Oorlog in Oekraïne #928 Moedig voorwaarts

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Russia, Having Weathered an Aviation Crisis, Now Confronts a Railway Catastrophe as its Railroads Battle a Severe Locomotive Shortage Amidst Relentless Western Sanctions; Read Report
Western sanctions on high tech equipment and new or replacement parts for locomotives have reduced the Russian state-run rail system's ability to move freight.

Moscow, February 7, 2024 – The Russian state-owned railway, RZHD, finds itself in a severe locomotive shortage, a crisis exacerbated by Western sanctions on critical parts supplies.

Since the latter half of 2023, RZHD has been grappling with a dwindling number of operational locomotives as the volume and duration of rolling stock repairs have surged due to a shortage of sanctioned imported components.

Reports from the Russian publication Vedomosti corroborate the challenges faced by RZHD, shedding light on the severity of the situation.

According to representatives of the state monopoly, the crisis reached a critical juncture in the fourth quarter of 2023, prompting urgent efforts to address the issue with service providers.

While nominally, RZHD has sufficient locomotives for cargo transportation, the operational capacity of the Russian railway network is steadily declining.

The ramifications of this crisis are particularly pronounced on the Sverdlovsk railway, where extended periods of locomotive downtime during repairs are disrupting operations.

Sources close to RZHD reveal that repair operations need to be conducted more effectively, leading to frequent breakdowns of locomotives during transit.

Mikhail Burmistrov, the general director of Infoline-Analytics, underscores the gravity of the situation, highlighting a decline in the technical readiness ratio of the locomotive fleet from 95 per cent to 93 per cent by mid-2023, with further deterioration noted in January 2024.

With approximately 20,000 traction rolling stock units scattered across the RZHD network, repair responsibilities are distributed among various entities, including Lokotech and STM service.

However, these service providers need help with their own challenges, including losing access to specialized components due to sanctions.

Burmistrov further elucidates that a shortage of skilled personnel exacerbates the crisis besides procurement difficulties.

While efforts are underway to integrate domestically produced locomotives into the fleet, the transition is marred by reliability issues and insufficient availability.

Parallel challenges confront the Russian civilian aviation sector in the aftermath of the country’s full-scale invasion.

Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin’s pledge to bolster domestic aircraft production echoes President Putin’s vision of self-sufficiency by 2030. However, recent safety incidents underscore the urgency of this initiative.

Since the onset of the new year, numerous safety-related incidents involving foreign commercial aircraft operated by Russian airlines have been reported.

From technical malfunctions to emergency landings, these incidents underscore the precarious state of the industry.

To mitigate the impact of sanctions, S7 airline announces staff layoffs amidst constraints in fleet maintenance.

The decision reflects the broader repercussions on aviation employment, with a significant portion of its aircraft grounded due to sanctions-related issues.

In a related development, Rosaviatsiya directs airlines to suspend the usage of specific aircraft on flights to Egypt, citing the risk of impoundment.

This directive follows legal disputes surrounding leased aircraft, underscoring the far-reaching consequences of sanctions on Russian aviation operations.

The locomotive shortage plaguing Russian railways and challenges in the aviation sector paints a grim picture of the nation’s transportation infrastructure.

As authorities grapple with the immediate ramifications of sanctions, the long-term implications for Russia’s economic and logistical landscape remain uncertain.

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Leading Chinese bank halts operations in Russia, Belarus
China's Chouzhou Commercial Bank has notified its clients in Russia and Belarus that it is ending all of its operations there due to payment issues associated with Western sanctions, the Russian state-controlled media outlet Vedomosti reported on Feb. 7, citing sources.

The news appears to be related to enhanced restrictions the U.S. announced in December 2023 to target financial institutions that help support Russia's war effort. The measures expanded sanctions authority over any financial institutions "determined to have conducted or facilitated any significant transactions...or provided any services" for already sanctioned individuals or companies involved in Russia's military-industrial complex.

Sources told Vedomosti that all payments have been impacted, not just those that use SWIFT.

Russian and Chinese payment systems still produce records viewable by Western regulators regardless of their SWIFT usage. Western sanctions enforcers have been putting increased pressure on Chinese banks to access transactions associated with Russia.

Major Chinese banks have reportedly strengthened their compliance with Western sanctions after the new U.S. restrictions were announced in December 2023.

Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said at the time that the measures would apply even to unwitting financial partners, putting the onus on financial institutions and exporters in third-party countries to preemptively prevent any potential collaboration with Russia's military-industrial complex.

A Russian financial analyst told Vedomosti that so far, not all transactions with Chinese banks have been halted, and payments using Chinese yuan may still be possible, albeit at a slower pace.

Most of the top Chinese banks have branches in the U.S., making them vulnerable to sanctions enforcement.

"China’s political will is not used at the expense of its own interests, and the Chinese logically want to avoid their banks being subjected to Western sanctions," the analyst told Vedomosti.

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Ex-Wagner commander who fled to Norway has asylum request rejected
Andrey Medvedev, the former Wagner Group commander who made headlines in January 2023 for escaping to Norway, had his asylum request rejected by Norwegian authorities, his lawyer told Reuters on Feb. 6.

Since Medvedev’s first arrival in Norway, he spoke out about various war crimes committed by the Wagner Group and said he was willing to testify against the late former Wagner Group commander, Yevgeny Prigozhin. Medvedev was also arrested by Norwegian police in February 2023 after a bar fight.

After stating that he feared for his life if he were to return to Russia, Medvedev sought asylum in Norway but also expressed concern that he might be extradited to Ukraine for his role in war crimes committed by Wagner Group forces.

Medvedev's lawyer told Reuters that his asylum request was rejected because the Norwegian government did not consider him to have been an official member of the Russian armed forces.

While Medvedev's asylum request was denied, Norway does not plan to deport him, his lawyer said.

"He risks being punished for desertion and being killed by people from Wagner," Medvedev's lawyer said, adding that he plans to appeal the case.

It is unclear how the supposed threat against Medvedev's life in Russia has changed since September 2023, when he was arrested after he allegedly tried to illegally cross back into Russia from Norway, supposedly over fears he would be extradited to Ukraine.

Medvedev had previously told a local Norwegian newspaper that he had no plans to return to Russia.

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Iranian diplomat dies in Moscow
An Iranian diplomat at the embassy in Moscow allegedly died in a fitness club on February 4, according to the Russian newspaper Izvestia.

The paper identified the man as “A. Jahangiri,” 66, saying he felt unwell while exercising on a treadmill and died soon afterwards.

There is a long history of Iranian and Russian diplomats dying in sudden circumstances in recent years. Jahangiri’s death comes amid growing discontent in Tehran with Moscow’s handling of its security contracts with the country, with one Iranian MP accusing Russia of Betrayal.

Preliminary information revealed that the diplomat's sudden death was caused by a blood clot rupturing during training in a gym, according to the Russian newspaper.

Neither the Iranian embassy nor Persian media have published any reports on the tragic death of the embassy employee, which is now adding to questions on social media for the blackout.

This is not the first instance of sudden death of Iranian officials and their families in Moscow. The daughter of the former Iranian Ambassador Mehdi Sanaei died after a reported “heart attack,” according to Russian media reporting on the late-night occurrence.

Emerging reports of suicide in the diplomatic mission were called a provocation by the Iranian mission at the time.

“This was not the case; the embassy refutes this, the embassy noted, adding that she had a heart attack,” it said in response.

Meanwhile, Russian diplomat Konstantin Alekseev, who worked in the embassy in Tehran and consulate in Rasht, was reportedly found dead by his wife in December 2023 in their apartment in Moscow.

It was unclear if the diplomat, returning from Rasht in 2019, was still involved with Iran.

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Russia began exchanging oil for Indian bananas
The Russian authorities are launching a “banana scheme” to solve the problem of trade imbalance with India, which increased oil purchases from the Russian Federation 11 times after the start of the war, but did not launch a return flow of goods into the Russian market.

In January, the first batch of bananas left India for Russia, the press service of Rosselkhoznadzdor reported on Tuesday. The department emphasized that the decision to open the Russian market for Indian bananas was made after long negotiations and supply volumes will increase.

“The next delivery is planned until the end of February,” Rosselkhoznadzor said, adding that Russia has no restrictions on the import of fruits and vegetables from India, and local farmers are also interested in exporting mangoes, pineapples, papaya and guava.

India is the world's largest producer of bananas: last year, according to FAO, the country grew 33 million tons of this fruit. Russia is the world's main banana importer, accounting for a fifth of all purchases in the world.

Indian bananas will replace Ecuadorian bananas on the Russian market: in early February, Rosselkhoznadzor banned their import after discovering a polyphagous humpback fly in several batches. The decision was made after the Ecuadorian government announced the transfer of Soviet weapons to the United States for subsequent shipment to Ukraine.

Bananas should plug the “hole” in the Russian-Indian trade balance and, perhaps, solve the problem of rupees stuck in India, the volume of which, according to Reuters, could reach $39 billion. We are talking about the money with which Indian refineries paid for Russian oil, obeying the demand to carry out transactions in national currencies. However, it turned out to be impossible to withdraw rupees from India: local currency regulations prohibit this. Since late 2022, Russian officials have been pressing India for reciprocal supplies to Russia so that the accumulated rupees can be spent. The Indian government was asked to export equipment to the Russian Federation: pistons, oil pumps, ignition coils, bumpers, equipment for the textile industry, as well as threads and paints and almost 200 goods for metallurgy. But it was not possible to get the process off the ground.

At its peak, in the summer of 2023, India purchased more than 2 million barrels of Russian oil daily. By early 2024, supplies had dropped sharply to 1.2 million barrels per day. At the same time, India refused to accept 14 tankers with Sokol oil in its ports after the United States imposed sanctions against the Kremlin’s “shadow fleet.”

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Customs service general fired after drunken brawl in Kaliningrad
Lieutenant General Oleg Zavgorodniy, who caused a drunken brawl during a business trip to Kaliningrad, resigned from the Federal Customs Service (FCS). The department's press service reported that he himself submitted his resignation.

“We confirm the fact of the dismissal of the head of the main logistics department of the Federal Customs Service of Russia O. A. Zavgorodniy at his own request on February 6, 2024,” the service noted ( quoted from RIA Novosti).

On February 5, the general was detained for disorderly conduct in Kaliningrad, where he came on a business trip to participate in a meeting on the results of the work of the regional customs for 2023. A video has spread online showing Zavgorodniy lying in handcuffs on the floor of a police station, threatening members of the Russian Guard and kicking them.

The telegram channel “VChK-OGPU” wrote that after arriving in Kaliningrad, a high-ranking customs officer, together with colleagues from Moscow, settled in the five-star Crystal House hotel, in a room with an area of ​​300 m², accommodation in which costs 235 thousand rubles per day.

After drinking alcohol in the hotel restaurant, the general began to behave aggressively and attracted the attention of the hotel security, who called the National Guard squad with a panic button. Upon the arrival of the officers, Zavgorodny got into a fight, first with the guards, and then with them, after which he was detained and taken to the department.

According to the channel, along with Zavgorodniy, the deputy head of the Federal Customs Service, Colonel-General Andrei Strukov, took part in the brawl at the hotel, but after the squad arrived, he locked himself in the room and then helped the detainee to freedom. Zavgorodny was never able to take part in the board.

According to sources, after this the Federal Customs Service tried to hush up the scandal and sent the general on sick leave, but in the end it eventually came to dismissal. However, he retained all the privileges and compensation. The Federal Customs Service has not yet decided what to do with Strukov.

The story of the rowdy behavior of high-ranking customs officers reached the Kremlin. Presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that he was not in the know and advised that the details of the incident be clarified with the relevant departments.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 08:34 schreef xpompompomx het volgende:
nice

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Bonus biem:
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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 10:41 schreef Barbusse het volgende:
Tegenstander van Poetin mag niet meedoen aan presidentsverkiezingen

[ afbeelding ]

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 10:41 schreef Barbusse het volgende:
Tegenstander van Poetin mag niet meedoen aan presidentsverkiezingen

[ afbeelding ]

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 11:41 schreef Elan het volgende:

О�танн� фаза на�тупу 2023: жор�ткі бої 3 ОШБр на шл�ху до звільненн� �ндріївки

Bizar. Alsof je een potje Warzone zit te kijken.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 10:58 schreef MaxMark het volgende:

[..]
*Insert mild shock*

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 14:30 schreef Perrin het volgende:
wtf Elon?!
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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 14:30 schreef Perrin het volgende:
wtf Elon?!
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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 14:30 schreef Perrin het volgende:
wtf Elon?!
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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 17:08 schreef Ulx het volgende:
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Roulatie aan de top.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 17:08 schreef Ulx het volgende:
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Roulatie aan de top.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 17:50 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:
Geen Budanov dus.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 11:41 schreef Elan het volgende:

О�танн� фаза на�тупу 2023: жор�ткі бої 3 ОШБр на шл�ху до звільненн� �ндріївки

Bizar. Alsof je een potje Warzone zit te kijken.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 18:28 schreef Pleun2011 het volgende:

[..]
Indringende film. Ik lees hier een beetje mee en zag laatst een paar enigszins laffe users verkondigen dat ze liever zouden vluchten dan in dienst te gaan, mochten de Russen aan de poort rammelen. Voor dat soort figuren past het woord 'faggots' wel. In het filmpje roepen de Oekrainers dit steeds naar de Russen.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 18:04 schreef Nebelwerfer het volgende:

[..]
Deze keuze is ook veel logischer. Nu nog hopen dat het de juiste blijkt.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 18:55 schreef Perrin het volgende:
Die special ops teams hebben het maar druk achter de linies.
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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 18:28 schreef Pleun2011 het volgende:

[..]
Indringende film. Ik lees hier een beetje mee en zag laatst een paar enigszins laffe users verkondigen dat ze liever zouden vluchten dan in dienst te gaan, mochten de Russen aan de poort rammelen. Voor dat soort figuren past het woord 'faggots' wel. In het filmpje roepen de Oekrainers dit steeds naar de Russen.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 18:51 schreef Elan het volgende:

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Ik vermoed dat Nederlanders zich ook niet meer zo goed kunnen identificeren met hun land. Om uiteenlopende redenen.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 19:20 schreef Joppiez het volgende:

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Komt denk ik omdat Nederland tegenwoordig een samengeraapte hoop van allerlei culturen en etniciteiten is zonder iets van een eenheid. Zomaar een gokje.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 19:21 schreef Perrin het volgende:

[..]
Ja vroeger tijdens de verzuiling, toen waren we pas een eenheid.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 18:55 schreef Perrin het volgende:
Die special ops teams hebben het maar druk achter de linies.
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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 19:21 schreef Perrin het volgende:

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Ja vroeger tijdens de verzuiling, toen waren we pas een eenheid.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 19:23 schreef Joppiez het volgende:

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Het is er in ieder geval niet beter op geworden.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 18:55 schreef Perrin het volgende:
Die special ops teams hebben het maar druk achter de linies.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 19:20 schreef Joppiez het volgende:

[..]
Komt denk ik omdat Nederland tegenwoordig een samengeraapte hoop van allerlei culturen en etniciteiten is zonder iets van een eenheid. Zomaar een gokje.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 19:28 schreef Perrin het volgende:

[..]
[ afbeelding ]

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 19:59 schreef Joppiez het volgende:

[..]
Tja of gewoonweg niet willen sterven of gehandicapt worden door een domme oorlog. Je leeft maar 1 keer, dus als hier de pleuris uitbreekt pak ik ook de eerste de beste mogelijkheid naar Amerika/Canada/Australie enz

SPOILER

Om spoilers te kunnen lezen moet je zijn ingelogd. Je moet je daarvoor eerst gratis Registreren. Ook kun je spoilers niet lezen als je een ban hebt.

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Op zaterdag 3 februari 2024 10:44 schreef Ulx het volgende:

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Hang de Russische vlag nog maar niet in top. Er zal best wat gedoe zijn achter de schermen, en dat Zelenskyy niet blij is geloof ik ook wel, maar Zalushny is niet ontslagen of tot vertrekken gedwongen.

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Ukraine's president has sacked the commander-in-chief of the country's armed forces, Valerii Zaluzhnyi.

It follows speculation about a rift between the president and Gen Zaluzhnyi, who has led Ukraine's war effort since the conflict began.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 19:40 schreef Ulx het volgende:
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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 01:40 schreef oheng het volgende:
Het lijkt erop dat Avdiivka verloren is als ik de geluiden uit die richting mag geloven. Al een tijd terug is de weerstand minimaal. Artillerie tekort is nijpend.

De stad wordt simpelweg aan puin geschoten. Met burgers en al.

Oja, hier zijn de gelekte russische bestanden. Zou ze nog doorlezen maar heb geen tijd. Shaheed drones blijken een factor 10 keer zo duur te zijn als werd aangenomen.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 20:20 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

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Betekend dit dat de hulp er nu gaat komen? En dat de republikeinen nu de grensgebeuren kunnen vergeten door hun eigen domme fout door het steeds weer afwijzen van de toezeggingen/de lat steeds hoger te leggen?

Dat ze nu dus om het congress heen gewerkt hebben?

Of betekend dit eigenlijk nog helemaal niks/iets heel anders?

Amerikaanse politiek is zo nu en dan een beetje verwarrend.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 20:42 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]
Dit gaat gewoon om de presidentsverkiezingen. Van republikeinse kant is het in stant houden van de grensproblematiek waarschijnlijk een methode om de verkiezingen in het voordeel van Trump te kunnen beslechten. Biden probeerde doormiddel van koehandel dit toch er door te krijgen.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 19:17 schreef Akkerdjie het volgende:

[..]
Mja, het gros in Nederland zou niet meevechten. Jij waarschijnlijk ook niet als je de statistieken volgt. Het is ook een vrij rationele keuze in een land waar het leven niet ronduit kut is. Je hebt immers meestal wel wat geld hier om elders een leven op te bouwen. Als die niet-faggots die zijn gaan vechten toen de oorlog in Oekraine uitbrak zijn dood.

Lekker boeiend wat mensen van je vinden. Het zijn altijd de armen die de eer krijgen te mogen sneuvelen voor hun plaatselijke elite.

https://www.defensieplatf(...)en%20in%20Defensie).

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Senate advances $95 billion Ukraine, Israel funding bill, faces uphill battle as budget talks loom
• The Senate advanced a motion to begin debate on a $95 billion package to fund Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, which was a stripped-down version of the Senate’s failed $118 billion bill.
• The vote allows debate to begin on the aid package, days before their two-week recess and with only a few weeks until government shutdown deadlines in early March.
• Ukraine funding disagreements caused a near government shutdown in September and senators have been trying to negotiate a compromise in the months since.

Senators on Thursday advanced a foreign aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, garnering momentum for a funding package that has been a persistent thorn in the side of federal budget talks over the past few months.

By a final tally of 67-32, senators voted to begin debate on a $95 billion aid package to fund Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and humanitarian aid in war-torn regions.

“This is a good first step,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. said on the Senate floor following the vote.

The bill still faces an uphill battle as senators now begin discussion on amendments with just a few days until they are supposed to break for two weeks.

If senators postpone talks for the two-week recess, the aid package will likely get sidelined as budget negotiations take the front seat, given looming government shutdown deadlines on March 1 and March 8.

The $95 billion bill was a stripped-down version of the Senate’s $118 billion bipartisan funding package, which was released on Sunday.

The initial, more expensive bill failed Wednesday in a 49-50 vote after days of Republican opposition to the border security provisions.

Anticipating that the first vote would fail, Schumer devised a plan to force a vote on the new $95 billion version of the bill, this time subtracting the disputed border security elements.

“For all those Republicans who first said, ‘We want it with border,’ and now say, ‘We want it without border,’ they got both options,” Schumer said Wednesday morning.

The success of Thursday’s vote is a hopeful next step for an issue that has been a point of paralysis for budget negotiations in the past.

Ukraine aid was the centerpiece of a particularly dramatic saga in September. House Republican hardliners tanked a budget deal in opposition to $6 billion of Ukraine aid. At the time, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy agreed to remove the Ukraine funding and pass a short-term bill to keep the government running. Days later, McCarthy was ousted from his post.

Since then, Congress has continued to keep the government’s lights on with short-term, stopgap budget measures, called continuing resolutions, passed hastily at several different points over the past year to avoid government shutdowns.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has been adamant about his disdain for continuing resolutions.

“I think operating by CRs and shutting down the government is a dereliction of duty,” he said in December.

Still, deadlocked congressional disagreements have forced Johnson’s hand. In January, he helped pass yet another continuing resolution to avoid a government shutdown, which now expires in early March.

With roughly a month until that short-term budget dries up, passing the aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan could leave lawmakers with one less thing to fight over and help clear a path toward a long-term budget.

But Johnson’s hatred for CRs might not be enough to outweigh his desire to torpedo the Senate’s foreign aid bill. Even if senators can pass the $95 billion, border-less bill, House Republicans have not confirmed which way they will swing on it.

“The House will review the Senate’s product,” Speaker Johnson’s office said in a statement on Wednesday. “The Speaker believes the House should review each issue individually on its merits.”

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The UN commission has called on the Russian Federation to stop deporting Ukrainian children
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has demanded an immediate cessation of Russia's forced removal of children from Ukraine.

The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has issued a damning indictment against Russia, urging an immediate cessation of the forced removal of children from Ukraine. Voice of America reports that the committee's latest findings underscore a dire situation requiring urgent attention.

Russia Urged to Cease Forced Export of Children from Ukraine
In a sternly worded report, experts from the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child have called on Russia to halt its practice of forcibly exporting or deporting children from the occupied territories of Ukraine. The report demands transparency from the Russian Federation, insisting on the disclosure of the exact number of children taken from Ukraine and the swift facilitation of their return home.

The committee's findings highlight Russia's violation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child by stripping deported children of their Ukrainian citizenship. This action underscores a blatant disregard for international law and human rights standards.

Bragi Gudbrandson, a member of the UN Human Rights Committee, expressed grave concerns over reports of sexual exploitation and gender-based violence in Ukraine, Crimea, and Sevastopol, areas currently under Russian occupation. The committee emphasizes the urgent need for intervention to address these egregious violations of children's rights.

Allegations of War Crimes
Gudbrandson highlighted accusations of war crimes directed at the Russian Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights, raising serious doubts about Russia's commitment to upholding international norms and protecting children in conflict zones.

The committee underscored the importance of protecting children from all forms of violence, including abuse and neglect. Urgent measures are needed to ensure that children are provided with appropriate support and intervention to prevent further victimization.

The UN expressed deep concern over the politicization and militarization of schools, emphasizing the need for education systems to promote values of peace, tolerance, and mutual understanding. Attempts to rewrite school curricula to serve military-political agendas are condemned as detrimental to the well-being of children.

Violation of Children's Rights in Ukraine
During discussions on Ukraine, the Russian Federation faced severe criticism for violating children's rights, including the killing and injury of hundreds of children due to indiscriminate attacks. The forced displacement and deportation of children from Ukraine were also condemned as grave violations of human rights.

The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child emphasized the importance of ensuring access to education for all children, including those belonging to ethnic groups and indigenous communities in Crimea. Education in the Ukrainian language must be made available to promote cultural diversity and inclusion.

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Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 21:12 schreef sp3c het volgende:
@:achja

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ANALYSIS: Use of Another Putin ‘Wonder Weapon’ – Sign of Russian Determination or Desperation?
The 40 plus strong missile attack on Ukraine on Wednesday probably saw the first appearance of the “Tsirkon” hypersonic missile that Putin has been “promising” to use for over a year.

Among the debris found following the Feb. 7 Russian missile attack on Ukraine, was what appears to be the remnants of a 3M22 Tsirkon (or Zircon) hypersonic missile which was one of Moscow’s “wonder weapons” first revealed in March 2018.

The 3M22 was not included in the official breakdown of missiles shot down during Wednesday’s attack given by Ukrainian Air Force’s, which only mentioned Kh-555/101 and Kalibr cruise and Shahed drones. However, earlier in the morning, they had warned of the approach of a “high-velocity missile” towards Kyiv.

Military commentators feel that, as the wreckage was found adjacent to powerlines in the Dniprovsky district of Kyiv, this was an unlikely target for a multi-million-dollar missile, making it probable that it was indeed shot down by Ukrainian air defense.

The Monitor Telegram channel first drew attention to the missile as being “something different” and said had been fired from a land-based launcher in occupied Crimea.

They described the missile as flying on an “atypical trajectory,” different, but similar, to that previously witnessed when Onyx and Kinzhal missiles were fired on Ukraine.

While markings on the missile wreckage indicated that it was indeed from a Tsirkon, they seem to be hand written which, along with the fact it did not reach hypervelocity during flight, casts some doubt on its identification. It is possible that this was a “prototype” and another example of Russia deploying a “test sample” to see how it would perform.

Russia’s armed forces test-fired the Tzirkon in public for the first time in December 2022, after which Putin announced that from the following January Russian ships, specifically the newly-commissioned Admiral Gorshkov frigate and the Severodvinsk nuclear submarine, would be armed with the weapon.

Tzirkon was slated to replace the P-700 Granit and P-800 Oniks anti-ship missiles using the universal UKSK 3S14 missile launcher, in a move the Kremlin described as making Moscow's international security guarantees “more convincing.”

Little is really known about the Tzirkon other than the few details Russia has let slip and its designation as a hypervelocity is based purely on those. It has not been seen to achieve such speed either during its earlier testing or on this operational deployment.

So far, the exact tactical and technical characteristics of the product have not been officially reported with publicly released specifications changing over time.

Russia’s Ministry of Defense announced it had been accepted into service in June 2022 and mass production would start immediately. At the time they mentioned it would have a 300-kilogram warhead, a range of 400 kilometers and a flight speed of Mach 6 (Mach 5 being the usually recognized hypervelocity threshold).

During his December 2022 announcement, however, Putin claimed a range of 1,000 kilometers at a speed of Mach 9.

As neither of the naval vessels known to carry the missile have access to the Black Sea, because of Turkish-imposed constraints, and Monitor’s suggestion the missile was fired from land in the Crimean Peninsula there are questions concerning the platform used to launch the Tsirkon (if that is what it was).

The most likely candidate seems to be the K-300 Bastion coastal defense system which had earlier been adapted to fire the Oniks anti-ship missiles for attacks on residential areas, infrastructure, grain storage and handling facilities in Odesa.

While, if the wreckage recovered in Kyiv is from a Tsirkon, it would suggest that it is likely to be as vulnerable to Ukraine’s more capable air defense systems such as Patriot as the KH72 Kinzhal has been.

The greater threat is, however, because unlike the “early warning” that take-off of the MIG-31Ks which carry the Kinzhals gives a land-based system can be launched without prior warning.

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NYT: American officials confirm Patriot missile shot down Il-76 plane
The American-made Patriot missile system is likely responsible for the Russian Il-76 plane crash, American officials anonymously told The New York Times. The plane was also likely carrying at least some Ukrainian prisoners, officials reported.

Russia's Il-76 military transport plane crashed in the country's Belgorod region on Jan. 24, allegedly killing everyone on board.

The cause of the crash is unclear, with Russia claiming that Ukraine's military shot the plane down as it carried 65 Ukrainian POWs. Kyiv has demanded an international probe into the incident.

Ukraine's military intelligence agency did not confirm whether prisoners were on the plane nor have they commented on what might have caused the crash.

Ukrainian officials did reveal that a prisoner exchange had been planned for that day.

Ukrainian military sources told Ukrainska Pravda that the plane was carrying S-300 missiles, regularly used by Russia to strike Kharkiv Oblast.

The Patriot air defense system is a crucial component in protecting Ukrainian air space from Russian missile attacks.

Although American officials have been unable to confirm who was on the plane, sources told the NYT that it appeared probable that at least some of the passengers were Ukrainian prisoners.

The New York Times reported that American officials would not comment on what brought down the plane publicly. According to the news outlet officials who spoke privately on the condition of anonymity said that it was in fact the Patriot missiles.

After Russia claimed that 65 Ukrainian POWs were killed in the crash, Ukraine requested that Russia return the bodies of the killed POWs home.

Russia's government never responded to the appeal. Russia also reportedly blocked the International Committee of Red Cross from investigating the circumstances of the crash.

Officials report that Ukraine likely acted on weak intelligence as the plane was previously used to transport missiles, making it a valuable target for Ukraine's military.

quote:

Russia may be trying to build 10,000 attack drones a year for use in Ukraine
A purported cache of stolen Iranian documents also suggests Moscow is paying a lot more than expected.

Is Russia aiming to build 10,000 Shahed-136 loitering munitions a year?

Plans for massive domestic production of the 200-kg, 2,500-km Iranian-designed suicide drones—and the high price Moscow is paying for them—are just two of the purported revelations of files that an Iranian hacking group says it stole from a company controlled by Tehran’s leading paramilitary arm.

On Feb. 4, the Prana hacking group released thousands of emails and multiple documents that it claimed to have purloined from Sahara Thunder, which it calls a front company for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Defense One could not confirm the authenticity of the documents.

Much of the metadata of the files had been deleted, making it difficult to determine whether the files were authentic, said Ruslan Trad, a resident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab.

One of the documents, dated “November 2022,” describes a trip to Iran earlier that year by employees of Alabuga, a state-owned company that manages a large industrial park in Russia. In August 2023, the Washington Post reported, citing its own leaked documents, that Alabuga was central to a plan to build 6,000 Shahed-136s.

The file posted by Prana said Russia had agreed to buy the technology and components to assemble 6,000 “Dolphin 632 boats.” It also said Russia would produce up to 10,000 a year once it had received all the relevant technology.

But numerous details in the Prana files suggest that these “boats” are in fact UAVs. The “November 2022” document, for example, lists such components as “avionics,” jet-assisted take-off, and a Nassir-2 anti-jamming system.

A separate, Alabuga-branded slideshow titled “Factory Production,” describes the “boat” as including a fuselage and elevons. Their construction requires specialists in “REB,” a Russian acronym referring to electromagnetic warfare.

Other documents, by contrast, seemed to go into exhaustive detail to try to hide that the boat is a drone, with one production schedule listing various boat-related parts.

It is unclear whether the “Dolphin 636” is the Shahed-136, although other documents in the Prana dump explicitly discuss the drone’s technical characteristics. One Alabuga-branded slideshow, "motor boat production technology,” offers multiple images of the propeller-driven aircraft.

And if the drone is in fact the Shahed-136, the documents suggest that Moscow has paid a heftier-than-expected price for the weapon, which it has used in large numbers during its invasion of Ukraine.

Iran initially wanted to charge Moscow a licensing and component fee of $375,000 to assemble each Shahed-136 in Russia, which negotiated that down to $193,000 apiece for 6,000 drones, according to the “November 2022” document.

That price is six times the previously estimated cost of the drone, which is made from low-cost components and carries a 40-kilogram warhead.

Many of the components can be acquired locally, with around 10 percent of components coming from abroad, according to the document.

Russia is also seeking to license-produce several other types of Iranian drones, according to a document titled “April 2023.” These include two variants of a “236” drone—one turbo-powered, and one piston-powered with a “seeker”—and type “107” reconnaissance and strike drones.

The 107 is presumably the Shahed-107 drone, while the 236 is likely in the same product family as the jet-powered Shahed-238.

The prices for the 236 seeker variant is given as $900,000, $1.4 million for the 236 turbo-jet, and $460,000 for the 107 drone, according to the document. The price of the 236 turbo-jet makes it more expensive than the estimated cost of Russia’s Kalibr cruise missile.

The document also said the delivery schedule would depend on its “partner’s” production capabilities. For each category of drone, deliveries would be between ten and 100 per month for the next six months, but eventually ramp up to hundred per month, for a total of 2,130 of the 236 seekers, 677 of the 236 jet-powered drones, and 3,360 of the type 107 drones.

The Shahed-136 reportedly has a range of 1,500 miles, but its top speed is just over 100 miles an hour, making it an easy target for Ukrainian air defenses. In one attack in November, officials claim to have destroyed 74 of 75 incoming drones. Russia has occasionally been successful in using the drone against Ukraine’s infrastructure, including one attack that knocked out Odesa’s electrical system.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 21:11 schreef sp3c het volgende:

[..]
imo een beetje een flutonderzoekje wmb, oorlog is zo ver weg voor Nederland en Nederlanders, je hebt geen idee hoe je reageert als je moedertje beschoten wordt en je basisschool platgebombardeerd is

net zoiets als vragen of je op het water zou staan als het keihard is geworden

in de Sahelregio zeggen ze fuck no, waarom zou het water keihard zijn geworden?

in Nederland zeggen we IT ... GIET .... OAN!!!!!!

BIETCHES!

geschiedenis leert ons dat de Nederlander komt vechten als het moet

quote:

Experienced Ukrainian pilot killed in action

Vladislav Rykov, a highly experienced Ukrainian Air Force pilot, was killed in action on Feb. 7, the 299th Tactical Aviation Brigade reported on social media.

Rykov "had 385 sorties under his belt — he was the best pilot and commander I knew," fellow Air Force pilot Rostyslav Lazarenko posted on Facebook. "My heart was ripped out yesterday."

No further details about Rykov's death were provided.

A month earlier, Vladyslav Zalistovskyi, a 23-year-old MiG-29 pilot known by the call sign "Blue Helmet," was also killed during a combat mission.

He was known through his Instagram channel named Blue Helmet, where Zalistovskyi published videos of his flights. The account has amassed over 3,000 followers.

In another incident from last August, three Ukrainian pilots, including well-known aviator Andrii Pilshchykov with the call sign "Juice," died in a mid-air collision between two training jets.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 20:37 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]
Het is ook de vraag wat de invloed van Sirski hier gaat zijn. Dat is toch zover ik kan lezen een minder voorzichtige commandant dan Zaluzjni. Hij zal toch niet direct Avdiivka willen verliezen lijkt me gezien zijn geschiedenis in Bagmoet.
Ik zie buiten dit stukje van Röpke wel redelijk wat negatieve reacties op het ontslag van Zaluzjni, maar goed we gaan het zien.

https://twitter.com/JulianRoepcke/status/1755640285575450880

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 21:56 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Ja, geen idee wat het effect zal wezen. Ik weet wel dat het verlies van Bakhmut best wel goed heeft uitgepakt voor Oekraine. Immers, daardoor is Wagner onthoofd en uitgeschakeld (onderdeel van Rosgvardia, volgens de huidige Wagner commandant). Interne stabiliteit van rusland is in gevaar gekomen, en volgens Prigozhin zijn er 20.000 russen omgekomen in Bakhmut.

Ik heb ook niet het idee dat er nog veel Oekrainsche troepen nog in Avdiivka zijn.

quote:

EU debunks viral claims it is considering sanctions on Tucker Carlson over his interview with Putin
The European Union has refuted reports that it is considering sanctions on American polemist Tucker Carlson for his controversial interview with Vladimir Putin, recorded during his trip to Moscow.

On Wednesday, a flurry of conservative commentators falsely claimed the bloc was mulling slapping a travel ban on Carlson, a former Fox News anchor, after the Kremlin confirmed his sit-down with the Russian president had taken place. It marks Putin's first interview with a Western reporter since he launched the all-out war on Ukraine.

The claim was initially reported by the American magazine Newsweek, based on comments made by a current and former Member of the European Parliament (MEP) who called on member states to consider sanctions on Carlson for acting as a "mouthpiece" and "propagandist" for Putin's regime.

The remarks of the two lawmakers, who have no competence to propose or approve sanctions, were mistakenly associated with formal EU plans to target Carlson with restrictive measures, and amplified by X owner Elon Musk, who described the allegations as "disturbing" and a move that would "greatly offend the American public." Musk's post garnered over 25 million views.

On Thursday, Peter Stano, the European Commission's spokesperson for foreign affairs and security policy, shut down the rampant speculation. "Currently there are no discussions in the relevant EU bodies linked to this specific person (...) the American person who is in Moscow," he said.

But Stano underlined that the bloc is able to blacklist "propagandists" who have "a continued track record" of information manipulation aimed at undermining the "sovereignty and the territorial integrity of Ukraine."

The confusion was sparked by the comments of Belgian MEP Guy Verhofstadt and former Spanish MEP Luis Garicano, both of the liberal Renew Europe group.

Verhofstadt said earlier this week on social media platform X that if Carlson "enables disinformation for Putin," the EU should "explore" a travel ban.

Responding to Elon Musk’s remarks that EU measures against Carlson would "offend" the US public, Verhofstadt shared a photo of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich behind bars in Moscow, saying "this is what a real journalist in Russia looks like."

"That should greatly offend the American people!" Verhofstadt said.

Musk's platform X, formerly known as Twitter, is under the EU's legal scrutiny for infringements of its digital rulebook, the Digital Services Act, relating to the spread of disinformation and illegal content.

No fact-checking community notes have been added to Newsweek's original story.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 21:11 schreef sp3c het volgende:

[..]
imo een beetje een flutonderzoekje wmb, oorlog is zo ver weg voor Nederland en Nederlanders, je hebt geen idee hoe je reageert als je moedertje beschoten wordt en je basisschool platgebombardeerd is

net zoiets als vragen of je op het water zou staan als het keihard is geworden

in de Sahelregio zeggen ze fuck no, waarom zou het water keihard zijn geworden?

in Nederland zeggen we IT ... GIET .... OAN!!!!!!

BIETCHES!

geschiedenis leert ons dat de Nederlander komt vechten als het moet

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 22:16 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
We hebben een hoop te verliezen. Naar welk land wil je vluchten als er ellende komt? Onze portemonnee is hier en als je daar aan komt willen we er misschien idd voor vechten. En we hebben wel een geschiedenis van bloedvergieten en gemene spelletjes. Zo beschaafd zijn de Nederlanders niet als het er op aan komt.

quote:

Occupier's accomplice detained in Lviv: Trying to flee to EU
The SBU and the National Police have detained a collaborator in Lviv who served in the occupation "Ministry of Internal Affairs" in the temporarily seized part of Zaporizhzhya.
The SBU and the National Police have prevented a collaborator who was part of the occupation "Interior Ministry" in the temporarily seized part of Zaporizhzhya from escaping from Ukraine. The attacker was involved in the capture of local members of the resistance movement. About it on 8 February reports the SBU.

Counterintelligence SBU detained the accomplice of the occupiers in Lviv, where he covertly arrived for further departure to the European Union, - stated in the message.

According to the investigation, the figure is a resident of Vasilievsky district in Zaporozhye, who in June 2022 joined the ranks of the occupation "district police department".

There, the attacker was included in the "punitive detachments" that kidnapped local residents on the streets or from their own homes. Also, the collaborator together with the RF troops robbed the homes of local residents under the guise of searches. Money, clothes, office equipment and other private property were stolen from citizens.

In addition, the defendant was involved in guarding the occupation "election committees" during the pseudo-referendum of the Russian Federation on the "joining" of the region to the aggressor country.

At the end of 2023, the attacker left for Lviv as an internally displaced person from the temporarily occupied territory in southern Ukraine. In the city, the man settled with his relatives and was preparing to illegally cross the border towards the EU.

Investigators of the SBU informed the defendant of suspicion under part 7 of article 111-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (collaboration activities). He faces up to 15 years in prison.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 22:16 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
We hebben een hoop te verliezen. Naar welk land wil je vluchten als er ellende komt? Onze portemonnee is hier en als je daar aan komt willen we er misschien idd voor vechten. En we hebben wel een geschiedenis van bloedvergieten en gemene spelletjes. Zo beschaafd zijn de Nederlanders niet als het er op aan komt.

quote:

Commander: Ukraine downs Russian Ka-52 attack helicopter near Avdiivka
Ukrainian forces shot down a Russian Ka-52 Alligator attack helicopter near Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast on Feb. 7, Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, the commander of Ukraine's Tavria group fighting on the southeastern front lines, said on Feb. 8.

"The enemy's Alligator with its crew was hit by a portable anti-aircraft missile complex and fertilized the soil in the Avdiivka direction," Tarnavskyi said on Telegram.

The Ka-52 Alligator is an updated twin-seat variant of Russia's Ka-50 attack helicopter designed to destroy enemy armored and unarmored ground targets, tanks, low-speed aerial targets, and personnel, according to the Airforce Technology website.

Russia has lost over 300 combat helicopters since the start of the full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces reported on Feb. 8.

The Tavria group of Ukraine's military is fighting in some of the hottest spots on the front, including the ongoing battle for Avdiivka.

Russian forces are now concentrating their offensive operations near Novopavlivka and Orikhiv in Zaporizhzhia Oblast and Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast, according to Tarnavskyi.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 21:32 schreef AchJa het volgende:

[..]
Bajonetten plaatsen en voorwaarts!

We zullen er wel even met de blanke klewang op ingaan!

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 22:05 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
Tevens kan ik Tucker sowieso geen echte journalist noemen. Van een journalist verwacht ik namelijk dat zij opzoek zijn naar de waarheid, en dit met feiten en bewijs ondersteunen. Terwijl Tucker zelf al heeft aangegeven dat hij er meestal maar wat uit flapt.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 21:51 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ twitter ]

Draad over Syrskyi.

quote:

‘World is grateful': India keeps oil prices cheaper by buying from Russia, Indian oil minister says
• India keeps global crude prices affordable by buying oil from Russia, India's energy minister said.
• "If we start buying more of the Middle Eastern oil, the oil price will not be at $75 or $76. It will be $150," he told CNBC's Sri Jegarajah on the sidelines of the India Energy Week conference in Goa.
• The minister said he was confident that India's renewable targets "will be met totally."

India keeps global crude prices affordable by buying oil from Russia, India's energy minister said.

"The world is grateful to India for buying Russian oil. It's not that they don't want us to buy Russian oil," India's Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri told CNBC's Sri Jegarajah on the sidelines of the India Energy Week conference in Goa.

"If we start buying more of the Middle Eastern oil, the oil price will not be at $75 or $76. It will be $150," he added.

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, India's refiners have been snapping up discounted Russian oil.

Moscow has since become India's leading source of crude oil, accounting for about 36% of the South Asian nation's crude imports.

Consequently, India's imports of Middle Eastern oil fell to a record low.

Oil prices have been under pressure in spite of rising tensions in the Red Sea and fears of a widening conflict in the Middle East. Such uncertainty would typically push energy prices higher but gains have been limited amid record output from the U.S., and an ongoing global economic slowdown.

The Indian minister said he was not "unduly worried" about whether there will be a spike in prices as a result of a lack of availability or affordability of the oil.

"The fact of the matter is half the work is in recession," he said, adding that higher oil prices will invariably end up becoming a "self fulfilling prophecy" where higher prices will curtail demand.

India is expected to be the largest driver for growth in global oil demand from 2023 to 2030, the International Energy Agency said in a report Wednesday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced plans to boost the country's annual oil refining capacity by almost 80% to 450 million tons, in what could possibly pose as another challenge to India's renewables goals.

India has set an aspirational target of meeting 50% of its electricity demand from renewable sources 2030, and a 100% transition to renewable energy by 2050. Currently, 75% of the nation's total power is derived from coal-fired plants.

That said, the minister said he was confident the renewable targets "will be met totally."

"We are well on the way of meeting our targets and we'll meet them all before time," he said, adding that many of India's major oil companies have net zero targets at 2035 and 2040.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 22:39 schreef Akkerdjie het volgende:

[..]
Jij misschien wel, maar mensen met geld maken gewoon dat ze wegkomen, dat ging vroeger al zo, dat gaat nu ook voornamelijk zo. De armen zijn doorgaans degenen die grotendeels sterven. Onze portemonnee is digitaal en in andere landen net zo te gebruiken en als mijn huis toch kapot geschoten wordt heb ik er verder toch niks aan als de oorlog voorbij is.
Ik begeleid enkele Oekraïnse mannen momenteel die gevlucht zijn, een heeft in 2014 gediend, maar heb in het verleden ook twee soldaten behandeld met ptss. Oorlog wordt veel teveel geromantiseerd wat mij betreft. Het is absurd en iedereen die het kan en die iets om zijn leven geeft en geen religioot of overmoedig persoon is met wat onrealistische realiteitszin probeert het te ontwijken. Àls je het al overleeft (bijvoorbeeld zo’n gehaktmolen als de frontlinie in de Oekraïne heeft nog maar enkele procenten van de oorspronkelijke mobilisatie in leven is de schatting) heb je ptss voor het leven. Fuck die shit. Als anderen dat wel willen of er anders over denken, kunnen ze hun ding doen. Ik vang je wel op mocht je terugkeren en probeer er nog wat van te maken.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 23:00 schreef Joppiez het volgende:

[..]
Vind het best debiel dat ze hem aangesteld hebben. Geboren in Rusland, blijkt niet eens Oekraïens te spreken. Ook op de Soviet manier oorlog voeren aan zijn reputatie te zien, en dat ga je als Oekraïne gewoon niet winnen zo. Begin van het einde dit?

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 23:37 schreef Perrin het volgende:
Aardig fikkie daar.

[ twitter ]

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 20:16 schreef Drxx het volgende:

[..]
Het heeft niet eens een week geduurd.
[..]

quote:

Russian Infantry ‘Banned from Using Armored Vehicles’ to Attack Dnipro Bridgehead
A Ukrainian official said Moscow’s assaults were now only being carried out by unsupported infantry in what they described as groups of “suicide bombers.”

Russian forces attempting to dislodge a Ukrainian bridgehead on the Dnipro River have been banned from using armored vehicles and are now attacking on foot as “suicide bombers,” Ukraine’s military has said.

Speaking to the United News telethon on Thursday, South Operational Command spokesperson Natalia Humeniuk said the ban was due simply to how much materiel Moscow’s forces have been losing in the now months-long battle.

“For a long time, we have been observing that they have a ban on using armored vehicles during assaults, meaning that at first they were making assaults using classic tactics of fighting with armored vehicles,” she said.

“But they were losing equipment, so after a while, they stopped using it.

“We found out that they have a ban on it, meaning that assaults are carried out directly by infantry groups.”

Humeniuk said the number of Russian attacks had dropped in recent days from 10-15 per day to three or four.

She suggested this was because it was “increasingly difficult for the enemy to assemble a group of suicide bombers” and that Russian forces were losing 50-80 men a day.

As Kyiv Post reported last month, Ukrainian Marines are deeply dug-in and, backed by masses of strike drones, are firmly holding ground first captured in mid-October.

According to a number of independent observers, no matter what Russian forces try to do they haven’t been able to dislodge the Ukrainians who will “still be there in weeks and months to come.”

Evidence is now mounting that Russian forces have suffered such heavy losses that some troops are reportedly refusing to attack.

According to multiple Ukrainian and Russian sources, Moscow’s attempts to wipe out the bridgehead employing substantial ground attacks have virtually come to a halt.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 23:37 schreef Perrin het volgende:
Aardig fikkie daar.

[ twitter ]

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 23:43 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/27777
[..]

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 23:45 schreef Hatseflats22 het volgende:

[..]
Op het oog een gek fikkie eigenlijk, alsof het dak over de gehele lengte in brand staat maar verder niets.

Ik speculeer even vrijuit... dat door corruptie geen brandvertragend materiaal op het dak gelegd is maar goedkope troep.

Maar zoals Russen altijd schijnen te zeggen:

Oost west,
as best.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 23:51 schreef Perrin het volgende:

[..]
Ja dat dak lijkt heel brandbaar. Of iets met gas dat zich via de zolders heeft verspreid?

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 00:42 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
Putler blijft in het interview maar benadrukken dat hij wil onderhandelen. Kennelijk gaat de speciale operatie niet zo best.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 21:52 schreef Akkerdjie het volgende:

[..]
Dat zal best allemaal, maar het is natuurlijk wel een signaal dat in een recenter onderzoek het wederom maar 16% is terwijl marokko weer boven de 90% en amerikanten ruim 50% scoort bijvoorbeeld. Het zijn toch afspiegelingen van de situatie nu.


In deze boekenstein en de wijk- aflevering wordt er dieper op ingegaan:


https://www.bnr.nl/podcas(...)-in-crisis-en-oorlog

Overigens is 16% ruim een miljoen mensen, met die mensen die bereid zijn alvast als eerste dood te gaan in strijd kom je al een heel eind.

Overigens is het ook wel een ding als je vanuit religie ervan overtuigd bent dat je bergen maagden ter beschikking krijgt als je sterft in de strijd en heel veel eer krijgt (de doodscultus van islam) of als je sterft in de hemel komt (christenen), t.o.v. het voornamelijk atheistische NL, waar het gewoon klaar is als je sterft aan de kogel, voor wie of wat dan ook.

Edit: in Oekraïne zijn de studenten nu zowat aan de beurt om te sterven voor hun land en geen fagot te zijn. Mensen schrijven zich nu in als student om het te ontlopen, maar het is al maanden een discussie om het puur op leeftijd te doen en niet meer op studentstatus. De ondergrens wil men verlagen naar 25 jaar, er moeten nog 450-500k mannen aan kanonnenvoer bij. Eens kijken wat die ervan vinden.
Overigens in Nieuwsuur is het nu toevallig een item over hoe ze met weigeraars omgaan.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 00:02 schreef loveyoulongtime het volgende:

[..]
Asbest springt juist compleet uit elkaar bij vuur? Lijkt dan hier weer geen sprake van...

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 03:55 schreef kanovinnie het volgende:

[..]
Hoe kom je hierbij?

quote:

Putin walks away with propaganda victory after Tucker Carlson’s softball interview
It’s evident now why Vladimir Putin granted an interview to Tucker Carlson.

Over the course of the more than two-hour sit-down, the former Fox News host turned online commentator largely refrained from challenging the Russian authoritarian, whose brutal war on Ukraine has led to the needless deaths of hundreds of thousands of people. Those expecting a hard-hitting face-off will have surely walked away sorely disappointed by the long-winded and rambling interview, in which Tucker himself at times appeared lost.

Instead of pressing Putin on the many topics at hand, including credible accusations Russia has committed war crimes and the imprisonment of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, Carlson allowed the autocrat a free lane to manipulate the public and tell his version of history, no matter how deceptive it may have been. At times, between the airing of grievances, Putin appeared to school Carlson on historical events as the host looked on in bewilderment. Or to put it more plainly, Carlson provided Putin a platform to spread his propaganda to a global audience with little to no scrutiny of his claims.

“What you see from watching the first 45 minutes of this, is that this is President Putin’s platform,” Clarissa Ward, CNN’s chief international correspondent, remarked, adding that it was “clear from the very beginning” of the interview that Carlson did “not have control.”

In some cases, Carlson even fed into Putin’s narratives. For instance, Putin advanced an absurd deep state-style conspiracy theory that the U.S. government is not controlled by its elected leaders but by unelected powers at the Central Intelligence Agency who direct the president like a puppet from the shadows.

“So, twice you’ve described US presidents making decisions and then being undercut by their agency heads,” Carlson said after Putin made the assertion, earnestly summing up the Russian leader’s mendacious narrative. “So it sounds like you’re describing a system that’s not run by the people who are elected, in your telling?”

“That’s right, that’s right,” Putin replied.

Carlson never followed up to challenge the absurdity.

It was a massive propaganda victory for Putin, who can — and will – now twist the encounter for his own ends. If there was any doubt that Putin did not view the sit-down with Carlson as a big win, a glance at how his own state-run media covered the affair should erase it. Immediately after Carlson published the chat online, Putin’s mouthpieces rushed to amplify it.

TASS featured the sit-down as the top story on its homepage, amplifying Putin’s claim that Ukraine is an “artificial state” and devoting an entire section of its website to special coverage of the interview. RT, the English-language broadcaster now exiled from much of the Western world, aired significant swaths of the interview on its air.

“VLADIMIR PUTIN’S INTERVIEW GAINS OVER 20 MILLION VIEWERS IN FIRST TWO HOURS,” RT boasted in one on-screen graphic.

None of this should come as any surprise.

While Carlson was once a critic of the Russian government, in recent years he has been far more sympathetic to the Putin-led state, dragging the GOP with him. Carlson’s commentary on Russia’s brutal war on Ukraine has been anything but favorable toward Kiev, with the right-wing extremist even likening Volodymyr Zelensky to vermin last year.

Which is precisely why Putin agreed to the interview with Carlson, while actual journalists who would have pressed the Russian leader on a range of critical issues, have been denied access for years. You don’t have to take our word for it, either. Putin’s own spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters this week that Carlson was selected because he “has a position that is different from the rest” of Western media.

There was one moment, however, in which Carlson did gently press Putin. At the end of the interview, Carlson asked Putin if he would be “willing to release” Evan Gershkovich, the imprisoned reporter for The Wall Street Journal. Putin declined to release Gershkovich now, to which Carlson said, “He’s a kid, and maybe he was breaking your law in some way, but he’s not a super spy and everybody knows that.”

While Carlson did advocate for the immediate release of Gershkovich, his remark did not go over well at The Journal. Ted Mann, a reporter at the newspaper, wrote on X that it was “disgraceful of Carlson to suggest Evan was ‘breaking [their] law.’”

“He wasn’t,” Mann added. “Carlson knows that. Evan is a law-abiding, decent reporter being held hostage for geopolitical leverage. He should be released immediately.”

The Journal also released a statement following the interview.

“Evan is a journalist, and journalism is not a crime. Any portrayal to the contrary is total fiction,” the newspaper said. “Evan was unjustly arrested and has been wrongfully detained by Russia for nearly a year for doing his job, and we continue to demand his immediate release.”

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quote:

Guard Chief: First Ukrainian F-16 Trainees Are ‘On Track,’ But Funds Aren’t There for More
The first four Ukrainian pilots training to fly the F-16 at Morris Air National Guard Base, Ariz., are “on track,” the head of the National Guard Bureau said Feb. 8, and the first batch of pilots are funded to complete their schooling. But Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson told the Pentagon press that Congress must authorize more funding to add additional pilots to the training queue.

Ukrainian pilots arrived in the U.S. to train to fly F-16s in September, first at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, for a crash course in English, and then beginning in October at Morris Air National Guard Base, Ariz., home of the 162nd Wing, where the day-to-day mission is focused on training foreign pilots to fly F-16s.

The U.S. and its allies expect the Ukrainian Air Force to achieve initial operating capability with its F-16s by the end of 2024, according to Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Celeste Wallander, who said pilot training was on track.

Hokanson echoed Wallander’s assessment, but added the caveat that without additional funding, things could change in the coming months.

“Everything we see right now, they’re on track,” Hokanson said. “Obviously as we get further on to higher levels, they may be more advanced or less. But we look at each pilot individually, because what we want to do is prepare them, as much as possible before they go back to Ukraine, to be successful.”

Pilots at Morris complete the six-month “B Course”—or Basic Course—to become proficient in the fundamentals necessary to transition to the F-16. That is the course the four Ukrainian pilots are now undergoing, a defense official previously told Air & Space Forces Magazine.

Hokanson’s senior enlisted advisor, Air Force CMSgt. Tony L. Whitehead added that maintainers currently being trained on the F-16 will get resources to help them over the long term.

“Our standard operating procedures and [operating instructions] are translated for those maintainers, so they can make sure that the continuity of training can continue when they go back to Ukraine,” he said.

Such resources will likely be crucial, as officials and observers alike have noted that maintaining F-16s inside of Ukraine will represent a major effort in and of itself.

Building out a corps of F-16 pilots and maintainers takes time, though, and while Ukrainian personnel are also training in Denmark, the possibility of expanding training in the U.S. appears unclear.

“We do have the resources to continue the training that has already started … and hopefully get all of those folks completed later on this year,” Hokanson said. “Then if we decide to increase that, then obviously we’ll need the resources to train additional pilots and ground support personnel.”

Hokanson did not specify where such resources would come from, but lawmakers in Congress are currently locked in a heated debate on Ukraine funding. On Feb. 8, the Senate took a procedural step to advance a massive foreign security aid package that includes $95 billion for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, and more. However, that bill’s fate remains uncertain in the House. Lawmakers must also pass a budget for the federal government by early March or risk a shutdown.

Previously approved funding for Ukraine ran out in late January.

quote:

President Zelenskyy’s dual citizenship proposal presents wartime dilemmas
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy marked the country’s recent Unity Day holiday on January 22 by thanking Ukrainians around the world for their wartime support and calling for changes to the Ukrainian Constitution that would allow for dual citizenship. Zelenskyy confirmed he was submitting the relevant legislative proposal to the Ukrainian Parliament.

If passed, the bill would allow Ukrainians to hold more than one citizenship. This would have significant implications for Ukraine itself and for the large international Ukrainian diaspora. According to the Ukrainian World Congress, the Ukrainian diaspora currently numbers around 20 million people. Most would potentially be eligible for Ukrainian citizenship. Restrictions on dual citizenship have previously deterred many members of the diaspora from applying for Ukrainian passports.

Zelenskyy’s proposal has been welcomed by many within the Ukrainian diaspora. If adopted, it could help strengthen ties between Ukraine itself and the global Ukrainian community, while granting diaspora members an opportunity to have a greater say in Ukraine’s development. It would make it far easier to visit Ukraine and open a business, purchase property, or otherwise invest in the country, while also providing diaspora Ukrainians with the chance to vote in elections or even run for office themselves.

For existing Ukrainian citizens, acquiring a second passport would potentially open multiple doors in terms of travel, work, and study. Ukrainians have enjoyed visa-free access to the European Union’s Schengen Zone for limited time periods since 2017, and have also benefited from a range of measures to ease border restrictions since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Nevertheless, the prospect of holding an EU, US, or other Western passport would certainly appeal to many.

While there is likely to be considerable public support for Zelenskyy’s dual citizenship proposal, any attempt at implementation in today’s wartime environment could prove highly problematic. Crucially, it remains far from clear what the initiative would mean for military service.

With Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine now approaching the two-year mark, most analysts believe the conflict has evolved into a war of attrition. With its far larger population, economy, and industrial base, this places Russia at a considerable advantage. The Russian military has also demonstrated a striking disregard for heavy losses in Ukraine, repeatedly employing so-called “human wave” or “meat assault” tactics to overwhelm Ukrainian defenses by sheer weight of numbers.

Ukraine cannot afford to accept such high casualty rates. The country has a far smaller pool of military-age men to draw from, and has already experienced a major decline in population as a direct result of Russia’s invasion. Current martial law restrictions mean most Ukrainian males eligible for military service are not permitted to exit the country. However, if changes to the Ukrainian Constitution made it possible to apply for a second citizenship, opportunities may arise for Ukrainian citizens to use newly acquired passports in order to leave Ukraine and avoid conscription.

Meanwhile, a relaxation in Ukraine’s dual citizenship restrictions could also potentially result in members of the Ukrainian diaspora who took Ukrainian passports becoming eligible for military service. Any uncertainty over the status of new passport holders with regard to conscription would be likely to deter many from applying.

The issue of military service is currently high on the Ukrainian wartime agenda amid debate over how best to bolster the depleted ranks of the army. A recent proposal by Ukraine’s military chiefs to conscript up to 500,000 civilians has met with a mixed reaction in Kyiv, with Zelenskyy refusing to offer his public support and instead calling for further details before making a decision.

Differences of opinion over the correct approach toward mobilization are believed to have contributed to mounting tensions between Ukraine’s civilian and military leadership. This was widely cited as a contributing factor behind Zelenskyy’s February 8 decision to replace Ukraine’s top general, Valery Zaluzhny. Any constitutional changes to introduce dual citizenship would further complicate an already challenging and politically sensitive situation.

President Zelenskyy’s proposal to enshrine the right to dual citizenship in the Ukrainian Constitution reflects growing awareness of the important role played by the global Ukrainian diaspora. If implemented, it would probably prove a popular measure that would significantly increase the number of Ukrainian passport holders and provide millions more people with a stake in the country’s future. However, there are a number of practical reasons why progress on this issue remains unlikely in the current wartime conditions.

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quote:

Russia complained about mass drone attack
Russia has stated that combat drones attempted to attack at least four regions. It is reported that air defense forces allegedly shot down 19 kamikaze drones, according to RIA Novosti.

"The air defense systems intercepted and destroyed 19 drones overnight over the territories of the Kursk, Bryansk, and Oryol regions, the Krasnodar Krai, and the Black Sea," the Russian Ministry of Defense reported.

Explosions were heard and a fire was recorded at the Il'sky Oil Refinery overnight, located in the Krasnodar Krai of the Russian Federation. Eyewitnesses report that before the explosions and the large blaze, the characteristic sounds of drone operation were heard.

What preceded this
Before this, experts from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) stated that Russia is increasingly concerned about the significant advantage of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the use of drones.

Additionally, former head of Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin previously stated that the front line buzzes like a beehive due to the large number of Ukrainian drones, which systematically and accurately strike targets, complicating the rotation of Russian personnel.

quote:

Op donderdag 8 februari 2024 19:17 schreef Akkerdjie het volgende:

[..]
Mja, het gros in Nederland zou niet meevechten. Jij waarschijnlijk ook niet als je de statistieken volgt. Het is ook een vrij rationele keuze in een land waar het leven niet ronduit kut is. Je hebt immers meestal wel wat geld hier om elders een leven op te bouwen. Als die niet-faggots die zijn gaan vechten toen de oorlog in Oekraine uitbrak zijn dood.

Lekker boeiend wat mensen van je vinden. Het zijn altijd de armen die de eer krijgen te mogen sneuvelen voor hun plaatselijke elite.

https://www.defensieplatf(...)en%20in%20Defensie).

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 07:53 schreef Mr.Anderson83 het volgende:
Vrije pers!

[ afbeelding ]

Voor de liefhebbers hier:

https://tuckercarlson.com/the-vladimir-putin-interview/

Enjoy!

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 09:08 schreef TLC het volgende:

[..]
had die vent nog in de Tweede Wereldoorlog geleefd dan had ie vast hitler in zijn bunker geinterviewd zonder ook maar 1 kritische vraag te stellen

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 07:19 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://edition.cnn.com/2(...)eme-court/index.html
Trump has his best day of 2024

SPOILER

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Een goede dag voor Trump is een zwarte dag voor de wereld.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 09:10 schreef Mr.Anderson83 het volgende:

[..]
Jij hebt het interview gezien zie ik...

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 09:10 schreef Mr.Anderson83 het volgende:

[..]
Jij hebt het interview gezien zie ik...

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 00:49 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

[..]
Dat is deel van de Russische propaganda/hun narratief.

Rusland wil vrede, Rusland will onderhandelen. Het is juist Oekraïne en het westen die oorlog willen.

Terwijl de manier waarop hij vrede willen betekend dat Oekraïne ophoudt met bestaan. Dat Oekraïne afstand doet van hun grondgebied. Dat ze niet bij de NAVO komen of de EU (neutraal blijven). Dat ze ontwapend worden en dat de huidige regering hun ontslag in dient en waarschijnlijk vervolgd moeten worden.

Dat ze eigenlijk dus gewoon weer worden ingelijfd in het Russische rijk.

En helaas zijn er veel mensen en landen op de wereld die hem geloven. Ook veel mensen in die westerse landen die nu Oekraïne steunen.

En over een paar jaar beginnen ze gewoon opnieuw, dan vallen ze Oekraïne of een ander land binnen, wetende dat wanneer het moeilijk wordt voor het westen wij zullen opgeven en hun zullen overwinnen.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 09:29 schreef zalkc het volgende:

[..]
Ik las ook ergens dat Poetin wilde dat 'het westen' alle kosten van de oorlog zou betalen, en paar honderd miljard.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 09:14 schreef TLC het volgende:

[..]
Nee ik heb geen interview gezien maar propaganda tv

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 00:42 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
Putler blijft in het interview maar benadrukken dat hij wil onderhandelen. Kennelijk gaat de speciale operatie niet zo best.

Hij wil onderhandelen met de hoofdschuldige: de Vs.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 09:08 schreef TLC het volgende:

[..]
had die vent nog in de Tweede Wereldoorlog geleefd dan had ie vast hitler in zijn bunker geinterviewd zonder ook maar 1 kritische vraag te stellen

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 10:43 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
Hij wil onderhandelen met de hoofdschuldige: de Vs.

Ik heb ondertussen begrepen dat Putin niet wil onderhandelen, de VS moet gewoon stoppen met het leveren van wapens.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 11:33 schreef Ulx het volgende:
[ twitter ]

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 13:05 schreef StateOfMind het volgende:

[..]
Huh, die Syrsky was toch de nieuwe top dog?

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 13:06 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Pavlyuk komt om de plek waar Syrskyi zat.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 09:29 schreef zalkc het volgende:

[..]
Ik las ook ergens dat Poetin wilde dat 'het westen' alle kosten van de oorlog zou betalen, en paar honderd miljard.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 15:07 schreef TLC het volgende:
https://nos.nl/artikel/25(...)nse-leger-wie-is-hij

Toch wel ironisch, de man die de Oekrainse troepen nu leidt is een Rus

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 13:23 schreef StateOfMind het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]


Maar wel een eindbaas sowieso

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 13:23 schreef StateOfMind het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]


Maar wel een eindbaas sowieso

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 15:07 schreef TLC het volgende:
https://nos.nl/artikel/25(...)nse-leger-wie-is-hij

Toch wel ironisch, de man die de Oekrainse troepen nu leidt is een Rus

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 16:07 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Zelenskyy zou volgens de Russen ook bij Rusland willen, die is namelijk Russisch sprekend opgevoed.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 16:07 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Zelenskyy zou volgens de Russen ook bij Rusland willen, die is namelijk Russisch sprekend opgevoed.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 16:21 schreef Ulx het volgende:
[ twitter ]

Het gaat om Abby Spanberger,D-VA, Jason Crowe, D-CO, French Hill, R-AR, Zach Nunn R-IO, Mike Turner, R-OH

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 16:30 schreef StateOfMind het volgende:

[..]
Wat betekenen die afkortingen?

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 19:16 schreef sturmpie het volgende:
https://tuckercarlson.com/the-vladimir-putin-interview/

interview bekeken en conclusie is dat Rusland Oekraine is ingevallen op basis van geschiedenis en de situatie rondom NAVO.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 19:16 schreef sturmpie het volgende:
https://tuckercarlson.com/the-vladimir-putin-interview/

interview bekeken en conclusie is dat Rusland Oekraine is ingevallen op basis van geschiedenis en de situatie rondom NAVO.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 19:24 schreef Joppiez het volgende:

[..]
Poetins verzonnen geschiedenis.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 19:47 schreef sturmpie het volgende:
Rusland had in de tijd van Bill Clinton interesse om lid te worden van NAVO

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 19:48 schreef xpompompomx het volgende:

[..]
En dus?

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 19:49 schreef sturmpie het volgende:

[..]
en dus goed om te weten dat ze er in het verleden wel interesse in hadden maar niet werden gehoord door NAVO.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 11:44 schreef StateOfMind het volgende:
Syr yes syr

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 19:49 schreef sturmpie het volgende:

[..]
en dus goed om te weten dat ze er in het verleden wel interesse in hadden maar niet werden gehoord door NAVO.

quote:

Despite efforts to structure forums that promote cooperation between Russia and NATO, relations as of 2024 have become severely strained over time due to post-Soviet conflicts and territory disputes involving Russia having broken out, including Azerbaijan (1990–1994);[1][2] Moldova (1992–present); Georgia (2004–present); Lithuania (2006); Estonia (2006–2007); Poland (2006–present); Belarus (2007); Ukraine (2014–present); Syria (2015–present); Turkey (2015–2016); Kazakhstan (2021–2022);[3] and Armenia (2022).[4][5]

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 19:47 schreef sturmpie het volgende:
Rusland had in de tijd van Bill Clinton interesse om lid te worden van NAVO

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 20:10 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

[..]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NATO%E2%80%93Russia_relations#
[..]
Een handje vol redenen waarom Rusland nu niet bij de NAVO zit. Ze zijn na het uiteenvallen van de Sovjet-Unie nonstop in conflict geweest (daarvoor waren er ook al genoeg conflicted). Waarvan iets van de helft oorlogen waren die door hun gestart waren.

Lijkt mij logisch dat wij uiteindelijk nee hebben gezegd. Omdat Rusland gewoon niet wou veranderen. En ze wouden zich geen regels opgelegd laten krijgen vanuit de NATO. Ze wouden wel de lusten maar niet de lasten.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 20:19 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]
Dit is wat te simpel, dat er conflicten ontstaan na het uiteenvallen van een unie is niet meer dan normaal aangezien het machtsveld veranderd. De overgang van een soort suzerein richting een soeverein systeem geeft ook problemen aangezien de status van autonomie binnen een soeverein systeem anders ligt.

In principe had er na het uiteenvallen van de Soviet-Unie een conferentie moeten komen waarbij landsgrenzen opnieuw vastgesteld hadden moeten worden op basis van etnische grenzen, dan had een deel van de conflicten in ieder geval voorkomen kunnen worden.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 20:37 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

[..]
Veel van de landen waren geforceerd om deel te nemen aan de Sovjet-Unie ze hadden geen keus. En dan hadden ze ook maar even hun grenzen moeten opgeven en ze een nieuwe indeling te geven nadat de Sovjet-Unie uit elkaar viel?

En Rusland zijn volk was over de hele Sovjet-Unie uitgespreid (wat ze nu als argument gebruiken dat zij recht hebben op bepaald grondgebied). Net zoals er burgers van alle andere landen ook te vinden zijn in Rusland. Maar hun zie je Rusland niet aanvallen.

Etnische grenzen was dus een win geweest voor Rusland en een verlies voor de andere landen. Historische grenzen was dan beter geweest. Maar ook daar valt aan te trekken. Een conferentie was een optie geweest, maar ik denk niet dat dat conflicten had opgelost/tegengehouden. Rusland pakt wat hij wil pakken. Deden ze toen al en doen ze nu nog steeds.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 20:19 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]
Dit is wat te simpel, dat er conflicten ontstaan na het uiteenvallen van een unie is niet meer dan normaal aangezien het machtsveld veranderd. De overgang van een soort suzerein richting een soeverein systeem geeft ook problemen aangezien de status van autonomie binnen een soeverein systeem anders ligt.

In principe had er na het uiteenvallen van de Soviet-Unie een conferentie moeten komen waarbij landsgrenzen opnieuw vastgesteld hadden moeten worden op basis van etnische grenzen, dan had een deel van de conflicten in ieder geval voorkomen kunnen worden.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 21:31 schreef -XOR- het volgende:

[..]
Dagestan en Tsjetsjenië?

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 21:47 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ twitter ]

Ollongren [ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 22:02 schreef -XOR- het volgende:

[..]
Lekker man, eeuwig oorlog.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 22:07 schreef Cilantro het volgende:

[..]
Helaas wil Putler doorvechten tot de laatste rus.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 22:02 schreef -XOR- het volgende:

[..]
Lekker man, eeuwig oorlog.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 22:02 schreef -XOR- het volgende:

[..]
Lekker man, eeuwig oorlog.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 21:47 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ twitter ]

Ollongren [ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 22:44 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Typisch een politicus.

Maar zo veel hebben we niet en kunnen het ook niet maken. Dat is de grens.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 20:19 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]

In principe had er na het uiteenvallen van de Soviet-Unie een conferentie moeten komen waarbij landsgrenzen opnieuw vastgesteld hadden moeten worden op basis van etnische grenzen, dan had een deel van de conflicten in ieder geval voorkomen kunnen worden.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 22:39 schreef Digi2 het volgende:

[..]
De mens als soort voert oorlog, net zoals chimps, en de meeste mierensoorten. Dus ja, de mens voert eeuwig oorlog. Leren te leven met dat feit lijkt me beter dan te trappen in mythes en utopien die iets anders veronderstellen.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 23:01 schreef -XOR- het volgende:

[..]
De mens wel, maar dat hoeven niet per se specifiek de Oekrainers te zijn.

quote:

Op zaterdag 10 februari 2024 01:36 schreef Vliegbaard het volgende:

[..]
Dan zit je in het verkeerde topic.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 19:16 schreef sturmpie het volgende:
https://tuckercarlson.com/the-vladimir-putin-interview/

interview bekeken en conclusie is dat Rusland Oekraine is ingevallen op basis van geschiedenis en de situatie rondom NAVO.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 23:01 schreef -XOR- het volgende:

[..]
De mens wel, maar dat hoeven niet per se specifiek de Oekrainers te zijn.

quote:

Op vrijdag 9 februari 2024 20:52 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]
In elk rijk krijg je verspreiding van etniciteiten, dat is niet te voorkomen. Wat wel voorkomen had kunnen worden zijn onder andere de problemen in Georgië, die vooral te danken waren aan het opkomend Georgisch nationalisme na de val van de Soviet-Unie, waarbij de rechten van minderheden, autonome gebieden en minderheidstalen bij het grof vuil werden gegooid.
Hetzelfde probleem zien we eigenlijk bij een groter aantal autonome gebieden binnen de SSR structuur.

Zie deze academische bron aangaande Georgië bijvoorbeeld: https://pesd.princeton.edu/node/706

quote:

Some Day, Ukraine Will Run Out Of Su-25 Attack Jets. That’s Why It Wants Ex-American A-10s.
Russian forces shot down a Ukrainian air force Sukhoi Su-25 attack jet while it was flying a combat sortie over eastern Ukraine on Thursday. Pilot Stanislav Rykov, the veteran of more than 380 missions—that’s one sortie every other day since Russia widened its war on Ukraine—tragically died.

Mourn for Rykov, but don’t mourn—yet—for the air force’s 299th Tactical Aviation Brigade, the sole Ukrainian operator of the subsonic, twin-engine Su-25. Nearly two years after Russia attacked, the 299th Brigade has ... exactly as many Su-25s as it started with.

Which is not to say the air force isn’t looking ahead to the day when the aging Su-25s begin to run out. It’s not for no reason that some Ukrainian officials have been asking for ex-U.S. Air Force Fairchild Republic A-10 attack jets.

The Ukrainian air force inherited scores of the armored Su-25s from the Soviet air force as the latter withdrew from Ukraine after 1991. By early 2022, 43 of the aging planes still were flyable, according to aviation journalist Vladimir Trendafilovski.

The journalist counted 30 operational Su-25s, one that was undergoing overhaul at the Zaporizhzhia State Aircraft Repair Plant plus another 12 that were in flyable storage at Mykolaiv-Kulbakino, the 299th’s Brigade home base in southern Ukraine.

When Russia invaded on Feb. 24, 2022, the Su-25s and their pilots and crews scattered across Ukraine to dodge Russian missiles—and then flew into action, streaking toward Russian forces at extremely low level to drop bombs and fire rockets.

The Russians over the next two years shot down or blew up on the ground 18 Su-25s, and killed many pilots. But between them, Macedonia and Bulgaria donated to Ukraine—you guessed it—18 Su-25s. While it’s possible the 299th Brigade has stripped some of the donated airframes for spare parts, it’s equally possible the unit instead cannibalized older ex-Soviet Sukhois—and sent the donated jets into action.

All that is to say that, despite heavy losses, the 299th Brigade very much remains in the fight. It’s the same situation the Ukrainian air force’s other brigades are in. Units flying Sukhoi Su-24 bombers, Sukhoi Su-27 fighters and Mikoyan MiG-29 fighters have maintained their front-line strength by acquiring fresh jets from abroad—in the MiG-29 brigades’ case—or by reactivating old stored jets.

Still, Ukrainian officials seem to appreciate that there no longer is an abundance of excess Su-25s in the arsenals of allied countries. Any further losses could eat into the 299th Brigade’s strength.

So it should come as no surprise that Gen. Oleksandr Syrsky—formerly chief of the ground forces, now the head of the entire armed forces—has his heart set on American A-10s. The subsonic, twin-engine A-10 broadly is similar to the Su-25. If anything, it’s better-protected and much better-armed.

“This is not a new machine,” Syrsky said about the A-10, “but a reliable one that has proven itself in many wars, and which has a wide array of weapons for destroying land targets to help the infantry.”

The U.S. Air Force operates around 200 of the 1970s- and ’80s-vintage A-10s. Hundreds more are in storage. There’s no reason that, given a few months of training, Ukrainian pilots couldn’t fly the tough attack jets.

But there are political reasons the 299th Brigade might never get A-10s. Starting last fall, Russia-aligned Republicans in the U.S. Congress refused to vote on any further aid to Ukraine: aid that could provide the Ukrainians with ammunition, armored vehicles, artillery and—yes—warplanes.

So the 299th Brigade must make do with its 40 or so Su-25s—or get in line for fresh jets from some donor other than the United States. Say, Lockheed Martin F-16s from Norway, The Netherlands and Denmark or, potentially, Dassault Mirage 2000s from France.

quote:

Putin is being demanded to be prosecuted under the article on the rehabilitation of Nazism
It is reported that a representative of the Committee-2024 association, Sergei Antonov, appealed to the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation with a demand to bring Russian President Vladimir Putin under the article on the rehabilitation of Nazism.

The basis was Putin’s interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson, in which the head of the Russian state spoke about the events of World War II.

During the interview, Putin said that “the Poles got too carried away and forced Hitler to start World War II.”

These statements became the basis for Antonov’s appeal to the Investigative Committee, since, in his opinion, they contain “denial of the facts established by the verdict of the International Military Tribunal for the trial and punishment of the main war criminals of the European Axis countries, approval of the crimes established by the said verdict.”



Antonov admitted that the article on the rehabilitation of Nazism is often used for politically motivated purposes, but noted that the words of the President of the Russian Federation fall within its wording.

He also claims that Putin “committed this crime under aggravating circumstances” by disseminating information “using his official position” and through “the media or information and telecommunications networks.”

The politician notes that his application has already been registered and he is awaiting a reaction from the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation.

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Finland announces military aid package for Ukraine
The government of Finland has announced another military aid package to Ukraine, which will be the 22nd since Russia’s first full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The Finnish government announced this.

The relevant decision was made by the President of Finland on February 9, 2024, on the proposal of the government. The new military aid package is worth approximately ¤190 million.

The total value of all aid packages delivered from Finland to Ukraine since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion is ¤1.8 billion.

The official announcement does not disclose the contents of the aid package or delivery details for security reasons.

Additionally, this aid package will include products purchased from Finnish manufacturers. Separate funding of ¤30 million has been allocated for this purpose.

Currently, the country’s government is developing a long-term plan to support Ukraine with both military equipment and funding.

In addition, the production of 155-mm artillery shells continues in Finland to expand aid to Ukraine.

As Militarnyi previously reported, Finland will double its ammunition production to help Ukraine.

The agency has committed to investing approximately ¤24 million to boost the production of heavy ammunition and secure long-term orders from the Finnish industry. This initiative aims to enable the industry to make independent investments.

In addition, the Finnish industry will be able to apply to the EU for support under the financial package of the Ammunition Production Support Regulation, known as ASAP (Act in Support of Ammunition Production).