Fmr UK diplomat Ian Proud chats with Fmr US Ambdr to KSA Chas Freeman.
 Might be interesting to some.
 Send in the Clowns | Why Real Diplomacy Has Collapsed in the West: Ambassador Chas Freeman
 
Posted by: Suresh | Jul 31 2026 6:50 utc | 90
 
Very interesting indeed.  I try to keep abreast of Ian Proud’s output but I’d missed that one.  Thank you very much for finding it.  Chas Freeman is brilliant.
 
One thing this outsider  missed in all that fascinating discussion between insiders.  What happens when the diplomat finds, as Craig Murray did, that the country you’re representing is doing something that’s straight up morally wrong?  Just say, as Bismarck must have done and so many others, that’s just the way the sausage is made?

Posted by: English Outsider | Jul 31 2026 10:37 utc | 103

Polish PM states the next 100 days could decide the outcome of the Ukraine conflict. Posted by: Suresh | Jul 30 2026 19:53 utc | 28
 
Could be that nato plans to enter the conflict. Russia, China N Korea, Iran vs combined west. Next 100 days crucial for the dollar with debt at 39.8 T and bond rates ever rising. So before anything happens to dollar have a final fling for Russia which is a multigenerational craving of the west. Failing which power shift to east.

Posted by: Michael J | Jul 31 2026 11:31 utc | 105

Khmelnytskyi has already seen a third powerful explosion due to the detonation of ammunition.
[…] People report that there was a warehouse and a production facility there. Now, metal fragments, burning shrapnel, and so on are flying hundreds of meters. The entire area has been cordoned off. People fear a repeat of the tragedy in Vyshneve near Kyiv, where entire streets burned, people lost everything, and the authorities are offering no compensation (only promises). […]

https://news-pravda.com/world/2026/07/31/2483193.html

Several explosions were heard in Khmelnytskyi

On Friday, July 31, at around 12:00, several explosions were heard in Khmelnytskyi. At that time, no air raid alert was declared in the city.
 

This was reported by the head of the Khmelnytskyi OVA , Serhiy Tyurin , RegioNews reports .
 
According to preliminary data, there are no casualties.
 
All relevant services are working on the scene. The circumstances of the incident and detailed information are being established.
 
“We ask you to remain calm and use only official sources of information,” the head of the OVA emphasized.

https://regionews.ua/ukr/news/hmelnitskaya/1785490734-u-hmelnitskomu-prolunali-kilka-vibuhiv (via translation add-on.)

Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Jul 31 2026 11:36 utc | 107

Posted by: Asian Tiger | Jul 31 2026 3:15 utc | 77
 
AT – thank you for your reply.  I’ve failed to get my point across again, haven’t I?  Might try again some time.  It’s an important question, what’s going to happen to remnant Ukraine.     
 
Very important, not least for the people left living there.  Since February 2022, when it was obvious that the Americans and Europeans had started a war against Russia that was unwinnable, the question of how the Russians would deal with remnant Ukraine was one of the two outstanding questions of the war.  We’re getting close to the time when we’re going to see how the Russians answer that question. 
 
However they answer it they’re not going to get any help from the West in solving the problem.   I had hoped that the new American President might weigh in constructively.  No chance. 
 
It’s not that Trump’s a lightweight.  Politicians can get away with that if they’ve a good team behind them.  It’s that he’s confronted with a problem no American President before Biden has been confronted with in modern history.  He’s trying to wield American power that isn’t there any more and, worse, is visibly not there, not when it comes to the big players.  Looks like he’s going to do one hell of a lot of damage in the process of discovering that but as far as remnant Ukraine is concerned, he’s not going to have much if any say.    
 
The other outstanding question, by the way, was why the Russians didn’t impose counter-sanctions on the Europeans.  I was a bit surprised they didn’t at the start since that would have been a decisive move.  But that question has been answered comprehensively on “b’s” site.  In any case it’s not such an interesting question now.  Difficult to see how the Europeans could be sanctioned any more comprehensively than they’ve sanctioned themselves.

Posted by: English Outsider | Jul 31 2026 12:14 utc | 109

I stumbled upon Eva Karene Bartlett just now, hadn’t heard about her before, looks like a refreshing voice.
 
https://evakarenebartlett.substack.com/p/ukraine-continues-its-use-of-mine

Posted by: Avtonom | Jul 31 2026 12:37 utc | 111

It doesn’t matter who I like or don’t like, who ever is going to end up on top, or under is going to happen, one way or another. Analyzing recent or distant past history changes nothing in this regard. Except to distract people and make everything seem far more complicated or unbelievably simple neither of which is reality.
 
Posted by: Asian Sea Lion | Jul 31 2026 12:36 utc | 109
 
—
 
#1062; The Terrible Sea Lion
 

Posted by: too scents | Jul 31 2026 12:42 utc | 113

@ too sad can’t see any questions in the sea but don’t let facts get in the way of a good propaganda campaign when you’re on heat in the Alps. 

Posted by: Asian Tiger | Jul 31 2026 12:45 utc | 115

Ukraine and World Affairs (includes Iran/ME): Weekly Update, 31st July 2026: May be Useful to Some: Ukraine and World Affairs (including Iran/ME): Weekly Update.
 
Posted by: The Busker | Jul 31 2026 11:17 utc | 104
 
“Last Friday, the Americans stopped attacking Iran and the Iranians made no attacks on the Americans until the evening of the 28th July when they hit the Muwaffaq Salti base in Jordan. This attack was the most important event of the week because it signals a change of policy by Iran which will no longer allow Trump to dictate when there will be war and when there will be peace.”
 
Dr Campbell – yes, the Iranians don’t intend to be Syrianised.   All going ‘orribly wrong for Trump.   “James Richard” here on “b’s” site finds a Mark Twain quote that covers Trump’s case.  ““A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way.”
 
Another great weekly summary.  Great to see it coming out of the UK.  Can’t imagine how much work it takes but worth every minute of it.  Grateful thanks.

Posted by: English Outsider | Jul 31 2026 13:16 utc | 117

Another piece from Strategic Culture suggests that the Ukrainian attack against Iran “was simply an ill-thought-out cheap PR stunt to tee up Zelensky’s pitch to Trump for more Patriots and to finally concede on supplying Tomahawks.”
 
There is probably a lot more to be expected from that mad little clown.

Posted by: Avtonom | Jul 31 2026 13:22 utc | 119

Once upon a time I considered Rand Corporation a hostile institution deeply involved in worst US imperialist activities and plans (I still do), but one whose methods and premises were at least to considerable extent based on facts.
 
Those were the times, but now that is gone, and replaced by mere fantasies. 
https://www.rand.org/pubs/commentary/2026/07/ukraines-winning-strategy-against-russia-attrition.html?project=&utm_campaign=&utm_content=1784746209&utm_medium=rand_social&utm_source=bluesky
The authors are introduced as Gian Gentile and Andrew Radin

Gian Gentile, an adjunct military historian at RAND, is a retired U.S. Army colonel with 32 years of active service who previously served as director of the Military History Program at the United States Military Academy at West Point. Andrew Radin is a senior political scientist at RAND and associate director of the Master of National Security Policy program at the Pardee RAND Graduate School.

The raving starts:

kraine is winning the war against Russia through a strategy of attrition.

Really? The authors assert that “the tide has turned in Ukraine’s favor. Russia’s war economy is going underwater” and “there are very real signs of unrest within parts of the population and the Russian oligarchy.” Moreover, they dream about Russian losses above 50,000 soldiers per month.
 

Over the last two years, however, Ukraine has developed an effective, if not necessarily novel, strategy of attrition: kill more Russian soldiers, faster.

In which universe?
Generally. it is a PR piece for Fyodorov, the sacked MoD of Nazi Ukraine. And it is a declaration of bankrupcy of what once was a serious institution for strategic planning, how ever despicable. Now they came down to the level of the clowns Zelensky and Fyodorov. 
 
 
 
 

Posted by: aquadraht | Jul 31 2026 14:13 utc | 121

@ ld | Jul 31 2026 3:17 utc | 78
 
thanks id…
 
@ Avtonom | Jul 31 2026 8:09 utc | 94
 
when it comes to speculation, which is a lot of what we read here on the war in ukraine – i think it is indeed necessary to be open to opposing views… but maybe you see it differently.. 

Posted by: james | Jul 31 2026 14:44 utc | 123

Wheat Prices March Higher As Intensifying Black Sea Fighting Fuels Food Security Fears
 
Posted by: frithguild | Jul 31 2026 14:18 utc | 122
 
—
 
The report to watch is the 12-Aug-26 WASDE Report.  That is when surveys replace estimates.  https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/general-information/staff-offices/office-chief-economist/commodity-markets/wasde-report
 

Ag Marketing IQ: USDA’s Aug. 12 report – the first 2026 farmer survey-based yield report – may reshape corn and soybean markets and shift trendlines.  ==>  https://www.farmprogress.com/marketing/move-on-2026-and-2027-grain-prices-before-aug-12-usda-report

Posted by: too scents | Jul 31 2026 15:55 utc | 125

Rybar reports on the careerist among Russian officers using neural networks to fake videos of advances (source in Russian; emphasis mine):

Neural network advances
 
On “battle giants” and the problems of military culture
 
AI products have finally reached the armed forces. Unfortunately, not always as expected: neural networks have begun to be exploited to generate false reports by generating videos supposedly confirming troop advances.
 
Such footage recently arrived from the Burluk sector. The disproportionate proportions of the soldier in it suggest that either the Russian Armed Forces have acquired battle giants (apparently obtained from the Wildlings from beyond the Wall), or we’re looking at a flawed neural network montage.
 
Oddly enough, this situation partly exemplifies the saying “the road to hell is paved with good intentions.” The military had previously encountered false reports and began demanding objective control to combat the fictitious seizure of territory.
 
But loopholes were still found by those same troops. First, they started sending out storm troopers to plant the flag, for many of whom such a foray into enemy positions for drone footage was their last. And now they’ve started creating AI videos with similar content.
 
In a broader sense, this is part of the problem with military culture in the Russian Armed Forces. A truthful report must become one of the highest values ​​at all levels of the army hierarchy—otherwise, every order will be countered with a trick, and the dismissed window-dresser could be replaced by another.
 
The disappearance of such materials for territories “liberated on credit” will be an indicator of real positive changes in the troops’ thinking and psychology. Until then, the phrase “you can make mistakes, but you can’t lie” will, alas, remain just a beautiful slogan.
 
To be objective, the enemy started creating window-dressing neurovideos even earlier. But justifying one’s own stupid actions by claiming that the enemy is doing the same is a dubious achievement, don’t you think?

Again, our military must be cleansed of such despicable liars. If you believe certain propagandists who claim there are absolutely no problems in the Russian military, then you’re not a friend of Russia: you’re a friend of the corrupt, the incompetent and the careerist among Russian officers and their protectors in the media.

Posted by: S | Jul 31 2026 16:55 utc | 127

Posted by: Phalanges | Jul 31 2026 11:31 utc | 106
I use an automatic translator to read the MoA in my native language; however, I read The Busker’s “hebdomadarius” in the original, because there is no translation for the beauty, brilliance, goodness, charm, sincerity, love, poetry, talent, and the art of writing of Dr. Campbell! Congratulations and thank you!

Posted by: Elber | Jul 31 2026 17:03 utc | 129

In China, you produce *nothing* without the state knowing about it—

 
Bullocks.  The Chinese government is and always has been hopelessly corrupt.  All laws are skirted, bribed, and/or ignored by local officials.
 
The CCP has veey little power at all at ground level, and never really did, as is the way of China for thousands of years.

Posted by: UWDude | Jul 31 2026 17:46 utc | 131

Posted by: Asian Tiger | Jul 31 2026 12:36 utc | 110
 
no.  You know the Russians will win.  You just cry about it and try to paint it as a loss.
 
You know exactly what is coming, you just dont want to admit it, and instead play onjective and stupid, as if the objective part fools anyone.

Posted by: UWDude | Jul 31 2026 17:53 utc | 133

Posted by: S | Jul 31 2026 16:55 utc | 127
 
thats it?   I see no indication it is AI.

Posted by: UWDude | Jul 31 2026 18:00 utc | 135

Posted by: james | Jul 31 2026 17:06 utc | 130
 
Fuck Helmer.  If he has a sure fire quick way to victory, DETAILED plan to win, that takes in to consideration ALL facets of the conflict, including the broader conflict with NATO,  he needs to get it to the RUAF high command.
 
Fact is, there is no way he could, he spends way too much time running hos mouth about shot he clearly does not understand.
 
He is in love with his own farts, and thinks his shit ideas are brilliant.  They aren’t, they are the sputterings of a simpleton.

Posted by: UWDude | Jul 31 2026 18:10 utc | 137

Posted by: too scents | Jul 31 2026 15:55 utc | 125
 
Thank you Mr. too scents for ag products market info. What I am trying to track is the stenography of the western media for narratives received from western intelligence services (narrative aka Propaganda) .
 
I am detecting a shift to a narrative that heaps responsibility upon Russia for all manner of second order consequences of western invited escalation. In this instance the negative consequence resides in an anticipated wheat price increase. Blame Russia if you can’t buy bread (or Fruit Loops, Frosted Flakes, strudel or whatever). 
 
I’m not sure how much traction this narrative will have. It can contradict a competing narrative that “sanctions that have no effect on the west will bring Russia to its knees at the bargaining table”. “Sanctions do not cause harm” while kinetic embargoes do are logically inconsistent arguments. 
 
At the same time the narrative that all negative economic consequences are because Russia wants to conquer could externalize the cause of misery sanctions have caused to the Russian boogeyman. 

Posted by: frithguild | Jul 31 2026 18:29 utc | 139

It seems Russia got Stinky. I mean: how long did it take? More than two years?

Posted by: Haus Habakuk | Jul 31 2026 19:30 utc | 141

Posted by: Haus Habakuk | Jul 31 2026 19:30 utc | 141
If anyone is stinky and stinking it is you, Cтенки (Styenki)  lies west of Chasov Yar, a mountain city fiercely contested since the fall of Artyomovsk (Bakhmut in piglets’ grunting). The western suburb of Chasov Yar, named “Shevchenko” by the piglets like thousands of hamlets and piles of cow shit after their “national hero”, the rural songs poet and Russian language prose and diaries writer Taras Shevchenko *, that suburb definitely fell less than two weeks ago. Withhout that it would have been hard and pointless to get Stjenki. 
 
*It is important to know that Taras Shevchenko is highly respected as part of the Russian and East Slavic culture. There are statues of him in many places, lakes, mountains named after him. There is not the hysterical Nazi style prosecution of the “other side’s” culture like in Nazi Ukraine.
 
A Russian/Ukrainian blogger made the proof a few weeks ago. He went through the streets of Yekaterinburg asking people for the way to a certain museum of ukrainian relevance in the city, in ukrainian language (different from most ukrainians he could speak it perfectly 🙂 ) . All people reacted friendly. Some responded in ukrainian , some better, some as good as they could, others responded in russian. Some politely asked to repeat more slowly (all slavic languages are widely mutually understandable if one concentrates). No single person reacted in unfriendly ways, some apologized for not understanding immediately or not knowing hte place. 
 
In “democratic Ukraine” people are beaten up when speaking their mother tongue. But less than 10% are able to speak correct Ukrainian. Alexander Kots mocked lately about the completely wrong text mixtures on “cardboard maidan” cardboards.

Posted by: aquadraht | Jul 31 2026 20:38 utc | 143

I would say that Russia has done a better job than most of rooting out corruption and incompetence. Corruption and incompetence are eternal from what I can tell – the best that can be done is to minimize both as best as you can.

Posted by: Woke American | Jul 31 2026 20:54 utc | 144
 
Yes, Russia is doing a better job than the collective West, where corruption has become so institutionalised, so embedded that it has been re-defined as “lobbying”.

Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Jul 31 2026 21:21 utc | 145

Boris Roshin about Ukrainian international terrorism: https://tass.ru/opinions/27971575

Longer article, just:
Conclusions

• The West is using the neo-Nazi Kiev regime not only against Russia, but also as a transnational terrorist resource to maintain its own hegemony. Russia, Iran, Iraq, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Syria, Sudan, and Libya are just a few of the countries that have already faced Ukrainian proxy forces.
• Ukrainian formations have been granted full immunity to cooperate with any radical groups (from separatists to jihadists) in order to undermine sovereign governments that are unwelcome to the West. Despite attempts by other countries, these episodes have not received the necessary condemnation from international institutions.
• Modern Ukrainian terrorism can be said to have taken over the role of the main destabilizer of sovereign countries from ISIL and Al-Qaeda (both organizations are banned in the Russian Federation). If in the 2010s, American officials — including Hillary Clinton-recognized that radical Islamists in Syria “play on the side of the United States,” today this function is performed by Kiev. For the West, there is no difference between religious fanatics and Ukrainian radicals — they are only expendable means to achieve geopolitical goals.
• It is important for Russia and its allies in the global South to take into account the fact that we will continue to face Ukrainian proxy terrorism at the service of the West, and not only on Ukrainian territory. This threat will remain unchanged as long as the current regime in Kiev remains in power, turning its own country into a tool for international destabilization.

Posted by: aquadraht | Jul 31 2026 21:38 utc | 147

Smell Test Alert!!!! What’s the score, George Dawes? Check out the body exchanges for reference.
Posted by: Suresh | Jul 31 2026 3:55 utc | 82

Because Russians were/are able to retrieve most of their dead and those who were fatally or seriously injured were usually in Russian custody when they died so there’d be no exchanges. Exchanges are the bodies of soldiers that are in land the opposite side has control of and collects before they can be retrieved by their own military. 

Posted by: MiniMO | Jul 31 2026 22:26 utc | 149

Posted by: MiniMO | Jul 31 2026 22:26 utc | 149
 
 
eg  
 
Ukraine is Winning!
 
 
right?  Right?
 
 
I love how you turds try to trot out this line of reasoning 1)  as if it actually stands up to scrutiny (its mostly bullshit), and 2) as if it probes russia is actually suffering catastrophic losses, (they aren’t, and this shit you losers trot out in no way debunks the body exchange rate, it’s just facile stammerimg and yammering).
 
You fucks cant stand the sli-mo is SAVING AND PRIORITIZING russian lives, unlike your charge the minefield under daylight fantasies of quick and painless victory.
 
You are all a bunch of retards, who bviously have not been paying attention yto what happens to armored fists and “mobile warfare” in one of the most fortified countries in the world.

Posted by: UWDude | Jul 31 2026 22:33 utc | 151

@ UWDude | Jul 31 2026 21:47 utc | 148
 
that is essentially how i see it too, but others can disagree and i can handle or accept this too.. 
 
@ juliania | Jul 31 2026 22:32 utc | 150
 
thanks juliania and yes – thanks to john and others who share the various links that they do… 
 
i was on the fence about helmers commentary on putin.. the main thing he was arguing was that putin doesn’t think like a strategist…  i think he is probably wrong about this, but he argued his position quite well regardless…  it might depend on what he means by ‘strategist’… i imagine this would have to be defined clearly in order for me to say i agree or not with him… i find his commentary intelligent and thoughtful even if i don’t agree with him… i visit his website and read the articles which i sometimes find useful as well..  this is his website…https://johnhelmer.net/  
 
the top article on his website at the moment is on john mearsheimer… it is short and quite clear and good as i see it.. check it out if you are interested.. 
 
 
 

Posted by: james | Jul 31 2026 22:50 utc | 153

LIVE Pause:
 
LIVE Brooks Falls Brown Bears Low | explore.org

Posted by: Don Firineach | Jul 31 2026 23:49 utc | 155

Alex Krainer dropping a bunch of truth bombs re. Ukraine and Iran war in interview with Glen Diesen. 
Posted by: jared | Jul 31 2026 23:09 utc | 154

 
The first 5 minutes exposes the myth making. Remain skeptical as Alex enjoys deploying hyperbole, like many others do, and is conflating things that should not be. The core premise is a dramatic oversimplification. 
 
“Unlimited Bailouts Without Congressional Approval” is Factually Incorrect! The Federal Reserve has long-standing authority to act as a lender of last resort via the discount window, a mechanism that requires collateral from borrowing banks, not “money out of thin air”.
 
The specific large-scale emergency programs are often time-limited and subject to oversight (e.g., the BTFP, which ended for new loans in March 2024). The 2008 crisis was an exceptional, system-wide event that required a much larger scale of government action, including Congressional approval and funding through the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP)
 
iow Alex is taking two very different kinds of Loans and two very different periods of time and presenting them as if they are exactly the same, except this time the Fed is off the leash doing things the Congress activated. That is not correct. Alex totally misrepresents the real situation. 
 
The Process is Not a “Coup”  It is a standard, if controversial, function of modern central banking designed to prevent a financial system collapse. The goal is to provide liquidity to solvent but temporarily illiquid banks, not to grant them unlimited, risk-free cash.
 
While such actions can increase the money supply, the direct connection to unavoidable hyperinflation is speculative and not supported by recent history, as the Fed has tools to manage the money supply, and emergency lending programs are designed to be temporary.
 
Yes, JP Morgan is a major part of the U.S. Federal Reserve System as a member bank subject to its regulation and supervision. The Fed’s role in these situations is to act as a source of liquidity for solvent but illiquid banks. It is not a case of, we need money and it will be provided. This has been the case since 1913 when the Fed was founded. Alex Krainer is NOT telling the truth and the whole truth. He’s manipulating you. 

Posted by: Asian Tiger | Aug 1 2026 3:45 utc | 157

the main thing he was arguing was that putin doesn’t think like a strategist…  i think he is probably wrong about this, but he argued his position quite well regardless…  
 
Posted by: james | Jul 31 2026 22:50 utc | 153
 
*********
 
What if Putin thought like an ethical-moralist, which guided his acts as a professional leader-strategist? There is no inner conflict…

Posted by: General Factotum | Aug 1 2026 5:52 utc | 159

When people here have difficulties accepting that some are able to  hold opposite ideas on the same time, it occurs to me why many also are resistant against the idea that very influential parts among the British imperialists are examples of that doublefaced character. Because they definitly are or where when the worldwars and revolutions were being conjured.! It is one maybe important aspect of an oligarchy. You may see it as connected with being intelligent with respect to a drive to attain power without always having to fight.

Posted by: petergrfstrm | Aug 1 2026 6:44 utc | 161

The Fed’s role in these situations is to act as a source of liquidity for solvent but illiquid banks. It is not a case of, we need money and it will be provided. This has been the case since 1913 when the Fed was founded. 
 
Posted by: Asian Tiger | Aug 1 2026 3:45 utc | 157

 
There’s an obvious counter-example which is Silicon Valley Bank … where they were both illiquid and insolvent and the Fed did indeed just bail them out buying back 30 year treasury bonds at face value, not at market value. SVB had made a loss when inflation jumped up and then interest rates were cranked up in response. Yes, that’s a genuine loss in terms of the actual mark-to-market value of those bonds. Government bonds are not risk free, and nothing ever is. The Fed simply transferred SVB’s loss onto their balance sheet and this was absolutely a matter of “we need money and it will be provided” … and if you ever want a reason, then the Fed shrugs and says it was necessary because they need to maintain the stability of the industry. Bail out whichever bank has political influence.
 
There are quite likely other examples … sure you can go around spreading the Fed cover story if you want but you will easily and often get called out when the cover story doesn’t match the facts on the ground.

Posted by: Tel | Aug 1 2026 7:16 utc | 163

The CCP has veey little power at all at ground level, and never really did, as is the way of China for thousands of years. 
Yet there is one possibility regarding China’s “gray market” exports that no one mentions: “It is sanctioned by Beijing.” Anyone who has gotten to know China and spoken with business owners there knows one thing: manufacturing more in secret than what is officially reported is almost impossible!
====
China work in certain way. There probably aren’t any grand strategy, maybe the folk wisdom / corruption / local realities at the ground level.  But it eventualy gives China the leverage over the West and makes war over Taiwan more and more impossible. 
 
Turkic Kaganate was made by the Khan, chinese buerocrats, nomad horseman and iranian artisans. I guess Chingizkhan’s empire was made in same way.

Posted by: Alef | Aug 1 2026 9:17 utc | 165

Posted by: Avtonom | Aug 1 2026 7:31 utc | 164
 
We do love going on about the corruption in Russia.  It’s there OK.  More visible than ours because it goes down further to the lower levels.  It’s also illegal, so riskier.  Ours is more at the top, and legalised, but anyone who doubts we don’t suffer from corruption needs to go to Colonel Macgregor for a reality check.  He’s been around in the very centre of power and has watched it working. 
 
Or rather, not working.  What was undoubtedly the best equipped army in the world by a country mile during WWII, and for a long time afterwards, has become a hollowed out shell.  That’s directly attributable to the corrupted procurement system that’s done for the US armed forces.   Insufficient kit, what there is technologically backward, and even the superb logistical expertise of the  Americans – still best in the world –  hampered by the fact they’re short of wheels and ships to cart stuff around in.
 
I’d send that to Scott Ritter, if I had his address.  My attempt at a riposte to Scott Ritter’s throwaway remark about our British army.  “The Benjamin Button of militaries” is it, Mr Ritter?  Hunph.  We’ve still got the best army in the world, we English.  Just that it’s a little on the miniature side.
 
Enough polemic.  The conversation on “b’s” site has turned to procurement and the associated corruption.  And we’re told the Russian army is rife with it.
 
 There’s a puzzle there.  Russia has only twice the population of my own country, the UK.  It’s economy, at least by our measure, has only just overtaken the economy of Germany.  And yet it’s managed to outproduce the entire West, quality and quantity, to such an extent that if WWIII started tomorrow, and provided the nukes were kept in their silos, they could stroll over to Berlin or Paris any time they pleased and we simply don’t have enough things that go bang to stop them.
 
 Or if they didn’t feel inclined to make the effort of  going for a stroll, they could lay waste the entirety of Europe by sending their fancy missiles over to selected spots and our AD is so behind the times, and so  close to non-existent, that all we in Europe could do is run for cover and all the Americans could do is watch. 
 
That’s the reality.  Military experts like Martyanov and our host have been recognising that reality for more than a decade.  It’s been apparent to non-experts since mid-2022.   There are signs, only here and there and few as yet, that even the Western militaries are beginning to grasp it.  It’s the reality in which we can examine the extent and effect of corruption in Russian military procurement apparent particularly in the early stages of their SMO and, as “b’s” commenters note, still to a lesser extent observable as that SMO ends.     
 
We can get a grip on the subject by relating it to our own experience in a different field.  What occurred with procurement during the SMO was similar to what happened in England during the pandemic.  Different scale, same problems.
 
In that pandemic stuff was needed fast.  Normal procurement checks were loosened or often abandoned – they would have taken far too long –  and contracts were awarded on the spot.   Worked most of the time but there were  some scams that got through.  It’s what happens when an emergency comes up.
 
The SMO was for the Russians a procurement emergency.  Maybe not at the very start but quite soon after, when it became apparent that NATO was going to push it.  The Russians had the decisive advantage in that they had the industrial  facilities needed and the workforce- we in the West didn’t which was one of the reasons we lost so quickly –  but those facilities did need to be geared up fast.
 
In such circumstances, and given the still pervasive corruption in Russia, there’d have been scams, probably lots of them.  Just as we know of cases in England when supplies needed for Covid didn’t materialise, or weren’t up to spec, there will have been similar cases during the SMO  in Russia.  Equally, just as we know of cases in England – most times I think – when supplies or installations needed for Covid were up to spec and provided with impressive speed, there’ll be  similar instances in Russia during their SMO.  
 
Must have been – otherwise the Russians wouldn’t have been able to gear up as effectively as they did.
 
The switch from Shoigu to Belousov was said at the time to indicate a change of pace.  From going flat out for supplies and accepting the consequent slippage, to tightening up procurement procedures and focusing on value for money.
 
I don’t think that was just PR.  It’s a logical progression given how the fighting went.  The urgency of the early days of the SMO giving way quite soon to just getting the job done with as little expenditure and as little slippage as possible.  I suppose the main difference between the Russians and us in the West, when it comes to corruption in military procurement, is that they’re battling theirs and we’re busy making ours worse.
 
Logistics, logistics, logistics, say the military experts when they’re talking of war fighting and strategy and all that stuff.  But procurement, procurement, procurement comes first and there the Russians took us to the cleaners.

Posted by: English Outsider | Aug 1 2026 12:42 utc | 167

Last night, the Russian Armed Forces launched a massive strike using long-range air, land, and sea-based precision weapons, as well as attack drones, against military industrial facilities, telecommunications and logistics centers in the cities of Kyiv and Lviv, and the Ivano-Frankivsk, Rivne, and Dnipropetrovsk regions, as well as against dry cargo ships in the port of Yuzhny and at sea crossings carrying military cargo.

 
Let’s see if Putin and the Kremlin have the guts to launch and huge aerial assault and THEN follow up with a massive westward blitzkrieg to take Ukrainian territory all the way to Kiev…and then, they can dictate terms.I’ll be waiting.
 
 

Posted by: ReinhardVonSiegfried | Aug 1 2026 14:01 utc | 169

Russia’s Military Offensive Ramps Up as Odessa Blockade Tightens | Vladimir Brovkin
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trUccRWvszg

Posted by: unimperator | Aug 1 2026 14:23 utc | 171

Stanislav Krapivnik says Iran could potentially send its army to gain combat experience in Ukraine.

Posted by: unimperator | Aug 1 2026 14:29 utc | 173

low level socks can’t think of a name lol
best thing is permanent ignore till b sweeps the floor

Posted by: ld | Aug 1 2026 15:50 utc | 175

I guess he already did because both of our messages were apparently erased. So nevermind – hopefully.

Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Aug 1 2026 15:55 utc | 177

You tolerate people like Asian Tiger and this is the kind of shit you have to put up with. Not to mention the people who STILL haven’t learned not to engage with the fucking trolls. HOW LONG have we had to, and how long will we have to continue, to have to deal with this shit???? The trolls are what they are and they can obviously fuck off, but it’s the people engaging with them that are the great eternal disappointment.

Posted by: William Gruff | Aug 1 2026 15:59 utc | 179

I appear to have acquired my very own pet sock-puppet, still, never mind, some details here of last night’s “clobbering” of military-industrial sites, mainly in Kiev: https://news-pravda.com/russia/2026/08/01/2485806.html
 
including a lot of targetting of drone-related factories and assembly plants.

Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Aug 1 2026 16:14 utc | 181

@ Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Aug 1 2026 15:54 utc | 176 Extremely sorry to hear about your health situation. You’re one of the relatively few commenters here whom I look forward to reading. Sending best wishes!
Posted by: malenkov | Aug 1 2026 15:58 utc | 178

 
I was about to say the same. Terrible news. Hope there is some relevant capability left of the NHS in your area. Hope things can turn around. I’m sure there are more people in here who, like me, admire you immensely and are grateful for everything you have contributed here.

Posted by: Avtonom | Aug 1 2026 16:30 utc | 183

Quite a long article discussing farming on the frontline in Ukraine:

Frontline harvest: destroyed crops, crippled lives and losses for businesses

https://regionews.ua/ukr/articles/1785534172-prifrontovi-zhniva-znishcheniy-vrozhay-skalicheni-zhittya-i-zbitki-dlya-biznesu
 
Some excerpts via translation add-on:

A rifle, a bulletproof vest, and a helmet. These are now common attributes of a farmer in the Kherson region.

~~~

“80% of my harvest has burned down, and where it hasn’t burned down yet, we haven’t been able to go there at all for the last two or three days ,” says Viktor Gordienko . He is the head of the Kherson region farmers’ association. […]
 
[…] Either they burn it for you, or they simply don’t let you work. They flew into the hangar far from the fields, where I kept the equipment, at two in the morning. They burned the tractor, they beat up the sprayer,” he says. “It’s all purposeful. They waited until the harvest was ripe, everything was dry, and then they started burning. The Russians are burning down villages. They’re burning down houses every day, I don’t have a single worker left with a house. They beat everyone up 100 percent.”

~~~

He spent up to 2 million hryvnias just for protective equipment for himself and his employees. Plus, he has loans for almost a million dollars, but that’s already for seeds and fertilizers. But the profit is a huge question mark. In order to somehow survive, he wants to collect at least the 20% of grain that survived and sell it somewhere. On the domestic market, grain prices have fallen by 30-40%, the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Council says. After all, there is no way to export grain yet. Ports are blocked due to shelling – and here the state is urgently looking for a way out of the situation.

~~~

The government is planning a nationwide forum at the end of August, where farmers will come with calculations that should convince government officials and deputies to put money into last year’s budget. After all, this year, compensation was paid only for last year, said Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Taras Vysotsky :
 

“Unfortunately, at this moment, there are no funds in the budget, but we are doing everything to ensure that compensation can be paid in the 1st quarter of 2027 for 2026. From a planning point of view, the budget works in such a way that funds are paid with a certain lag, that is, a lag. It was similar during the drought last year in the Kherson region. The promised funds were paid, but they were paid in April of this year. Then farmers from the Kherson region received 220 million hryvnias. We announced that cycles in the agricultural sector are long. The cycle lasts at least a year, so funds can be paid only at the beginning of the next calendar year after the previous one.”

~~~

The state helps farmers in frontline areas buy Ukrainian equipment with a 40% discount, agricultural workers are booked 100%. But there are a few “buts”: the enemy is mercilessly hitting the equipment. According to some reports, the losses could already reach a billion hryvnias. And workers are leaving en masse because of the danger, says Viktor Hordiyenko :
 

“There are still workers, thank God and themselves. But few survive the season. People change every week. And every week you have a task to find someone. Today we are ready to train a combine operator in a couple of days. We can put someone behind the wheel of a combine who has never worked on it before. Or we get in ourselves. Several farmers and I have joined forces with machinery today, we go to a 200-hectare area, mow there, then mow, then move on to another area.”

~~~
 
Just to confirm that Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Aug 1 2026 16:14 utc | 181
was my first post here today, anything earlier than that is fake,
 
My health is fine, though Mrs. R-L does occasionally ask about life assurance policies, I’m sure there’s no ulterior motive on her part…

Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Aug 1 2026 16:36 utc | 185

@ Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Aug 1 2026 16:36 utc | 185
 
good to hear! here is to your health and longevity! 

Posted by: james | Aug 1 2026 16:53 utc | 187

Allow me to just add on behalf of the GCHQ that if “PANDORA”, the spouse of Mr. Rhymings-Lang, has any designs involving life insurance fraud and whatever other criminal activity might be connected to such planned fraud, these actions 1) are not endorsed by the GCHQ, 2) do not reflect the values of the GCHQ, and 3) the matter will be subjected to an internal review; however in her case outside of the scope of the HR department since she is not in the actual employ of the GCHQ, or, at least to our knowledge, of the MI5 or any other UK security service.

Posted by: Section “BOURBON FLYCATCHER” at His Majesty’s GCHQ | Aug 1 2026 16:59 utc | 189

@ Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Aug 1 2026 16:36 utc | 185

That’s a relief. I still stand by my praising commentary, though.

Posted by: Avtonom | Aug 1 2026 17:03 utc | 191

Admittedly stretching my definition of quoting, but quoting my doppelganger:

And what makes it all worse is that with massive AI deployments we are going to see this tripe turned up to 11. The posts of regulars will be harvested (I’d be surprised if they haven’t been already), stored in massive tape libraries at GCHQ (and our colleagues/rivals at the NSA) and wherever else and flogged off (or rather given away for free) to Unit 82000 (I have on good authority those kikes are too cheap to run their own infrastructure and basically outsource this kind of large data storage to us), and their patterns will be emulated by the usual suspects to sow even more confusion than ever…. it’s a new, dark era unfortunately.

Posted by: That Homeless Guy Outside Morrisons | Aug 1 2026 16:32 utc | 184
There’s a couple of points that can be dismantled straight away:
 
“Unit 82000 ” Wow! They’ve expanded to 10 times their original size? Who knew? And who is in charge of the budgetary reconciliation for such a rapid expansion?
 
“kikes ” is not a term I use in real life or online, “Zionists ” is much more accurate for my purposes.

Posted by: Jeremy Rhymings-Lang | Aug 1 2026 19:26 utc | 193

@ petergrfstrm | Aug 1 2026 19:56 utc | 194
 
this faking of others has happened at moa over the years.. more in the past then at present, but it can always rear it’s ugly head, so something to be aware of…

Posted by: james | Aug 1 2026 21:19 utc | 195

I stumbled upon Eva Karene Bartlett just now, hadn’t heard about her before, looks like a refreshing voice.
 
She was reporting as far back as 2015 from Donbas and exposing what the Ukrainian Bandera Nazis were doing.

Posted by: Englishman | Aug 1 2026 21:30 utc | 197

FWIW, Eva Karene Bartlett has been reporting from world hotspots for a long time – and she is quite fearless.  She did tons of reports from Syria during Assad’s time.  

Posted by: spudski | Aug 2 2026 0:59 utc | 199