Only for news & views directly related to the Ukraine conflict.
The current open thread for other issues is here.
Please stick to the topic. Contribute facts. Do not attack other commentators.
Back to Main
February 9, 2023
Ukraine Open Thread 2023-34
Comments
Hersh only revealed what most of us knew all along, that the West was behind the NordStream bombings.
It will be interesting to see how Russia will exact their revenge for this act of war.
Posted by: mtw | Feb 9 2023 18:35 utc | 1
Interesting report at Anti-Spiegel on Nordstram
.
In my article translating Seymour Hersh’s report detailing how the Biden administration planned and carried out the blasting of the Nord Stream pipelines as early as 2021, I mentioned that a few months ago, someone contacted me, who claimed to have been a soldier in the maneuver BALTOPS 22 and who claims to have seen how extremely arrogantly behaved special divers from the USA on the warship on which he had served, exactly at the site of the later detonation the attachment of “practiced” mines.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t provide any evidence for his story and wanted to remain anonymous, which is why I didn’t report on it, because he couldn’t provide anything reliable to confirm his story. Of course, I don’t write an article based on a story from someone who doesn’t reveal their identity and can’t provide supporting evidence for their story. However, after Hersh was published on February 8th, I am certain that the whistleblower who contacted me at the time was telling the truth because his story fits exactly with what Hersh published.
Therefore I will tell here what I found out in October 2022 and I will also completely translate and publish the email from the whistleblower, the text of which I received on October 4, 2022. The email was originally in English and came from an anonymous Proton address.
As I found out from the whistleblower
In early October 2022, I was contacted by my colleague and friend John Marc Dugan, an American living in Moscow. He had received an email from an anonymous whistleblower.
At the time we discussed for a long time what we could do with it, but since the whistleblower couldn’t provide any evidence for his story and we couldn’t verify the pictures he sent, after all everything is possible with Photoshop, I wasn’t prepared to publish anything about it. As far as I know, John didn’t report about it in his videos either.
Which parts of the Hersh story the whistleblower’s email confirms
With what I know today from Seymour Hersh’s article, I believe the whistleblower’s story is authentic because it fits exactly what Hersh writes. At the time, the whistleblower reported on non-military-looking US special divers who were helicoptered onto the warship on which the whistleblower was serving during maneuver BALTOPS 22.
This confirms Hersh’s story that the specialty divers are from the Panama City Navy diving school in Florida and were not soldiers but are believed to be US intelligence. Even more: Hersh does not go into the details of the operation in the Baltic Sea itself, but the whistleblower does. And he mentioned that the US special divers had MK29 diving systems, which he says are classified.
According to what can be found on the net, the MK29 are actually secret, in any case you cannot order them, there are only reports about them. Most importantly, according to a 2018 U.S. Department of Defense report, they were developed by the very U.S. Navy diving school in Panama City, Florida that Hersh mentions. The fact that the whistleblower mentioned the MK29 system, which has a direct connection to the Navy diving school whose specialist divers Hersh says planted the bombs on the pipelines, back in early October 2022 is further confirmation of Hersh’s story for me.
In this video, the US Navy proudly displays the MK29 and explains its benefits on long deep dives.
MK29 Mixed Gas Rebreather System
According to the whistleblower, the special divers were supposed to do exercises with sea mines, but according to the whistleblower they did not have the necessary equipment with them. Instead, they carried state-of-the-art deep-diving gear (including the MK29) that they don’t even need for a sea mine exercise, which floats at such shallow depths that conventional scuba gear is sufficient. According to the whistleblower, the special divers were also active in the wrong place during the exercise and were under water much longer than is possible with the equipment he is familiar with.
Hersh writes in his article that the special divers attached the explosive devices to the pipelines under the guise of an exercise with sea mines. The exercise with sea mines was therefore included in the BALTOPS 22 maneuver as a camouflage for laying the bombs on the pipelines. Here, too, the email written by the whistleblower corresponds to the article now published by Hersh.
The whistleblower’s email
I am now showing the text of the email that the whistleblower sent to John and which John forwarded to me immediately afterwards on October 4th. I translated them from English.
in the translation:
Dear Mr. Dugan!
I am writing this letter in the hope that you will pass it on. I cannot share the information myself as it would harm my career and life. I am sending you this photo as proof that I was there and a copy of my ID. You may give this to another journalist you trust, but do not give it away from your possession. It is important that you do not share it with anyone and that you never use this email account again. You can quote the letter verbatim as it is written:
I had a leading administrative role in the BALTOPS 22 military exercise in June near the island of Bornholm, Denmark. I can’t give you my exact title as it could reveal my identity. There were some unusual details surrounding a group of US Marines from Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO (STRIKFORNATO) who had traveled from Stockholm. What seemed odd at the time looks downright nefarious in hindsight.
Let me explain. Forgive me in advance if I have misunderstood the terminology, as my country’s military may use different terms. I can’t give specifics about my job, but I do work coordinating dive teams and underwater operations with various NATO-allied forces.
On June 15, the day of the exercise, I was involved in coordinating certain aspects of the exercise. I have to be vague here. A US military helicopter arrived with a group of men believed to be US Navy mine hunters. They disembarked, unloaded their gear, and met both the US Navy Vice Admiral and a group of plainclothes American men, who arrived a few hours later. We all assumed they were some sort of intelligence operative.
After a short conversation, which I couldn’t hear because of the helicopter noise, they went to their briefing.
I found it quite odd that they were from the US Navy. My first thought was that they looked like a group of terrorists and not someone from the US Navy. The other groups that we had from many branches of the military had some kind of standards. Haircuts, for example. Not only did these men have wild hair that would have gone against military norms in any civilized nation, but they also had facial hair. Like I said, they looked more like Middle Eastern terrorists. Neither of these men wore an identification tag around their neck.
Another thing I found strange was that they claimed to be looking for underwater mines, but they didn’t have the equipment for such exercises. Their gear consisted of the Navy’s latest underwater diving gear and some small hard cases we call pelicans.
Their task was to take an inflatable boat to a certain location, look for anti-ship mines there and return with their findings. They usually carry a long metal detection kit with them on such ventures, but that was absent from their kit.
One detail that struck me as very odd here was that other minesweeper teams wore conventional SCUBA gear with tanks and the like, while this group wore state-of-the-art helium respirators and wetsuits. While I’ve never seen one up close, I’m pretty sure they were the MK29 systems, designed for deep diving and classified to this day. My country’s military wouldn’t even be able to afford the helium for it, let alone the suits themselves. Detecting mines just a few meters below the surface would certainly not require these suits.
They went out to sea in their boat. Not to the area where the simulated mines were placed, but to a completely different location. My colleague, who was monitoring the teams’ various locations, made a casual joke about how the US Navy was lost and two thousand meters from where it was intended.
They got out of their boat, wearing their breathing apparatus, and disappeared underwater for over six hours. As far as I know, there is no self-contained underwater gear that can keep a diver under water for six hours. With the latest military systems, a maximum of three or four hours is possible if the diver is not overexerting himself. After a few hours we became concerned and contacted the US 6th Fleet coordinator who assured us that everything was fine, that they were in contact, that we were ignoring the matter and not making any reports should.
and when they returned, almost all the pelicans were missing. They didn’t stay for any pleasantries. They chatted briefly with the US civilians, boarded a waiting helicopter, and took off. The civilians they spoke to also left, albeit in a different helicopter. Their mission was later described as “successfully completed”, although they were nowhere near the goal.
In retrospect, I have the following suspicions. The divers met with a small, waiting submersible that took them to the pipeline area. The explosives required for such an operation would not have fit in their kit, so I suspect they carried surveying and tracking equipment with which they could mark where the explosives needed to be placed. After examining the pipeline and marking the correct coordinates, they had time to check this data with demolitions technicians, return to the site at a later date, and place the required explosive charges, which were then detonated with a timer or remotely.
end of translation
It should be noted that the whistleblower was probably wrong on one point in his conclusion, since the divers may have planted the explosives immediately, according to the Hersh report. Perhaps the submersible suspected by the whistleblower carried him, which is entirely possible.
The USA has the necessary, so-called “unmanned maritime systems” and they are regularly tested during maneuvers, such as this maneuver from September 2022 off the coast of Portugal shows.
Posted by: mo3.1 | Feb 9 2023 18:43 utc | 2
Will Zelensky return to Ukraine?
Or might he extend his trip, claiming he has to have “consultations” with European/NATO partners.
As the disaster in Bakhmut unfolds, will he choose to stay in Western Europe.
Time will tell.
Posted by: Irish | Feb 9 2023 18:44 utc | 3
Upcoming Space-War info posted by Aristodemos
My inbox today included an “alert” by John Petersen of the Arlington Institute. An ex-CIA connectee, Petersen still has some pipelines active. He points to former AirFarce Major Even Rogers, now CEO of True Anomaly Inc., an organization likely in close association with elements of the WarDefense Industry.
The mission plan for T.A. Inc. is to “solve orbital warfare problems” for the U.$. Space Force. Claim is by October that the test-runs will be initiated by that agency to check out their newly developing Jackal “orbital pursuit” spacecraft.
So it would appear that the U$$A is looking to get a leg up on destroying or compromising “enemy” satellites and various orbiting spacecraft.
…and the beat goes on.
Posted by: aristodemos | Feb 9 2023 18:51 utc | 4
The england and its vassal US only engage in direct conflict against a far weaker opponent. It’s preferred method of controlling other states is to work in the shadows – propaganda and psy ops to turn people against their government, support of extremist factions, manipulation of elections, color revolutions, and sanctions. All underhanded and sneaky. . The british and US government are committed to this as long as it doesn’t have to confront Russia directly. The british and US public are committed to this as long as it doesn’t come down to thousands of boys coming back in body bags. Otherwise it’s one big reality show to entertain. There are descriptors to be used for people who act like the england abd USA act, none of them complimentary.
Posted by: Sam | Feb 9 2023 18:52 utc | 5
@3 “Will Zelensky return to Ukraine?”
Olena is not on the road with him, right? Incentive to return.
Posted by: UBAH | Feb 9 2023 19:05 utc | 6
@3 “Will Zelensky return to Ukraine?”
Olena is not on the road with him, right? Incentive to return.
Posted by: UBAH | Feb 9 2023 19:05 utc | 7
Looks like russia has lost its bid for vuhledar. Typical face first armored column on a road that was mined(ukraine mines everything everywhere its going to be a lot of limbless children everywhere)
Definitely a bunch of tanks lost tracks and abandoned.
And the terminator in Kharkov was killed.
Traveling down a road, all by itself.
Seriously, russian must be led by traitors.
Posted by: Neofeudalfuture | Feb 9 2023 19:12 utc | 9
Hi!
Can anyone give context to this news ‘article”? Somebody on my “outdoor” forum posted this video. This group of women looks a bit older than what I would expect most of the Russians soldiers (all groups) would in age who are fighting in Ukraine. A person never knows where western MSM gets videos…
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/wives-of-russian-soldiers-killed-in-ukraine-get-fur-coats-as-compensation/vi-AA17fEvu?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=0696a38d410a4434a5849ae88b772997
Posted by: DakotaRog | Feb 9 2023 19:23 utc | 10
Well, do anyone have an idea what kind of Leo’s Ukraine is getting?
A lot of Leo 2’s have been downgraded to Leo 1’s and others have shown to be just empty promises.
Posted by: Poul | Feb 9 2023 19:23 utc | 11
Is it me or does the Z-man seem to be getting met with a lot of ‘fuggoff, WE need these weapons’ from various nations?
That and empty promises….
Posted by: Chevrus | Feb 9 2023 19:24 utc | 12
Bakhmut is being encircled by the Russian forces (mainly the Wagner PMC troops). For now only one major road remains open in/out of Bakhmut. There is some question that this road may already be under Russia’s fire control. Whenever, all the roads are cut to Bakhmut, the city will be in operational encirclement.
Even though the Russian forces are pushing all along the zero line, I count the Bakhmut battle as being the most significant because of the buildups of both sides man power and equipment at that location. I have often heard from Alexander Mercouris and others that Bakhmut is the linchpin of defense for Ukraine.
The Western media is already prepping their audiences for the fall of Bakhmut by falsely reporting that Bakhmut is not that important. From this false reporting, one can see that Bakhmut is soon to be encircled and will fall. One thing you can learn from the lying Western media is the truth if you have some understanding of why they are lying in certain ways.
After Bakhmut is operationally encircled, I don’t think the Russians are going to wait until it falls before moving on. Instead, the Russians will surround Bakhmut with regular Russian army troops while the Wagner and other more aggressive troops quickly move on to cut off even more strategic areas of the Donbas. Russia’s regular troops will set up to grind down the cut off troops until they are either eliminated or they surrender.
These rapid moves by the Russians will prevent the Ukrainian army from building up new, strong defenses as they retreat.
I have been saying that as soon as Bakhmut falls, the rest of the Ukrainain positions within the Donbas will unravel quickly.
I am changing this statement to when Bakhmut is encircled, the rest of the Ukraianian positions within the Donbas will unravel quickly. This approach will cut out weeks or even months out of Russia’s time table to take and secure the Donbas.
Watch for accurate news of when Bakhmut is encircled. When this happens watch the Russians quickly take strategic roads and high ground and other strategic locations to more quickly take the Donbas.
There are many good sources which pretty much accurately present the battlefield in Ukriane/Russia. I frequent the following for this information: Weeb Union, Alex Christoforu and Alexander Mercouris from the Duran, the military summary channel (Dima), Defense Politics Asia (Wyat), Theti mapping, History Legends, Brian Berletic at the New Atlas, etc.
One reason Russia is moving fast to take all of the Donbas is because of the incredible increase in Western escalation in the last few months. The escalation is going exponential. So, Russia’s time table to take the Donbas has shortened.
When all of the Donbas is taken, get ready for the USA to be taken down soon after. Russia will launch. Just because they have not yet done so does not mean the West has not already crossed too many of Russia’s red lines. They are waiting for the best time for them. Part of that waiting is for Russia to first take out the hostile Ukrainian army on its Western border.
Whenever the Donbas is taken, the bear (Russia) will launch against the USA. The USA will be destroyed within one hour. I base this upon the initial stated directives of Putin for the SMO, the logic that Russia wants the Ukrainian army off its Western border before it engages with the USA, and the prophetic words of Daniel 7:5.
Posted by: young | Feb 9 2023 19:26 utc | 13
@Irish | Feb 9 2023 18:44 utc | 3
Interesting. I think I can guess which language the whistleblower email was translated from….
Bits and pieces add to the picture.
Posted by: Norwegian | Feb 9 2023 19:32 utc | 14
Sorry, Norwegian | Feb 9 2023 19:32 utc | 14
Should be in response to mo3.1 | Feb 9 2023 18:43 utc | 2
Posted by: Norwegian | Feb 9 2023 19:33 utc | 15
I just watched a video by DEFENSE POLITICS ASIA regarding Russia’s offensive in Bakhmut. His analysis and detailed knowledge is amazing. He is much better than Miltary Summary.I highly recommend his videos!
Posted by: Anton Gorbatow | Feb 9 2023 19:40 utc | 16
A little thought about what happened in turkey
they built a dam to stop the euphrates as much I know – what happens with a lot of dirt / sand which get super spongy trough a lot of water? It gets super heavy
I just tell because of the floodings in syria
Posted by: Macpott | Feb 9 2023 20:00 utc | 17
# 15
.
Why Guess What Language It’s Translated From?
Read it yourself…Right click Translates it for you
https://www.anti-spiegel.ru/category/aktuelles/
Posted by: mo3 | Feb 9 2023 20:03 utc | 18
According to War News 24/7, Russian marines have wiped out 3 Ukrainian brigades in Ugledar. So it may be that the report saying that the Russians suffered heavy losses in Ugledar a short while ago is total bullshit.
Posted by: Anton Gorbatow | Feb 9 2023 20:08 utc | 19
@mo3 | Feb 9 2023 20:03 utc | 18
Why Guess What Language It’s Translated From?
I missed the reference to Anti-Spiegel as it wasn’t a link. But it seems the guess was correct 🙂
Thanks for the translation of the story.
Posted by: Norwegian | Feb 9 2023 20:10 utc | 20
#19
.
Israeli intelligence:
Losses Ukraine about 185 000 + injured
Russia ca. 18900 + injured
Posted by: mo3 | Feb 9 2023 20:13 utc | 21
Posted by: Anton Gorbatow | Feb 9 2023 19:40 utc | 16
Absolutely. I have only ever used him. He is great and genuinely unbiased. He says which sources he is using and whenever he is a little uncertain.
Posted by: watcher | Feb 9 2023 20:15 utc | 22
re 2 whistle blower on Proton secure email
unfortunatly, Proton is a honeypot. You can prove it by yourself. Install Proton VPN, get one month free connection, connect to Switzerland and start Google; on the left side down there is the location Google is searching. For Switzerland, its Great Britain. Search results are in German but with many links to british search result. Do the same with Austria. Google will go to Germany or the Nederlands. Switzerland and Austraia have strong privaty laws for internet. So taffic is rerouted to a 5 eye country. Just do a whois and you will find the real owner of Proton is an american company
It is exactly the same with several big VPN provider like Nordvpn and Surfshark.
Kapersky VPN is doing it differently. If you chose Switzerland, Google shows Switzerland. But some search results have .ru endings. The same with Austria.
I hope, the whistle blower is safe.
Posted by: Guest | Feb 9 2023 20:21 utc | 23
UBAH & 6&7
Zelensky is gay. Olena is most likely the same. They have a marriage that exists for photo ops. If Z skips town or is edged out of power in his absence the marriage is not a factor. At all.
Posted by: oldhippie | Feb 9 2023 20:25 utc | 24
Stanley Kubrick”s satiric masterpiece on nuclear war is unfolding. The absurdity that such an event can occur, in this case over a sliver of land on earth. But looks and intentions are deceiving, much more is on the line. Kubrick was one of the better film makers ever. The film I am referencing is Dr. Strange love.
Posted by: Dingo | Feb 9 2023 20:34 utc | 25
We seem to live in a world where war criminals are often given peace prizes (latest: Merkel) or many other accolades.
Posted by: CitizenKayne | Feb 9 2023 20:35 utc | 26
@19, it’s not. Theres a lot of clear video, it was a turkey shoot. If it’s faked, we’ll fine, but I don’t think it was.
Seems to me they got suckered in because they sure didn’t try to space out, or let some guys sneak in around the wind break line of trees. No scouting just unsupported armor in a line out in the clear.
Posted by: Neofeudalfuture | Feb 9 2023 20:42 utc | 27
Just reported 9:55 p.m
.
Radio observers report on the activity of strategic aviation of the Russian Aerospace Forces. There are several Tu-22M3 aircraft in the sky communicating on combat frequencies.
Very high probability of Kh-22 missile launches.
The activity of the strategic aviation of the Russian Federation is Tu-22M3. The Tu-22M3 take off from the airfield
Dyagilevo and are carriers of Kh-22 missiles that we cannot intercept,” they write in Ukrainian TG channels.
Further report at 9:35 p.m
Up to 45 drones were launched
Explosions are reported in Kramatorsk (Donetsk region).
Explosions are reported in Slaviansk (Donetsk region).
The movement of kamikaze drones in the direction of Kryvyi Rih was recorded.Ukrainian report
Repeated explosions sound in part of Zaporozhye region.
Explosions on the outskirts of Dnepropetrovsk were confirmed by local Gauleiter Sergei Lysak.
There is a wave of arrivals in Ukraine.
Kramatorsk, Slavyansk, Konstantinovka, Zaporozhye, Dnepropetrovsk.
“Gerani” work in the Zaporizhia and Dnepropetrovsk regions.
Information is also circulating about possible launches of cruise missiles from long-range bombers, Poland reported.
Posted by: mo3 | Feb 9 2023 20:59 utc | 28
Hersh only revealed what most of us knew all along, that the West was behind the NordStream bombings.
It will be interesting to see how Russia will exact their revenge for this act of war.
Posted by: mtw | Feb 9 2023 18:35 utc | 1
In a tit for tat. Perhaps Russia could blow up the undersea cables between London and the EU and the EU an USA and the UK and the USA.
Kind of end the USD all in one day. Collapse the UK/EU/USD and their economies in one stroke.
There are trillions of dollars flying around from exchange to exchange. Central Bank to Central Bank.
Way too much volume for satellite to handle.
You could of course knock them out too.
Posted by: jgalt | Feb 9 2023 21:00 utc | 29
Start of translation:
Zelensky’s European Tour, Airplane Debate and the Demolition of a Monument: The Developments Around Ukraine
President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky made a whirlwind tour of Europe, attended the EU summit and held several meetings with European leaders. The purpose of the trip was to expand the range of weapons that the West is supplying to Kyiv, and also to organize the supply of fighter jets, but so far no country has decided to supply fighter jets to Ukraine.
The EU is currently preparing the tenth package of sanctions against Russia, which will target the military and journalists and include new export restrictions.
The city of Kyiv has demolished the monument to General Mykola Vatutin, who liberated the city from the Nazis.
TASS has compiled the most important developments around Ukraine.
course of the operation
Russian troops killed more than 85 soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in Vodyanogo and Ugledar Oblasts south of Donetsk.
This was stated by Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov, spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry. According to him, in attacks near Donetsk, Krasnoliman and Kupyansk, Ukrainian forces lost over 230 people and destroyed a large number of armored vehicles, artillery and several ammunition depots.
A Russian Air Force fighter shot down a Ukrainian MiG-29 fighter jet over the People’s Republic of Donetsk, while anti-aircraft forces shot down a Ukrainian SU-25 near Kherson.
Sabotage of the Nord Streams
The Danish and Swedish investigative agencies leading the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipeline system refused to comment on information from US publicist Seymour Hersh that the US planted explosive devices under Russian gas pipelines under the guise of the BALPTOPS maneuver in June 2022 have placed.
The Kremlin is surprised that Hersh’s investigation has not been widely disseminated in the West. “We see the opposite: attempts to silently ignore this international investigation,” said Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov. He called the gas pipeline sabotage a “very, very dangerous precedent” and stressed that “the world needs to know the truth about who carried out this act of sabotage.”
European tour
Selensky visited Paris as part of a lightning trip through Europe, where he held talks with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. As in London the day before, the main objective of the visit was to increase supplies and expand the range of weapons that Western countries are supplying to Kyiv.
At the beginning of the meeting, Macron declared the need for a peace conference to find a solution in Ukraine in line with Zelensky’s “peace plan” and advocated an “adjustment and increase in military aid” to Kyiv. The French President later stated that the issue of supplying fighter jets to Kyiv was not discussed at the talks.
Macron and Zelensky then traveled on the same plane to Brussels, where the Ukrainian President addressed MEPs and attended the EU summit. At the photo ceremony with the heads of state of the Union, he was given a standing ovation, only Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer refrained from applause.
The President of the EU Parliament, Roberta Metsola, called on EU member states to hand over military aircraft and long-range military systems to Ukraine. European Council President Charles Michel said Kyiv should get everything it needs: “artillery, ammunition and defense systems”. The head of the EU Commission Ursula von der Leyen made it clear that decisions on arms deliveries are not made at EU level, but by the individual countries.
tank deliveries
The German government has suggested that NATO’s European partners “officially adopt specific and detailed commitments” to supply Ukraine with Leopard 2 tanks, Bloomberg reported, citing German government sources.
The German armaments group Rheinmetall is continuing to negotiate with Berlin and Kyiv about the delivery of old Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine, as company boss Armin Papperger told the Handelsblatt. According to him, the concern will be able to process 20 of these tanks this year and deliver them to Kyiv. Negotiations are also underway about possible deliveries of the latest German Panther tank (Panther KF51). So far there is only one display prototype, but Papperger says the group is ready to start production and “is able to do it in 15 to 18.”
to start deliveries in months.” (Translator’s note: This will cause particular “enthusiasm” in Russia, because one type of tank made by Nazi Germany also bore the name “Panther”. Germany is proving its loyalty “to good old traditions”. and forgets his story more and more)
The Wall Street Journal, citing a senior Alliance official, reports that Finland has no plans to supply tanks directly to Ukraine until Finland is admitted to NATO.
Delivery of aircraft
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace has said in an interview with the BBC that Britain will not be supplying fighter jets to Ukraine anytime soon. London prefers to focus on delivering other means of defending Ukrainian airspace, including longer-range missiles and drones.
Belgium is not considering making its planes available to Ukraine, “it needs them for itself,” said Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo upon his arrival at the EU summit.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki made a similar statement.
The Netherlands does not rule out any military support for Ukraine, Prime Minister Mark Rutte said, adding that decisions on possible deliveries of fighter jets and other military equipment should be made behind closed doors so that the Russian side “doesn’t learn more about what is needed.” ”
None of the EU leaders have so far committed to supplying modern fighter jets to Ukraine, Bloomberg reported, citing an unnamed EU official.
New sanctions
Brussels has coordinated Zelensky’s visit with the announcement of the tenth package of sanctions against Russia. According to the head of the EU Commission, it will include restrictive measures against the Russian military and journalists as well as export bans worth 10 billion euros.
The President of the European Council declared that the EU “remains determined to put pressure on the Kremlin.” He also called it “just and lawful” to use Russian assets frozen in the West “for the benefit of Ukraine”.
War on Monuments
The monument to General Mykola Vatutin, under whose command the troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front liberated Kyiv from the Nazis in November 1943, has been dismantled in the Ukrainian capital. Welding equipment and heavy construction machinery were used to demolish the monument.
As part of the ongoing de-Russification, Kyiv has renamed 31 more streets, paths, avenues and boulevards. Among other things, Victory Street and Victory Square were renamed Bester Straße and Galizienplatz. In Odessa, as part of the same process, the city’s Bread Factory No. 4 decided to rename a popular type of bread.
end of translation
https://www.anti-spiegel.ru/2023/selenskys-europatournee-und-die-flugzeugdebatte-die-ereignisse-des-9-februar/
Posted by: mo3.1 | Feb 9 2023 21:10 utc | 30
Russian Armed Forces are really embarrassing. Quite sad how Moscow’s only « competent » force is PMC Wagner, which isn’t that good, seeing its poor performance in Mali.
Posted by: Metrik | Feb 9 2023 21:30 utc | 31
Key moment?
Air raids over Ukraine.
It could be that the Russians are moving. My guess.
Upcoming details that do not fit.
Zelensky removed out of harms way in Brussels, meeting the EU stooges.
The demands for airplanes, F-16’s no less, (which could have already been converted to take the US nuclear stand-off bombs as many in Germany already have been), may be one request too many.
The weather is reasonably cold.
A lot will depend on how many and what standard of troops the USNATO has managed to collect together as a reserve in Ukraine. The positions of newly arrived tanks and armoured vehicles in Poland and Romania, will have been calculated. The question will they be sent INTO Ukraine, is one that will have to be answered by the Polish and Romainians, if they want to avoid becoming directly involved in the war as participants.
The NS1 and 2 revelations showing direct US intervention – which are acts of war against a sovereign nation. Baerbock has already confirmed what the Germans are thinking of the actual state of affairs.
etc. The financial part is also in a state of flux with the alternative to swift now on line.
Earthquakes expected in Pakistan/India region in a couple of days – as prophesized by the guy who told about the Turkish/Syrian ones three days before they hit.
****
I won’t wait up though, as this will unfold systematically over the next few days.
Posted by: Metrik | Feb 9 2023 21:30 utc | 32
tell that to a french guy 😀
Posted by: Macpott | Feb 9 2023 21:41 utc | 33
In the previous Ukraine open thread @Outraged was kind enough to acknowledge and respond to my post @266 in his post @272 with this observation:
Yet again the myth of the overwhelming might of US/NATO on full display. Pathetic. Yet the Psychopathy & propaganda narrative continues unabated.
And I absolutely agree about the myth of overwhelming might.
From my username, the more astute and less myopic observers might deduce that I live not too far from “a town in the west country”.
Now once upon a time, this “town in the west country” had massive factories in the aerospace industries. These factories supported a myriad of sub-contractors and suppliers, right down to the humble newsagent who sold the daily horse-betting paper to the workforce in the morning (and quietly sold [ahem] ‘under the counter’ material to the young,single workers on their way home in the evening – don’t ask me how I know!…)
These factories are now drastically reduced or closed entirely. What was once the 6th longest runway in Europe is being broken up. That runway saw everything from the Bristol Brabazon to Concorde land on it, via Buccaneers, Jaguars, F111s, Tornadoes. Hercules from RAF Lyneham (also closed) would use the runway for ‘circuits and bumps’.
Factory apprentices once built a replica of a Bristol Fighter biplane.
Much of the area is now covered by housing, shopping malls, hotels, car showrooms and business parks. And now, all of a sudden, those with degrees in politics, philosophy, economics, and those who consider themselves Masters of Business Administration (all of whom saw their quarterly bonus as the over-riding priority) expect the hollowed out manufacturing of this country to win an industrial war with Russia.
Good luck with that!!!
(hopefully this is not too OT, the dissonance between the narrative presented by the Empire of Balloonacy and what some of us see on the ground, well, the words, the bandwidth are not enough to truly do it justice).
Posted by: West of England Andy | Feb 9 2023 21:55 utc | 34
Posted by: young | Feb 9 2023 19:26 utc | 13
“and the prophetic words of Daniel 7:5.”
Well, you fucked your credibility with that one.
And no, Russia is not going to launch on the US. Take your Biblical Armageddon fantasies elsewhere, please.
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Feb 9 2023 21:59 utc | 35
@5
aye Sam
the union JAXK are the puppet masters,
the U$A was returned to colonial status
with the creation of the Federal Reserve
…neither Federal
…nor a Reserve…
Posted by: Publius Flavius | Feb 9 2023 22:05 utc | 36
Now that Ukraine is getting wholesale NATO equipment, one wonders how Russia will deal with longer range stand off weapons? Particularly if they get planes with cruise missiles.
Its still amazing that Ukraine can still maintain oil supplies, manoeuvres, logistics and munition deliveries. Where on earth is all the fuel coming from?
Something is seriously off, “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.”
Posted by: Johnycomelately | Feb 9 2023 22:06 utc | 37
At Lavrov’s presser today in Sudan he made the following comment while answering a question:
“The fact that our Western colleagues are chasing around the world with such tenacity (I would say ‘snoring’) almost weekly, demanding the condemnation of the Russian Federation, speaks of some things. First, if they try so hard, it means that they feel that they are wrong and it is necessary to constantly remind all states of different continents that they are required to speak from anti-Russian positions. Secondly, if our Western colleagues used at least a thousandth of their current efforts to convince the countries of the world to support the immediate implementation of the Minsk agreements for all eight years, there would be no need for our special military operation. Although, as we now understand, the implementation of Minsk-2 was not at all part of the West’s plans. His plans were to prepare Ukraine for a hybrid war against Russia in order to eliminate a competitor on the world stage.
“As for how this will affect our relations with African countries. Everything that we feel, hear and see suggests that it will not have any negative impact on our connections.” [My Emphasis]
The following Q&A from a Russian media rep is classic Lavrov:
Question: During today’s and previous trips around the continent, you conveyed your position to your African colleagues regarding the conflict in Ukraine and the role of the West in it. Now, summing up the results of the third tour to this region in six months, what position do African countries take? Is Africa on our side?
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that “the world without Putin would be better.” How do you assess this kind of rhetoric and do you see a threat to the Russian leadership?
Sergey Lavrov: African countries have taken a responsible and independent position from the very beginning of the events around Ukraine, when a special military operation was launched as a result of the undermining of the Minsk agreements and the creation of a threat from Ukraine to the Russian Federation and Russian-speaking citizens of this country.
In fact, they unanimously stated that they were interested in the early establishment of peace, would be neutral to the parties and would be ready to contribute in every way to the search for compromises.
Mr. Minister was part of a group of member countries of the League of Arab States that visited Moscow in early April 2022 to talk about the Ukrainian story. This was just at the moment when the Russian Federation agreed to Ukraine’s proposal to conclude a specific agreement to resolve the situation. All this gave rise to hopes, but they were destroyed just a few days later, when the Anglo-Saxons and their colleagues forbade the Zelensky regime to conclude an agreement on the terms proposed by Kiev itself.
Our friends in Africa, Asia and Latin America are well aware of the ongoing processes as the result of geopolitical games by the United States and its allies to preserve hegemony in world affairs. The fact that they are “rushing” around the world, trying to convince developing countries of the need to condemn the Russian Federation, to undermine relations with Russia, says only one thing – they do not believe in any democracy, in any equality of states in the international arena. Otherwise, developing countries would be left alone and their right to determine for themselves how to behave in world affairs would be respected.
As for the statements of the new German Defence Minister (whose name I have not yet learned) Boris Pistorius, we have heard many boorish statements from German politicians. As for what kind of world would be a better place, and who should have been rid of, I think they should have started with a process of studying the european union colleagues around them and looking at domestic German politics.
Judging by such a militaristic chorus of voices, which are becoming louder in the West, in Washington, London, Brussels, Paris, the European Union, NATO, that the path to peace lies through arming Ukraine “to the teeth” (French President Emmanuel Macron said that they want peace, so Ukraine must win), Western colleagues, and not only the person who heads the German Ministry of Defense, believe that it is better without Russia or with a defeated, a capitulated Russia. You understand the price of this kind of ambition, which has already been voiced from German soil at least once in history– and how it all ended.
There’s further info on Russia’s African activities readers can discover for themselves. The Russia-Africa Summit in St. Petersburg this July will be an event to closely watch.
@ West of England Andy | Feb 9 2023 21:55 utc | 35
Nope, not OT, relevant to US/NATO Military & industrial capabilities/capacity re support of or direct involvement in Ukraine or potential wider conflict as consequence of Ukraine imbroglio(IMO).
Cheers. 🙂
&
Ukraine’s rocket campaign reliant on U.S. precision targeting, officials say
Ukrainian officials say that they almost never launch HIMARS rounds without detailed coordinates provided by U.S. military personnel situated elsewhere in Europe
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian officials say they require coordinates provided or confirmed by the United States and its allies for the vast majority of strikes using its advanced U.S.-provided rocket systems, a previously undisclosed practice that reveals a deeper and more operationally active role for the Pentagon in the war.
Are you on Telegram? Subscribe to our channel for the latest updates on Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The disclosure, confirmed by three senior Ukrainian officials and a senior U.S. official, comes after months of Kyiv’s forces pounding Russian targets — including headquarters, ammunition depots and barracks — on Ukrainian soil with the U.S.-provided High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, and other similar precision-guided weapons such as the M270 multiple-launch rocket system.
…
Vilaped | Feb 9 2023 21:08 utc | 30
how can you have any pudding if you don’t eat your meat?
around the age 30 or so, i learned the cold war was fake. is cold war redux fake? yes. doesn’t stop it from happening.
Posted by: rjb1.5 | Feb 9 2023 22:10 utc | 40
Israeli intelligence:
Losses Ukraine about 185 000 + injured
Russia ca. 18900 + injured
Damn! 10-1 ratio, just like we suspected. Good to finally see some solid figures.
Posted by: LGB! | Feb 9 2023 22:11 utc | 41
I doubt that Russia will resort to destroying infrastructure, as that would be stooping to terrorist behavior. But if they decide to take such revenge, cutting the undersea phone and internet cables across both Atlantic and Pacific would put the USA into a pickle.
Posted by: Rhinoskerous | Feb 9 2023 22:14 utc | 42
Neofeudalfuture – I have seen some folks on Twitter (pro-Uke) passing around recent video of the ‘turkey shoot’, but it was NATO mercs getting wrecked, not RU/Wagner.
Posted by: LGB! | Feb 9 2023 22:17 utc | 43
Posted by: Guest | Feb 9 2023 20:21 utc | 23
This does not follow. Google is not Proton. What countries their search engine goes to is not in any way related to Proton.
You initiate a request to Google from your computer. It goes through the VPN to the VPN provider’s server. From there your IP is replaced by the VPN provider’s IP address. You have security from your request being inspected by anyone between you and your VPN provider. There is no security provided from the VPN provider’s server to the end destination, in this case Google.
So if Google wants to redirect a query to its servers in a Five-Eye’s country, that has nothing to do with Proton. Proton is just forwarding your request to Google and insuring no one can see your IP address past their servers or that your ISP can see what you are doing because your connection to Proton is encrypted.
There is no evidence any of the main paid VPN providers are honeypots – although I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them are.
If you want better security without using a VPN, use the Tor browser. Although even that is reputedly fairly well penetrated by now with the NSA running fake nodes on the Tor network. Also the Tor browser won’t help with Google, either. Nothing does. If you want to not have your searches hoovered up by Google, then don’t use Google (or Bing).
Not to mention that the NSA collects ALL Internet traffic, including searches, emails, and everything else that isn’t short-range WiFi. They can then search any of it for keywords later if you become a “person of interest.” (Anyone remember that TV show? It was great.)
Frankly, it’s all a massive waste of time unless you’re Bin Laden or a major drug dealer. And if you are and you’re doing business over the Internet in that fashion, then you’re a moron and will soon be dead or in jail and good riddance.
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Feb 9 2023 22:21 utc | 44
“That Fucking Filter” (trademarked by me) is refusing to post under my user name again. Complete POS.
Posted by: Guest | Feb 9 2023 20:21 utc | 23
This does not follow. Google is not Proton. What countries their search engine goes to is not in any way related to Proton.
You initiate a request to Google from your computer. It goes through the VPN to the VPN provider’s server. From there your IP is replaced by the VPN provider’s IP address. You have security from your request being inspected by anyone between you and your VPN provider. There is no security provided from the VPN provider’s server to the end destination, in this case Google.
So if Google wants to redirect a query to its servers in a Five-Eye’s country, that has nothing to do with Proton. Proton is just forwarding your request to Google and insuring no one can see your IP address past their servers or that your ISP can see what you are doing because your connection to Proton is encrypted.
There is no evidence any of the main paid VPN providers are honeypots – although I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them are.
If you want better security without using a VPN, use the Tor browser. Although even that is reputedly fairly well penetrated by now with the NSA running fake nodes on the Tor network. Also the Tor browser won’t help with Google, either. Nothing does. If you want to not have your searches hoovered up by Google, then don’t use Google (or Bing).
Not to mention that the NSA collects ALL Internet traffic, including searches, emails, and everything else that isn’t short-range WiFi. They can then search any of it for keywords later if you become a “person of interest.” (Anyone remember that TV show? It was great.)
Frankly, it’s all a massive waste of time unless you’re Bin Laden or a major drug dealer. And if you are and you’re doing business over the Internet in that fashion, then you’re a moron and will soon be dead or in jail and good riddance.
– RSH
Posted by: CharlesLutherThanos | Feb 9 2023 22:25 utc | 45
Posted by: Johnycomelately | Feb 9 2023 22:06 utc | 37
IIRC, right up until the moments we saw memorialized in the film Downfall, a lot of Germany’s MIC was operating at near record levels. Tanks were getting made right until the end. IIRC again, early on it was decided to put a lot of weapons production in the parts of Germany the most problematic for bombers to reach. Presumably well camouflaged or obscured as well, as there was opportunity to do that.
A country like America, Russia, or Great Britain, concentrates the vast majority of its resources to efforts not directly related to their MIC. Even Russia has the vast majority of its civilian work force performing jobs related to the civilian economy. Ukraine on the other hand has a government that can operate by fiat, and it can direct its economy to service its MIC in the execution of short term goals.
Everything is going into holding off Russia for several more months, and the hope is that the West can be compelled to get balls deep into the Ukrainian “Big Muddy”.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waist_Deep_in_the_Big_Muddy
Pete Seeger: Waist Deep in the Big Muddy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXnJVkEX8O4
https://genius.com/Pete-seeger-waist-deep-in-the-big-muddy-lyrics
Well, I’m not going to point any moral;
I’ll leave that for yourself
Maybe you’re still walking, you’re still talking
You’d like to keep your health
But every time I read the papers
That old feeling comes on;
We’re — waist deep in the Big Muddy
And the big fool says to push on
Posted by: Babel-17 | Feb 9 2023 22:27 utc | 46
Posted by: Rhinoskerous | Feb 9 2023 22:14 utc | 42
“cutting the undersea phone and internet cables across both Atlantic and Pacific would put the USA into a pickle.”
It would also put countries with which Russia wants to be on good terms in a pickle, because they have to do business with the US. So Russia won’t do anything like that, either. Russia is not in the business of disrupting the global economy.
– RSH
Posted by: CharlesLutherThanos | Feb 9 2023 22:30 utc | 47
Outraged | 39
Well then, all HIMARS civilian casualties in Donetsk can be blamed on frigging U$$anistan. They get a kick killing innocent civilians, such as the 300K Iraqis they massacred in that fake war. And the list goes on to oblivion.
Posted by: Sektion2B | Feb 9 2023 22:36 utc | 48
Richard Medhurst discusses Sy Hersh’s article in his live stream today.
INSANE: US Confirmed to Be Behind Nordstream Pipeline Attacks: Seymour Hersh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUwfPWJQ7Pc
Also: The Duran has a discussion up with Alexander Mercouris, Noam Chomsky and Glenn Diesen.
Propaganda in the Ukrainian Proxy-War, w/ Noam Chomsky, Alexander Mercouris and Glenn Diesen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crL0rs8phk4
And Gonazalo Lira has two new quick ones up:
2023.02.09 Laying the Groundwork For the Loss of Ukraine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zq9Dekm1ux4
2023.02.09 Confirmed: The Americans Destroyed Nordstream
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BcvjWArwD4
And yesterday Brian Berletic hosted a discussion about Russia-China relations with Mark Sleboda and Carl Zha. That one’s 2-1/2 hours.
IN-DEPTH: Chinese-Russian History with Mark Sleboda & Carl Zha
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpNzv4zwzes
– RSH
Posted by: CharlesLutherThanos | Feb 9 2023 22:37 utc | 49
Well then, all HIMARS civilian casualties in Donetsk can be blamed on frigging U$$anistan. They get a kick killing innocent civilians, such as the 300K Iraqis they massacred in that fake war. And the list goes on to oblivion.
Posted by: Sektion2B | Feb 9 2023 22:36 utc | 47
It’s much worse than that — not only did they deliberately fired at civilians, they also did it, many times, with the M30A1 anti-personnel rounds. The ones with the 180,000 small tungsten pellets that shred everything in a radius of 30 meters.
There was a video from one such strike in Donetsk — cars turned into swiss cheese and blood pouring from the dead bodies scattered around the street.
That is what the US has been doing for months.
Zero reaction from the Kremlin. It isn’t even acknowledged that it’s happening, let alone a kinetic response. And this is now Russian territory…
Posted by: shadowbanned | Feb 9 2023 22:41 utc | 50
P.S. I see finally some discussion about a nuclear test on Novaya Zemlya today.
It’s way past time for that.
Also discussion about de-recognizing the Ukrainian government (which would presumably allow taking them out, as if the legalities change anything).
Way, way past time for that too.
But I fear it will remain just a discussion…
Posted by: shadowbanned | Feb 9 2023 22:45 utc | 51
shadowbanned | 49
That’s right. Eva Bartlett reports them almost on a daily basis on her Telegram channel. Heartbraking, really.
What are they waiting to send those modified Tor’s (or whatever) to stop this ongoing crime? Not a priority?
Posted by: Sektion2B | Feb 9 2023 22:48 utc | 52
Earlier today, I provided the link to Escobar’s latest essay, which is a doozy and provides the mechanism for attaining payback. Revenge however is a very personal issue within Russian culture and is thus a delicate matter to contemplate and/or discuss. Also, Russia’s religious nature would also interject itself into such a discussion. Fortunately, Russia is a very mature nation and would leave such retribution to the Law or God. IMO, what Putin and company already had planned regarding its method of ending the Outlaw US Empire’s hegemony will remain and continue, and that will suffice.
That’s right. Eva Bartlett reports them almost on a daily basis on her Telegram channel. Heartbraking, really.
What are they waiting to send those modified Tor’s (or whatever) to stop this ongoing crime? Not a priority?
Posted by: Sektion2B | Feb 9 2023 22:48 utc | 51
You’re not going to stop it with AD, some rockets will always sneak through. There is no such thing as 100% efficient AD.
What needs to be done is to push the front lines beyond range, but also, a long time ago, an ultimatum should have been given: “For every strike on civilians we will take out such and such important building in Western Ukraine, and if you keep doing it, we will start taking out key political and military figures”. And then you actually follow through when the next strike is carried out. That would have stopped it.
Unless the US forces them to keep doing it, in which case you start taking out the US ISR assets that are doing the targeting.
None of that was done, so here we are…
Posted by: shadowbanned | Feb 9 2023 22:54 utc | 54
but another funny thingy
from ukr side it is a anti terror op for eastern oblasts
for russia its a special op for russian speaking peops
who declared war here? 😀
Posted by: Macpott | Feb 9 2023 22:54 utc | 55
but another funny thingy
from ukr side it is a anti terror op for eastern oblasts
for russia its a special op for russian speaking peops
who declared war here? 😀
Posted by: Macpott | Feb 9 2023 22:54 utc | 54
It’s a civil war — Russian speaking vs Ukrainian nationalists — within a bigger civil war — big Russia vs southern Russian separatists (Ukrainaians) who have been brainwashed into thinking they are not Russians.
It is also three rebellions wrapped inside each other:
1) Donbass against Kiev
2) Ukrainian Nazis against mother Russia
3) Russia against the “rules based international order”, i.e. global US hegemony
Posted by: shadowbanned | Feb 9 2023 22:58 utc | 56
” Russia never recovered from the second world war. Because of this war, Russian demographics are fucked for good now… Unless the government makes some extreme, inhuman decisions, like forcing women to get impregnated with artificial inseminations… Considering Russian officials wouldn’t even ban abortion, I doubt that would happen.
Posted by: Vilaped | Feb 9 2023 21:08 utc | 30 ”
All Russia has to do is provide an artactive enviroment for the millions of Russians living oversees to imigrate back to it. Has it done that ?
Posted by: Deplorable Commisar | Feb 9 2023 22:59 utc | 57
@
Posted by: CharlesLutherThanos | Feb 9 2023 22:30 utc | 46
They don’t have to cut ALL of them. Some are more important than others. DC-London. NY-London. NY Paris, etc.
Miami – Brazil, not as important.
And my guess is the hardware is already installed, just waiting to see if they need to use it.
Posted by: BroncoBilly | Feb 9 2023 23:00 utc | 58
Posted by: shadowbanned | Feb 9 2023 22:58 utc | 55
haha I didnt expect that but you are right 🙂
Posted by: Macpott | Feb 9 2023 23:02 utc | 59
” In a tit for tat. Perhaps Russia could blow up the undersea cables between London and the EU and the EU an USA and the UK and the USA.
Kind of end the USD all in one day. Collapse the UK/EU/USD and their economies in one stroke.
There are trillions of dollars flying around from exchange to exchange. Central Bank to Central Bank.
Way too much volume for satellite to handle.
You could of course knock them out too.
Posted by: jgalt | Feb 9 2023 21:00 utc | 29 ”
Or it could do something far much safer and logical, simply stop all dealings with the west including ceasing all exports. Seems obvious yet Russia still exports oil through Ukraine among other questiopnable things. Very perplexing.
Posted by: Deplorable Commisar | Feb 9 2023 23:03 utc | 60
I am keeping an eye on the money spigots for the big event. The UKR war is largely a distraction. Imo, the ever widening of the war by USA vs Russia, then China is all about replacing their competitors. If the US can’t compete and, facing financial collapse, it has deployed sabotage and theft.
The 2022 USA trade deficit is $1 trillion and its budget deficit is $1.4 trillion, the latter does not include off-books liabilities. [you mean they keep off-books accounting? Not looking good.]
Paul Craig Roberts, former Assistant Secretary of US Treasury, noted the two deficits are largely funded by petrodollars –
“For a half century the petrodollar has supported the value of the US dollar and ensured financing for America’s large budget and trade deficits”
Fast forward. The seizure of RF’s Foreign Reserves held in gold and USTs (not Grenada, she) has put into question the custodial safety of other countries’ Foreign Reserve accounts. Additionally, the western dimwits have announced, “China is a threat”, – meaning, after Russia, they are slated for the slaughter and sanctions queue.
As Mr. Lavrov recently observed (those dimwits) “they forgot something” >>>
When it applies to budgets, that ‘missing something’ is the fact that China is the largest buyer of USA debt – USTs .
The Dragon whispered, “Oops, let’s be proactive.”
China is dumping USDs and buying gold, for storage at home and out of harm’s way. Not only China, – – “Foreign Selling of U.S. Treasuries is Accelerating”
Source: LINK
Red phone emergency calls for Ms. Yellen and Mr. Powell.
Well, karma is a B*tc*. You shouldn’t have stole Russia’s foreign reserves.
Just noting as I press to post. Highly recommend you read karlof1’s helpful link to Escobar’s doozy @ post 52
Patagonia looks mighty inviting.
Posted by: Likklemore | Feb 9 2023 23:04 utc | 61
Posted by: Vilaped | Feb 9 2023 21:08 utc | 30
What destroyed Russia’s demographics was the collapse of the Soviet Union
Posted by: Colin | Feb 9 2023 23:09 utc | 62
The stinking mass of sewer gas Martyanov has this to say:
”
..you may have noticed a dramatic reduction of “noise” from all those military “reporters” in Russia, who, such as Sladkov, Pegov, Kotz et all. completely discredited the profession.”
[http://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2023/02/no-comments-needed.html?m=1%5D
Sladkov, whose boots Martyanov is not fit to lick, is on the frontlines risking his life every day and I quoted him just two days ago here talking about the fact that Ukranazistan is finally conscripting the upper middle class yuppies who were sacrosanct all these days. This proves, Sladkov said, that the Ukranazi manpower crisis is reaching a critical point*.
And he says all this from personal observation, not sitting on the other side of the planet.
*On that point, my girlfriend’s brother’s co worker, a Polish citizen in Britain (who is over 40 and suffering from hypertension) got a call up notice demanding he go to Polandistan and get mobilised. It does look as though Polandistan is (again, as I predicted repeatedly) going to send troops en masse into Ukranazistan. Whether in Polandistani uniform or Ukranazistani, that is the only, and very important, question.
Posted by: Biswapriya Purkayast | Feb 9 2023 23:10 utc | 63
Vilaped | Feb 9 2023 21:08 utc | 30
hey, maybe that’s why commentators, western figure(head)s, regularly slip up and refer to Russia as the Soviets or Soviet Union or USSR?
cuz mr Rus, he dead. been a long time leaving, but actually been a long time gone. is that is?
Posted by: rjb1.5 | Feb 9 2023 23:10 utc | 64
” Posted by: Vilaped | Feb 9 2023 21:08 utc | 30
What destroyed Russia’s demographics was the collapse of the Soviet Union
Posted by: Colin | Feb 9 2023 23:09 utc | 61 ”
Only because it was very hard to emigrate out of it, unless you were from a special tribe of course, otherwise the Soviet Union would have seen a massive wave of people leaving.
Posted by: Deplorable Commisar | Feb 9 2023 23:15 utc | 65
#38 the difference in styles of oration , is correlated with clarity of thought. Western leaders- Russian leaders . The rub is Russian discourse is not allowed in Western media, even if it was the population has no focus. Inability to concentrate. The body is there, the mind is not present. They wouldn’t understand what Lavrov was saying.
Posted by: Dingo | Feb 9 2023 23:16 utc | 66
@Deplorable Commissar 59:
Putin’s oligarch cronies are still up to their eyebrows in investments in Ukranazistan, and they’d be upset if those were closed down.
Remember how Mariupol had to be taken with immense effort in 2022 because Putin stopped the DNR from liberating it in 2015 when the nazis were in rout and even the French media had given up the city as lost? Turned out that was because Putin wanted to keep Azovstal owner Rinat Akhmetov happy.
Posted by: Biswapriya Purkayast | Feb 9 2023 23:19 utc | 67
Posted by: karlof1 | Feb 9 2023 22:50 utc | 52
The usual great analysis from Escobar, thanks Karlof…your analysis ain’t half-bad either.
Posted by: Zaphod | Feb 9 2023 23:19 utc | 68
Posted by: Neofeudalfuture | Feb 9 2023 19:12 utc | 9
Bakhmut is encircled, Ugladar is becoming encircled and Avdeevka is now being trapped in a pincer. Dont talk so foolish Neofeudalfuture. You live by wishful thinking.
Posted by: HERMIUS | Feb 9 2023 23:21 utc | 69
Need a new can of TrollBeGone as we have a massive infestation on this thread. Maybe bring in one of my local extermination companies, “The Killers,” to do the deed.
//////////
Likklemore @60–
Yellen said she wants to visit China today; shouldn’t take much to guess why. China applauds and thinks it an excellent idea with the reasoning supplied within the linked article.
Posted by: Biswapriya Purkayast | Feb 9 2023 23:19 utc | 66
Turns out you are wrong as usual.
What pure BS. Those ragtag DNR Militias couldn’t have taken Mariupol in a million years. They would have been decimated and a valuable defensive force lost. They couldn’t even take Debaltseve without Russian help.
Posted by: Zaphod | Feb 9 2023 23:23 utc | 71
@Zaphod 71
Really? Who was defending Mariupol in 2015 when the nazi lines collapsed and Merkel and what’s his name rushed to save them with Minsk 2?
You Martyanovists have never been right in your lives, but you accuse everyone who’s right of being “wrong” or “trolls”.
After all, us being right, to you lot, is unforgivable.
Posted by: Biswapriya Purkayast | Feb 9 2023 23:27 utc | 72
Russian Armed Forces are really embarrassing. Quite sad how Moscow’s only « competent » force is PMC Wagner, which isn’t that good, seeing its poor performance in Mali.
Posted by: Metrik | Feb 9 2023 21:30 utc | 32
OK I will break my 11th commandment.
If you are not one of the assigned MoA Drive-by Trolls, with a 3 legged donkey verse, you have been repeating this in every thread. It wears stale..
Btw, have you read about Mozart’s Requiem? Now, that is really embarrassing.
Posted by: Likklemore | Feb 9 2023 23:30 utc | 73
A reduction: mental inertia plus mental distraction , can co-exist. Look at western civilization. This combination has a lot of negative capacity.
Posted by: Dingo | Feb 9 2023 23:43 utc | 74
In 1938, Russia’s total fertility rate was about 4.9 with a population of one hundred million people or so.
In 1946, Russia’s total fertility rate was about 2.8 with a population of ninety million people or so.
In 2021, Russia’s total fertility rate was about 1.5 with a population of one hundred forty million people or so.
Posted by: Paliée | Feb 9 2023 23:44 utc | 75
DEBALTSEVE….the pleasure in seeing those ukronazis getting their filthy arses whooped by the brave Donetsk lads and lasses. A sheer pleasure to see the squirming kiev fascist, pilfering, lying, shitbags eat humble fecking pie…..
Posted by: HERMIUS | Feb 9 2023 23:51 utc | 76
@ karlof1 post 69
Yellen said she wants to visit China today; shouldn’t take much to guess why. China applauds and thinks it an excellent idea with the reasoning supplied within the linked article.
Posted by: karlof1 | Feb 9 2023 23:23 utc | 69
Thanks karlof1. The Chinese are very polite people, very welcoming and many are misled by their outstretched hand. Yes, as you surmise Yellen needs to go begging.
In the article the operative word here:
“If the two sides can reach a consensus during Yellen’s visit, if it takes place, it will definitely be positive for the two sides,” Song said.
Let me edit that: If it takes place, it will be for a dressing down – aka the US-China FMs meeting in Alaska.
Posted by: Likklemore | Feb 9 2023 23:51 utc | 77
Posted by: Paliée | Feb 9 2023 23:44 utc | 74
Well, that seems to still be better than average EUronazistan birth rates. Guess the safe-and-effective gene therapies aren’t helping here, either.
Posted by: unimperator | Feb 9 2023 23:52 utc | 78
…..and lets not forget the humiliation of of the kiev tramps at DONETSK AIRPORT……
Posted by: HERMIUS | Feb 9 2023 23:52 utc | 79
Prighozin tells CNN that PMC Wagner has received 10 million applications from US citizens since they stopped recruiting convicts. Now they wait for war department approval.
Posted by: Hutch | Feb 9 2023 23:59 utc | 81
@Hermius 68:
Ugledar is still a big problem, and being on a height it is naturally geographically defensible.
From Telegram:
[https://t.me/NovichokRossiya/24541%5D
“The entire network is filled with sad footage of the unsuccessful attack of our troops on one of the sectors of the Uludar (sic) front
▪️ As A. Khodakovsky previously reported, Ugledar stands on a hill from which the surroundings are shot through, the enemy’s artillery hits the vehicles advancing across the bare fields.
▪️ With the first onslaught, the Marines managed to move closer to Ugledar and inflict significant losses on the enemy.
▪️The Armed Forces of Ukraine transferred reserves from a number of directions and were able to hold the front.
▪️The new footage of the Armed Forces of Ukraine shows a considerable amount of armored vehicles lost by us, a number of videos show that the soldiers were able to leave the armored vehicles.
▪️ Claims on the Web to those who continue to send equipment in columns, crowding and exposing themselves to the fire of NATO howitzers.
▪️They also complain that the same mistakes were already made during the assault on Pavlovka.
▪️We really hope that the losses are not so great. And eternal memory to our soldiers who gave their lives for the Fatherland…”
Posted by: Biswapriya Purkayast | Feb 10 2023 0:00 utc | 82
All Russia has to do is provide an artactive enviroment for the millions of Russians living oversees to imigrate back to it. Has it done that ?
Posted by: Deplorable Commisar | Feb 9 2023 22:59 utc | 56
I know some who are thinking about it. But they are no longer of child bearing age so that solves exactly nothing.
Posted by: Opport Knocks | Feb 10 2023 0:04 utc | 83
SpaceX stops Ukraine from using Starlink service to control drones
Starlink can be used for military comms, but controlling drones is prohibited
By Rob Thubron Today 9:57 AM 15 comments
https://www.techspot.com/news/97552-spacex-stops-ukraine-using-starlink-service-control-drones.html
What just happened? The close relationship between SpaceX and Ukraine could be strained after the company limited the country’s ability to use the Starlink satellite service for offensive military purposes. The move follows reports that Ukraine has been using Starlink to control drones.
SpaceX has supplied over 25,000 Starlink terminals to Ukraine and maintained them since the war began, helping keep the nation’s critical infrastructure and its citizens online as Russia continues its assault.
But Ukraine is said to have been utilizing Starlink in its offensive push against the Russian military, including using it to target enemies with drones, a violation of SpaceX policies.
Speaking at a conference in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday (via Reuters), SpaceX president and chief operating officer Gwynne Shotwell said Starlink was never meant to be weaponized.
Posted by: Babel-17 | Feb 10 2023 0:05 utc | 84
Posted by: Babel-17 | Feb 10 2023 0:05 utc | 83
Russians developed some kind of dedicated apparatus to locate Starlink terminals on the ground quite accurately, which could be real reason for this lamenting of Ukrainian “misuse”.
Posted by: unimperator | Feb 10 2023 0:08 utc | 85
Zelensky takes credit for derailing Minsk agreements
The Ukrainian president claimed he personally refused to implement the deal for peace in Donbass
RT:
[.]
He made the admission during an interview with Der Spiegel published on Thursday as he continues his tour across Europe.
Zelensky said he viewed the agreements as a “concession” on Ukraine’s part, and never once actually sought to implement them. Instead, they were merely used to exchange prisoners with the two breakaway Donbass republics.[.]
Lying idiot. Not worth a pinch of s**t. In the Oliver Stone documentary, “Revealing Ukraine (2019)” it includes Zelensky taking the oath of office and his speech to the nation promising to pursue “peace in the Donbass.”
Another nail in the coffin labelled: No. Negotiations. to. end. the. war.
Revealing Ukraine (2019).LINK to Video
Viktor Medvedchuk, one of UKR opposition leader, being interviewed; he was arrested by Zelensky last year and swapped in a prisoner exchange with Russia. Watch this guy. I expect that, with former exiled president, he will form a Ukraine Government in Exile.
Posted by: Likklemore | Feb 10 2023 0:11 utc | 86
RE: Counterpunch. . .
That used to be a place worth visiting during the days of Alexander Cockburn. Once Jeffrey St. Claire (who like Gloria Steinem could probably go on endlessly about how marvelous the US intelligence people, especially the CIA are to work for) took over, Counterpunch has managed to attain all the “credibility” of the of the NYT or the Washington Post these days.
Also does anyone else find Seymour Hersh’s critics to be hilarious egotistical wankers? Given Hersh’s repeated impact on the entire world through his journalism — his critics are roughly in the same category as a fart-in-the-breeze compared to a nuclear warhead. It’s like stumbling on those weirdo batsh!t insane Nazi/anti-semitic websites who have inane articles on how wrong (or plagaristic) Albert Einstien was. . .
Posted by: Kyle Koffler | Feb 10 2023 0:12 utc | 87
Zelensky takes credit for derailing Minsk agreements
The Ukrainian president claimed he personally refused to implement the deal for peace in Donbass
RT:
[.]He made the admission during an interview with Der Spiegel published on Thursday as he continues his tour across Europe.
Zelensky said he viewed the agreements as a “concession” on Ukraine’s part, and never once actually sought to implement them. Instead, they were merely used to exchange prisoners with the two breakaway Donbass republics.[.]
Lying idiot. In the Oliver Stone documentary Revealing Ukraine (2019) it cover Z taking the oath of office and his speech to the nation promising to pursue “peace in the Donbass.”
Another nail in the coffin labelled: No. Negotiations to end the war.
Posted by: Likklemore | Feb 10 2023 0:15 utc | 88
Canada’s Cameco to supply uranium to Ukraine’s Energoatom – will be it’s sole supplier for 12 years
https://globalnews.ca/news/9474700/cameco-multi-billion-dollar-q4-results-loss/
https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/video/nuclear-s-back-with-a-vengeance-cameco-ceo~2625506
Following a link from b’s Twitter account, here’s some discussion from a member of the German political class about Norway’s five year deal with Ukraine:
https://twitter.com/KleineBrockhoff/status/1622973775099707392
“It took me a day in Oslo to fully appreciate the depth and the symbolism of the commitment that🇳🇴 PM Jonas Gahr Støre just made to🇺🇦: not only is $7.3 bn a substantial sum, half humanitarian, half military aid for the first year of this 5 year pledge. It all come in grants 1/
which is the gold standard of Ukraine assistance. It is worked through IFIs that can leverage the sum further. The 5 year commitment gives 🇺🇦predictability and tells Putin that he cannot outlast the West. 2/
The West will be there for the long haul. It also set an example for other Western countries. This is why the new G7 multi agency donor platform should be a G7 Plus construct: countries like🇳🇴need to have a say. And, not to forget: PM Støre 3/
also pledged additional aid to “countries in the Global South most affected by the war in Ukraine”. 🇳🇴 understands: this coalition needs to be global, and there is some ground to be made up. Bravo, 🇳🇴! END”
Posted by: Bruised Northerner | Feb 10 2023 0:19 utc | 89
“SpaceX will no longer support certain Ukrainian military operations through its Starlink satellite-communications service.”
On Wednesday, Shotwell said has taken steps to keep Ukraine from using Starlink to control armed drones and perform other military tasks.
“We were really pleased to be able to provide Ukraine connectivity, and help them in their…fight for freedom. It was never intended to be weaponized, however,” the SpaceX president said during an FAA Commercial Space Transportation Conference, according to Breaking Defense.
Defense News
Posted by: Laura Roslin | Feb 10 2023 0:31 utc | 90
around the age 30 or so, i learned the cold war was fake. is cold war redux fake? yes. doesn’t stop it from happening.
Posted by: rjb1.5 | Feb 9 2023 22:10 utc | 40
##########################
There is something in the human psyche that we will go along with a delusion, long after we’ve recognized that it is a delusion.
We’re a strange species.
Posted by: LoveDonbass | Feb 10 2023 0:40 utc | 91
Posted by: Kyle Koffler | Feb 10 2023 0:12 utc | 85
I’ve never been as annoyed by St. Clair as by some of the other authors. When has he ever talked about the CIA (or “intelligence” community) in a positive light?
Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Feb 10 2023 0:42 utc | 92
Machines don’t matter to Russia, she has massive stockpiles of armour, recovering the crew does. Seems like the Ukrainians and some bloggers are making the same mistake the Germans did in WW2 by extrapolating lost enemy equipment with winning.
The focus regarding the Ugledar attack should be that the Russians inflicted such a degree of casualties, in the initial assault, that the Ukrainians were forced to deploy reserves that were needed elsewhere.
I’d willingly trade less than a battalions worth of equipment, that can be either replaced or recovered, for an increased probability of encircling several enemy brigades, especially if they have a critical shortage of armour and heavy weapons.
Posted by: Milites | Feb 10 2023 0:46 utc | 93
@ Posted by: Biswapriya Purkayast | Feb 10 2023 0:00 utc | 81
Later reports from today claim the Russian forces have started the end around maneuver on the WEST side of Ugledar, so to attack from the rear, and cut supply lines from the north.
And the reserves sent there were destined for Maryinka. And 1st tank brigade had to divert units from Maryinka as well.
The story continues, no firm conclusion yet.
Posted by: BroncoBilly | Feb 10 2023 0:53 utc | 94
@ LoveDonbass | Feb 10 2023 0:40 utc | 90 – just herd mentality IMO.
Posted by: Featherless | Feb 10 2023 0:53 utc | 95
Posted by: Milites | Feb 10 2023 0:46 utc | 92
And a Longer version video of Vuhledar failed Russian attack.
(https://t.me/azmilitary11/36894)As you can see in the video most Russian equipments have retreated. Multiple Ukrainian started counting numbers of functioning equipments as destroyed in pictures without showing the reality
Cyberspec News (https://t.me/CyberspecNews/19548) By the way,why AFU is showing only Russia’s losses from Ugledar direction,but it is not showing anything from Bakhmut direction? It is legitimate question…
https://t.me/Zornkrieger/29349
Seems like the Ugledar video of Russian tank losses was neatly cut and edited. The shorter video showed a handful of burned out tanks and the longer video, shows an even larger column of Russians withdrawing after. It’s always hard to know the reality but seems again things were grossly over-exaggerated.
Posted by: unimperator | Feb 10 2023 0:54 utc | 96
All u peeps talking trash about population growth and fertility rates need tp wake d f@$@ck up.
Its a fact Russia population will stagnate and drop. But so will Europe and most likely at a higher rate. 3rd comes USA which will also follow rhe trend.
China will also follow this but in a much much larger timeframe. When this happens, the populations of rest of Asia and South America will skyrocket.
Then after all that happens, Africa population growth will eclipse ALL other continents by miles.
Point is idiots talking trash about population growth of Russia vs Europe vs USA are basically talkimg about the 3 worse forcasts in the planet.
Posted by: Comandante | Feb 10 2023 0:55 utc | 97
Posted by: unimperator | Feb 10 2023 0:54 utc | 95
Needless to say, there were still some losses for the Russians. One criticism apparently was that this was the exact same mistake as attacking Pavlovka earlier, and Ukraine controls some heights around Ugledar. All their artillery hasn’t been suppressed.
Posted by: unimperator | Feb 10 2023 0:56 utc | 98
@89 Michelle
India is already at replacement level (2.2 children per woman). If you remove the northern Gangetic Plains states, where birth control is almost unknown, from the equation, the Indian population is well below replacement rates already.
Posted by: Biswapriya Purkayast | Feb 10 2023 0:57 utc | 99
The thing about population growth, or more accurately reproductive rates, is that
1. Poor people in developing countries with no social security net will breed prolifically because
(a) Some children will likely die before reaching adulthood and
(b) If you have many children, of those that reach adulthood, at least one night be willing to take care of you in your old age.
2. As countries develop economically, people with little time on their hands and a consumerist lifestyle are less than interested in having children simply because having them is a drain both in terms of time and finances.
China discovered that when it removed the one child policy Chinese couples were absolutely not interested in having more kids. One could have predicted that.
In the case of Russia, imagine, for instance, a woman who lives in Khimki in a 2 bedroom flat, travels 3 hours 5 days a week to work 8 hours a day in Moscow, and in her spare time not unnaturally wants to go to the theatre or relax in a cafe with friends. What could you do to convince her to have babies? Tell her it’s her duty? Yeah, that’ll work. Totally.
Posted by: Biswapriya Purkayast | Feb 10 2023 1:06 utc | 100