Ukraine Open Thread 2023-89 – Moon of Alabama

April 12, 2023

Ukraine Open Thread 2023-89

Only for news & views directly related to the Ukraine conflict.

Richard Steven Hack notes:

Hello, Notes! What's going on?

In case anyone has missed this, the current lead story about Ukraine is the leak of alleged government documents about the conflict. Well, I’ve collected several of these documents and placed in a folder in my Google Drive. This also includes an article from a Chinese Web site by someone called “Suyi Control” who posts 38 document images and analyzes them. I have machine translated the article us Mate Translate. The link is here, anyone with the link can access them:
https://drive.google.com/..

The current open thread for other issues is here.

Please stick to the topic. Contribute facts. Do not attack other commentators.

Posted by b on April 12, 2023 at 16:27 UTC | Permalink

Comments

Re F15 and F16 fighter jets….
and
“There is no greater danger than underestimating your opponent.”― Sun Tzu
The greater danger may be the much maligned, even by dep sec def Shanahan, F35.
Before collapsing with laughter, consider, with fine intellectual rigour, the datalink capability and the neural networked drone swarm of swarms under development by DARPA.

Posted by: necromancer | Apr 13 2023 8:04 utc | 201

Here’s the latest from Wapo, or friendly mouthpiece of CIA, claiming to be the first to bring the “leaks” to the light of Day.
Pretty sure now more will consider the “leaks” as bullshit designed to throw the Russians off track. 95% of what’s inside is known or not exactly top secret and 5% disinfo salted in it.
They really don’t matter to the Russians who slotted it into the bullshit pigeonhole as they grind away and prepare for the fanatic Nazi Do or Die onslaught.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230413/report-source-of-pentagon-docs-worked-on-military-base-turned-frantic-once-leak-surfaced-1109455072.html

Posted by: Surferket | Apr 13 2023 8:12 utc | 202

Posted by: shadowbanned | Apr 12 2023 19:27

Russia may not be ready yet … The uncharitable interpretation is that the traitor faction in Russia is still in power … But nuclear war is where this is logically headed, unless the traitors in Russia make another deal like in the late 1980s … that’s a better deal than the destruction of Russia and the continuation of current trends.

Utter Russia hating, false concern BULLSHIT.
FOFF!!

Posted by: LongCovid | Apr 13 2023 8:18 utc | 203

‘The leaker, described in the Post story as a lonely young man and gun enthusiast,’
So, the Deep State is trying to frame this leaker as an ideological enemy, no doubt giving it an excuse to remove similar, ‘wrong-thinkers’, and replace them, superficially-diverse, employees, whose very existence in that organisation depends on the continuation of the current regime.

Posted by: Milites | Apr 13 2023 8:25 utc | 204

A very long twitter thread on the leaked doc’s. Mostly on those to do with the spying on other countries.
https://twitter.com/bidetmarxman/status/1646227225283555328
“Last month, a trove of top secret Pentagon documents ostensibly leaked on social media.
But far from being an embarrassing breach of sensitive intel, this “leak” has all the signs of being a deliberate disinformation operation by the US.”
and it ends with this
“1. Docs circulate for over a month on SM because they look fabricated.
2. NYTimes gets a little nudge from an ‘anonymous source’ in Pentagon.
3. NYT runs a story that “Pentagon is investigating a leak”
4. Pentagon quickly confirms.
5. International press goes nuts.”

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Apr 13 2023 8:28 utc | 205

‘The leaker, described in the Post story as a lonely young man and gun enthusiast,’
Posted by: Milites | Apr 13 2023 8:25 utc | 204
An obvious Washington launched diversion, much like the idea that a yacht and a handful of men blew up Nordstream. Very parallel cases.

Posted by: laguerre | Apr 13 2023 8:34 utc | 206

@ Down South | Apr 13 2023 7:03 utc | 194
During a meeting with VP Kamala Harris at the White House, Polish PM Mateusz Morawiecki has declared that Poland is a leader “new Europe” that would be ready to confront Russia alongside with the US.
Oh, how naive.
Polish government is everything nowadays current neo-con establishment might wish for; a right-wing, Catholic-extreme and Christian Taliban alike and obviously very stupid.
A “New Europe”, is a wet dream of all those East European, second class countries within EU where they have no dominance or even influence over West European dominant power of decision.
So that creates a complex of an underdog, and what better way to express this than to turn to a well known recipe – imminent and constantly present Russian danger.
Poland had certainly succeeded to paint a big bullseye on itself, and it is cynically led to believe by “US friends and partners” to be important.
Poland has a big chance of ending playing the same role as Ukraine – cannon fodder and a pile of rubble.

Posted by: whirlX | Apr 13 2023 8:45 utc | 207

@ Peter AU1 | Apr 13 2023 8:28 utc | 205
1. Is False, along with lead-in. Not last month, known for over a week now online since 1st Mar at least, in fact back to Jan’23, now supposedly into last year. Rant fails at the first step.
2. Is false. ‘Cause Intel agencies appear to have become first aware of the initial Docu, followed by another 5, when first identified posted on RF Telegram, circa Apr5/6’23.
3. Is false. Spokesmen initially claimed they were fabrications, doctored, false.
4. Is false. Took days before they acknowledged or granted any credence to possibility of authenticity.
5. International press goes nuts ? It’s been barely covered, largely ignored, IMV. A Wikileaks/Snowden level expose’ ? Not.
When conducting public Disinfo/Psy-Ops, you distribute, propagate & magnify the actual Docu, not the exact opposite …
@ Surferket | Apr 13 2023 8:12 utc | 202

Pretty sure now more will consider the “leaks” as bullshit designed to throw the Russians off track. 95% of what’s inside is known or not exactly top secret and 5% disinfo salted in it.

Indeed Russkie would give none of it any credence given talked about ‘only’, publicly, 2nd & third hand. Nuggets on Telegram good/truth, same in MSM/Social media bad/lies, wholesale, black n white, hm ?
Familiar with US Secret, TS, Codeword & SCI classified Docu to make such an informed judgement & declarative statement re Docu authenticity ? You have reviewed in detail the tranche of Docu hosted by RSH ? 99% certainty ?
Was impressed by ‘Suyi'(?) commentary after translating it, well informed & insightful, yet US SCI Codeword/Compartmented knowledge lapse nonetheless. Ex PLA analyst/military perhaps ? Anyone know ‘Suyi'(?) background ?
@ laguerre | Apr 13 2023 8:34 utc | 206
How do you explain the nature of the Docu leaks going back to Mar/Feb/Jan’23, now possibly into ’22 ? And the detailed content ? Prepared for the CJCS & JCS ?

Posted by: Outraged | Apr 13 2023 9:01 utc | 208

whirlX | Apr 13 2023 8:45 utc | 207
If you saw the Polish clown enacting this in a movie you would be falling off the chair laughing at the great satire.
That is for real is totally gob-smacking. Next he’ll be offering his mouth for a toilet. It is totally sick.
I find it tragic that there is anyone on earth who still thinks that the US is their friend and cares about them. Fuck!

Posted by: ZimZum | Apr 13 2023 9:06 utc | 209

Odd that Zelensky wants Donbas and Crimea back and will cede territory to the Polish irredentists to get it….

Posted by: Squeeth | Apr 13 2023 9:31 utc | 210

According to Military Summary channel, Ukraine will launch “total mobilization” in sequence to their assumed offensive, sometime during May-June. That could mean a mobilization of 5-6 million.

Posted by: unimperator | Apr 13 2023 9:46 utc | 211

There sees to developments re finding the source of the documents in western press…a disgruntled military young man with a liking for guns..seems genuine
However this has appeared subsequently and to me seems like a disinfo being piggybacked on the “opportunity”…note ..”new”
“Bitter Kremlin infighting over Ukraine war is revealed in new 27-page cache of leaked US intelligence documents that includes details of peace summit between Wagner and defence minister Shoigu By Chris Jewers….”

Posted by: Jo | Apr 13 2023 9:58 utc | 212

Posted by: Outraged | Apr 13 2023 9:01 utc | 208
I have Suyi analysis in pdf. He said 99% real and 1% disinfo. The material is not going to change anything on the ground except make the Russians double up on what they have prepared to deal with the coming Nazi offensive, now claimed to be summer and not spring. And that’s where I believe the intent of the disinfo lies to catch the Russians offguard into thinking that it’s summer and not as soon as the ground is hard enough starting best week.

Posted by: Surferket | Apr 13 2023 10:10 utc | 213

t.me/ZandVchannel/60158
❗️🇱🇻🏴‍☠️🇺🇦 The Ministry of Defense of Latvia confirms the presence of the Latvian military in Ukraine, but says that they do not participate in hostilities, but perform “auxiliary functions”

Posted by: anon2020 | Apr 13 2023 10:14 utc | 214

[101]
It is true Blockhead landed in PRC before movingbon to South Korea. She will no doubt say something stupid.
Her €137,000 a year image consultant needs a better subject to work on – lump of clay perhaps ?
Germany like U.K. is so has-been

Posted by: Paul Greenwood | Apr 13 2023 10:36 utc | 215

[207]
Poland is such a global power with a GDP the size of Belgium and living on EU transfer payments. It can ramp up credit from US and S Korea to buy weapons but will still be inferior to what Ukraine had in 2021
Poland is run by madmen who do not believe what they say but are afraid to be exposed
US forced these basket cases into NATO and EU and it was British EU contributions that funded Polish welfare from EU Budget and absorbed 5% Poland‘s population

Posted by: Paul Greenwood | Apr 13 2023 10:41 utc | 216

I appreciate all the posts from B. and the answers from the bar flies.Especially Karloff.Big picture
However I do not really know what is going on. It reminds me of the Fog of war when my own country Yugoslavia was being destroyed and broken into some small colonies, helpless and poisoned.
It is sadness, although I live at the moment in one of the most beautiful areas of the world.
.
I do not know what to say,hopefully RF will not be weak like we were.
HANG ON

Posted by: stranger | Apr 13 2023 10:44 utc | 217

The leaks were to draw attention to Ukraine for the big offensive show, Zelensky was demanding more weapons first and now he is being accused of stealing 400 million because he has gone off script and refuses to either attack or escalate in Russian territory.
Within 2 days they will do something “big”

Posted by: OohCanada | Apr 13 2023 10:44 utc | 218

To apologize or not?
I was so disturbed by all this that I have neglected my cats, saved, and homed… Also my flat,became like disaster.
Now slowly recovering.
tThank you b. and Karloff, going back to sanity.

Posted by: stranger | Apr 13 2023 10:52 utc | 219

WARNING WARNING WARNING
Copyright breach!
b , I think you need to cull or severely truncate this post above by
‘Posted by: First Time Poster | Apr 12 2023 19:13 utc | 39 ‘
It is law that copyrighted material can be quoted in abstract form for purpose of criticism but cannot be reproduced in full without permission of the copyright holder.
This site is in danger of being sued by Sy Hersh!
Either get his permission to publish it in which case do it above the line or follow the IP EU law that MoA is operating in.
The fact that the poster claims to be new is a giveaway that MoA is being set up.
Please please be aware and do the right thing.

Posted by: DunGroanin | Apr 13 2023 11:12 utc | 220

Hi all,
Bahkmut is pretty much closed off for the AFU now. There were rumours that the Ukies had a tunnel from Chasov Yar to there to smuggle all sorts between the 2 centres.
Does anyone have any updates on this rumour?

Posted by: Shnikks | Apr 13 2023 11:13 utc | 221

❗️🇱🇻🏴‍☠️🇺🇦 The Ministry of Defense of Latvia confirms the presence of the Latvian military in Ukraine, but says that they do not participate in hostilities, but perform “auxiliary functions”
Posted by: anon2020 | Apr 13 2023 10:14 utc | 213
Probably giving blow job relief to the Ukro Nazi crew. Latvia having its own interesting Nazi history as well with the Latvian Legion etc if you care to look into their past.

Posted by: Flashspur | Apr 13 2023 11:41 utc | 222

How do you explain the nature of the Docu leaks going back to Mar/Feb/Jan’23, now possibly into ’22 ?
Posted by: Outraged | Apr 13 2023 9:01 utc | 208
I don’t have to explain it as I ma not questioning whether the docs are genuine (I accept the general opinion that they are). What I question is whether a 20 year old would have access to TOP SECRET/NOFORN docs.

Posted by: laguerre | Apr 13 2023 11:43 utc | 223

The West does not intend to forgive Ukraine’s debts, which draws our country into credit bondage. The same “help” from the IMF actually turns Ukrainians into slaves who will have to pay debts for the state for decades.
For example, last week the IMF approved a $15.6 billion bailout package, but said there were “extraordinary risks” to the program. For example, if the military conflict ends by mid-2024, then, according to the IMF, Ukraine’s need for external financing will already amount to $115 billion. And if the hostilities continue until the end of 2025, Ukraine’s need will increase to $140 billion, Voice of America writes. Accordingly, Ukraine’s debt to the International Monetary Fund, with which our country has a rather interesting credit history, will also grow.
For understanding: the statistics of the last 5 years of work with the IMF shows that Ukraine received $6.8 billion in loans from the Fund, and gave back $9.5 billion. Those. Ukraine has a negative balance of work with the IMF for the last 5 years, minus $2.7 billion. And given the increase in “aid” from the IMF, the negative balance will only grow.

https://t.me/rezident_ua/17270

Posted by: Down South | Apr 13 2023 11:47 utc | 224

Posted by: Surferket | Apr 13 2023 10:10 utc | 212
The Russian operational timetable was decided last year, what the Ukrainians choose to do and when is entirely irrelevant, as all contingencies have been covered, resourced and planned for. This difference in approaches is stark and reinforces the inevitable conclusion to this sorry state of affairs. To launch any offensive means one has to wrest the initiative from your opponent by transitioning from the reactor to the initiator and there is no evidence the Ukrainians are close to that ability. The rate with which they are having to burn through their remaining core units, to cling onto Bakhmut real estate, illustrates this perfectly, as does having to elevate the significance of these tactical encounters as though they were operational outcomes.

Posted by: Milites | Apr 13 2023 11:52 utc | 225

Dima on Military Summary channel said that Ukraine might launch “total mobilization” i.e. 5-6 million men in sequence with the offensive in May-June.

Posted by: unimperator | Apr 13 2023 12:00 utc | 226

Posted by: Don Firineach | Apr 12 2023 22:10 utc | 99
Now that they have initiated their soft-coup on the US, the only impedimenta to their plans to reinstate a feudal economic and political system is Russia and China. The world is undergoing a bifurcation between the proponents of the Great-Reset and the rest of the world, that wants to follow the more traditional path, regarding energy, the provision of food and increasingly financing and paying for them.

Posted by: Milites | Apr 13 2023 12:09 utc | 227

laguerre | Apr 13 2023 11:43 utc | 222
Highly probable a 20 year old did the presentation using readily available apps. For example,
https://www.map.army/about/en.html
Senior military personnel don’t do graphics themselves.
Anyway, the original presentation, if these leaked docs were part of a presentation -they are very busy, most likely was animated and had 3D features. Why not, the senior staff would have to think as much when they viewed it.

Posted by: Jerr | Apr 13 2023 12:21 utc | 228

Posted by: unimperator | Apr 13 2023 12:00 utc | 225
Are they going to be called the Volkssturm?

Posted by: Milites | Apr 13 2023 12:24 utc | 229

The obsession of Western services, the military and the media in the numbers games about Russian war victims is impressive. They are fishing deep in the post-truth. It is their most important, most guarded and reflected question in all of the leaks – by far. Ukraine is losing our war. A Russian victory is not meant to look like a victory.
The kill ratio from the Russian point of view changed in the leaks from 17,000 vs 70,000 to 3 vs 1 and the latter are figures from Oryx and services of Ukraine. Certainly, intelligence documents can target disinformation. I doubt the numbers were changed by Russians, if they ever were. Why would Russians halve Ukraine’s KIA when we’ve heard v.d. Leyen and General Milley? It doesn’t make any sense.
On the other hand, The KIA of 17,000 is interesting. It’s the February roundup from the BBC. It is the best documentation and method on the subject from open source. B mentioned in January the Turkish investigative group, whose figures correspond to the BBC, and this group claims to have obtained its figures from the Mossad.
The mouthpiece of Western services and the military, the NYT, was now able to view a further 37 pages from the leak. The German ZEIT had a look (machine translation):

New leaks are said to show a power struggle in the Russian state apparatus
According to US reports, previously unknown documents provide insight into Russia’s secret services and the military. The Russian leadership is therefore fiercely arguing about war issues.
(…)
According to the US newspaper, the secret service note is dated February 28 and is therefore based on electronic wiretapping knowledge by the US intelligence services. According to the report, in addition to information on the Ukraine war, other “global hotspots” are also involved.
Regarding the number of Russian casualties in Ukraine, the document says, according to the New York Times, that the FSB doubts the statistics provided by the Defense Ministry in internal talks within the Russian government. The FSB criticized the fact that the ministry’s official figures did not contain any members of the Russian National Guard killed, the Wagner mercenary group, or the fighters of Chechen ruler Ramzan Kadyrov. The FSB itself is said to have put the number of Russians killed or injured at up to 110,000. (…)
The Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu last publicly commented on the number of Russian soldiers killed in Ukraine in September last year. At the time, he spoke of almost 6,000 Russian dead since the beginning of the war. US estimates, on the other hand, assume that around 200,000 Russian soldiers were killed or injured in the Ukraine war.
Authenticity of documents unclear
Similar to the leaks that became known at the beginning of the week, the authenticity of the secret documents is unclear. According to the New York Times, the new documents were also published via a server of the Discord messenger service. These are photos of alleged notes from the US foreign intelligence service NSA, among others. Some of the documents had been published incomplete. According to the New York Times, US government officials did not want to verify the leaks, but did not deny the information contained therein.

https://www.zeit.de/politik/ausland/2023-04/geheimdokumente-new-york-times-machtkampf-russland
The last sentences is gold. Now we are back at the start. All the numbers are on offer again, 17k, 45k, 110k or up to 200k. Believe what you want to believe. If a leak can be completely ignored because it doesn’t change anything in reality, you can certainly think about motives, but above all you should question competencies. After all, they are a common constant thread in the entire conflict.

Posted by: Konrad | Apr 13 2023 12:33 utc | 230

@ unimperator | Apr 13 2023 12:00 utc | 225
Cloth, equip & arm them with what ? They’ve already been throwing invalids into the line. Dima says …
@ Surferket | Apr 13 2023 10:10 utc | 212
Zalright. As for @ Milites | Apr 13 2023 11:52 utc | 224
Given the conduct of RF OPs to date since surprise launch & nature of SMO, find it difficult to give credence that RF would pay any attention to the Docu leaks at all, excepting any minor details that may corroborate their own intel collection, & then dubiously even so. Given the status of US Intel & derivative States since 80’s/90’s onwards the RF is probably laughing heartily re use of Oryx, BellingCrap & ISW as credible open sources & accepting what the Ukies lie to them. Cheers.
@ laguerre | Apr 13 2023 11:43 utc | 222
Pardon ? A 20 year old ?!
@ Jerr | Apr 13 2023 12:21 utc | 228
My, you are consistent with your BS.

Posted by: Outraged | Apr 13 2023 12:34 utc | 231

I am not sure if that’s a new type of air defense or if it’s a new artillery piece but they show a lot of types of thermoberics in that plant
The idea of 50 thermobaric rockets at a time is a scary thought, this is really starting to get out of hand
https://rumble.com/v2hkj4q-shoigu-inspects-state-defense-order-fulfillment-in-tula-region-enterprises.html

Posted by: OohCanada | Apr 13 2023 12:39 utc | 232

This passage from a “Russian channel” quoted by Simplicius is literature on this war for me. The lodging of rest and sleep is so important. I was wondering how they organize it all. Perhaps this picture will also endow “couch generals” among us with a little humility of any kind, who like to pretend what Russia should have already achieved in order to send psychological signals against the West or whatever.
Posted by: Konrad | Apr 13 2023 7:43 utc | 199

The Soviets would have been building whole underground cities to house soldiers and equipment, with multiple camouflaged exists, etc. Way beyond the bomb shelters that they constructed — now you need to hide the heavy equipment underground too.
There was a video circulating a couple months ago of the Iranian air force having built extensive tunnels in the mountains to hide their planes. Iran can easily do that though, because it is such a mountainous country. In the flat Eastern European plain you have to dig down.
When Engels was hit by drones, that subject came up, and the history was revisited — why is it that each plane isn’t housed separately under a reinforced concrete arc. Turns out that’s not really possible for strategic bombers — they are too large, plus it greatly reduces reaction time, as they need to be on stand by all the time as a strategic deterrent. The US also keeps its B-52s and B-1s out in the open. The B-2s are in hangars, but that is because of the sensitive coating, and the B-2s are just an expensive toy anyway.
But back in the days the Soviets did built concrete shelters for their smaller planes. It was extremely costly, but they did it. The problem is that they saw no need to do that deep into Russia where they were out of range for the enemy, it was all done in the adjacent to NATO areas — the Baltics, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, etc. Then the Eastern Bloc and the USSR fell apart, and those shelters became NATO assets…
Still, that shows how serious they were about these things, and you can imagine how they would react in the modern context.
I’ve seen scattered reports that RU has in fact been actively digging underground on the Zaporozhye front (rather than just using existing structures), but no real details. Hopefully they indeed are doing that.

Posted by: shadowbanned | Apr 13 2023 12:44 utc | 233

I am not sure if that’s a new type of air defense or if it’s a new artillery piece but they show a lot of types of thermoberics in that plant
The idea of 50 thermobaric rockets at a time is a scary thought, this is really starting to get out of hand
https://rumble.com/v2hkj4q-shoigu-inspects-state-defense-order-fulfillment-in-tula-region-enterprises.html
Posted by: OohCanada | Apr 13 2023 12:39 utc | 232

They need to mass produce the Tornado thermobaric rockets — 9M55S and 9M529. TOS-1A is great, but the range is barely above 10 km, which makes it vulnerable. The 9M529 supposedly has a 90-km range. It’s a 4X heavier rocket too. But it isn’t yet guided as far I know, and it perhaps should be (other Tornado-S rockets are, but not this one).
Maybe they are mass producing then, but you rarely hear details about Tornado strikes — that’s under MoD op-sec. They have been ramping them up — that is presumably what the recent constant strikes on the proximal rear around Slavyansk/Kramatorsk and on the Zaporozhye front have been done with. But more is needed.

Posted by: shadowbanned | Apr 13 2023 12:52 utc | 234

@ shadowbanned | Apr 13 2023 12:44 utc | 233
The Americans put their strategic bomber base in the Missouri flood plain and the obvious outcome happened.
https://mybaseguide.com/installation/offutt-afb/community/col-schreiner-returns-to-whiteman-afb-takes-command-of-the-509th-bomb-wing/

Posted by: too scents | Apr 13 2023 12:54 utc | 235

@ Konrad | Apr 13 2023 12:33 utc | 230
Sequence of events, timeline & Docu chain of custody/distribution. ‘Twould appear the figures were amateurishly photo-shopped post production/copied/leaked, and not by the leaker, when they were copied from Discord server to 4chan, and used a month later in a childish argument by a teenager re RF v AFU, to prove AFU was winning. All most embarrassing indeed for the worlds supposed Sole Remaining Superpower(not), failing to effectively enforce the ‘International-Rules-Based-Order’.
@ shadowbanned | Apr 13 2023 12:44 utc | 233
Persian Gulf War demonstrated above ground hardened aircraft shelters/hangers are wholly redundant.

Posted by: Outraged | Apr 13 2023 12:55 utc | 236

Jerry #155. Your post has given me pause for thought. I have been trying to find an adequate expression for the WEF agenda and what is happening now on the world.
You have got it right. It is to do with dehumanisation of society no more no less. A drip drip until one day, hey presto, we will just be no better off than slaves.
I don’t think they are winning though and they will not. Xi and Vladimir have stepped up and given them a massive punch on the nose. God Bless them both.

Posted by: Jo Dominich | Apr 13 2023 13:01 utc | 237

>>There sees to developments re finding the source of the documents in western press…a disgruntled military young man with a liking for guns..seems genuine…
If they knew that much about the person they would know who it was already.

Posted by: Jmaas | Apr 13 2023 13:20 utc | 238

I would like to think that the Russians are arguing furiously. That would indicate that opinions are being asserted and examined in microscopic detail and ultimate decisions are made after everything has been examined to the tiniest detail.
All of these vigorously argued opinions would require some sort of evidence and to me it is good that it is vigorously contested and the evidence is scrutinized.
To my thinking the US leadership is still living in the realms of fantasy and are getting high on the smell of their own farts. They believe that they are crushing Russia because all of their sycophants are telling them that. There is no debate, let alone vigorous argument.
Arse licking as a political process, who would have thought that it would lead to such a pretty pass? Just about everyone who has ever studied government. Little do they know the little that they know. It won’t end well because no-one will tell them things aren’t what they seem as there is always a reason not to and doubts would not be countenanced in any case.
The US is acting like the spoilt child pulling the wings of a fly. Russia knows that it’s that fly and China knows that it is next. It’s just an intellectual exercise for the US (or at least they think that) but for Russia and China it is existential and that is the difference. For Russia and China failure is not an option. The US still thinks that it can bullshit its way through. The US has bitten off more than it can chew and is staring to choke. The world is starting to wake up but the US is still mesmerized by it’s own flatulence.
It’s going to be ugly. Few in the US have any inkling of what is about befall, and the vast bulk of the west, ditto.

Posted by: ZimZum | Apr 13 2023 13:23 utc | 239

Posted by: shadowbanned | Apr 13 2023 12:52 utc | 234
If you look carefully at that rumble video (1:02, right hand edge) you’ll notice that those are indeed guided munitions with steerable fins protruding. They look like 200mm or 300mm calibre artillery rockets, the fins aren’t substantial enough for AD missiles.

Posted by: anon2020 | Apr 13 2023 13:28 utc | 240

Outraged | Apr 13 2023 9:01 utc | 208
There is some weird stuff going on here. Bellingcrap has been mentioned and if correct that’s British involvement. The wapo article that has been linked interviewed a supposedly minor that was part of the gamer group face to face for a number of hours. At the very bottom of the article it stated that at that time, I guess at the time of printing no authorities had contacted him or visited. There was only about 25 in the group of gamers yet wapo goes and interviews one and contacts another, meanwhile ‘investigators’ are still looking for clues?
According to comments in one of these threads Donbass whats her name had to clean all the images from her TG and whatever yet US mainstream media reporting the contents of the documents? There seems to be a bit of odd stuff going on.

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Apr 13 2023 13:30 utc | 241

uncle tungsten | Apr 13 2023 6:06 utc | 187
LongCovid | Apr 13 2023 8:18 utc | 203
____
What ails shadowbanned, who occasionally emits sparks of insight, appears to be a case of invincible ignorance (Ray McGovern), aka willful blindness, common to ‘intelligence’ analysts. From a blinkered, lizard’s-eye view of a single battlefield, he/she/it presumes strategic-tactical superiority to stupid and/or treasonous Russian leadership, who, guided by an overarching humanist vision, are engaged in an epochal, planetary civilizational struggle with nuclear-armed psychopaths. He/she/it sees only trees, no forests anywhere, and can’t fathom the concept of escalation management within geopolitical, geoeconomic, legal, and cultural spheres.

Posted by: Doug Hillman | Apr 13 2023 13:41 utc | 242

Jo Dominich | Apr 13 2023 13:01 utc | 237
Appreciate your remarks. The thing about the dehumanization of society is there is so little resistance to it. The public complacency is astounding.
I don’t know about Xi. Don’t see him as a champion of human dignity.
Outraged | Apr 13 2023 12:34 utc | 231
Thank you. Consistency is a requirement for successful debating.

Posted by: Jerr | Apr 13 2023 13:53 utc | 243

@ Peter AU1 | Apr 13 2023 13:30 utc | 241
Quite. BellingCrap appears to have been tossed into the mix to falsely assign credibility & discovery where none exists, IMV. If they have the leaker they’re not about to inform WAPO etc ’til they’ve got their ducks in a row & their cover story right. There ‘may’ be an already deceased MI E8 already in play …
Strong arming Telegram re Donbass Devushka, why not ? An evil Russkie to be made an example of. Also creates a precedent re future coercion on Telegram. Rules-based-order. 🙁

Posted by: Outraged | Apr 13 2023 13:55 utc | 244

Our source in the Presidential Office said that Andriy Yermak continues to strengthen his positions and is preparing to further expand the powers of the headquarters and the National Security and Defense Council. The goal is the complete centralization of power.

https://t.me/rezident_ua/17272

Posted by: Down South | Apr 13 2023 14:02 utc | 245

The Wokest Butthurt you Ever SawB/B>
When you are sufficiently stupid, who needs a library anyhow?
Rose, Andy (2003-04-12).
A Texas county that was ordered to return banned books to its shelves is set to consider shutting down its library system. CNN.

Posted by: Hermit | Apr 13 2023 14:04 utc | 246

According to our data, the explosion of a high-rise building in Bakhmut was the work of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which switched to a strategy of completely mining the building before retreating from these positions.
This once again demonstrates that the Armed Forces of Ukraine in Bakhmut are not doing well, since they have already switched to a strategy of complete destruction of urban development.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine have been using the scorched earth tactics for a long time, when retreating, they blow up everything around.
In the Kyiv region, Bankovaya still cannot solve all the problems that they themselves created when at the beginning of the war they retreated and blew up all communications and dams.

https://t.me/legitimniy/15143
Isis used to do that in Syria (bolded text). They would wait for SAA to enter the building then demolish it.

Posted by: Down South | Apr 13 2023 14:05 utc | 247

@hankster | Apr 13 2023 7:00 utc | 192

i will put my money on the exact opposite being the truth that bellingcat ever says

Yes. If Bellingcat is involved, you know the “intelligence services” are behind.

Posted by: Norwegian | Apr 13 2023 14:05 utc | 248

Outraged | Apr 13 2023 13:55 utc | 244
Bellingcat studiously ignoring the biggest cat while hammering the kittens. Just like the White Helmets. Western funded liars with zero credibility.
I can’t believe that people for for this twaddle.

Posted by: ZimZum | Apr 13 2023 14:07 utc | 249

from Stars & Stripes
The man behind a massive leak of U.S. government secrets that has exposed spying on allies, revealed the grim prospects for Ukraine’s war with Russia and ignited diplomatic fires for the White House is a young, charismatic gun enthusiast who shared highly classified documents with a group of far-flung acquaintances searching for companionship amid the isolation of the pandemic.
United by their mutual love of guns, military gear and God, the group of roughly two dozen — mostly men and boys — formed an invitation-only clubhouse in 2020 on Discord, an online platform popular with gamers. But they paid little attention last year when the man some call “OG” posted a message laden with strange acronyms and jargon. The words were unfamiliar, and few people read the long note, one of the members explained. But he revered OG, the elder leader of their tiny tribe, who claimed to know secrets that the government withheld from ordinary people.
The young member read OG’s message closely, and the hundreds more that he said followed on a regular basis for months. They were, he recalled, what appeared to be near-verbatim transcripts of classified intelligence documents that OG indicated he had brought home from his job on a “military base,” which the member declined to identify. OG claimed he spent at least some of his day inside a secure facility that prohibited cellphones and other electronic devices, which could be used to document the secret information housed on government computer networks or spooling out from printers. He annotated some of the hand-typed documents, the member said, translating arcane intel-speak for the uninitiated, such as explaining that “NOFORN” meant the information in the document was so sensitive it must not be shared with foreign nationals. . .here

Posted by: Don Bacon | Apr 13 2023 14:11 utc | 250

@Hermit | Apr 13 2023 14:04 utc | 246
Apologies. Was intended for the “Not Ukraine” thread.

Posted by: Hermit | Apr 13 2023 14:11 utc | 251

Ukrainian TG-channel ” Resident ” writes:
“In 2024, Western loans to Ukraine will be significantly reduced. The Biden administration warned Zelensky about this. Thus, the US budget for 2024 includes only $6 billion to support Ukraine in 2024 (for comparison, in 2022, assistance from the States exceeded $44 billion ).
And, given that the Ukrainian economy is actually completely based on financial assistance from international partners, this does not bode well for our country.
It is noteworthy that the West has already reacted indirectly to the likelihood of a decrease in cash flows to Kyiv by downgrading Ukraine’s ratings. For example, the World Bank changed the forecast for Ukraine’s GDP. Initially, the organization predicted the growth of Ukrainian GDP by 3.3% this year, but now by 0.5%. Ukraine’s economy is projected to grow by 0.5% this year after a staggering 29.2% drop in 2022. At the same time, according to the World Bank, Ukraine’s economic activity is supported only by the opening of Black Sea ports and grain trade, as well as foreign loans. At the same time, the international agency S&P downgraded Ukraine’s credit rating from “CCC+” to “CCC” with a negative outlook. “We expect that it will be difficult for Ukraine to conduct exchange operations for its external commercial obligations, unless there is an unforeseen positive change in the situation,” experts emphasize, referring to “uncertainties regarding the development of the course of hostilities.”
By the way, Bloomberg has already noted that the new S&P assessment moves the Ukrainian economy to the same level as the Ethiopian one.
https://t.me/NovichokRossiya/28092
One can now understand the haste Zelensky government is in. They will do a last ditch large mobilization, because regardless of what happens, this time next year the country will be in the same state it and Russia was in the early 1990s.

Posted by: unimperator | Apr 13 2023 14:11 utc | 252

“A Texas county that was ordered to return banned books to its shelves is set to consider shutting down its library system. CNN.”
Posted by: Hermit | Apr 13 2023 14:04 utc | 246
This is the same approach that school segregationists used in the southern US; forced into integrating the high schools, they simply shut them down for a year or so.
“On Sept. 12, 1958, Gov. Orval Faubus closed all Little Rock, Arkansas public high schools for one year rather than allow integration to continue, leaving 3,665 Black and white students without access to public education.”
Stupid is as stupid does.

Posted by: N Hanrahan | Apr 13 2023 14:19 utc | 253

@ Doug Hillman | Apr 13 2023 13:41 utc | 242
An eloquent turn of phrase. 😉
Psyops troll works too. Cheers.
@ ZimZum | Apr 13 2023 14:07 utc | 249
Yup. For the rest, far too busy trying to put food on the table and scrounging to pay the bills come due. 🙁
@ Jerr | Apr 13 2023 13:53 utc | 243
lol. At least yer civil.

Posted by: Outraged | Apr 13 2023 14:20 utc | 254

Posted by: Don Firineach | Apr 12 2023 23:12 utc | 118
Thanks for the post re Peter Lacy, which brought to mind the following quotes:
When the Catholic Emancipation Bill was put before the House of Lords, Wellington graciously conceded that “It was mainly due to the Irish Catholic that we (the British) owe our pre-eminence in our military career.”
And regarding Waterloo, Napolean remarked about the Innislkillings: “That regiment with the castles on their caps is composed of the most obstinate mules I ever saw. They don’t know when they are beaten.”
Perhaps someday soon, our brother Irishmen will get their balls back. It took only one generation for American corporations to do what the English couldn’t do in 600 years.

Posted by: Ciaran | Apr 13 2023 14:22 utc | 255

@RSH
It’s too bad you can’t show some of the grace Melaleuca showed in his response to you. What’s it cost you? I know, nobody asked me…

Posted by: Gene Poole | Apr 13 2023 14:33 utc | 256

Belling the Cat
In matters of media the fault of the Dutch
Is questioning too little and Bellingcat too much
They spend all their time pushing five eyes content
So owned by the US they cannot dissent.
Cannot dissent
Cannot dissent
Bellingcat’s busy with the lies they invent.
Apologies to George Canning

Posted by: Hermit | Apr 13 2023 14:38 utc | 257

Would you happen to know a source for the alledged advertisements by the US Navy around the same time when it was looking for real estate on Crimea for a future training centre and administrative buildings, I believe.
(I once read something short but lost it. Others have had similar info. But without evidence people won´t believe me.)
Posted by: AG | Apr 12 2023 22:47 utc | 108
See:
https://en.topwar.ru/44990-zachem-vms-ssha-sobiralis-remontirovat-shkolu-v-sevastopole.html

Posted by: Gene Poole | Apr 13 2023 14:50 utc | 258

Richard Steven Hack | Apr 12 2023 17:13 utc | 10

This is a German site. Granted, Germany is occupied territory, but I doubt Germany has laws making the posting of US classified documents a German Federal crime.

Someone has, almost certainly, already pointed out the case of the Australian citizen who showed what some wanted to be not shown even though : not in the country incited : not against the laws of his country etc, etc …
Can’t quite recall his name, tippy tonguey.
Don, donk, donkey – Don Quixote !

Posted by: Sarlat La Canède | Apr 13 2023 15:05 utc | 259

Mainly to West of England and Don Firineach and others well before comment 100
I also viewed those maps you refer to. Most of the rare earths are West of the Dneiper River, so out of the hands of the Russians thus far. I also believe most of the uranium and titanium is too .
In any case, Russia still has captured heaps; iron, coal, fertile soil, existing grains from that fertile soil and if they take Nikolaev and Odessa , stop all trade from Ukrainian seaports. That is the final nail in the Elenskian Ukro economy; any trade with Europe or anywhere ,without Russian permission , will necessarily be by road and train which will make ukro products relatively expensive. Too bad, too sad.

Posted by: Boy | Apr 13 2023 15:18 utc | 260

LightYearsFromHome | Apr 12 2023 17:32 utc | 15

Richard Steven Hack @ 10
This is a German site…. Which is not to say other laws might not be applied, but one would expect they would have been before now.
The message of the the Assange case, or lack of a case, and his brutal treatment, is that laws don’t matter anymore, constitutions and courts in the west are yesterday’s news.

I knew, knew, I should have STFU, but, (big one or yours?) but I could not stop myself ! Tis the demon drink (Grenache-Syrah (Le Bosquet) un petit rosé bio du pays D’Oc, (a lovely area of France crying out for a superhero yclept D’Oc L’Étrange !
I go now.
P.S.
D’Oc L’Étrange biscotte L’Étrange D’Oc is a kettle of different fish !
I really go now.
Honestly !

Posted by: Sarlat La Canède | Apr 13 2023 15:30 utc | 261

Posted by: OhCanada | Apr 13 2023 15:33 utc | 262

@ Elmer Fudd, §152:
So it was Brandon who leaked the docs in error?
To the ice-cream salesman?

Posted by: John Marks | Apr 13 2023 15:39 utc | 263

@ Squeeth, §210:
Orders from Washington . . .
And to tempt gullible Poles into being the next sacrifice.

Posted by: John Marks | Apr 13 2023 16:03 utc | 264

@ Boy, §261:
The Russians won´t be stopping at the Dnieper.
More likely at the Dniester.

Posted by: John Marks | Apr 13 2023 16:19 utc | 265

Posted by: Sarlat La Canède | Apr 13 2023 15:30 utc | 262
I see your point very clearly. Those who think like RHS have zero comprehension of NetzDG and the rigidity of German Internet Censorship or the fact that you can be jailed, lose your job, or have your bank account seized……..should your viewpoint not be in ‘Gleichschaltung’ with the regime………..
On the other hand it is not clear that these are a) “confidential/secret/genuine documents” whose release is unapproved……..since US DoJ has NOT prosecuted WaPo or NYT under Espionage Act and ……..surprisingly it is Gray Lady and Bezos Gazette of all papers which covered the story………..
On the basis that the documents are irrelevant if true and disposable if false, it seems Scholz has instructions to treat it a bit like Nordstream and ignore it………poor old Marco Buschmann

Posted by: Paul Greenwood | Apr 13 2023 16:37 utc | 266

@ Posted by: Don Bacon | Apr 13 2023 14:11 utc | 250
It is a very good piece of fiction. Great that the Stars and Stripes mag (no longer a US Gov’t publication) can pay someone for this amount of detail. So many holes in the story, I don’t know where to begin.

Posted by: BroncoBilly | Apr 13 2023 16:39 utc | 267

@ oracle | Apr 13 2023 2:59 utc | 162
The usual pattern (unless a “desk” has been compromised) is realism from the pros at the bottom and happy-talk from the political appointees placed over them.

Posted by: John Kennard | Apr 13 2023 17:09 utc | 268

@ Milites | Apr 13 2023 8:25 utc | 204
@ laguerre | Apr 13 2023 8:34 utc | 206
Setup for a Suicide.

Posted by: John Kennard | Apr 13 2023 17:25 utc | 269

Don Bacon @ 251
That soldier is very young and very far down in the ranks to be handling classified docs. Maybe the next Lynndie England, pin it all on a some low level idiot who might have been in the same building or the room at some point and call it case closed. Blind eye or early retirement for the higher up (or ups) that was really involved.
This document thing is way-the-hell boring, was from the start, even more now. Tempest in a teapot. Snooze.

Posted by: LightYearsFromHome | Apr 13 2023 18:45 utc | 270

@Jerr | Apr 13 2023 0:00 utc | 131
Those documents are one reason why my partner banned PowerPoint like software and adjectives on his commands, and in his companies. “They reduce the IQ of both presenter and recipient” by reducing a complex world filled with nuanced evidence to multiply hedged, massively opinionated, bullet points, invariably irrelevant, inaccurate or both.
“It seems US intelligence is suffering from an overdose of PowerPointitus.”

Posted by: Hermit | Apr 13 2023 19:59 utc | 271

The Austrian government has today closed down Servus TV, the biggest independent Austrian news broadcaster because today´s report “painted Putin in a favourable light”. Was this because of the Pentagon´s “leak”? Or the extraordinarily thin-skinned president, Alexander van der Bellen?

Posted by: John Marks | Apr 13 2023 20:01 utc | 272

Posted by: Ciaran | Apr 13 2023 14:22 utc | 256
& (previously) Don Firineach | Apr 12 2023 23:12 utc | 118
Great comment, Ciaran
Go raibh maith agat

Posted by: Anto | Apr 13 2023 20:09 utc | 273

@Jason | Apr 13 2023 2:42 utc | 159
Iran is not Iraq, devastated by years of murderous sanctions. They are a modern industrial country with a population north of 90 million and far more missiles and launch assets than they need to demolish an attacker several times over.
They are now friends with Russia, Venezuela and the Middle East, which makes up over 60% of global oil reserves.
All of their newfound friends have deprived the US/Israel of proxies, which is why any attack on Iran will need to use US/Israeli assets most of which, courtesy of Iran’s new Russian air-defenses, will be lost. After that every US base in the Middle East and Israel will experience trauma inducing overkill. Neither the Patriot System nor Iron Dome can prevent that. So the question is what bombing a resurgent Iran, where all its valuable assets are well distributed and deeply buried to preserve them in the event of a strike, can possibly achieve that will be worth the enormous cost that will be paid by the US and Israel? Iran recognizes that the US has Israel’s hand up its backside which is why both will pay a price for an attack by either.
A successful attacks by Iran might well result in Arab countries also turning their focus and weapons on Israel, and the price of oil will go through the roof at a time when US reserves are running on empty, having been drained to keep the price of gas in the US reasonable as the rest of the world suffered.
Which is why I don’t think this is going to happen.

Posted by: Hermit | Apr 13 2023 20:32 utc | 274

@ Outraged | Apr 13 2023 8:04 utc | 200
I’ve been wondering, where exactly this idea came from, that the new crop of (SMO) sanctions would cause the collapse of the RF.
Somebody needs to stand and take a bow.

Posted by: John Kennard | Apr 13 2023 20:36 utc | 275

@Ciaran #256
Welcome!

Posted by: Don Firineach | Apr 13 2023 22:16 utc | 276

Steady there Polish Hussars, or you’ll get Chinese tanks in Kracow!

Posted by: Wokechoke | Apr 14 2023 0:10 utc | 277

This site is in danger of being sued by Sy Hersh!
Posted by: DunGroanin | Apr 13 2023 11:12 utc | 220

Quit the stupid concern trolling. Mr. Hersh is quite capable of standing up for himself.
In reality, even prominent bloggers generally like being quoted (even extensively) on other sites, because it gives them more exposure. This goes double where the quote is on a reputed site like MOA.
Legally, a site is NOT responsible for material in comments by third parties. Under U.S. law, a copyright owner’s remedy would be to send a “take-down notice” requesting certain content be removed, but there is no right to damages unless the site refuses and is found to have infringed copyright.
You obviously know NOTHING about copyright.

Posted by: Pacific Observer | Apr 14 2023 0:24 utc | 278

Some videos for today.
Russian mortars pummel Kiev regime positions (another good RT frontline report):
https://odysee.com/@RT:fd/mortars-ukraine-offensive:5
Kharkov woman: Ukrainian morgues are so full of dead Kiev regime troops that the coroner will pay you to take corpses home for storage:
https://odysee.com/@Overthrown:6/video_2023-04-13_20-36-36:8
Russian ‘Nona’ self-propelled gun pounds enemy positions:
https://rutube.ru/video/6ac423133a5d011d49cec2ce1869354b/
Russian ‘Osa’ air defense system in action:
https://rutube.ru/video/c374a20e034b6541d037edeb59080638/
Russian precision-guided bomb destroys Kiev regime ammunition depot:
https://rutube.ru/video/a561f8333355d48bf61b47906ec312dd/
Baby-faced American mercenary came to “kill some Russian pigs” — now he’s 6 feet under:
https://odysee.com/@Overthrown:6/americanmercliquidated:2

Posted by: Nate | Apr 14 2023 1:30 utc | 279

@ Don Firineach, #99
The problem with using 9-year old web articles is that things change over time. I know Monsanto is a favorite whipping boy of big nasty chem-ag-pharma agricultural corporations for a lot of MoA folks, probably because Monsanto peeps helped launch the GMO crop revolution, but let’s update things to who bought out and deleted Monsanto’s name, and that is the German-based chem company Bayer. They probably buried the Monsanto name because it had gotten such a negative label but “Bayer” makes it famous aspirin and so are benign and less malevolent to the general public. Please excuse me as I barf.
Melissa Agustin that you mentioned has just changed corporate name hats and you can see what she’s doing viewing her Linkedin page:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-agustin?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F
As for the top 10 global agricultural companies by revenue, those out of Germany (chemical first and foremost) are well represented with 3 out of the 10 listed.
https://www.globaldata.com/companies/top-companies-by-sector/agriculture-forestry/global-agricultural-products-companies-by-revenue/
Cargill is a far different story, being a non corporation (a private company that doesn’t sell stock) last time I knew. I was told that Cargill was basically started by two families out of Minnesota back in the day. Probably easier to hide money input from various financial cartels going to a private company than a public corporation. Maybe, maybe not, but Cargill is certainly a 800-pound gorilla in the room of global ag commodity trade.
Full disclosure: As a growing season “farmers market” hobby gardener who is trying to get larger, I try to be as organic as much as I can but I’m not rapid about it. I try not to support the “big boys” when it comes to such endeavors but one never knows how deep the “big boys” have their various tentacles. Until one is fully self sufficient with their own seed and inputs, there’s always the chance of being partially captured by the cartels…

Posted by: DakotaRog | Apr 14 2023 6:25 utc | 280

Oof! TRLM-4D radar destroyed by Lancet.
https://twitter.com/RadarFennec/status/1646778713286012928

Posted by: too scents | Apr 14 2023 7:57 utc | 281

Hermit @ 272

Those documents are one reason why my partner banned PowerPoint like software and adjectives on his commands, and in his companies. “They reduce the IQ of both presenter and recipient”

The Gettysburg Powerpoint Presentation
https://norvig.com/Gettysburg/index.htm

Posted by: LightYearsFromHome | Apr 14 2023 8:50 utc | 282

Sputnik reports that RF sank a Leopard 2 tank in a Kherson swamp – Is this the first?
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230414/russian-forces-sink-leopard-2-tank-in-kherson-area-swamp-1109499897.html
Russian Forces Sink Leopard 2 Tank in Kherson Area Swamp
Germany along with several other NATO members had previously provided Kiev with Leopard-2 tanks as part of its military aid to Kiev amid the ongoing Russian special military operation in Ukraine. Moscow has repeatedly warned that such assistance would only prolong the conflict.
The Leopard 2 tanks, which Western countries had earlier delivered to Ukraine, have been tracked by Russian forces on the battlefield in the Kherson area, an officer from a volunteer battalion has told Sputnik.
The officer, who only revealed his call sign, the Bull, referred to the Leopard 2s shelling Russian troops’ checkpoints in the area, also singling out “a story from colleagues”, who he said had captured one of those tanks.
According to him, a Russian subversive group had to sink the Leopard 2 in a swamp after they failed to drag it to the rear following the seizure.
He spoke a few weeks after German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that his country was not going to send additional Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. Germany, like other countries, has a “limited supply” of weapons, Pistorius said, noting that he “cannot give everything away.”
After that, Ukraine received 18 Leopard 2s from Germany and some 40 German-made Marder armored infantry fighting vehicles.
In January, Berlin said it planned to send its Leopard 2A6 main battle tanks to Ukraine, also agreeing to provide re-export licenses for other countries willing to supply these German-made armored vehicles.
Since then, Warsaw, Ottawa, Lisbon, and Oslo have also said they could deliver various modernizations of Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, with up to 14 tanks coming from Poland, four such vehicles from Canada, three Leopard 2s from Portugal, and eight from Norway.
The delivery of the tanks came as Western countries ramped up their military aid to Kiev shortly after Russia began its special military operation in Ukraine. The Russian Foreign Ministry said that NATO countries “play with fire” by supplying weapons to Kiev, and that any convoy of arms for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russian forces. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, for his part, underscored that NATO allies’ arming and training Ukrainian forces amounts to direct involvement in the standoff.

Posted by: Oblomovka daydream | Apr 14 2023 11:11 utc | 283

“PowerPoint is to thought what TV is to education.”

Posted by: Bemildred | Apr 14 2023 11:25 utc | 284

@ Oblomovka daydream | Apr 14 2023 11:11 utc | 283
Hm, needs visual confirmation, otherwise just speculative ‘chatter’. Russkies do it too. Would be a nice start though, looking forward to it.
@ LightYearsFromHome | Apr 14 2023 8:50 utc | 282
@ Bemildred | Apr 14 2023 11:25 utc | 284
Funny, sad & tragic, all at the same time. Fought tooth & nail re the powerpoint obsession back in the day.

Posted by: Outraged | Apr 14 2023 11:36 utc | 285

@ Bemildred | Apr 14 2023 11:25 utc | 284
Funny, sad & tragic, all at the same time. Fought tooth & nail re the powerpoint obsession back in the day.
Posted by: Outraged | Apr 14 2023 11:36 utc | 285
Yes, I know, remember it well. It was in the mid-90s the hucksters really took over. All that bullshit about commercial off the shelf products …
Now we aren’t too sure if the steel in our magical submarines is up to snuff.
Appreciate your work, don’t let it run your life.
Regards.

Posted by: Bemildred | Apr 14 2023 11:43 utc | 286

@LightYearsFromHome | Apr 14 2023 8:50 utc | 282
Along those lines, I have experienced many far worse. What was sadly missing from the Gettysburg was a mix of CloisterBack BT (it’s historic) and Comic Sans MS (these are notes).

Posted by: Hermit | Apr 14 2023 11:44 utc | 287

@Bemildred | Apr 14 2023 11:25 utc | 284
Only now the videos are played on a laptop to an audience of none, while the pupils game or Discord. When they have played all the videos, they fill in a monkey puzzle googling for the answers.
Meanwhile at MIT the profs use ChatGPT to write papers and the students us ChatGPT to answer them.
Such is progress. Après moi, le déluge.

Posted by: Hermit | Apr 14 2023 12:05 utc | 288

@John Marks | Apr 13 2023 15:39 utc | 264
They rely on his Depends to catch most of the leaks.

Posted by: Hermit | Apr 14 2023 12:15 utc | 289

Posted by: Hermit | Apr 14 2023 12:05 utc | 288
Sounds like we have progressed a lot./sarc
I would ban all of that as a pernicious nuisance. Screw their “freedom of speech”. A festival of disfunction, that is our software business. Frat boys on the prowl.
Computers were going to free us from work and make us all geniuses, but they decided on something else for us.
I still cannot believe these clowns were so stupid as to sell off our industry, but these are the 3rd generation types now, they don’t think at all.
And I can’t believe we let all that crap into the schools.

Posted by: Bemildred | Apr 14 2023 12:16 utc | 290

@necromancer | Apr 13 2023 8:04 utc | 201
Completing large complex systems is not the forte of US gubbermint contractors. It is far more profitable to work on them forever. For example, the US has been trying to build a replacement air traffic control system since 2007, the Next Generation Air Transportation System. They hope it might be ready for use in 2030 but it is not looking good. 3030 might be more likely.
So, like the recent US hypersonic failures, I don’t think anyone need worry about the hypothetical “neural networked drone swarm of swarms” until after 2050 – in the unlikely event of there still being humans, let alone a USA, by then.

Posted by: Hermit | Apr 14 2023 12:35 utc | 291

this has nothing to do with the leaks that everybody is talking about but is related to Ukraine nonetheless:
When Zelensky visited Poland some time ago, he apologized for the Ukrainians who massacred Poles during WWII. That had been a taboo subject but obviously Zelensky wanted to a clean slate. Other than that, what he talked about while in Poland is pretty much shrouded in mystery. The resurrected Commonwealth of Poland and Lithuania seems to be something that is more talked about in the “west” than in Poland itself.
One explanation for what seems to be erratic behaviour on Poland’s part is its perceived need for protection against a dreaded Russian attack. The reason Poles warmed to the Ukrainian suffering in the end was that it reminded them of what Poland had to go through in the hands of the Germans and later the Soviets – on a purely human level. Which then turned political.
The above tries to be a disinterested reading of the current mood in Poland. Not taking sides. As they say: understanding does not entail approving.

Posted by: Jonathan W | Apr 14 2023 12:46 utc | 292

On Ukraine’s radar procurement Bloomberg reports

The German defense contractor [Hensoldt AG], which generated €1.7 billion ($1.9 billion) in revenue last year, expects a three-digit-million euro volume of orders for the TRML-4D, Chief Executive Officer Thomas Mueller said. In addition, the company anticipates it will get orders this year for other systems also valued in that range.
The company has delivered four truck-mounted radars to Ukraine, which uses them as part of the IRIS-T air defense missile system produced by Bavarian-based Diehl Defence.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-04-14/radar-maker-sees-order-jump-on-clearing-skies-of-russian-planes
Lancet-3 is helping to drive sales.

Posted by: too scents | Apr 14 2023 12:51 utc | 293

Hermit @ 287

Along those lines, I have experienced many far worse. What was sadly missing from the Gettysburg was a mix of CloisterBack BT (it’s historic) and Comic Sans MS (these are notes).

LOL, the fonts are the most important, first and last thing people notice. You’re hired.

Posted by: LightYearsFromHome | Apr 14 2023 13:02 utc | 294

⚡️ Russian Defence Ministry report on the progress of the special military operation
(14 April 2023)
The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue the special military operation.

◽️ In Kupyansk direction, aviation and artillery of the Zapad Group of Forces have engaged the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) close Stelmakhovka (Lugansk People’s Republic), Ivanovka and Dvurechnoye (Kharkov region).
◽️ Moreover, actions of five sabotage and reconnaissance groups of the AFU were disrupted close to Olshana, Krakhamalnoye, and Timkovka (Kharkov region).
💥 The enemy’s losses in this direction during the day amounted to up to 60 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, three motor vehicles, and two D-20 howitzers.

◽️ In Krasny Liman direction, Operational-Tactical Army aviation, artillery and heavy flamethrower systems of the Tsentr Group of Forces have inflicted a fire damage on enemy units close to Serebryanka (Donetsk People’s Republic), Chernopopovka, and Chervonaya Dibrova (Lugansk People’s Republic).
💥 Total enemy losses in this direction amounted to up to 80 Ukrainian servicemen, two armoured fighting vehicles, and one D-30 howitzer.
◽️ In Donetsk direction, the Wagner assault groups continue intensive fighting to occupy the western quarters of Artyomovsk.
💥 Airborne Troops support the assault units on the flanks by preventing the enemy from transferring ammunition and reinforcement to the city.
✈️Over the past 24 hours, Russian aircraft made 14 sorties close to Artyomovsk and the Missile Troops and Artillery carried out 62 firing missions to support the Group’s actions.
💥The enemy’s losses amounted to up to 240 Ukrainian troops, two tanks, five armoured fighting vehicles, four motor vehicles, one Grad MLRS vehicle, as well as D-20 and D-30 howitzers over the past day in this direction.

◽️ In South Donetsk and Zaporozhye directions, Operational-Tactical and Army aviation and artillery of the Vostok Group of Forces inflicted a fire damage on the AFU units close to Ugledar (Donetsk People’s Republic), Marfopol, Zaliznichnoye, Novoandreevka, and Kamenskoye (Zaporozhye region).
💥 Over the past 24 hours, up to 40 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, and one Msta-B howitzer have been neutralised in these directions.
💥 Moreover, an ammunition depot of the Ukrainian troops was obliterated close to Chervonaya Dibrova.

◽️ In Kherson direction, up to 35 Ukrainian troops, six motor vehicles, one Grad MLRS vehicle, and one Akatsiya self-propelled howitzers during the day.
💥 Operational-Tactical Aviation, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have engaged 93 AFU artillery units at their firing positions, enemy’s manpower and hardware in 136 areas during the day.
◽️ The air defence forces downed six HIMARS MLRS projectiles during the day.
💥 In addition, six Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles were destroyed in the areas of Tambovka (Zaporozhye region) Velikaya Lepetikha and Maslovka (Kherson region).
📊 In total, 407 airplanes and 228 helicopters, 3,753 unmanned aerial vehicles, 415 anti-aircraft missile systems, 8,672 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,084 combat vehicles equipped with multiple launch rocket systems, 4,584 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 9,504 units of special military hardware have been destroyed during the special military operation.
#MoD
🔹 @mod_russia_en

Posted by: unimperator | Apr 14 2023 13:19 utc | 295

@Jonathan W. 292
probably you have then a better insight. I certainly don´t.
I know that experts dismiss the idea of some form of Polish-led union in the east.
e.g. Alastair Crooke did so very recently on Judge Freedom.
And if you say “the Polish people” don´t want any such madness, that too I have heard.
But seeing what I have seen in the past 14 months in Germany – if the elites in politics and academia all break down at the same time entirely such madness can pick up unexpected traction. The unthinkable suddenly becomes thinkable.
I wonder if Polish “substance” would or would not go along with such an idea, if it were in opposition to an emancipating EU (I doubt EU would ever emancipate, though) as a 3rd power, then with the support of the US, which would be willing to eventually break up EU for the sake of strengthening US empire´s eastern borders. And since EU power would wane in the long-run anyway.
p.s. Crooke suggested PiS might not win the election – problem solved?

Posted by: AG | Apr 14 2023 13:45 utc | 296

another mainstream news item for today:
Q&A: Joachim Schuster, MEP: A View from the European Parliament
by James Carden
https://usrussiaaccord.org/acura-qa-joachim-schuster-mep-a-view-from-the-european-parliament/#more-6695
This mainly to show how clueless they are.
Because clearly Schuster says things/goals that are absolutely contrary to each other.
Stating that the US is indispensable for EU security and then making clear that very security is impossible without Russia?
Even if it is only rhetoric. And even if it is superficial EU-talk.
You can´t have it both ways.

Posted by: AG | Apr 14 2023 14:51 utc | 297

Posted by: AG | Apr 14 2023 13:45 utc | 297
Agreed. Just let us not forget that Poland is qute critical of the EU project. If I understood correctly,Poles prefer to stay outside the euro. And if you scratch beneath the surface, Poland still has the same problems with the EU as Hungary does.
One is tempted to conclude that this war thing is an aberration. That said, Poles also seem to understand Biden is a puppet whose recent speech in Poland wasn’t even a speech but word salad.
However, if it prevents the country from being run over again, Poland will play along with the resurrected Commonwealth rhetoric and be best buddies with the Brits. On the other hand, they would probably also agree with Mercouris that, in that event, there will be no guaranteeing that Germany would stand idly by.

Posted by: Jonathan W | Apr 14 2023 15:56 utc | 298

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