News Related To The Ukraine / Russian War
- Thread starter sear
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The 2014 Maidan Coup murdered, imprisoned, or expelled all the pro-Russian politicians, so it is hard to tell what an election now even means.
But it is obvious Kyiv had been taken over by the Polish invasion defeated around 1700, and is not popular with the ethnic Russian natives.
Not that I expect this election to mean much.
But when I watch videos of the Ukraine, they show strong anti-Kyiv feelings due to the press gangs Kyiv is resorting to.
Shiftless2
Well-known member
There is no country called the Ukraine, but it is the part of Russia the Polish tried to invade in 1700, but were defeated.
But there is no way the Polish Ukrainians are responsible for all these drones and missiles.
Clearly it is the US who bribed and armed the ethnic Polish generals in the Ukraine.
Which can only result in the loss of US money at best, and the total nuclear destruction of the US at worst.
There is absolutely nothing to be gained from our interference in the Ukraine.
The brutal press gangs prove it is not a popular war with the actual people of the Ukraine.
Comical Zelenskyy cut-&-paste.
Putin is probing both NATO defenses, and NATO resolve, with territorial incursions in air and at sea.
And European NATO is now painfully aware it can no longer rely on the U.S. military to backbone militarily expansionist Russia.
Biden constrained Zelenskyy against counterattacking Russia on its own internationally recognized territory. BUT !
Those Democrat gloves are now off, and recent reports indicate Ukraine / Zelenskyy is thumping Putin's noggin.
Drones attack Moscow and oblast: fires reported at warehouses and oil refinery – photos, videos
Iryna Vakuliuk 20 September, 06:16Moscow and Moscow Oblast have come under a large-scale drone attack. A major fire apparently broke out at the Sofyino logistics technopark and an oil refinery in Kapotnya.
Drones attack Moscow and oblast: fires reported at warehouses and oil refinery – photos, videos
A large-scale drone attack on Moscow caused fires at the Moscow oil refinery and Sofyino logistics park.
www.pravda.com.ua
Comical Zelenskyy cut-&-paste.
Putin is probing both NATO defenses, and NATO resolve, with territorial incursions in air and at sea.
And European NATO is now painfully aware it can no longer rely on the U.S. military to backbone militarily expansionist Russia.
Biden constrained Zelenskyy against counterattacking Russia on its own internationally recognized territory. BUT !
Those Democrat gloves are now off, and recent reports indicate Ukraine / Zelenskyy is thumping Putin's noggin.
Drones attack Moscow and oblast: fires reported at warehouses and oil refinery – photos, videos
Iryna Vakuliuk 20 September, 06:16
Moscow and Moscow Oblast have come under a large-scale drone attack. A major fire apparently broke out at the Sofyino logistics technopark and an oil refinery in Kapotnya.
Drones attack Moscow and oblast: fires reported at warehouses and oil refinery – photos, videos
A large-scale drone attack on Moscow caused fires at the Moscow oil refinery and Sofyino logistics park.
I disagree.
I don't think Russia has ever had any remotely "expansionist" ideas at all, since they have more land than they know what to do with.
They did not "expand" into Cuba, Vietnam, China, Korea, etc., but merely stopped US expansion into those countries.
Putin is invincibly ignorant about $money.
Vladimir acquired his $Billions by chiseling Russia's oligarchs, a relatively standard "protection" racket.
Putin didn't take Crimea because Russia was in desperate need of more acreage.
Putin took Crimea because he thought he could get away with it. AND !
Putin's Cold War KGB training limits Putin's concept of a well defended Russia as borders that expand rather than shrink.
Let's not conflate the there & then with the here & now. Putin is not Khrushchev.
Cold War Kremlin hype was substantially hysterical paranoia.
Reports of Russia's territorial incursions are plausible, consistent.
Russia's shadow fleet ships defying PM's threat and entering UK waters
12 May 2026 Tom Edgington, Joshua Cheethamand Thomas Spencer,BBC VerifyAlmost 200 so-called Russian "shadow fleet" vessels have entered UK waters since the prime minister threatened to intercept them nearly seven weeks ago, BBC Verify analysis suggests.
In March, Sir Keir Starmer announced that British armed forces "are now able to board sanctioned vessels that are passing through our waters".
However, BBC Verify has identified 184 UK-sanctioned vessels making 238 journeys through UK waters since then and the government has not publicly stated or offered evidence that any have been boarded.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) say it is "disrupting and deterring" shadow fleet vessels, without providing specific details. One former Royal Navy commander has called the lack of action "pathetic".
Russia's shadow fleet ships defying PM's threat and entering UK waters
BBC Verify analysis of ship-tracking data suggests "shadow fleet" vessels sailed into UK water despite the government threatening to board them.
www.bbc.com
World News
NATO jets shoot down drone over Lithuania and Russian ship fires flares at Danish helicopter
NATO fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuanian airspace overnight, officials said Tuesday, less than a day after NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said that strikes close to the alliance’s territory would drive the trans-Atlantic organization to increase its support for Kyiv.VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — NATO fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuanian airspace overnight, officials said Tuesday, the day after the head of the alliance said strikes close to its territory would only increase its support for Ukraine in the war against Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Military officials in Lithuania, a NATO member, said the incident marked the first time that a drone had been shot down in its airspace. Authorities didn’t comment on the drone’s origin or purpose, saying further investigation was needed, but two senior officials said the device was likely carrying explosives.
Putin is invincibly ignorant about $money.
Vladimir acquired his $Billions by chiseling Russia's oligarchs, a relatively standard "protection" racket.
Putin didn't take Crimea because Russia was in desperate need of more acreage.
Putin took Crimea because he thought he could get away with it. AND !
Putin's Cold War KGB training limits Putin's concept of a well defended Russia as borders that expand rather than shrink.
Let's not conflate the there & then with the here & now. Putin is not Khrushchev.
Cold War Kremlin hype was substantially hysterical paranoia.
Reports of Russia's territorial incursions are plausible, consistent.
View attachment 6504
Russia's shadow fleet ships defying PM's threat and entering UK waters
12 May 2026 Tom Edgington, Joshua Cheethamand Thomas Spencer,BBC Verify
Almost 200 so-called Russian "shadow fleet" vessels have entered UK waters since the prime minister threatened to intercept them nearly seven weeks ago, BBC Verify analysis suggests.
In March, Sir Keir Starmer announced that British armed forces "are now able to board sanctioned vessels that are passing through our waters".
However, BBC Verify has identified 184 UK-sanctioned vessels making 238 journeys through UK waters since then and the government has not publicly stated or offered evidence that any have been boarded.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) say it is "disrupting and deterring" shadow fleet vessels, without providing specific details. One former Royal Navy commander has called the lack of action "pathetic".
Russia's shadow fleet ships defying PM's threat and entering UK waters
BBC Verify analysis of ship-tracking data suggests "shadow fleet" vessels sailed into UK water despite the government threatening to board them.
World News
NATO jets shoot down drone over Lithuania and Russian ship fires flares at Danish helicopter
NATO fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuanian airspace overnight, officials said Tuesday, less than a day after NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said that strikes close to the alliance’s territory would drive the trans-Atlantic organization to increase its support for Kyiv.
VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — NATO fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuanian airspace overnight, officials said Tuesday, the day after the head of the alliance said strikes close to its territory would only increase its support for Ukraine in the war against Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Military officials in Lithuania, a NATO member, said the incident marked the first time that a drone had been shot down in its airspace. Authorities didn’t comment on the drone’s origin or purpose, saying further investigation was needed, but two senior officials said the device was likely carrying explosives.
I do not disagree about Putin and actually all Russian leaders being historically corrpt.
But I do agree with Putin for reclaiming the Crimea, since it actually was illegal for Khruschev to take the Crimea from Russia in 1953.
The Crimea is mostly Asian Tatars, Cossacks, and Mongols, so should never have been part of ethnic Polish in the Ukraine, since they are so racist.
I also disagree with economic sanctions, which I think are illegal, so do defend the idea of a shadow fleet in order to defeat the illegal sanctions.
And considering how the US always tries to illegally put nukes on Russia's border, I think it is the US who is most often at fault.
Even if not by formal convention there are familiar dynamics between the powerful and the powerless.
The E.U. & NATO aren't clamoring at Russia's door Steppes to plunder potato.
It's Russia that is the standard of living underdog.
If it was the West that was wanting, the aggression might well be in the opposite direction.
A simple pie chart tells Russia's guns / butter story. Russians share of their GDP is so small because their military's
the Ministry of Defence has adopted more stringent financial management methods and has made savings on purchases of armament. This has led to a reduction of planned military expenditure in the 2026 budget to 14.9 trillion roubles, or 6.3 per cent of GDP.
A Budget for a Fifth Year of War: Military Spending in Russia’s Budget for 2026
As the Russia–Ukraine War enters its fifth year, with few signs of an ending, SIPRI has published a new paper that provides unique insights into Russia’s military spending and budget for 2026.
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Just echoing the Cuban missile crisis oft he 60's.
Even if not by formal convention there are familiar dynamics between the powerful and the powerless.
The E.U. & NATO aren't clamoring at Russia's door Steppes to plunder potato.
It's Russia that is the standard of living underdog.
If it was the West that was wanting, the aggression might well be in the opposite direction.
A simple pie chart tells Russia's guns / butter story. Russians share of their GDP is so small because their military's
the Ministry of Defence has adopted more stringent financial management methods and has made savings on purchases of armament. This has led to a reduction of planned military expenditure in the 2026 budget to 14.9 trillion roubles, or 6.3 per cent of GDP.
A Budget for a Fifth Year of War: Military Spending in Russia’s Budget for 2026
As the Russia–Ukraine War enters its fifth year, with few signs of an ending, SIPRI has published a new paper that provides unique insights into Russia’s military spending and budget for 2026.www.sipri.org
When it comes to military spending, the US comes off as the bad guy.
{...
United States's $920B defense budget is 6.0:1 that of Russia ($152B). The United States holds a decisive overall advantage over Russia, driven by a defense budget roughly six times larger, a global blue-water navy with 18 carriers, and a far deeper stealth-capable air fleet.
...}
That is especially true since the US has never really been attacked, and Russia lost a forth of its population in WWII.
But to be fair, the GDP of the US is about 12 times the GDP of Russia.
However, most of the US GDP is fluff that likely should not even have been made.
Russia has guaranteed housing, food, and health care.
And the details of the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 was that the US put long range nukes on Turkey, so Russia put short range nukes in Cuba.
With the result being the US removed our nukes from Turkey.
Got a per capita stat on that?
Military spending is SURELY an issue. BUT !!
What alarms me more than $SPENDING is these horrendous Wars Republican presidents keep dragging us into.
Bush / Cheney / Rumsfeld / Powell outright lied U.S. into War in Iraq.
- piffle -
Trump campaigned for votes promising he wouldn't involve U.S. in a War like the one we're in now. Diesel at record $high.
BUT !
Problem is:
It's a simple matter to know if enough is NOT spent on national defense, after sovereignty is forfeit.
It's more difficult to know how much military spending is enough.
Defense spending is warranted, but the US is not at all defensive, with hundreds of bases around the world, aircraft carriers, amphibious landing assets, etc.
The US is almost impervious to attack due to the oceans between us and any attacker.
So most of the military spending is actually totally offensive and not defensive at all.