Down South 83
“”Big, big, promises. Too little to show for it. Now, the West is wondering if is it really worth going to war with Russia. They became more and more convinced that Russia means business. . . “”
The US/West reside in lala land. They want the nice things, cars, villas, boutique shops and for the chosen to get filthy rich. They can’t be bothered with mundane tasks like a functioning industrial sector or a capable military. In provoking Russia into a war they never considered whether they had the industrial capacity or weapons to enable Ukraine to drive the nail in Russia’s coffin, and they certainly weren’t about to confront Russia directly. So the victory of Ukraine was a fait accompli in their deluded little minds, and they never even considered what would happen if their strategy of sanctions and wonder weapons did not achieve the goal. It simply couldn’t happen to the great and wonderful West. It must come as quite a shock to many of them that shit’s getting real, except for the neocons, who think they will come out just fine after a nuclear war.

Posted by: Mike R | Feb 10 2023 22:03 utc | 103

For all those warriors in their comfortable English armchairs fighting to the last Ukrainian.
‘It must be admitted that the English people are at present doing their utmost to justify the low estimate in which their rulers hold them; a people who for centuries have never heard a shot fired in anger upon their shores, yet who encourage their government in its campaign of robbery and murder against an unoffending nation; a people, who, secure in their own homes, permit their rulers to carry devastation and death into the homes of another people, assuredly deserve little respect no matter how loudly they may boast of their liberty-loving spirit.’
James Connolly ‘The South African War I’ (1899)

Posted by: Paul McGrory | Feb 10 2023 22:07 utc | 105

@ Posted by: Passerby | Feb 10 2023 19:59 utc | 60
The end of the Mexican – US war and the signing of the Gadsden Purchase a few years later would be a better example.
The question is, what is the price?

Posted by: BroncoBilly | Feb 10 2023 22:09 utc | 107

RF used drone boats on an attack of Odessa bridge in Zatoga. seems two can play at that game after all

Posted by: hankster | Feb 10 2023 22:11 utc | 109

#87 the Poland mess is light on spirit. Perhaps they should look inward instead of outward.

Posted by: Dingo | Feb 10 2023 22:15 utc | 111

Eighthman #6

I think there is one aspect to this war that has not received enough ( or any?) comment. It is the surprising effectiveness of Russian anti missile technology. Even if the numbers are exaggerated, it is remarkable to hear about every sort of projectile being knocked out of the sky.

I recall some months ago Martyanov made a brief mention of this extraordinary Russian achievement. He was brief and did not linger on the subject other than to surmise that the west would be sh!tting itself being faced with this defeat of their artillery.
I have noticed the Russian anti drone systems are equally effective and seem to have reached a high state of perfection with the recent versions of their ‘electronic rifles’ to bring them down.

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Feb 10 2023 22:17 utc | 113

John Marks,,,,,Got exited from Polish Historical Society because : said American troops and Missiles in Poland were Idiotic . They have not learned from History .

Posted by: leocz | Feb 10 2023 22:25 utc | 115

@ Down South, §93:
An obvious way to stop any NATO nasties coming from Rumania is the Dniester river.
Blow all the bridges over that river and everything east of the Dniester, including Odessa, is relatively much safer from nasty NATO surprises.

Posted by: John Marks | Feb 10 2023 22:30 utc | 117

Posted by: CharlesLutherThanos | Feb 10 2023 22:21 utc | 112
That character is a legend.
“One and a half years for the Donbass, one and a half more to the Dniepr and then about a year to the English Channel”
I improvise but still LoL.

Posted by: alek_a | Feb 10 2023 22:42 utc | 119

@ Bronco Billy, §105:
Alaska went for 2¢ an acre . . .

Posted by: John Marks | Feb 10 2023 22:44 utc | 121

List of republicans who backing the resolution to end aid to Kievan regime : https://www.newsweek.com/full-list-republicans-backing-matt-gaetz-resolution-end-ukraine-aid-1780233

Posted by: Virai | Feb 10 2023 22:54 utc | 123

Moldova ex-PM spacht: our citizens failed to give us support as good, as we had from other governments, which depressed our performance.
Brilliant coming out!

Posted by: Arioch | Feb 10 2023 22:58 utc | 125

Oberbayer @19–
Thanks very much for taking the time to translate your reply into English. I hope you went one step further and went to read her weekly briefing which is always provides a wide spectrum of information, not just updates on Ukraine. I don’t know it you’ll read my reply, but if you do I have a question for you: Do East Germans think those in West Germany were denazified as the partition treaty stipulated? Thanks again!

Posted by: karlof1 | Feb 10 2023 23:06 utc | 127

I read before that Alaska was not sold to the US, it was leased for a hundred years, (like Hong Kong).
When the time was up, the Russians declined to fight the US over it. Might be time to re-evaluate that decision.

Posted by: wagelaborer | Feb 10 2023 23:07 utc | 129

Posted by: young | Feb 10 2023 17:05 utc | 7
You’ve posted this exact same message a couple of days ago.

Posted by: Trimalchio | Feb 10 2023 23:11 utc | 131

If Russia could time it exactly right to halt electricity supplies to railways when trains from Polandd are delivering tanks. .they would be a sitting target. So are they “practising” at the moment with their current attacks to discover what goes where?
I am not convinced that a token effort of later models of tank supplies will now go to the front line but will be held back nearer to Nato borders defensive line….maybe just enough into Ukraine (as a token effort of support) to retreat and hang on to some territory? I remember reading about a week ago there was a thought about to be a giant tank battle a la Kursk….but I think Ukr tanks will be stopped hefore that?

Posted by: Jo | Feb 10 2023 23:21 utc | 133

Is Ukraine a sovereign state under the Westphalian legal concept of sovereignty?
A crucial element in Westphalian sovereignty is the absence of a role of foreign agents in the internal structures of the state. The doctrinal requirements for a violation of sovereignty require either a territorial intrusion, the element of coercion, or the usurpation of an inherently governmental function. The Maidan coup of 2014 destroyed Ukrainian sovereignty. The issue is this. Was Ukraine a sovereign state prior to 24 February 2022? Clearly not.

Posted by: Paul McGrory | Feb 10 2023 23:31 utc | 135

Jo 2 131 “I am not convinced that a token effort of later models of tank supplies will now go to the front line but will be held back nearer to Nato borders defensive line…”
I think there has to be some kind of showdown with the tanks (and possibly some planes). A token effort as you say. The West has talked itself into a corner. They may be regretting it already and all they can really do now is delay delivery.

Posted by: dh | Feb 10 2023 23:38 utc | 137

The pledges of armour were never realistically designed to help Ukraine win back anything, like any strategy they had a number of purposes. Firstly, to placate the thuggish US regime who would punitively punish them if they did not publicly support Biden and Co’s chief money launderer. The ‘revealing’ of the Nordstream sabotage reminding them of the stakes at play and consequences for not ‘kissing the ring’. Secondly, to allow a narrative to build that the Russian offensive was launched prematurely, because of the imminent arrival of NATO’s armoured comeback tour, and as a result it was not as effective. Finally, to provide some sort of rump force, West of the Dneiper, in case Russia did not stop on the eastern bank. When I heard that Leopard 1’s were part of the deal and the UK was considering Typhoons, my initial suspicions were confirmed, this was not a serious reinforcement, just a PR gimmick and an admission Ukraine would be bifurcated by Russia.

Posted by: Milites | Feb 11 2023 0:08 utc | 139

Posted by: watcher | Feb 10 2023 23:33 utc | 134
Nobody takes Moldova seriously, not even Romania (which is supposed the big sister country), and for sure not Ukraine, or Russia. They don’t take themselves seriously, which can by summarized as ‘we can’t fight a war, because we have no military’. They are the very definition of ‘please leave us alone in our misery’.

Posted by: Poison Frogs | Feb 11 2023 0:17 utc | 141

unimperator
Possibly referring to the LMUR or 305 ATGW, or did the Peresvet shoot down the UAF drones allowing an ambush?

Posted by: Milites | Feb 11 2023 0:23 utc | 143

Posted by: james | Feb 11 2023 0:20 utc | 140
——————-
berliner-zeitung.de
Nord Stream debate in the Bundestag: Where is the enemy?
Michael Maier
5-6 minutes
There was a topical hour in the Bundestag on Friday about the attacks on Nord Stream. Various assumptions were made as to where the enemy might be sitting.
Nord Stream after the attack 
Nord Stream after the attack Cover-Images/Imago.
In a special hour on Friday afternoon, the Bundestag discussed the status of the investigation into the attacks against the Nord Stream pipelines. In its argumentation, the opposition referred to the latest article by American journalist Seymour Hersh, according to which the American government together with Norway are said to be behind the attacks. Both the White House and the CIA, as well as the Norwegian Foreign Ministry, had sharply rejected the report.
The ruling parties unanimously countered the accusations of the opposition speakers from the Left Party and AfD on the same levels: They questioned Hersh’s journalistic credibility; stressed that it was better to say little to the public for security reasons; said that Russia was the aggressor; and, finally, held out the prospect of new confidential panels to better protect Germany’s critical infrastructure. Sebastian Fiedler (SPD) said the federal government should consider reestablishing a “protection commission.” A panel of scientists should continuously monitor threats and do so without publicity to better protect. Fiedler said with regard to the Nord Stream investigation, the public should not be told certain details so that the “enemies of democracy” would not learn those details either. He named the AfD as an enemy of democracy.
Nord Stream attacks: Who is the whistleblower Seymour Hersh?
Ann-Veruschka Jurisch (FDP) called for the establishment of a “National Security Council” that would act as a “higher-level early warning system.” She said the main threat to German infrastructure had been too much “dependence on Russia:” “Nord Stream 2 should never have been built.” For the FDP, Leon Eckert said that responsibilities needed to be clarified because currently, in the case of damage caused by natural disasters, the states are responsible, but in the case of sabotage, the federal government is responsible. Konstantin Kuhle of the FDP said that the perpetrators of the destruction of critical infrastructure in Europe are known: Russia is destroying infrastructure in Ukraine and is no longer even disguising its goal, which is the “destruction of Ukraine.” Kuhle went on to say that Russia is trying to corrode democracy in Europe by seeking “targeted contacts with advocates” in the institutions, “they sit on the margins,” Kuhle said, pointing to the left and AfD, and saying that we must protect ourselves from the “enemies of democracy in our house.”
Canan Bayram, a member of parliament for the Greens, expressed caution about the
Translated with http://www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

Posted by: Poison Frogs | Feb 11 2023 0:30 utc | 145

@ james | Feb 11 2023 0:20 utc | 140
The link is problematic. Here’s the translated article, cheers:

Nord Stream debate in the Bundestag: Where is the enemy?
There was a topical hour in the Bundestag on Friday about the attacks on Nord Stream. Various assumptions were made as to where the enemy might be sitting.
In a current affairs hour on Friday afternoon, the Bundestag discussed the status of the clarification of the attacks against the Nord Stream pipelines. In its argumentation, the opposition referred to the latest article by American journalist Seymour Hersh, according to which the American government together with Norway are said to be behind the attacks. Both the White House and the CIA, as well as the Norwegian Foreign Ministry, had sharply rejected the report.
The ruling parties unanimously countered the accusations of the opposition speakers from the Left Party and AfD on the same levels: They questioned Hersh’s journalistic credibility; stressed that it was better to say little to the public for security reasons; said that Russia was the aggressor; and, finally, held out the prospect of new confidential panels to better protect Germany’s critical infrastructure. Sebastian Fiedler (SPD) said the federal government should consider reestablishing a “protection commission.” A panel of scientists should continuously monitor threats and do so without publicity to better protect. Fiedler said with regard to the Nord Stream investigation, the public should not be told certain details so that the “enemies of democracy” would not learn those details either. He named the AfD as an enemy of democracy.
Ann-Veruschka Jurisch (FDP) called for the establishment of a “National Security Council” that would act as a “higher-level early warning system.” She said the main threat to German infrastructure had been too much “dependence on Russia:” “Nord Stream 2 should never have been built.” For the FDP, Leon Eckert said that responsibilities needed to be clarified because currently, in the case of damage caused by natural disasters, the states are responsible, but in the case of sabotage, the federal government is responsible. Konstantin Kuhle of the FDP said that the perpetrators of the destruction of critical infrastructure in Europe are known: Russia is destroying infrastructure in Ukraine and is no longer even disguising its goal, which is the “destruction of Ukraine.” Kuhle went on to say that Russia is trying to corrode democracy in Europe by seeking “targeted contacts with advocates” in the institutions, “they sit on the margins,” Kuhle said, pointing to the left and AfD, and saying that we must protect ourselves from the “enemies of democracy in our house.”
Green Party MP Canan Bayram was cautious about the Hersh article, saying, “We can’t judge the veracity of the story.” She warned against rash judgments. Philipp Amthor (CDU) made particularly derogatory and defamatory comments about Seymour Hersh. He spoke of the “blog post” of an “85-year-old who received a journalism award 50 years ago.” AfD’s Tino Chrupalla said the government’s silence on the attacks “feeds rumors and conspiracy theories.”
Sevim Dagdelen of the Left Party said Hersh had made clear in his career the difference between journalism and government pronouncements. She told the Berliner Zeitung newspaper, “It is appalling how U.S. reporter Seymour Hersh is being defamed for his research on the Nord Stream terrorist attacks and pressured to reveal his source. It is part of journalistic 101 to protect whistleblowers.” She called for an “international investigation under the auspices of the United Nations.” She said, “Despite Hersh’s revelations, the German government seems to continue to lack a real will to investigate.”
During the “Aktuelle Stunde,” Representative Jürgen Hardt of the CDU said he was proud that all the speakers in his parliamentary group were members of Atlantikbrücke e.V., because he could not recall that the Americans had ever done anything bad. Destroying a pipeline would have been unimaginable a few years ago, he said. He asked for the debate to be closed at just before 4 p.m. amid laughter from his group because he had to catch his train to Wuppertal.

Posted by: Outraged | Feb 11 2023 0:31 utc | 147

reply to 132
The anti-missile defense capability looks humorously like part of the plot for Galaxy Quest ! A bunch of aliens don’t comprehend fiction and so, create technology that they don’t know is ‘impossible’.
“Star Wars” was supposed to be a scam to exhaust the USSR. Did Russia eventually make it real? Maybe so.

Posted by: Eighthman | Feb 11 2023 0:47 utc | 149

@ Poison Frogs | Feb 11 2023 0:30 utc | 143
LOL 😉
@ dh | Feb 10 2023 23:12 utc | 130
Perhaps, think big, NATO ‘Partners’ & Ukraine conflict donors/trainers ! Grab New Zealand & Australia from down under.
The Aussies are holding out on an underpopulated defenseless entire continent.
@ karlof1 | Feb 11 2023 0:47 utc | 148
Most welcome.
Crazy, yes. Sad & depressing too. Deserving re general populace, am not so sure. Long suborned leaders & institutions throughout, zero sovereignty, absolute censorship & propaganda, & onerous criminal penalties for trivially STTOP ? Hard times comin’.

Posted by: Outraged | Feb 11 2023 0:59 utc | 151

“We cannot allow Russian athletes to line up alongside Team GB and everyone else on the world stage.”
There’s an easy solution to that problem. The entire 85% of the world that knows exactly who’s causing the problem should dump the ‘Olympics’ permanently and start their own, complete with a world stage, and not invite the 15% at all. Then Russian athletes won’t have to line up alongside Russophobic assholes.

Posted by: Dalit | Feb 11 2023 1:11 utc | 153

Empire refuses to acknowledge any vote that circumvents its “rules,”
it is Russia’s mistake to look for validation from the west and the UN, EU etc.
the west only respects strength.
actually as soon as a western politician starts talking of democracy and human rights, my spidey sense starts tingling. something is up.

Posted by: cafe con leche | Feb 11 2023 1:18 utc | 155

Utah Republican Senator Mike Lee said he was “troubled” over the report. “I can’t immediately rule out the suggestion that the U.S. blew up Nord Stream,” Lee stated on Twitter. “I checked with a bunch of Senate colleagues. Among those I’ve asked, none were ever briefed on this. If it turns out to be true, we’ve got a huge problem.”
https://www.bizpacreview.com/2023/02/09/did-the-u-s-blow-up-nord-stream-pipeline-gop-sen-mike-lee-warns-weve-got-a-huge-problem-if-true-1331595/
It appears that, thanks to Sy Hersh’s recent article, Republicans are smelling blood in the water, and it smells like the Nord Stream methane. Hersh noted that:
“This is not kiddie stuff,” the source said. If the attack were traceable to the United States, “It’s an act of war.”
Yes, an act of war against Germany and Russia, an act that was not discussed and approved by the US Congress. Joe Biden may have to explain this to Congress during an impeachment hearing.

Posted by: Ed | Feb 11 2023 1:18 utc | 157

Posted by: james | Feb 11 2023 1:07 utc | 150
I was going to post a translation but the other guys beat me to it.
However, here’s some advice: You can install an extension called “Mate Translate” in your browser which will make it easy to translate Web pages in 103 languages. I use it in Firefox and it works great.
For Firefox: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/instant-translate/
For Chrome: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/mate-translate-%E2%80%93-translat/ihmgiclibbndffejedjimfjmfoabpcke?hl=en
For Apple: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/language-translator-by-mate/id1073473333
For Opera: https://addons.opera.com/en/extensions/details/instant-translate-2/
For Microsoft Edge: https://microsoftedge.microsoft.com/addons/detail/mate-translate-%E2%80%93-translat/kacbklkbjmnjkhnellgciecdogkkldoj
– RSH
Main site: https://gikken.co/mate-translate/

Posted by: CharlesLutherThanos | Feb 11 2023 1:22 utc | 159

@ james | Feb 11 2023 1:07 utc | 150
You’re welcome. Quick and dirty machine translation but you get the idea. It’s Russia’s fault that US blew the Russian NS 1&2.
// Konstantin Kuhle of the FDP said that the perpetrators of the destruction of critical infrastructure in Europe are known: Russia is destroying infrastructure in Ukraine and is no longer even disguising its goal, which is the “destruction of Ukraine.” Kuhle went on to say that Russia is trying to corrode democracy in Europe by seeking “targeted contacts with advocates” in the institutions, “they sit on the margins,” Kuhle said, pointing to the left and AfD, and saying that we must protect ourselves from the “enemies of democracy in our house.” //
It physically hurts my body to see the way German politicians act today. I still have friends in Germany.

Posted by: Poison Frogs | Feb 11 2023 1:26 utc | 161

@ CharlesLutherThanos | Feb 11 2023 1:22 utc | 157
thanks richard.. i have brave, but i could probably use firefox for this… it is the first time i have run into that problem.. cheers..

Posted by: james | Feb 11 2023 1:30 utc | 163

Re: Posted by: Likklemore | Feb 10 2023 22:17 utc | 110

Wagner boss estimates how long Ukraine conflict will last
The hostilities between Moscow and Kiev might drag on for three more years, Yevgeny Prigozhin believes
RT
The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine will likely continue for up to three more years, depending on the goals Moscow actually pursues in it, Wagner private military group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin has said. The businessman made the remarks in an exclusive interview with Semyon Pegov of the independent WarGonzo project on Friday.
“If we need to cover the DPR and LPR, then we need to work for at least another year and a half or two,” Prigozhin stated, referring to the territories of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, which were recently incorporated into Russia.
Should Russia seek to “go toward the Dnepr,” a major river separating Ukraine into roughly two halves, the conflict will last even longer and drag on for up to three more years, Prigozhin suggested. At the same time, the founder of the private military group noted that in any conflict, the destruction of the enemy’s army must be the priority, rather than a desire to seize territories from the adversary.[.]

Re: Posted by: CharlesLutherThanos | Feb 10 2023 22:21 utc | 112

Russian With Attitude Twitter thread of the interview with Evgeny Prigozhin by Semyon Pegov, veteran Russian war correspondent with many wars under his belt, and founder of the WarGonzo media project.
https://mobile.twitter.com/RWApodcast/status/1624122001982881796
This is obviously trolling, so not to be taken seriously. He has no clue what the Russian operational plan is and he’s politely informing Wargonzo of that fact.
– RSH

Obvious trolling?
It’s been (almost) 1 year since this conflict began.
How much of the remainder of Donetsk Oblast has Russia captured in 1 Year? Not even half of what they didn’t have a year ago.

Posted by: Julian | Feb 11 2023 1:37 utc | 165

Is the game changing? Is this why the Moldova overt nazi/west lovers coup has now been instigated – for a larger war? We see much push back against Zelenski and the persistent demands for more toys. Is this a vote of no confidence or a major transfer of war fighting responsibilities. And to whom – the ammo strapped Nato clown cart?
Source: anti-spiegel.ru

from February 10, 2023 9:37 pm
The Russian news agency TASS publishes almost every evening a summary of the events of the day in and around Ukraine. I try to translate every summary possible, even if I can’t guarantee that I can do it every day, especially since the summary sometimes appears in the early evening, sometimes late at night.
Here I translate the summary of February 10.
Start of translation:
Infrastructure under attack, the EU is in no hurry to hand over planes to Kiev: The developments around Ukraine
Ukrainian media reported on Friday that energy infrastructure was damaged in several regions of the country. Power cuts have been made in several regions and train schedules are disrupted.
As a result of the EU summit, the heads of state and government of several European countries declared that Kiev should not expect the delivery of fighter jets “in the near future”.
The Prime Minister of the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the EU, Ulf Kristersson, has set up a working group to create the legal conditions for the use of frozen Russian state funds to rebuild Ukraine.
TASS has compiled the most important developments around Ukraine.
Course of the operation
Russian troops have completely liberated the village of Dvurechnoye in the Kharkov region, Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov, the spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, said.
According to Konashenkov, in the last 24 hours, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have lost over 410 people in attacks near Donetsk, Krasnolimansk, Kupyansk, Kherson and South Donetsk, and a large number of armored vehicles and artillery of the enemy have been destroyed.
A Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopter was shot down by warplanes in the Zaporizhia region.
Blows to infrastructure
On Friday, three air alerts were triggered in Ukraine. Ukrainian authorities and media reported explosions in Vinnitsa, Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, Zaporozhia, Ivanovo-Frankivsk, Kiev, Kryvyi Rog, Lvov, Kharkov and Khmelnytskyi. Ukrainian air defense activities were reported from the Kiev, Kirovograd, Mykolaev, Poltava and Kharkov regions.
Power generation facilities and high-voltage infrastructure were damaged in six Ukrainian regions, Energy Minister German Galushchenko said. Regional authorities reported damage to critical infrastructure facilities in Zaporozhia, Kharkov, Dnepropetrovsk, Lvov and Khmelnytskyi regions.
Ukrenergo reported that there was a significant shortage of electricity in the country’s energy system and emergency shutdowns were carried out in some regions. Ukrzheldoroga has reported that train schedules are disrupted. In Kharkov, the interval of trains on all three metro lines was extended.
According to Prime Minister Denis Shmygal, Ukraine has now lost 44 percent of nuclear power generation, 75 percent of nuclear power plant capacity and 33 percent of combined heat and power plants.
The Sabotage of Nord Stream
The US has denied any involvement in blowing up the Nord Stream gas pipeline system and considers its explanations credible, according to US State Department spokesman Ned Price. He called “propaganda” the article by US journalist Seymour Hersh claiming that Washington was behind the sabotage.
The German government has no data to support Hersh’s conclusions about blowing up the Nord Streams, said Christiane Hofmann, a spokeswoman for the German government. She said “all relevant authorities, including the German attorney general, have investigated the incident very thoroughly.”
In response to a question from TASS, the publicist himself did not rule out the possibility of coming to Russia in the future and speaking in the Duma, “but that will not happen in the near future.” According to Hersh, “now is too delicate a time” to agree to foreign travel of this nature.
No aircraft for the time being
Under no circumstances will fighter jets be delivered to Kiev in the coming weeks, which is not a priority at the moment, French President Emmanuel Macron said after the EU summit, which was also attended by Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky.
According to Hoffman, the issue of supplying fighter jets to Kiev was not discussed at the summit. In Germany, the topic is “not on the agenda,” said Defense Ministry spokesman Arne Kollatz.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called for “coordination and unity” between allies after the summit after Ukraine requested fighter jets.
Ukraine has asked the Netherlands to supply F-16 fighter jets, Defense Minister Kaisa Ollongren said. According to her, it is a “very complicated matter”, so it must be said openly that a delivery is not possible in the foreseeable future.
Members of the Slovak National Council (Parliament) will discuss Ukraine’s request for the transfer of MiG-29 supersonic combat aircraft retired from the Slovak Air Force at an extraordinary session on February 14. According to the TASR news agency, the meeting was initiated by the parliamentary opposition, which described the provisional approval of acting Prime Minister Eduard Heger to the transfer of the aircraft as “unconstitutional”.
Difficulties with ammunition
The EU countries have not been able to agree on a proposal for the joint purchase of ammunition for Ukraine, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said after the EU summit. According to him, the proposal “did not meet with a positive response from some countries”.
According to the Hungarian newspaper Népszava, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer refused to supply weapons at the meeting with Zelensky in Brussels.
The deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential office, Igor Zhovkva, said in an interview with the agency Bloomberg that the country’s armed forces have a shortage of artillery ammunition. According to him, the Ukrainian Armed Forces need artillery, tanks, armored vehicles and long-range missiles to launch a counteroffensive.
Moving in real estate
Sweden, in its capacity as EU Council President, has launched an initiative to create the legal conditions for the use of frozen Russian state funds for the reconstruction of Ukraine, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said after the EU summit. According to him, the work will be led by the former Swedish ambassador to the EU and current head of the Foreign Trade Administration, Anders Anlid.
The working group, which will include “highly qualified lawyers with international legal expertise”, is expected to complete its work in the second quarter of this year.
Kristersson recalled that the EU has also frozen works of art, yachts, real estate and helicopters worth around €30 billion, although it is not yet clear whether these can be confiscated. “I think these are quite complicated things, let’s find out now where exactly the borders are,” the prime minister said.
Sport and politics
Britain will hold a “summit” on the issue of the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus in the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. According to the UK’s Department of Culture and Sport, about 30 nations are eligible to attend the event. According to Minister Lucy Fraser, London “cannot allow Russian athletes to stand on the world stage alongside the British team and representatives of other countries.”
End of translation

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Feb 11 2023 1:43 utc | 167

# 165 thanks for the information.

Posted by: Dingo | Feb 11 2023 1:53 utc | 169

daffyDuct #166
So why now? Why this smokescreen at this moment. Hersh has produced a p!ssweak wimp at the very moment russiagate hoax is revealed, Moldova coup it completed, Zelensky told to p!ss of with his whingeing, whining grovelling for weapons, Credit Suisse tanking? Why is Seymour Hersh so flavor of the week with an old story clumsily reported for the nth time?

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Feb 11 2023 1:58 utc | 171

What puzzles and horrifies me is the utter passivity of Ukrainian males, going off to their deaths obediently, overall. Fighting to not be loaded into a van is pathetic, too little, too late. Impressment gangs that visit small villages should never be seen again, not grudingly complied with. Fragging should be common and automatic. Where’s the open rebellion? Another hundred, another thousand lost….. and nothing. Mercouris respectfully recoils at the phrase, ‘meat grinder’ but what empathy should we feel about this obsequious behavior as if the lives of fathers and husbands mean little – to themselves? Who’s the enemy – the Russian who calls for surrender or the Ukr. officer ordering suicide?
Posted by: Eighthman | Feb 10 2023 21:47 utc | 91

I read quotes from someone on the front lines last summer. He talked about the artillery disparity and he wanted out but felt that if he went back home he would have to go to prison (but I think he also risked being shot by Azov if caught). Apparently being imprisoned for deserting was worse than sitting in a trench to him. I recently read about a guy who was convicted of trying to get out of conscription and he was given three years in prison. Don’t know if he had connections or that is typical, but at this point 10 years in prison would beat dying in a Bakhmut ditch or cauldron.

Posted by: Simon | Feb 11 2023 2:11 utc | 173

Eighthman @91
One must maintain a sense of compassion at the same time as being bitingly bewildered at the numb complacency of those shanghaied conscripts and all who will mourn them. Truly, they cannot comprehend who it is that is their real enemies.

Posted by: aristodemos | Feb 11 2023 2:35 utc | 175

John Marks @118
The British people paid in blood for the Jameson Raid and its aftermath, the Boer War. The profiteers were the crime clan which has its private headquarters in a City of London bank, where orders are passed on down to their wholly owned Bank of England and thenceforth to the various minions and acolytes. Gold and diamonds, yes indeed…and the winners of all that lucre are not even of longtime British ancestry.
Pity that.

Posted by: aristodemos | Feb 11 2023 2:52 utc | 177

malenkov | Feb 11 2023 2:11 utc | 170
how is someone sticking his neck out when he concludes the crime was justified?
“blasting the conversation wide open. It’s a delight watching the Official West succumb to the Streisand Effect.”
yep, the open and frank discussion of how necessary it is for the west to sabotage its enemies’ industry certainly blasts the conversation wide open to something or other.

Posted by: rjb1.5 | Feb 11 2023 3:01 utc | 179

Posted by: bevin | Feb 10 2023 18:28 utc | 32
Lol, Except for little detail, hyper-sonics are not hyper-sonic, underwater, where most of the Wests nuclear deterrence is.

Posted by: Longhorn | Feb 11 2023 3:08 utc | 181

So why now? Why this smokescreen at this moment. Hersh has produced a p!ssweak wimp at the very moment russiagate hoax is revealed, Moldova coup it completed, Zelensky told to p!ss of with his whingeing, whining grovelling for weapons, Credit Suisse tanking? Why is Seymour Hersh so flavor of the week with an old story clumsily reported for the nth time?
Posted by: uncle tungsten | Feb 11 2023 1:58 utc | 169
It is all about 2024 as near as I can tell. Specifically, keeping Trump and the deplorables away from the levers of power. I’m still waiting to see what they try to do, the Biden/Obama people, I don’t think they want to let the Pubbies back in.

Posted by: Bemildred | Feb 11 2023 3:19 utc | 183

@7 young “For now only one major road remains open in/out of Bakhmut.”
Since it still appears to be true that Zelensky is pushing more and more troops into Bakhmut it is an open question if the Russians really do want to cut that last road.
Think about it: they have created a big bag, and Zelensky seems to be insisting that the Ukrainian high command keep stuffing that bag full of Ukrainian soldiers.
The Russians must be dumbfounded but, really, as Napolean said: never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.
I’ve heard reports that since Zelensky is still doing this that the Russians have changed their plans and are beginning a much wider envelopment operation, since they see an opportunity to not only bag the Ukrainian troops inside Bahkmut but also all the logisitic/support forces that are feeding those troops into the maw.

Posted by: Yeah, Right | Feb 11 2023 3:22 utc | 185

@ Outraged | Feb 11 2023 1:36 utc | 162
Thanks. See my post at 178.
Maybe the worm is turning. Taking on Russia is not Iraq.
Watch this Discussion:
Ray McGovern, Larry Johnson, Doctorow, Lavelle on RT -the Hersh bombshell, is there a Korean Solution for UKR, the bad bet by D.C. leading to defeat of NATO.
via Johnson’s blog
https://sonar21.com/on-cross-talk-with-peter-lavelle-gilbert-doctorow-and-ray-mcgovern/
or on rumble:
https://rumble-foxo.cdn.rumble.cloud/video/cwg9/s8/2/S/6/Z/g/S6Zgi.oaa.mp4

Posted by: Likklemore | Feb 11 2023 3:27 utc | 187

the prophetic words of Daniel 7:5.
Posted by: young | Feb 10 2023 17:05 utc | 7
a song for Zelensky, waiting on weapons, and people waiting on the prophetic words:
the waiting is the hardest part. you take it on faith. and imf credit. that means we don’t need to hear about it all the time. it’s coming. just hope you won’t be greatly disappointed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDK9QqIzhwk
(psyche. Z doesn’t deserve Tom Petty.)

Posted by: rjb1.5 | Feb 11 2023 3:28 utc | 189

Posted by: Dalit | Feb 11 2023 3:22 utc | 182
———————————-
You are correct Dalit. Of course, an entity that could plan and carry out the Nord Stream sabotage operation wouldn’t forget a minor detail like THE SMOKING GUN, would it?
Remember that four countries carried out their own independent “investigations” and would not allow Russia to have a representative to be present as part of the “investigations.” Sounds like Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 “investigation” all over again.

Posted by: Ed | Feb 11 2023 3:39 utc | 191

Ed @155
Good job on that posting. Senator Mike Lee becomes the vanguard for the opposition as he’s representing a state which gives him a safe seat. This strikes me that the Utah Senator is indeed, as you describe it, demonstrating that the Republicans smell blood in the water.
Interesting part of this is that it is coming from the populist wing of the GOP, yeah, all those folks from the working classes who supported Trump, mainly because however smeared with goo that man is, like any astute politician, he sensed a great shifting amongst millions of Americans who were deserted by the Democrat party. In nearby Wyoming, almost unarguably the most independent-minded polity in the country, the Republican voters there massively showed up to kick Liz Cheney the hell outta office as the Congressional Gauleiter for the RINO wing of the traditionally imperialist and money greedy wing amongst the Republicans.
Democrats, faux liberals that they have become, will now be shitting their pants in the double-barreled outhouse, along with those RINOS. The imperialist overlay could be catching it in the shorts as more and more Republicans are now sniffing the political winds, sensing that methane odor of Nordstream that you pointed out.
Will be most interested to see whether there will be Democrats, representing essentially working-class districts, who will be tempted to jump ship and chime in with the fast developing populist revolt.
Its quite possible that the moneymongers, grifters and opportunists have gone a bridge too far in disrespecting the inherent power contained within the sinews of Mama Bear.
As a caveat, though, desperate times do occasionally stir up desperate measures on the part of the desperados. They may be experiencing wet-dreams about false-flag attacks…like a self-goal nuking of a middling large American city.
Would the mass-media of mindfuckering misinformation succeed in blaming it on Russia? They would do their damndest. Best outcome would be for military veterans dying slowly from the JAB, to go all postal and take it out on poorly guarded media-whores who keep spewing out such garbage.

Posted by: aristodemos | Feb 11 2023 3:45 utc | 193

My take on the 1.5 yrs for DPR/LPR and 3.5 yrs for Dnipr by PMC Wagner boss is a warning to those who might be inclined to think that Russia will tire of the task at hand. They will not, however long it takes.

Posted by: the pessimist | Feb 11 2023 4:02 utc | 195

Lil Chuckie Schumer said THAT? Man that methane stench from the ruptured Nordstrom must really be having a direct effect on Congre$$. The AUMF is massively contra-Constitutional. Thus, when I$rael’s biggest supporter in the $enate is going “off message”, there must be total turmoil in the Di$trict of Corruption after Hersch’s revelation.

Posted by: aristodemos | Feb 11 2023 4:12 utc | 197

Now….seriously. This does it. This quote puts the final point under my alienation from Germany and the western world as a whole.
Finished. Period. I had it now.
Posted by: Helmuth von Moltke | Feb 10 2023 21:36 utc | 84
I had the same epitome regarding Australia. After being locked out in covid, unable to fly home, then stopped as I didn’t have a Pfizer vaccine that was enough. It had been building watching the imbecile politicians try to pick a war with China on US orders. Now I look upon the whole woke deification of transgenders and the climate change idiocy shutting down all the power stations, and on and on, and just shake my head in pity. I’ll stay where I was locked out, it’s now their problem, I just don’t care anymore as most there support it.

Posted by: Organic | Feb 11 2023 4:21 utc | 199