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Ron Paul: Ukraine aid bill is bad deal for all ― RT USA

Paul said the economic plan outlined by the IMF would raise energy prices and taxes in Ukraine, as well as freeze wages and make life more difficult for the average citizen.

“This $1 billion for Ukraine is a rip-off for the America taxpayer, but it is also a bad deal for Ukrainians,” he wrote. “Not a single needy Ukrainian will see a penny of this money, as it will be used to bail out international banks who hold Ukrainian government debt.”

A longtime opponent of foreign aid, Paul has often criticized the concept for lining the pockets of rich citizens and the ruling class instead of helping the people it’s intended to.

In addition to funneling money towards the IMF plan, the bill includes funding for outlets such as Radio Free Europe and Voice of America, which Paul said have been used “to broadcast US government propaganda” into Ukraine for 10 years with little to show for the effort.

“Recently a democratically-elected government was overthrown by violent protesters,” he wrote. “That is the opposite of democracy, where governments are changed by free and fair elections. What is shocking is that the US government and its NGOs were on the side of the protesters!

“Washington does not want to talk about its own actions that led to the coup, instead focusing on attacking the Russian reaction to US-instigated unrest next door to them.”

On the topic of Crimea, Paul has stated multiple times that Russia’s annexation of the peninsula is not a situation that requires the involvement of the United States. In his column, he reiterated that Crimeans voted to join Russia, and earlier this month told Politico, “self-determination is a centerpiece of international law.”