Posted by: Justpassinby | Apr 24 2025 15:26 utc | 14
In the words of Victoria Nuland : “Fuck the EU”

Posted by: ctiger | Apr 24 2025 16:50 utc | 28

Posted by: steel_porcupine | Apr 24 2025 16:46 utc | 30
RE: the pleas of an American president
<< Gosh, how could someone who sent me that super-nice portrait painted by a famous Russian artist launch missile strikes against Ukraine-? (DJT, fuming, debates hitting SEND on his Truth Social tweet.)

Posted by: steel_porcupine | Apr 24 2025 16:51 utc | 30

Posted by: steel_porcupine | Apr 24 2025 16:51 utc | 33
RE: an American president, in a pre-fuming fume
<< Vladimir, stop it right now-! (DJT is debating whether to go all-Zelensky on VVP's alfa-sierra-sierra.) Am I going to have to come up there-?

Posted by: steel_porcupine | Apr 24 2025 16:56 utc | 32

they. dont. listen. like children.
Posted by: Justpassinby | Apr 24 2025 16:54 utc | 34
Yep, and the EU remains a significant source of their energy revenues. Such clowns.

Posted by: TJandTheBear | Apr 24 2025 17:00 utc | 34

Posted by: markw | Apr 24 2025 15:08 utc | 10
RE: you’re falling into the same trap as b
<< It's not a trap. I am documenting the culture from which oddities relative to the war in Ukraine arise. If each day delivers an oddity, I'm going to document it. *You're* bored. That tells me something about you. Do you have the kind of internet browser that lets you scroll past things that bore you-? Asking for a friend.

Posted by: steel_porcupine | Apr 24 2025 17:12 utc | 36

For Ukraine, I’m still of the opinion he knows exactly what the score is and what he’s doing. He wants out, but he didn’t have the juice to simply pull out immediately, so he had to play Zelensky in such a way to justify leaving. IMHO he’s absolutely content to hand the entire mess that is Ukraine entirely over to Russia, EU be damned.
Posted by: TJandTheBear | Apr 24 2025 16:51 utc | 32
######
I disagree.
I think Trump wants to weaken Russia. Between Russia, Iran, and China. He feels that Russia is the one he can publicly make friends with. Iran is a revolutionary government, and China is an “alien” civilization that America has invested decades into demonizing. Trump is still open to compromising the other countries by destabilizing Russia.
I don’t think Trump is trying to do good things generally. He is trying to keep America first, which, based on Capitalism and the European MO, means someone else must be last. I struggle to ignore the open genocides he is conducting in Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, and Yemen.
I have very few analysts I can listen to these days. Not because I am smarter, but because I have zero sentimentality for America or Trump, and many of them do, which colors their commentary away from accurate and frank determinations.
I don’t listen to what Trump says, I watch what he does.
Trump talks a lot, and increasingly, he delivers very little.
Arguing that Zelensky is more powerful than Trump is nonsensical.
It’s like reindustrializing. None of the basic first steps are being taken.
Either you want to reindustrialize or you do not.
Either you want to raise middle-class wealth or you do not.
Either you want peace or you do not.
One of my favorite sayings is, “Action indicates preference”. Human action compulsively follows attention and desire.
Now, if Trump was trying and failing to hit a goal, ok. I don’t even see him trying to achieve any of the goals he has talked up.
I never bought that Trump didn’t want war in Ukraine. From his first term support of the Nazis (and sanctions on Russia) to his semi-private comments to Republican leadership.
It’s like the DOGE reforms. 100 days and it is basically over, and it didn’t achieve a fraction of the promised results.
I don’t know what you should do or think, but I am a big believer in following the truth no matter how ugly and uncomfortable it may be.

Posted by: LoveDonbass | Apr 24 2025 17:33 utc | 38

Posted by: TJandTheBear | Apr 24 2025 16:14 utc | 22
>>>
link
Posted by: LoveDonbass | Apr 24 2025 16:35 utc | 27
>>>
To the best of my knowledge the 7 points ‘draft’ plan was put together by British lawyers and agreed with the rest.

Posted by: pepe | Apr 24 2025 17:41 utc | 40

Posted by: steel_porcupine | Apr 24 2025 14:28 utc | 2
Is Doughty trying to insinuate that these ‘video game controllers’ are in some way manufactured in the UK?
Possibly the English language packaging, but I doubt it.
In which case what is he sanctioning?
Just the usual PMC performative political gesturing, methinks.

Posted by: ChatNPC | Apr 24 2025 17:46 utc | 42

12 – I hear Russian spoken in London though I have not had opportunities to speak to those who talk it – I suspect however that they are registered as Ukrainians for the most part. The average Brit would not know the difference between Russian and Ukrainian anyway.

Posted by: Waldorf | Apr 24 2025 17:53 utc | 44

Zelensky is intimidating South African citizens with Putin 🤦‍♀️

‘Of course, Putin does not like Ukraine’s presence in Africa. He really does not want Ukraine to build normal relations with the countries of your continent. And on other continents, and in Latin America. They want an exclusive presence on your continent and in other countries.’

So far Ukraine’s contribution is supporting Islamic terrorist groups in Africa, so he is off to a good start.

more western values.

Posted by: Justpassinby | Apr 24 2025 17:56 utc | 46

Clown prince continues:

‘The fact that Ukraine is ready to sit down at the negotiating table with terrorists is already a big compromise’

Apart from that law banning negotiations.

while simultaniously beeing called a terrorist state by african nations, for supporting terrorism.
peak hypocrisy.

Posted by: Justpassinby | Apr 24 2025 17:58 utc | 48

As in the movie Groundhog Day, we arise every morning to another regurgitation of the peace process. And the talking heads point out how the chunks in the vomit have taken on a slightly different appearance, as if that was something significant. I for one hope that DJT, in a fit of exasperation (theater), makes good on his threat/promise to walk away and just does it. Takes all his toys and goes home. The war will be over much sooner that way. Matter of fact I can’t think of any place on earth that wouldn’t be better off if the US would just butt out.

Posted by: Mike R | Apr 24 2025 18:09 utc | 50

Macgregor had a sit-down w/ Judge Nap. Among the nuggets:
Sec Rubio’s opting to bail on the London talks reflected an acute lack of interest as to anything coming productive coming from the London gathering.
The demands of the belligerents in Ukraine are so far apart that it is difficult to see how negotiations can produce positive results. The peace plan put forth w/ Gen Kellogg’s imprimatur does not remotely address Russia’s fundamentals, for instance.
Moreover, Gen Kellogg has a conflict of interest on account of his daughter’s long-standing NGO-style work in Ukraine, including an expense-paid trip for him, her dad, to enjoy a working visit there.
Baseline for Macgregor: what’s important is normalizing contact w/ Russia.
DJT’s foreign policy is emotionally-charged and lacks focus. It’s a gunslinger’s policy. There’s no strategic thinking of any kind within DJT’s admin. This isn’t unique to the DJT admin, however. Collective Biden suffered from the same deficit, in Macgregor’s estimation.

Posted by: steel_porcupine | Apr 24 2025 18:14 utc | 52

‘You have no idea what pressure I’m putting on Russia. We’re putting A LOT of pressure on Russia’
Is the Don bluffing? And will Kiev come to the Table? Trump thinks so…

https://t.me/rtnews/92783
He is probably referring to Newton’s 3rd law, he feels the pressure from Russia.

Posted by: Norwegian | Apr 24 2025 18:21 utc | 54

President Putin’s strategy for success in Ukraine is to send Donald J Trump a painting of himself.
Posted by: William | Apr 24 2025 18:20 utc | 56
I have never seen a post of yours with a better level of insight than this.

Posted by: UWDude | Apr 24 2025 18:23 utc | 56

Trump is just a front man, continuity of agenda rules the day, nothing substantial has changed from Biden.
Posted by: silverfoxes | Apr 24 2025 16:33 utc | 25
Trump will keep doing what he is told he has to do. Meet the new salesman. We fired the last one.
At this rate Putin will not last the year.

Posted by: William | Apr 24 2025 18:29 utc | 58

At this rate Putin will not last the year.
Posted by: William | Apr 24 2025 18:29 utc | 61
You said that about prigozhin, you said that about the firecracker over the Kremlin, you said that after drones killed a civilian in Bolgorod, you said that after the Kerch bridge attack.
May I suggest, this time, you repeat it four times, and use all caps?
Maybe it will finally come true.
I hear you can also clasp your hands together, and whisper it over and over again, as you gaze upon a star.

Posted by: UWDude | Apr 24 2025 18:34 utc | 60

The English government loves training their Neo-Nazi buddies – but on this occasion they were doomed to fail.
“On the morning of October 30 2023, dozens of Ukrainian commandos on small boats glided across the Dnieper River to control of Krynky, a village in Russian-occupied Kherson. They had spent the prior two months in remote areas of the British isles with similar terrain, running drills under the watchful gaze of UK generals. Now, they believed their hard work was about to pay off. Both British and Ukrainian officials were convinced the operation would turn the tide of the war, creating a beachhead allowing Kiev’s forces to march on Crimea and all-out victory.
Instead, the British-trained Ukrainian marines were led like lambs to the slaughter. The catastrophically planned effort saw a seemingly endless stream of heavily overloaded Ukrainian boats attempt to reach Krynky without air cover, under relentless fire by Russian artillery, drones, flamethrowers and mortars. Marines that made the journey were ill-equipped, resupplying those troops proved virtually impossible, and evacuating them was out of the question.
As the promised missile cover failed to materialize in the ensuing weeks, it became clear the effort had amounted to a disaster. Yet for the next nine months, wave after wave of British-trained Ukrainian marines were dispatched to almost certain death to Krynky. The decision to let the costly quagmire drag on, at a human and material cost no NATO military would ever allow, has come to be seen as one of the worst tactical mistakes of the war — and it appears top British generals are to blame.”
https://thegrayzone.com/2025/04/23/uk-intel-ukraines-krynky-invasion/

Posted by: Republicofscotland | Apr 24 2025 18:35 utc | 62

In the words of Victoria Nuland : “Fuck the EU”
Posted by: ctiger | Apr 24 2025 16:50 utc | 31
They’ve been doing a first class job all by themselves.No outside assistance needed.

Posted by: jpc | Apr 24 2025 18:40 utc | 64

Posted by: pepe | Apr 24 2025 16:05 utc | 20
Mobilizing NAFO ? The keyboards warriors ? For A Counter Strike or an Unknown Battleground ?

Posted by: Hiro Masamune | Apr 24 2025 18:44 utc | 66

I simply do not understand the way the countries around Israel endlessly let Israel abuse them with impunity. Even Iran’s missile strikes were weak.
It’s like the countries of the middle east think they can “make nice” and Israel will play fair with them. Never going to happen.
Posted by: saner | Apr 24 2025 18:40 utc | 68
##########
In the case of Iran, they are an ancient civilization, and relatively, Israel is a newborn psychopathic baby.
As we’re watching, America and Israel (the same entity, really) are coming apart without escalation due to the unsustainability of their social models and inherent contradictions.
Russia and China display similar levels of patience to Iran, which, IMO, is to be expected from intelligent and mature societies.

Posted by: LoveDonbass | Apr 24 2025 18:50 utc | 68

Exile @ 12
Here in Chicago we have long been a destination for Ukrainian emigrants. Most have been men with just enough sense and health to GTFO. Recent arrivals look like schemers who’ve been busy cashing in, war profiteering. Also quite a few who look Germanic or Nordic rather than Slavic.
Way more men than women. Way back, back when Ukrainians would just call themselves Russians, there were women with the men. And a lot of the newcomers present as gay. Definitely not construction workers, which is what most used to do.

Posted by: oldhippie | Apr 24 2025 19:03 utc | 70

Here in Chicago we have long been a destination for Ukrainian emigrants.
Posted by: oldhippie | Apr 24 2025 19:03 utc | 73
—
My daughter living in Chicago recently informs me that the immigrant situation has made the trains unusable as they have become shelter for the unhoused. To Uber’s benefit.

Posted by: too scents | Apr 24 2025 19:10 utc | 72

I do wonder about Trump’s lack of courage here – or perhaps lack of actual power in dealing with Ukraine. Why not declare the 4 oblasts to be Russian de facto (not de jure) and refuse to help Zelensky until he agrees to leave them? That would create a practical ceasefire with a river as a boundary. The demilitarization is not that big an issue, I suspect. Even peaceful EU nations at least have some sort of border or national guard. I think Putin could live with that.
Borizzkman claims the British have had enough and now want Zelensky dead and Zaluzhniy put in his place. I don’t think they have the cojones to do this but it would make a lot more sense. Zaluzhniy supposedly made a ‘Finland/Mannerheim’ remark and has relations with the ultra nationalists. This could work.

Posted by: Eighthman | Apr 24 2025 19:12 utc | 74

“It’s hard for me to see Ukraine hanging on beyond late 2025”, Professor Mearsheimer said.
Posted by: steel_porcupine | Apr 24 2025 19:14 utc | 78
I find it easy seeing a lot of ukranians hanging beyond 2025, trials take time and putin is a stickler for details…

Posted by: Newbie | Apr 24 2025 19:27 utc | 76

Re: Afro | Apr 24 2025 14:27 utc | 1
you wrote:
“Douglas McGregor announced on his Twitter yesterday that a peace deal has been reached. I wonder how that happened?”
Colonel Macgregor is being targeted by pro-Ukraine hackers. A fully constructed video of the Colonel entitled “Douglas Macgregor: Russia’s Major Arsenal Destroyed – Ukraine Gears Up for War!” was posted on YouTube a few days ago. It has now been replaced with another Douglas Macgregor: Unexpected Counteroffensive!!!.
I imagine the Twitter post was created by the same assholes who created the fake videos.

Posted by: Perimetr | Apr 24 2025 19:43 utc | 78

***
“It’s hard for me to see Ukraine hanging on beyond late 2025”, Professor Mearsheimer said.
Posted by: steel_porcupine | Apr 24 2025 19:14 utc | 78
***
As long as the Blob pays the nazis’ salaries, and the nazis shoot dissenters, they can hang on much longer than that. Organized dissent cannot coalesce and stay alive. Starvation hasn’t hit yet. That’s why Z can say no. When the nazis become the dissent, Z’s brains will be splattered on the wall like cherry pie, and it will end. But that’s not ’til the nazis’ paychecks stop flowing.

Posted by: seer | Apr 24 2025 19:49 utc | 80

Ukraine fails to reach deal with investors to restructure $2.6bn of debt
Kyiv due to make estimated $600mn payment on GDP warrants next month
Ukraine said on Thursday that it had failed to reach a deal with holders of $2.6bn of its debt, in a blow to its hopes of securing a restructuring ahead of a payment deadline next month.
The country’s finance ministry said it would “consider all available options” on a restructuring and continue negotiations after the failure of opening talks in Washington this week with a group of holders of its so-called GDP warrants.
Last month the IMF said that “if left untreated”, the warrants “constitute an important risk” for debt sustainability even after a $15.5bn bailout by the fund and a restructuring of more than $20bn of bonds last year.
https://www.ft.com/content/2b77e33f-1b48-445f-a6e0-cdf2e1a26d28

Its hard to get excited about a few $ billions. But Ukraine is busted broke and needs a “deal”.

Posted by: too scents | Apr 24 2025 20:12 utc | 82

So, whats now? yesterday supposed to be “take the deal or we are out”, Europe didnt took it and … it resulted in Trump rant and nothing else, it doesnt seems like Trump is gonna stop aid, so, are we just going same way as with democrats, until the last Ukranian?

Posted by: R donis | Apr 24 2025 20:25 utc | 84

As a USAian, I don’t like the “US will administer the ZAP PP” idea at all. We’ve already said we don’t want to do security guarantees. That means we should NOT get entangled with that power plant OR with the (mythical, mystical, and actually quite common) “rare” earths.
Trump is such an intellectually lazy, overconfident blowhard. Even his enemies know he’s a blowhard and not to worry about what he says.

Posted by: Anonymous | Apr 24 2025 20:30 utc | 86

Posted by: too scents | Apr 24 2025 20:12 utc | 85
Here’s a Ukrainian view: https://ukranews.com/en/news/1078065-negotiations-with-gdp-warrant-investors-continue-finance-ministry

The Minister of Finance of Ukraine, Serhii Marchenko, reported that negotiations with GDP warrant investors continue.
This is announced in a statement by the Ministry of Finance, Ukrainian News Agency reports.
“The damage caused by russia as a result of its unprovoked and unjustified military aggression against Ukraine is colossal and unprecedented. Economic losses are already estimated at hundreds of billions of euros, and infrastructure throughout the country has suffered significant destruction… GDP warrants were created for an economic reality that no longer exists. Moderate growth in Ukraine’s GDP in 2023 does not indicate economic prosperity – it is only a fragile recovery after an almost 30% drop caused by the russian federation’s full-scale war against Ukraine. These instruments should not hinder our recovery. Our goal is to find a fair and comprehensive solution to this issue,” he said.
Today, April 24, the Ministry of Finance reported that from April 15 to 23, Ukraine held a meeting with members of the Special Committee, which includes institutional investors – owners of about 30% of Ukraine’s GDP warrants, at which it presented proposals for restructuring the GDP warrants.
This proposal is formulated in accordance with the parameters of the IMF Program to restore debt sustainability and is consistent with the principle of Comparability of Treatment of the Group of Official Creditors of Ukraine.
Ukraine offered the owners of the GDP warrants two options:
– exchange of warrants for an additional issue of Eurobonds that were issued as part of the restructuring in 2024. According to this option, investors will receive the same set of A and B bonds as the owners of Eurobonds last year, in the ratio: for every 1 unit of warrants – 1.35 units of bonds.
– the second option provides for a change in the terms of the issuance of GDP warrants as follows:
Payments for 2025-2028 are canceled;
The ability to redeem/cancel GDP warrants will be extended until May 2029, while the redemption price will progressively increase from 85 in 2026 to 100 cents in 2029.
The restructured warrants (with payments in 2029-2041) will have the same characteristics as the existing warrants, except for the redemption option;
Holders will receive 36.6 cents of Bonds A and Bonds B for every 100 cents of warrants.
It is important to emphasize that both options are parts of a single exchange transaction (Exchange Offer) and a request to change the terms of circulation (Consent Solicitation).
Investors can choose any of the proposed options, and participation in one of them will be considered support for the restructuring of the terms of the warrants.
This approach is important given the different possible priorities of different holders of GDP warrants and the need to obtain the consent of 75% of the holders by the aggregate nominal value of GDP warrants from the holders of warrants present at the quorum meeting.
The Special Committee, in turn, stated that it unites the holders of more than 30% of the warrants and proposed that Ukraine pay 75% of the payment due in May of this year to holders of warrants for GDP growth in 2023 and issue new C bonds with a rate of 7.75% in the amount of USD 209 million with repayment in February 2029.
Ukraine rejected this proposal.
Ukraine remains committed to constructive negotiations with all holders of GDP warrants in order to find a solution that ensures long-term debt sustainability without jeopardizing the country’s reconstruction and recovery.
As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, in August 2024, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to temporarily suspend payments on obligations under government derivatives of 2015 (GDP warrants) from May 31, 2025, until a transaction (deal) with them is carried out.
In October 2015, holders of 13 out of 14 issues of sovereign and state-guaranteed Eurobonds for a total amount of USD 14.36 billion and EUR 0.6 billion supported their restructuring.
During the restructuring, Ukraine issued GDP warrants for the amount of Eurobonds written off by creditors.
Under the terms of the issue, investors claim a share of the real GDP growth (taking into account inflation) exceeding 3% in 2019-2038, provided that nominal GDP (excluding inflation) exceeds USD 125.4 billion.
The initiator of the issue was the then Minister of Finance of Ukraine, Natalia Yaresko.
In August 2020, Ukraine redeemed 10% of its GDP warrants issued during the restructuring of external debt with a term of validity until May 31, 2040, for a nominal amount of USD 3.2 billion on the open market.

I wonder who is panicking the most, the creditors or the debtor?

Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Apr 24 2025 20:47 utc | 88

#40 TJand….thank you..so many comments..who really do not know what’s really going on here in the USA….

Posted by: sejmon | Apr 24 2025 20:58 utc | 90

Posted by: LoveDonbass | Apr 24 2025 14:33 utc | 4
“Until something is done, nothing is done.
Announcements are words and words are just wind.”
When all is said and done, there’s usually a lot more that is said than is done..

Posted by: Paranaense | Apr 24 2025 21:22 utc | 92

DS daily map update: https://deepstatemap.live/en#6/49.4324126/32.0581055
Overall: Another slow day for the RFA, taking only 5.9 kmsq. This is about a quarter of the average pace in NOV2024.
Specific changes, S to N (all very close to each other):
1. Two separate polygons on the E flank of Pokrovsk. One SE and one SW of Tarasivka. The town on the “flank even further to the right since you can’t get the interchange” salient.
2. Town of Kalynove and some fields nearby. This is the H20 front, but on the W side today. Also a gray finger extending to Stara Mykolaivka. Will have to see if the RFA can progress or if the finger gets cut off. (Fair to label it gray, given that uncertainty.)

Posted by: Anonymous | Apr 24 2025 21:45 utc | 94

Overall: Another slow day for the RFA, taking only 5.9 kmsq

Posted by: Anonymous | Apr 24 2025 21:45 utc | 97
So how does this improve Ukraine‘s economy, or enhance its chances of servicing its international debt obligations? Or is this stuff not important to the outcome of the SMO?
What the heck, Russia is still making faster progress than Ukraine is in trying to recover its national gold reserves; someone’s got to find out where the reserves actually are, first…

Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Apr 24 2025 21:52 utc | 96

R2R: Trump’s ‘Grand Protection Racket’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTP7v4BB-Bo
“The Trump administration does not seek peace with Russia – that is the most rational inference to draw from the conduct of the second Trump administration, and in particular, from the administration’s reported demands that Russia ‘freeze’ a conflict that it regrets as an existential threat.
Dimitri Lascaris speaks with John Helmer, the longest serving correspondent in Russia about Trump’s latest theatrics in negotiations over the Ukraine war.
According to Helmer, the real ‘brains’ behind Trump’s foreign policy are two little known neocons, A Wess Mitchell and Elbridge Colby.
What Mitchell and Colby envision is that the US will reign supreme through a grand protection racket.’

Posted by: John Gilberts | Apr 24 2025 22:24 utc | 98

Latest rumour I’m hearing is about waves of resignation from the British Armed Forces. Can any locals back this up?

Posted by: Suresh | Apr 24 2025 22:14 utc | 100
It‘s a mix of actual resignations with a non-renewal of time-limited contracts, i.e those who signed up for a term of X years not staying on.
From purely anecdotal sources, I hear that this is because of the British MOD’s approach, being stuck in a 1940 mindset, regarding the “grunts” as disposable commodities, rather than assets to be be trained up in what modern 21st century war-fighting could look like; one or two comments are well-encompassed by the word ‘exasperation’; exasperation with the equipment, exasperation with the ‘management’, exasperation with the direction of policy.
The government here has got no chance of a wholesale mobilisation of the population to serve as cannon-fodder; much more likely to provoke some serious civil disorder.

Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Apr 24 2025 22:39 utc | 100