “manufacturing” allegations against Mr. Manafort related to his work for the ousted pro-Russian president, Viktor F. Yanukovych.</span></div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">A representative of U.S. News said editors had not been contacted by anyone in law enforcement about the op-ed.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><b>
</b></div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><b>Mr. Lyovochkin surfaced prominently in the financial fraud trial last month of Mr. Manafort.</b> Mr. Gates, Mr. Trump’s former deputy campaign chairman and Mr. Manafort’s former right-hand man, testified that Mr. Lyovochkin was one of a clutch of oligarchs who paid Mr. Manafort more than $60 million to promote pro-Russian political forces in Ukraine.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">With Mr. Manafort’s help, Mr. Yanukovych was elected president of Ukraine in 2010, a position he held for four years until he fled to Russia amid a popular uprising against his regime’s corruption.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Mr. Gates testified that Mr. Lyovochkin wired millions of dollars to Mr. Manafort’s secret bank accounts from bank accounts in Cyprus held in the names of two shell companies to Mr. Manafort’s secret bank accounts. Like the other Ukrainian oligarchs who financed Mr. Manafort’s work, Mr. Lyovochkin was one of the top officials in Mr. Yanukovych’s government.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><b>After Mr. Yanukovych was forced out of office, the oligarchs regrouped into an opposition force, continuing to pay Mr. Manafort for a time to help promote their views in the West.</b></div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Mr. Manafort was convicted in August of financial fraud and is scheduled to go on trial in September on other charges, including violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act for failing to disclose his work on behalf of Mr. Yanukovych and the Opposition Bloc.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Mr. Patten traveled in the same lucrative foreign consulting circles as Mr. Manafort, but people who know them said their primary connection was through Mr. Kilimnik.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Mr. Patten was born into elite Washington, as a grandson of the Georgetown socialite Susan Mary Alsop.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">He worked in Washington Republican politics, including for the State Department under President George W. Bush, and briefly for Senator Susan Collins of Maine.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">But Mr. Patten really made his name in international political consulting, coming to specialize in representing clients in former Soviet states. He worked with Mr. Kilimnik in the Moscow office of the International Republican Institute in the early 2000s.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">In Ukraine, Mr. Patten and Mr. Kilimnik worked on the 2014 campaign of the former boxer Vitali Klitschko for mayor of Kiev, which was also supported by Mr. Lyovochkin.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><b>And Mr. Patten also worked extensively for interests in Kazakhstan.</b></div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><b>Among his associates on work related to Kazakhstan was Rinat Akhmetshin,</b> a Russian-born Washington lobbyist who attended the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting at which Kremlin-linked insiders had promised to provide the Trump campaign with damaging information about Mrs. Clinton.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">Mr. Patten also had a yearslong business relationship with Cambridge Analytica, the political data firm that worked on Mr. Trump’s 2016 campaign. Starting in 2014, the firm used Mr. Patten as a consultant for election campaigns and other projects in Africa, Europe and the United States, according to a person with direct knowledge of his activities.</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;"><b>During the same year, Cambridge Analytica sought to drum up business in Russia, approaching the Russian oil giant Lukoil.</b></div><div style="font-weight: 400;">
</div><div style="font-weight: 400;">In a Facebook post, Mr. Patten said he deeply regretted his failure to register as a foreign agent and was “ashamed” that he had undermined much of his life’s work, which he said had largely focused on promoting democracy abroad.</div></div><div style="font-weight: 400; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></div><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html+&cd=10&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html%2B%26cd%3D10%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=2ahUKEwiMnbPL3JzdAhVRnKwKHTREA4EQIDAJegQIAhAE" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4" color="#000000"></font></a></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html+&cd=10&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html%2B%26cd%3D10%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=2ahUKEwiMnbPL3JzdAhVRnKwKHTREA4EQIDAJegQIAhAE" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4" color="#000000">
</font></a></div><div style=""><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.4px;"><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html+&cd=10&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:ssFL-dpAtMEJ:https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/28/fear-envelops-russia-after-killing-of-putin-critic-boris-nemtsov.html%2B%26cd%3D10%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=2ahUKEwiMnbPL3JzdAhVRnKwKHTREA4EQIDAJegQIAhAE" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><b>O</b><b style="">pposition Bloc</b> </font></a><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_language" title="Ukrainian language" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">Ukrainian</a>: <span lang="uk" style="">Опозиційний блок</span>) is a Ukrainian political party that was founded in 2014 as six parties that did not endorse <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euromaidan" title="Euromaidan" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">Euromaidan</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merger" class="mw-redirect" title="Merger" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">merged</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-FPoR23914_7-0" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-FPoR23914-7" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">[7]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-political_forces_team_up_in_Opposition_Bloc_5-1" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-political_forces_team_up_in_Opposition_Bloc-5" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">[5]</a></sup> In the 2014 election, it won 29 seats predominantly in the Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia, Luhansk and Kharkiv oblasts.<sup id="cite_ref-allcountedCECIU81114_8-0" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-allcountedCECIU81114-8" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">[8]</a></sup></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">American lobbyist <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Manafort" title="Paul Manafort" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">Paul Manafort</a> acted as political consultant for the party.<sup id="cite_ref-pmsuOB2_9-0" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-pmsuOB2-9" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">[9]</a></sup></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In Ukraine the party is perceived as the successor of the disbanded <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Party_of_Regions" title="Party of Regions" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">Party of Regions</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-10" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-10" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">[10]</a></sup></font></p><div id="toc" class="toc" style="background-color: rgb(248, 249, 250); border: 1px solid rgb(162, 169, 177); padding: 7px; display: table; zoom: 1;"><div class="toctitle" lang="en" dir="ltr" style="direction: ltr; text-align: center;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><ul style="list-style-type: none; margin: 0.3em 0px; padding: 0px; list-style-image: none;"><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-1" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#History" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0.5em;">1</span><span class="toctext" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit;">History</span></font></a><ul style="list-style-type: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 2em; padding: 0px; list-style-image: none;"><li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-2" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#Party%22Leading_force%22" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0.5em;">1.1</span><span class="toctext" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit;">Party "Leading force"</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-3" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#2014_parliamentary_elections_and_since" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0.5em;">1.2</span><span class="toctext" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit;">2014 parliamentary elections and since</span></font></a></li></ul></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-4" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#Ideology_and_stances" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0.5em;">2</span><span class="toctext" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit;">Ideology and stances</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-5" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#Member_parties" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0.5em;">3</span><span class="toctext" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit;">Member parties</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-6" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#Election_results" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0.5em;">4</span><span class="toctext" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit;">Election results</span></font></a><ul style="list-style-type: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 2em; padding: 0px; list-style-image: none;"><li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-7" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#Verkhovna_Rada" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0.5em;">4.1</span><span class="toctext" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit;">Verkhovna Rada</span></font></a></li></ul></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-8" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#See_also" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0.5em;">5</span><span class="toctext" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit;">See also</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-9" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#References" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0.5em;">6</span><span class="toctext" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit;">References</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-10" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#External_links" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0.5em;">7</span><span class="toctext" style="display: table-cell; text-decoration: inherit;">External links</span></font></a></li></ul></div><h2 linux="Linux" libertine="Libertine" georgia="Georgia" times="Times" serif="serif" line-height="line-height" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); font-weight: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0.25em; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(162, 169, 177);"><span class="mw-headline" id="History"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">History</font></span></h2><h3 style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0.3em 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; border-bottom: 0px; line-height: 1.6;"><span id="Party.22Leading_force.22"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Party "Leading force"</font></span></h3><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The party was registered at the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_Ministry_of_Justice" class="mw-redirect" title="Ukrainian Ministry of Justice" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">Ukrainian Ministry of Justice</a> on 23 April 2010 as "Leading force" (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_language" title="Ukrainian language" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">Ukrainian</a>: <span lang="uk">Ведуча сила</span>).<sup id="cite_ref-OBBBCUZZ_11-0" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-OBBBCUZZ-11" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">[11]</a></sup> The party was the led by <a href="https://uk.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9A%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%BD%D1%96%D1%94%D0%BD%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%90%D0%BD%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%96%D0%B9%D0%86%D0%B2%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%87" class="extiw" title="uk:Корнієнко Анатолій Іванович" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">Anatoly Kornienko</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-OBBBCUZZ_11-1" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-OBBBCUZZ-11" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">[11]</a></sup></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The party did not participate in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_parliamentary_election,2012" title="Ukrainian parliamentary election, 2012" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">2012 parliamentary elections</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-12" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-12" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">[12]</a></sup></font></p><h3 style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0.3em 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; border-bottom: 0px; line-height: 1.6;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="mw-headline" id="2014_parliamentary_elections_and_since">2014 parliamentary elections and since</span></font></h3><div class="thumb tright" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); clear: right; float: right; margin: 0.5em 0px 1.3em 1.4em; width: auto;"><div class="thumbinner" style="min-width: 100px; border: 1px solid rgb(200, 204, 209); padding: 3px; background-color: rgb(248, 249, 250); text-align: center; overflow: hidden; width: 272px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:%D0%A0%D0%B5%D0%B7%D1%83%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%82%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B1%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%96%D0%B2%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%92%D0%A0%D0%A3%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%97%D0%BD%D0%B8_2014(%D0%9F%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%96%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%BF%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%82%D1%96%D1%8F%D0%9E%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%B7%D0%B8%D1%86%D1%96%D0%B9%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%B9%D0%B1%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%BA).png" class="image" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/%D0%A0%D0%B5%D0%B7%D1%83%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%82%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B1%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%96%D0%B2%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%92%D0%A0%D0%A3%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%97%D0%BD%D0%B8_2014%28%D0%9F%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%96%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%BF%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%82%D1%96%D1%8F%D0%9E%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%B7%D0%B8%D1%86%D1%96%D0%B9%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%B9%D0%B1%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%BA%29.png/270px-%D0%A0%D0%B5%D0%B7%D1%83%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%82%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B1%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%96%D0%B2%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%92%D0%A0%D0%A3%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%97%D0%BD%D0%B8_2014%28%D0%9F%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%96%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%BF%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%82%D1%96%D1%8F%D0%9E%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%B7%D0%B8%D1%86%D1%96%D0%B9%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%B9%D0%B1%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%BA%29.png" width="270" height="177" class="thumbimage" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/%D0%A0%D0%B5%D0%B7%D1%83%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%82%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B1%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%96%D0%B2%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%92%D0%A0%D0%A3%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%97%D0%BD%D0%B8_2014%28%D0%9F%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%96%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%BF%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%82%D1%96%D1%8F%D0%9E%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%B7%D0%B8%D1%86%D1%96%D0%B9%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%B9%D0%B1%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%BA%29.png/405px-%D0%A0%D0%B5%D0%B7%D1%83%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%82%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B1%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%96%D0%B2%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%92%D0%A0%D0%A3%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%97%D0%BD%D0%B8_2014%28%D0%9F%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%96%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%BF%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%82%D1%96%D1%8F%D0%9E%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%B7%D0%B8%D1%86%D1%96%D0%B9%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%B9%D0%B1%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%BA%29.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/%D0%A0%D0%B5%D0%B7%D1%83%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%82%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B1%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%96%D0%B2%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%92%D0%A0%D0%A3%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%97%D0%BD%D0%B8_2014%28%D0%9F%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%96%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%BF%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%82%D1%96%D1%8F%D0%9E%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%B7%D0%B8%D1%86%D1%96%D0%B9%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%B9%D0%B1%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%BA%29.png/540px-%D0%A0%D0%B5%D0%B7%D1%83%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%82%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B1%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%96%D0%B2%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%92%D0%A0%D0%A3%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%97%D0%BD%D0%B8_2014%28%D0%9F%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%96%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%BF%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%82%D1%96%D1%8F%D0%9E%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%B7%D0%B8%D1%86%D1%96%D0%B9%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%B9%D0%B1%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%BA%29.png 2x" data-file-width="800" data-file-height="525" style="border: 1px solid rgb(200, 204, 209); vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></font></a><div class="thumbcaption" style="border: 0px; line-height: 1.4em; padding: 3px; text-align: left;"><div class="magnify" style="float: right; margin-left: 3px; margin-right: 0px;" /><div class="thumb tright" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); clear: right; float: right; margin: 0.5em 0px 1.3em 1.4em; width: auto;"><div class="thumbinner" style="min-width: 100px; border: 1px solid rgb(200, 204, 209); padding: 3px; background-color: rgb(248, 249, 250); text-align: center; overflow: hidden; width: 272px;"><div class="thumbcaption" style="border: 0px; line-height: 1.4em; padding: 3px; text-align: left;"><div class="magnify" style="float: right; margin-left: 3px; margin-right: 0px;" /><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Manafort" title="Paul Manafort" style="background: none; text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none;">Paul Manafort</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> was hired as an advisor to (former Manafort client) </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viktor_Yanukovych" title="Viktor Yanukovych" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background-image: none; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;">Viktor Yanukovych</a>’s</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> former head of the </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidential_Administration_of_Ukraine" title="Presidential Administration of Ukraine" style="background: none; text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none;">Presidential Administration of Ukraine</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serhiy_Lyovochkin" title="Serhiy Lyovochkin" style="background: none; text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none;">Serhiy </a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serhiy_Lyovochkin" title="Serhiy Lyovochkin" style="background-image: none; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none;">Lyovochkin</a>.</span><sup id="cite_ref-pmsuOB2_9-1" class="reference" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-pmsuOB2-9" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">[9]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>Manafort was tasked with rebranding</b> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Party_of_Regions" title="Party of Regions" style="background-image: none; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none;">Party of Regions</a></span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.</span><sup id="cite_ref-pmsuOB2_9-2" class="reference" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-pmsuOB2-9" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background: none;">[9]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> Instead, he argued to help stabilize Ukraine,</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> Manafort advised to create a new political party called <i>Opposition Bloc</i>.<sup id="cite_ref-pmsuOB2_9-3" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_Bloc#cite_note-pmsuOB2-9" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; background-image: none; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;">[9]</a></sup> According to Ukrainian political analyst Mikhail Pogrebinsky “He thought to gather the largest number of people opposed to the current government, you needed to avoid anything concrete, and just become a symbol of being opposed</span></font></p></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/08/donald-trumps-campaign-manager-still-ukrainian-payroll</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><p style="margin: 1em 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"> Donald Trump's campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, still on the payroll of a Ukrainian politician or party?</font></p><p style="margin: 1em 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">According to the <em>New York Times</em>, which on Monday published an <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/01/us/paul-manafort-ukraine-donald-trump.html?ref=politics&r=0" target="blank" style="text-decoration: none; background-position: 0% 90%; background-image: url(" sites="sites" all="all" assets="assets" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" white="white" px="px">investigation</a> into Manafort's decadelong involvement in Ukrainian politics, the answer is unclear. As the <em>Times </em>detailed, Manafort—who has a lengthy history of helping dictators and strongmen rehab their reputations—once represented Ukraine's former President Viktor Yanukovych, a pro-Russian politician with ties to Vladimir Putin who fled Ukraine in 2014 as demonstrations and uprisings raged in the country. But Manafort's work in Ukraine didn't end with Yanukovych's ouster. He subsequently went to work for <b>Serhiy Lyovochkin, Yanukovych's former chief of staff, to revitalize Yanukovych's beleaguered political party.</b> The <em>Times</em> reported this intriguing detail near the end of its article:</font></p><blockquote style="margin: 2em 0px; line-height: 1.8em; padding-left: 20px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><p style="margin: 1em 0px 2em; padding-left: 20px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">It is not clear that Mr. Manafort's work in Ukraine ended with his work with Mr. Trump's campaign. A communications aide for Mr. Lyovochkin, who financed Mr. Manafort's work, declined to say whether he was still on retainer or how much he had been paid.</font></p></blockquote><p style="margin: 1em 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Hope Hicks, Trump's spokeswoman, did not respond immediately to questions about whether Manafort is currently involved in any work related to Ukrainian politics.<b> If Manafort does have active ties to Lyovochkin or other Ukrainian politicians, this would raise conflict-of-interest questions and fuel the controversy surrounding Trump's foreign policy stance on Russia and his relationship with Putin.</b></font></p><p style="margin: 1em 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The Trump campaign has raised the eyebrows of the press and many foreign policy experts by repeatedly advocating a softer stance toward Russia. Over the weekend, for instance, Trump <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/week-transcript-donald-trump-vice-president-joe-biden/story?id=41020870" target="blank" style="text-decoration: none; background-position: 0% 90%; background-image: url(" sites="sites" all="all" assets="assets" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" white="white" px="px">told</a> ABC's George Stephanopoulos that he would look into recognizing Russia's annexation of Crimea and that the people of Crimea would rather be part of Russia (which also happens to be the official line of the Kremlin).</font></p><p style="margin: 1em 0px;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Another example of the Trump campaign's pro-Russia maneuvering came last month while the Republican Party was drafting its platform in Cleveland. According to the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/trump-campaign-guts-gops-anti-russia-stance-on-ukraine/2016/07/18/98adb3b0-4cf3-11e6-a7d8-13d06b37f256_story.html" target="_blank" style="text-decoration: none; background-position: 0% 90%; background-image: url(" sites="sites" all="all" assets="assets" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" white="white" px="px"><em>Washington Post</em></a>, Trump aides removed a provision from the platform that called for the United States to provide "lethal defensive weapons" to Ukraine's military to defend itself against Russia and dissidents. Instead, the campaign worked behind the scenes to replace the pledge to provide weapons with a call for "appropriate assistance."</font></span></p><p style="margin: 1em 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">When Stephanopoulos asked Trump about this change in the platform, Trump said he had not been involved. But he added, "It's, well, you know, I have my own ideas."</font></p></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">==</font></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>