TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2014 ANALYSIS THE LEADING INDEPENDENT DAILY IN THE ARABIAN GULF ESTABLISHED 1961 Founder and Publisher YOUSUF S. AL-ALYAN Editor-in-Chief ABD AL-RAHMAN AL-ALYAN EDITORIAL : 24833199-24833358-24833432 ADVERTISING : 24835616/7 FAX : 24835620/1 CIRCULATION : 24833199 Extn. 163 ACCOUNTS : 24835619 COMMERCIAL : 24835618 P.O.Box 1301 Safat,13014 Kuwait. E MAIL :[email protected] Website: www.kuwaittimes.net Issues Army loyalties divided on Ukraine protests By Oleksandr Savochenko, Olga Nedbaeva krainian President Viktor Yanukovych is unlikely to move the army against protesters despite opposition Uwarnings about an imminent intervention - mainly because the loyalty of rank and file soldiers could be in doubt, analysts said. “The core of the army is made up of young people who grew up in an independent Ukraine,” said Valentyn Badrak, director of the Research Centre for the Army, Demilitarisation and Disarmament in Kiev. “They are members of a younger generation that feels very close to the aspirations of the Maidan,” or Independence Square in the centre of Kiev, the epicentre of Ukraine’s protest movement, Badrak told AFP. “The high command is made up mostly of Seahawks’ total team effort stops Broncos officers and generals who grew up in Soviet times and they have a certain discipline, they are ready to obey any order,” he said. But lower ranks “feel the financial and social difficul- By Larry Fine was largely avoided by Manning’s passes. 10 tackles. “We peaked at the right time.” Manning to beat them and he could not. “The ties” in Ukraine, he said. It was a performance worthy of some of thing that I was most impressed about is that The opposition has been warning for weeks that eattle’s “Legion of Boom” secondary the greatest defensive teams in NFL lore, up Breaking Away we played the style and fashion that we’re Yanukovych could be preparing to impose emergency rule made the noise this season as poster there with the work of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Despite thoroughly outplaying the Broncos accustomed to,” said Seattle defensive coordi- by calling the army into the streets, prompting international Sboys for the Seahawks’ league-best “Steel Curtain”, the 1985 Chicago Bears with in the first quarter, outgaining them by 148 nator Dan Quinn. “We’re fast, we’re physical and concern. The prospect appeared to become more concrete defense, but it took a team effort to send the William “Refrigerator” Perry, and the Ray yards to 11, Seattle failed to score touchdowns we played the game on our terms.” last Friday when the army asked Yanukovych to take “urgent high powered Denver Broncos crashing in Lewis-led Baltimore Ravens of 2000. Do not with their opportunities and led by just 8-0. The motley crew of overlooked players measures” to end a two-month crisis that has claimed at least Super Bowl 48. Sunday’s 43-8 trouncing at discount the Seattle offense, either. Second- That is when the Seattle pass rush ratcheted up that populate a Seattle defense whipped into four lives and left parts of central Kiev looking like a war MetLife Stadium was one of the most lop- year quarterback Russell Wilson showed poise the pressure and made Manning shuffle his a high-energy force by head coach Pete zone. The 63-year-old president has battled protests sparked sided ever in a Super Bowl and came against a beyond his years in orchestrating a rock- feet, roll outside the pocket and hurry his pass- Carroll, was the story of the game. “We’re a by his decision to ditch key economic and political agree- Peyton Manning-led offense that had set an steady attack, scrambling to first downs and es. The opportunistic Seahawks were quick to bunch of misfits in some ways,” said Sherman, ments with the European Union. The pro-EU protest move- NFL record for points in a season. Linebacker tossing two touchdown passes, hitting Doug capitalize. First, the hard-hitting Chancellor cor- who was carted off the field in the fourth ment has turned into an all-out drive to oust Yanukovych. Malcolm Smith ran off with the Most Valuable Baldwin and Jermaine Kearse. raled an overthrow pass for an interception and quarter with an ankle injury. “Fifth round, Kam Player award by running all the way into the With Denver focused on stopping the this time Wilson drove Seattle to pay dirt with Chancellor. Sixth round, Byron Maxwell. Fifth ‘In a pitiful state’ end zone with a second-quarter, 69-yard run, limiting Marshawn Lynch to 39 yards Lynch doing the honors by bulling his way in round, Richard Sherman. Fourth-round, K J Since the country’s 1991 independence from the Soviet interception to break open the game. on 15 carries, Wilson relied more on his arm from the one yard. Wright. Undrafted, Michael Bennett.” Sherman Union, the army has always remained neutral. The military Cliff Avril set up that pick by getting in and completed 18 of 25 passes for 206 Then came Avril’s determined rush and hit rattled off other names - Avril, Red Bryant, remained above the fray during the pro-democracy 2004 Peyton Manning’s face with his pass rush, and yards with no interceptions. And Percy on Manning’s throwing arm that produced the Brandon Mebane as other players that have “Orange Revolution” which brought pro-Western opposition fellow defensive lineman Chris Clemons had a Harvin completed the team picture by rac- lollipop gobbled up by Smith. In the third quar- gone overlooked. “It’s not just the Legion of sack and forced two fumbles. The defensive ing 87 yards for a touchdown with the sec- ter, cornerback Byron Maxwell stripped the ball Boom back there...it’s a great linebacking backfield certainly weighed in. Bone bruising ond-half kickoff to put an exclamation mark from Demaryius Thomas after a 23-yard catch corps, a great D-line who gets a lot of pres- hits on Broncos receivers coming across the on the rout with a special team’s splash. “I and linebacker Smith was the man on the spot sure. I think they deserve the respect.” They middle by safety Kam Chancellor seemed to think as a team, everything - from the spe- again as he recovered the fumble to set up a should have won the respect of football fol- make them jittery, safety Earl Thomas led with cial teams to the offense to the defense, I touchdown throw by Wilson. The Seahawks did lowers that watched them stop five-time Most six solo tackles while trash-talking secondary feel like everybody was clicking,” said line- not work their magic with tricks. They played Valuable Player Manning and the Broncos in mate and fellow Pro Bowler Richard Sherman backer Bobby Wagner, who led Seattle with their usual game on defense and dared their tracks. —Reuters Limbo looms for Thailand after polls By Kelly Macnamara But Thaksin’s electoral strength and leader- sor at the Centre for Southeast Asian Studies the largely pro-Thaksin “Red Shirts” against a ship style has been decried as tyrannical and at Japan’s Kyoto University. Democrat-led government in 2010 sparked clash- hailand’s protest-plagued elections have corrupt by his foes, backed by the kingdom’s es and a bloody military crackdown that left more ushered in a new chapter of political powerful establishment forces. Yingluck’s Fears of protracted civil violence than 90 people dead. The latest rallies were initial- Tuncertainty that experts say leaves the Labour Minister Chalerm Yubamrung predicted The political uncertainty hanging over one of ly sparked by an attempted amnesty that could embattled government increasingly vulnerable Monday that Puea Thai would claim at least 265 Southeast Asia’s biggest economies, coupled have allowed Thaksin to return. But they mor- to court intervention or a military coup. Millions out of 500 seats in the lower house. The main with recent political violence that has left at least phed into an attempt to replace the government An activist of a Ukrainian student organiza- were denied the opportunity to cast ballots on opposition Democrat Party - which has not won 10 dead, have dented investor confidence and with an unelected “people’s council” to run the tion installs a golden toilet yesterday on a Sunday, with blockades by protesters seeking an elected majority in some two decades - caused tourists to shy away. “Foreign investors country and implement vaguely-defined reforms pedestal where a statue of Lenin used to to prevent the re-election of Prime Minister refused to take part in Sunday’s election, are increasingly worried about the mounting before elections in a year or more. stand before it was ripped down by protesters Yingluck Shinawatra causing the closure of instead throwing its support behind protesters political risks in Thailand, with no political solu- Thailand-based scholar and author David in Kiev. —AFP some 10 percent of polling stations. Hundreds of anti-government demonstrators took to the streets again on Monday for a new protest leaders to power in a confrontation over an election that was march through the capital although their num- fraudulently won by Yanukovych. Badrak said imposing bers were down sharply compared with before emergency rule “will be virtually impossible” because of low the election. morale in a country in which military spending has been a Election officials said that nearly 46 percent low priority. “The army is in a pitiful state. An officer with the of eligible voters had cast ballots in an election rank of lieutenant colonel earns as much as a cashier at a boycotted by the main opposition party.