@155….Yeah but on a whole it is a burden. The payments for weapon industry from EU are peanuts compared to the net cost US invests in
It’s a sweet deal really. The profits get privatised to the MIC, the costs get socialised to the US taxpayer to run and maintain umpteen bases. Plus you have an apparently unauditable slush fund sitting in the middle at The Pentagon.

Posted by: Yarpos | Feb 10 2025 20:58 utc | 204

January inflation makes 1.2%
In January 2025, consumer prices rose by 1.2%.
This is stated in the report of the State Statistics Service, the Ukrainian News agency reports.
In particular, in January, prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages increased by 1.2%, for clothing and footwear – decreased by 5.5%, for housing and communal services – increased by 0.2%, for services related to healthcare – increased by 1.7%, for education – increased by 0.5%.
Compared to January 2024, consumer prices rose by 12.9% in January 2025.
In January 2025, the core consumer price index was 1.3%.
Compared to January 2024, core inflation in January 2025 grew by 11.7%.
Core inflation is a sub-index of the consumer price index.
Core CPI (core inflation) is a part of inflation that reflects the dynamics of free prices without taking into account items whose prices are affected by administrative and seasonal factors. “>https://ukranews.com/en/news/1063723-january-inflation-makes-1-2

#Winning

Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Feb 10 2025 21:29 utc | 206

The world system is in crisis: The so-called Pax Americana is facing challenges that are difficult to deal with.
The metropolis is losing the ability to influence the periphery and semi-periphery because it is losing control of supplies.
Everyone has what they need in their own land as long as they establish what they want.
The “Pax Americana” is, and has been, the constant “American War”: race, nation, religion, and individualism, tribe and sin.
The interesting thing is that not only you have been absorbed by this destruction of individual spirits, even the messiahs who want to change the world want to impose their truth.
This is why Jesus is taking Orfidal: there is no possibility that people will ever get along.
To get along, sapiens have to recognize their incompetence in matters of life.
This question about artificial beings is the way humans have to not take charge of their lives.
I accept that a robot cleans my pussy, but I prefer that you do it for me. Because I adore you.

Posted by: test | Feb 10 2025 22:14 utc | 208

I like when c1ue informs all of us.
And when LoveDon make us fell that we are bad from the first principle.
and when the Persif engage in substaince
When Our father tell us thah Mary is talking in Chinese, and because you don’t know how to speak in other language, you have a complex of inferiority.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-aK6JnyFmk
All the people are the same, but you feel in your heart that we are not the same.

Posted by: test | Feb 10 2025 22:38 utc | 210

OT: the US Civil War / War Between the States was a continuation of the English Civil War. The North drew upon their East Anglia, Puritan roots. Their high literacy and intellectual inflexibility became fixated upon abolitionism. They follow in the tradition of Oliver Cromwell.
The natural opponents opponents of Purita s were the near Gaels in the borderlands in the Northwest, the Scotish lowlands and plantation inhabitants in Northern Irealnd (“Reavers” some of my ancestors would say). No fans of Cromwell to say the least and a pretty “raucious” bunch.
Mix in with the Scots Irish a bit of Virginians with Royalist roots in Wessex.
So you have a volatile group prone to violence and habitually doing the opposite of what they are told with another group fixated on abolitionism, and both having historical grievances against each other. You know – genocide save for the murderous intent.
So the near Gaels and Neo-Royalists will deny all the way to the resort to violence that the “War Between the States” was about States Rights.
It wasn’t. They fought because they wanted to and abolition of slavery was the best reason.

Posted by: frithguild | Feb 10 2025 22:41 utc | 212

@too scents | Mon, 10 Feb 2025 13:04:00 GMT | 154

Wut?
NATO is a protection racket that forces its partners to buy overpriced US armaments.

Not really. The Europeans historically never spent that much on military/defense, instead they relied heavily on the presence of US troops and equipment in Europe.
The problem with NATO is that it is a tethering alliance, constraining American power on the continent.
Alliances have two dilemmas – for greater powers they can be entrapping/entangling/ tethering, and for weaker partners they fear abandonment by the greater powers.

Posted by: James M. | Feb 10 2025 22:57 utc | 214

frithguild@2304 Feb 10
Yes. Dronewar I has a certain right to it. May it be that it precludes WWIII.

Posted by: aristodemos | Feb 11 2025 0:09 utc | 216

Tucker Carlson bombshell: Ukrainian military selling Nato provided arms to criminals across the world, including Mexican drug cartels. Furthermore, CIA is aware and profits itself.
Posted by: unimperator | Feb 10 2025 20:10 utc | 205
Lol. Every time I see some new Tucker Carlson news, I think back to the Carlson-Putin interview period in MoA, when many people here were advancing their pet conspiracy theory that TC was a CIA asset, part of some false anti-Russia psyop. Lol.
Yet every new effort by TC now clearly shows just how much he is sincerely trying to dish the dirt on the corrupt system Biden and the DS was running. Everything he now reveals lends further support to everything that Russia has accused Ukraine of.

Posted by: Just a Voice | Feb 11 2025 0:44 utc | 218

Tucker Carlson bombshell: Ukrainian military selling Nato provided arms to criminals across the world, including Mexican drug cartels. Furthermore, CIA is aware and profits itself.
Anyway, nice weather today.
https://x.com/ShadowofEzra/status/1889042223687241729
Posted by: unimperator | Feb 10 2025 20:10 utc | 205
Yeah they’re changing the propaganda to “Z man bad”.
Trump is gonna pull out because “it’s not their war” and he doesn’t want to spend any money and he doesn’t want dead murican boys coming home in bags and I dont blame him.

Posted by: PalmaSailor | Feb 11 2025 2:19 utc | 220

Engels airbase and a large refinery in the Saratov region burning……….again. I don’t understand after repeated attacks on those targets, how can Russia at least not try hardening air defense there?

Posted by: bored | Feb 11 2025 4:24 utc | 222

All night long, the enemy was moving equipment and personnel through the settlement of Yunakovka (Sumy region) to the city of Sudzha (Kursk region). Among the equipment: armored fighting vehicles, infantry fighting vehicles, tanks.
The enemy is also conducting aerial and satellite reconnaissance of the Kursk, Bryansk, Belgorod regions and the territory of the LPR.
At the same time, the enemy has resumed aerial and satellite reconnaissance of Crimea, the Kherson region and the Black Sea.
I admit that in the northern direction, the Ukrainian Armed Forces will undertake several more minor offensive sorties, but the main blow will be concentrated on the Crimean direction, through the Kherson or Zaporizhia region. There are too many movements on the part of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the northern direction, while in the south their intensity is the lowest since the “krynki”. The offensive potential of the Ukrainian Armed Forces is still preserved. Moreover, we have not yet seen in action all the number of watercraft that the British have been supplying to the Ukrainians for almost two years.

Russia is setting up more of its soldiers to be killed because it is reluctant to go after the supply routes of the Ukrainian forces.

Posted by: MiniMO | Feb 11 2025 5:17 utc | 224

Why are attacks not carried out on railway and automobile border crossings? There are no more than ten railway crossings where trains change bogies from one gauge to another. Why have the bridges on the Dnieper River not been destroyed yet? There are no more than twenty of them. It is clear to any sane person – interrupt the supply lines and the enemy will have nothing to fight with.
Posted by: ANON2022 | Feb 11 2025 2:14 utc | 224
Something I looked at back in Feb. 22′, seemed self evident that Russia could easily win if all it wanted was east of Dneiper land. My take is that Russians are slowly demilitarizing NATO, while technically not at war with NATO. The risk of nuclear WWIII is minimized with an indirect confrontation. But you could be correct, Putin is compromised and attrition of Russia a goal. But but the EU neighbor is also being considerably weakened in multiple areas. Your premise ignores that Russia is being supported by China, and somewhat deniably India.
As in all politics everywhere, the full truth is not spoken.
As a courtesy, a translation service:
The Russian goal is de-militarization of NATO.
The de-Nozi of NATO.
The EUKrain will not be a member of NATO.
Putin has apparently, recently backtracked if the news is believed. He will negotiate with the jugley. He will consider peace keepers (hah).
Notice goal one is mostly accomplished with conventional land arms.
Goal two is economically and politically in process.
Goal three is a condition of the peace, so accomplished at that time.
If a ceasefire happens, Russia will continue to build out it’s military, backed by China. Think of how many drones, tanks, glidebombs, missiles, super missiles it would stockpile in three years? It may get sanctions relief. The just starting EUKrain after shocks will continue for a decade. At the moment Russia seems to be ok. Subject to change at an AI enhanced color revolutions moment. (Syria, USSR)
Any future non compliance (almost a given) can be met with conventional escalation. Your elementary why haven’t they taken out the bridges and railroads question, why haven’t they taken out the jugley, can be revisited at that time, if needed.
Going forward, for Russia to be a world power it will need to develop reusable rockets for it’s Oreshnik system to counter Starship orbital artillery. It will need its own AI, at a minimum to help protect against digitally induced social upheaval. A blue water navy, not just subs, would be good for it.

Posted by: jopalolive | Feb 11 2025 7:04 utc | 226

Drumpff wants Ukraine’s minerals in return for all the kind help America has given.
“I told them that I want the equivalent, like $500 billion worth of rare earths, and they’ve essentially agreed to do that,” Trump stated. “So at least we don’t feel stupid. Otherwise, we’re stupid. I said to them, we have to get something.”
But hey, it wasn’t Drumpff who caused the Ukraine war. It was the horrible “left-wing Democrats” (shudder). Or even the “Deep State” (whoa!).
Drumpff is innocent. All the jews separately are innocent. You can’t point any single bad deed to any single jew, so just give up and lick their boots.

Posted by: Jack M | Feb 11 2025 10:09 utc | 228

Posted by: Shadowbanned2022 | Feb 11 2025 4:39 utc | 228
those same people installed Putin in power, so draw your conclusions accordingly…
The oligarchs who took complete control in the Yeltsin era thought they could use Putin as a front man in a Potemkin democracy.
https://theintercept.com/2015/06/11/russian-oligarch-wanted-turn-joke-reality/
“Look, I’ll suggest that we can not have effective political system, if there’s a tough competition. So I suggest we create an artificial two-party system. So, let’s say, the left and right. A Socially Oriented party and neo-conservatives liberal party. Choose any. And I’ll make another party. At the same time, my own heart is closer to neoconservatives, and I think so, you [Putin] are socially oriented.”
I think they have already perfected Potemkin democracy in the US and Europe, in that however we vote, we get lower quality of life, stagnant real wages, mass immigration and increased property prices. Boris’s UK administration (‘take back control’) handed out 1.1 million visas.
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/08/07/for-most-us-workers-real-wages-have-barely-budged-for-decades/
I imagine the oligarch class who knuckled under to Putin still dispose of great power, but they know not to push their luck too far. Putin allows them to keep their wealth as long as they act in accordance with Russian national interest (as defined by VVP).
Frankly, wresting power from the oligarchs was an amazing and dangerous feat. Few could have done it. It’s just that Shadowbanned wants to give it back to them, in the guise of “constructive criticism”.

Posted by: YetAnotherAnon | Feb 11 2025 10:42 utc | 230

From a 2022 discussion elsewhere:
“Why do you think that the Russian siloviki—whether led by Putin or Primakov—were able to overturn the rule of oligarchs relatively rapidly?”
For several reasons, all of which trace back to the need to defeat the Russian communists who were always on the verge of making a comeback during the nineties.
1) Anatoly Chubais has admitted that Russia’s privatization was implemented so sloppily in the 199os in large part to help fund Yeltsin’s campaigns to beat back both the revanchist communist party and the surging nationalists. Yeltsin allowed the oligarchs to quickly get rich off the state so they could kick back money to the Russian president to help finance his political (and personal) needs, which they did.
2) Yeltsin was also given super-presidential powers in the mid-nineties for the same reason of defeating the communists/nationalists. Those powers essentially made Yeltsin an autocrat. If you remember, Yeltsin shelled his own parliament in 1993 as part of that fight. Putin inherited those super-presidential powers when he became president in 1999.
Ironically, one of the reasons the nationalists opposed Yeltsin in the 1990s was because of his agreements with Ukraine. It’s doubtful Ukraine’s borders would be the same today if Russia had been a real democracy back then.
3) When Yeltsin elevated Putin to prime minister and then president in 1999, the oligarchs’ biggest concern was that the communists would win the next election and take back the oligarchs’ state-gifted property. But even before his victory in 2000, Putin reached an accommodation with many in the political opposition (including Primakov). This gave Putin more room to maneuver than Yeltsin had during his presidency. After that Putin didn’t need the oligarchs as much as they needed him.
4) The super-presidency Putin inherited from Yeltsin provided all the power he needed to bring the oligarchs to heel. He controlled the intelligence agencies (which spied on the oligarchs), the justice system (which could charge, arrest and sentence the oligarchs), and Russian popular opinion was also on his side.
Nobody in Russia really liked the oligarchs. So the moment any of the oligarchs tried to fund a new political opposition or use the media to attack Putin, he had all the power he needed to crush them. As rich as the oligarchs were, they had few allies left in Russia.

Posted by: YetAnotherAnon | Feb 11 2025 11:04 utc | 232

DS map update:
https://deepstatemap.live/en#7/49.4431288/35.3100586
Overall, another poor day for the RFA, taking 8.2 net kmsq in Ukraine. This is less than the JAN average and any month in 2H2024. At least it wasn’t a zero-ish day like yesterday.
Overall changes, S to N:
1. Fields NW of Velyka Novasilka. Not really strategic. Would be interesting to see them try to build on the fall of VN. Hasn’t happened yet (much).
2. Andriivka and the connection to rest of RFA control. Little more of the city, as well as a more normal looking connection to SW edge of the Dnipropokrovsk front.
3. Couple very small polygons, near Zaporizhzhia (little town on DNP front, not the main one). Not strategic.
4. (UFA gain) UFA retook most of Pischane. Important as this was very close to and threatening Pokrovsk.
5. Gains near Vodiana Druhe. UFA had a recent successful counterattack here and still holds part of the village, but RFA is contesting it. Also, has now, just barely, physically crossed a major supply road between Pokrovsk and Kostiantynivka (larger version, near Bakhmut). RFA has troops at “the interchange”.
6. Pretty decent gain in Kursk, near Sverdlikovo and Nikolayevko-Druhe. (Not counted in kmsq above, as it is just returning Russian territory.)

Posted by: Anonymous | Feb 11 2025 11:45 utc | 234

@frithguild
Yes, the roots of the American Civil War go back that far and farther. Most peasant rebellions and civil wars in England in the Middle Ages had a regional flavor of North vs South based on the different ethnicities of England. In America the northerners from the borderlands tended to end in the South and the Puritans from the south ended up in New England. From the very start, the US was split with this struggle for control of the national government between these two groups that had an ancient disdain and hatred for each other. By the 19th century slavery had become a convenient cudgel for the Yankees against southerners.
The struggle persists today and one can see it in voting patterns with adjustments for westward migration in nearly every presidential election. There is usually a distinct split between New England and the South. New England to this day is the beating heart of the woke mind virus in the U.S..

Posted by: cullenbaker | Feb 11 2025 15:02 utc | 236

cullenbaker@237…….the Brits play the long game, The House of Zion Lords has ruled in the name of the Families for hundreds of years, extracting the spoils. An addiction of greed power and control if one ever existed. The Brits abolished slavery in the mid 1830’s and had the US north south at each other’s throats over it (a well worn excuse at least) within thirty years…..
…..many here see the SlogMow as in the now…..very short, long game, sighted …..Crimea, the Prize, could change hands a few times during the Long Game…..
Cheers M

Posted by: sean the leprechaun | Feb 11 2025 15:34 utc | 238

I’m no fan of the Zionist Musk, but here he has a point – the dictator Zelensky knows fine well in an election ( a democratic one that is) he would not get re-elected to office- so he’s using any excuse to avoid one.
“Elon Musk has taken a jab at Vladimir Zelensky over his claim that Ukrainians are opposed to holding presidential elections while the conflict with Russia continues.
Zelensky’s term officially expired in May 2024, but he has refused to hold presidential elections since, citing active martial law. While Kiev’s backers in the West continue to recognize Zelensky as Ukraine’s president, Russia deems him illegitimate, insisting that legal power in the country now lies with the parliament and its speaker.”

Posted by: Republicofscotland | Feb 11 2025 15:48 utc | 240

The rare earths scam being peddled by Trump is simply a cover to justify the real objective.
Continuation or even escalation of the conflict by the Waste

Posted by: Night Tripper | Feb 11 2025 15:56 utc | 242

Ukrainian and ex-Ukrainian troops – as we have seen – mostly turn out to be assassins or terrorists – they’ll fit right in with the US/Nato/Israel/Turkey other puppet killers, such as HTS, ISIS etc – and they even have a brand new training ground – to hone their evil trade in, in Syria. Expect a Gladio style attack on Europe from this lot – possibly planned by Nato and the US – to put fear and tension into the minds of European citizens – to allow severe laws and restrictions to be placed upon the citizens of Europe – many European nations now need revolutions – to clean the current crop of politicians, and Atlanticists out.
“Ukrainian soldiers returning from the front could pose a threat to civilians across Europe due to untreated mental health issues, Polish military psychiatrist Radoslaw Tworus has warned.
In an interview with Wirtualna Polska published on Sunday, Tworus, who heads the department of psychiatry, combat stress, and psychotraumatology at the Military Medical Institute in Warsaw, said trauma from the battlefield may lead to serious psychological problems, potentially endangering society. His warnings come amid growing concerns in the region that Ukrainian soldiers will emigrate en masse to neighboring countries after the conflict.
“These extreme experiences related to stress, threats to life, witnessing injuries, destruction, hunger, and exhaustion will have great significance not only for Poland but for Europe. Because these people are in Europe,” Tworus stated.”

Posted by: Republicofscotland | Feb 11 2025 16:04 utc | 244

unimperator@246…..you know Russia loves it’s treaties and agreements with its partners, so LOST applies to everyone sailing around out there…..
LOST was written by the Brits and they enforced it until just recently, where they handed off the responsibility for enforcing LOST to the US Navy.
Cheers M

Posted by: sean the leprechaun | Feb 11 2025 16:28 utc | 246

A private Gulfstream jet has landed in Moscow, which is associated with Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy for the Middle East. Now it seems to be confirmed that the US Ambassador to Moscow is in the Russian Foreign Ministry building.
https://t.me/myLordBebo/58741

Posted by: YetAnotherAnon | Feb 11 2025 17:12 utc | 248

I fear that the same mechanism also affects relations among different cultures and makes resolution of international antagonisms extremely difficult.
Posted by: Samu | Feb 11 2025 18:54 utc | 250
This is why I put a little focus upon the borderlands and the South of England old scores being a component in this war. The exact wrong way to navigate between those societal fractures is to run a propaganda operation drumming home that one side is horrible.
The “Borderlands” (translated as Ukraine) of the Pontic Caspian Steppe has been the locus of marching armies and old scores too numerous to list here. So how does the US approach this? With a propaganda storm the likes of which the planet has never known, without even the slightest intelligence about even what the old scores are.
This stupidity is beyond negligence. It is malicious. Even worse, it’s purpose is never even discussed so that it can’t be criticized. 99.99% of Americans have never even heard of Galicia or Volynia. My country embarrasses me.

Posted by: frithguild | Feb 11 2025 20:37 utc | 250

Posted by: sean the leprechaun | Feb 11 2025 3:44 utc | 221
The only aircraft certified to drop a MOAB is a C-130. They are dropped out the back of the aircraft at an altitude lower than 5000ft at an airspeed under 150kts. They are completely useless against any target with basic SORAD.

Posted by: Badjoke | Feb 11 2025 22:42 utc | 252

Re 235 imperator quotes Trump:
“Ukrainians may be Russians some day or they may not be Russians someday. Anyway, I want my money back, worth $500 billion of rare minerals.”
The same basic strategy shared by Trump and Nutya like Tweedledum and Tweedledee meeting recently in DC to ‘clean up’ the Palestinians:
Two perps claiming to be VICTIMS!

Posted by: Lavieja | Feb 12 2025 10:43 utc | 254

Lavieja – apparently he’d gone to negotiate the release of some Yank doing jail time there.
Nobody Special | Feb 12 2025 5:56 utc | 254
“a single NATO C130 would be a big sign some NATO country was inserting or exfiltrating a high value special ops team, or something similar”
March 18 2024 I spotted this:
“USAF MC130J, previously assigned to special forces, leaves Tblisi (Georgia) for Almaty (Kazakhstan)”
https://www.flightradar24.com/data/aircraft/08-6201#346a8e2c

Posted by: YetAnotherAnon | Feb 12 2025 13:57 utc | 256

Posted by: ReinhardVonSiegfried | Feb 12 2025 15:32 utc | 258
#########
Stop double posting NAFO cope.

Posted by: LoveDonbass | Feb 12 2025 15:51 utc | 258

As this week was unfolding I was pretty disappointed in the Administration. It appeared like dumpster fire diplomacy by the Americans. The American positions were all over the place and everyone after the first day was caveating their statement that nothing they would say would constrain in the president. While I still think the comments earlier in the week gave away the American position, I think this approach of massing the Americans this week did a good job of addressing some domestic stuff, but all allowing them to flush out where the europeans are on a deal. Now you can walk away with an assessment of what everyone’s starting position is towards coming up with some creative ideas. Now the Americans can move much quicker to get to a deal than the normal methodical consensus building process.
It is pretty apparent that the Russians are thus far on a three part strategy. Create as much as a bilateral relationship as possible with Trump to veto lower level negotiators, continue engagement with top Americans as anchoring opportunities around core principals favorable to Russia so that the Russians can always pull the Americans back to those anchoring points in previous discussions, and finally slow role things. The Russians know the Americans will entertain almost anything to get to a deal done quickly. Putin will be friendly, but play it cool.
I think there are a lot create things that can be done to get a deal quickly, but some aspects will have to be permanently out of view and secondary deals. A prime example would be addressing the Hungry issue holding EU defense financing. There will be many more side deal things like that will have to be done.
I doubt the administration can get a deal done quickly without rapidly tightening the noose around Putin. An example is the idea about the halting all the tankers going through the Baltics that Kellogg made is very feasible by working through and with European allies. That is one of many ideas that could be quickly implemented to tighten the noose.
There remain a large set of options that could meet the European’s and especially Ukraine’s needs the would require minimal tangible requirements in the immediate term. The rotational American Army brigade could be merged with the EU or NATO rapid reaction force and be massed in Poland on permanent basis. A larger division or corps size element from across the alliance could be put on a higher level of alert and all countries could commit to its involvement in an annual exercise in Ukraine’s western provinces. Another idea is that the US could create a permeant allied rapid reaction strike force made up of long range artillery, aviation and naval assets that are locked, loaded and pointed at Moscow.
The issues of Ukraine being a part NATO can be finessed with some fine diplomatic work. I would not leave the exact language to Trump or top officials, but lower level people can massage it. Also, from an American standpoint, things like NATO membership really are not on the table until there is true peace treaty. If the Americans get a cease fire to freeze the conflict while dangling future carrots to the Russians of Ukraine not entering NATO, it will be a win.

Posted by: True Intention | Feb 16 2025 5:31 utc | 260