The Ukraine war thread
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Dick Francis, who wrote a big bunch of books based on horse racing, wrote a book set in Russia (I think mostly Moscow). His main character befriended a Russian guy. One time they were having a convo about the awfulness of the country, and the hero asked the Russian why he stayed. The guy replied, "Love the country, hate the regime."
I have a feeling that would describe the hearts and minds of many Russians.
During the Cold War I kept thinking that under different circumstances, Americans and Russians would make good friends. The people, I mean, not the governments.
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From the Institute for the Study of War's Sept 26 Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment:
"The Kremlin is attempting to message its way out of the reality of major problems in the execution of its “partial mobilization,” but its narratives are unlikely to placate Russians who can perceive the real mistakes all around them.
"The Kremlin is deflecting blame for the Russian government’s failure to abide by its own stated criteria for mobilization and exemptions onto the failing bureaucratic institutions responsible for the mobilization. The Kremlin is downplaying the widespread violations of the mobilization law as individual errors of local authorities, claiming to correct these errors as citizens call attention to them. The violations are clearly too common to be merely the result of individual errors, however, and Russian citizens can see them all too clearly.
"Unlike Russian failures in Ukraine, which the Kremlin has been able to minimize or deflect because its citizens cannot see them directly, violations of the mobilization decree are evident to many Russians. Word of these violations does not even require access to media or social media, because they are occurring in so many locations and victims’ families can spread their anguish by word of mouth."
From the Institute for the Study of War's Sept 27 Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment:
"Russian authorities in occupied parts of Ukraine’s Kherson, Zaporizhia, Donetsk, and Luhansk oblasts completed their falsified annexation “referenda” on September 27 and implausibly claimed that each sham referendum received between 87 and 99% approval from Ukrainian residents. Russian officials pre-ordained and falsified the approval ratings and alleged voter participation rates for the sham referenda while coercing Ukrainian civilians in occupied territories to performatively vote for Russian annexation, as ISW has previously reported."
"It's Not Who Votes That Counts, It's Who Counts The Votes." -- Josef Stalin
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@Renauda also, any thoughts about what he claims are examples of Ukrainian aggression in the East? That's been a hotbed of instability for a long time, right?
@George-K said in The Ukraine war thread:
@Renauda also, any thoughts about what he claims are examples of Ukrainian aggression in the East? That's been a hotbed of instability for a long time, right?
Here you go George. Lot’s of reading but it’s free:
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@George-K said in The Ukraine war thread:
@Renauda also, any thoughts about what he claims are examples of Ukrainian aggression in the East? That's been a hotbed of instability for a long time, right?
Here you go George. Lot’s of reading but it’s free:
Ukrainians in Germany oppose Russian asylum seekers:
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Russian soldiers phoned home from Ukraine.
Ukrainian police intercepted some of the calls.
The New York Times got the audio recordings, and cross checked them with other information sources.The phone calls are harrowing.
EDIT: the phone calls were made in the beginning of the war, some of them speak of taking Kyiv.
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Russian soldiers phoned home from Ukraine.
Ukrainian police intercepted some of the calls.
The New York Times got the audio recordings, and cross checked them with other information sources.The phone calls are harrowing.
EDIT: the phone calls were made in the beginning of the war, some of them speak of taking Kyiv.
@Axtremus said in The Ukraine war thread:
The phone calls are harrowing.
Behind the NYT paywall, but another source, quoting the article said that these calls were from MARCH. Can you imagine what it's like now?
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@Axtremus said in The Ukraine war thread:
The phone calls are harrowing.
Behind the NYT paywall, but another source, quoting the article said that these calls were from MARCH. Can you imagine what it's like now?
@George-K said in The Ukraine war thread:
@Axtremus said in The Ukraine war thread:
The phone calls are harrowing.
Behind the NYT paywall, but another source, quoting the article said that these calls were from MARCH. Can you imagine what it's like now?
Yes, indeed those phone calls were from the early part of the war.
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Latest word is that Putin plans to deliver (another) speech on Sept 30. On that occasion, he will announce the results of the (cough) referendum in the Eastern states, and therefore justification for annexation of those areas.
Once those are part of "Russia," escalation, either by more mobilization or by use of different weaponry will be on the table. After all, the Motherland is being attacked, dontcha know.
@George-K said in The Ukraine war thread:
Latest word is that Putin plans to deliver (another) speech on Sept 30. On that occasion, he will announce the results of the (cough) referendum in the Eastern states, and therefore justification for annexation of those areas.
Once those are part of "Russia," escalation, either by more mobilization or by use of different weaponry will be on the table. After all, the Motherland is being attacked, dontcha know.
Kremlin says Putin will sign ‘treaties’ to annex Ukrainian regions
The move, in defiance of stern international warnings including from President Biden, potentially slams the door on diplomacy for years to come, and almost certainly assures further escalation of the war in Ukraine, with Kyiv insisting it will fight to reclaim all of its lands and Western allies promising to send more weapons and economic assistance.
Putin’s recent declaration of a partial military mobilization, intended to activate hundreds of thousands of reinforcements for deployment to Ukraine, and the sabotage this week of two Nord Stream natural gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea have raised fears that the Russian leader is readying for a long hybrid conflict with NATO. Russian officials have also warned that it could use a nuclear weapon to defend the Ukrainian territories once they are absorbed into Russia.>
Putin’s move, which is a blatant violation of international law, will further isolate Russia, triggering new Western sanctions. But Putin nonetheless appears to hope that a long, brutal war will eventually fray Western support for Ukraine and curtail military and economic aid that is providing a lifeline to Kyiv. -
On Joe Rogan, Dave Smith talks about why Russia invaded Ukraine.
I have no idea who Smith is, by the way.
Link to video -
Yes, the risk is high that Putin will deploy one or more tactical nukes. Tomorrow’s annexation of Ukrainian territory will provide the convenient rationale.
The US and NATO will respond accordingly should a Russian nuclear demonstration occur. The Cold War doctrine of Flexible Response will determine the actions of the Alliance.
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Yes, the risk is high that Putin will deploy one or more tactical nukes. Tomorrow’s annexation of Ukrainian territory will provide the convenient rationale.
The US and NATO will respond accordingly should a Russian nuclear demonstration occur. The Cold War doctrine of Flexible Response will determine the actions of the Alliance.
@Renauda said in The Ukraine war thread:
Yes, the risk is high that Putin will deploy one or more tactical nukes. Tomorrow’s annexation of Ukrainian territory will provide the convenient rationale.
The US and NATO will respond accordingly should a Russian nuclear demonstration occur. The Cold War doctrine of Flexible Response will determine the actions of the Alliance.
Dumbest thing he could do.
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@Renauda said in The Ukraine war thread:
Yes, the risk is high that Putin will deploy one or more tactical nukes. Tomorrow’s annexation of Ukrainian territory will provide the convenient rationale.
The US and NATO will respond accordingly should a Russian nuclear demonstration occur. The Cold War doctrine of Flexible Response will determine the actions of the Alliance.
Dumbest thing he could do.
