You beat me to this. I often look online to see what is leaving the base near me and many times they aren’t broadcasting. If you see assets on line it’s because they want to be seen.
Which makes the tankers an interesting message. What else is up there (or is implied to be up there)?
Putin’s comments about nuclear weapons indicate he is nuts. We cannot live in a world with him anywhere near a red button. It is time for a high-ranking officer to pump some lead into the guy.
Russia’s nuclear doctrine:
Russia strengthened the language of its military doctrine in December, 2014.
The unclassified portion of the document identifies NATO as the source of the primary threat to Russia’s security. On the subject of a nuclear strike, it says the following:
“The Russian Federation reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in response to an attack on Russia and/or its allies involving the use of nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction as well as in the case of aggression against the Russian Federation with the use of conventional weapons when the existence of the state itself is threatened. Decisions regarding the use of nuclear weapons are made by the President of the Russian Federation.”
In other words, Russia reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in response to anything it interprets as aggression, whether or not the aggression involves nuclear weapons or even Russia itself. In still plainer words, the Russian military doctrine provides for the possibility of a first nuclear strike
Worrying, but hopefully Russian generals are sane and wouldn’t obey an order for the use of nuclear weapons.
The financial cost of this war will be felt for a long time.
Anyone seen news of American Companies divesting Russian assets? Britain and Norway have already begun the process .
I’m concerned what this sell off will do to International markets.
From The Guardian Live Feed
On Face the Nation today one of the people interviewed said he might detonate a small nuclear device in the middle of Siberia as a form of sabre rattling.
“Next man makes a move the n____ gets it.”
A coup would be the best thing for RUSSIA, too. A sane leader who immediately tells the West, “We want a ceasefire immediately and we’re pulling out of Ukraine” would have the West quite happily lifting sanctions.
Weren’t ‘cerebral haemorrhages’ a not-infrequent cause of death in the Soviet Union?
It’s good to see the sanctions are already working.
I don’t think many people are feeling sorry for Putin’s rich ally. He’s neighbors with George Clooney in Italy. Vlad will get access back after the war ends and sanctions are lifted?
The mayor of Kyiv said the city is now completely encircled. However, bravely the Ukrainians have fought, quantity still has a quality all its own.
“is this the Iron Curtain”? Yes you stupid clownfuck. Your country is actively attacking another.
The mayor says he misspoke, they’re not yet surrounded:
And the Russians have both quantity and quality on their side. Though to take a city Kyiv’s size is going to take a hell of a lot of bodies, if Ukrainians in the city choose to fight it out. No one, regardless of how good they are or how many they have wants to fight in a city like that.
Georgian oil tanker tells Russian ship to go f*ck themselves.
Looks like Turkey has seen the light (for sure this time).
I expect that to muck significantly with Russian logistics.
invoking Article-19 of the Montreux Convention
WOO-HOO !!
[I’m invoking poetic license on some of the geography. Work with me]
Russia actually first renounced its no-first-use nuclear policy in 1993. This returned it to parity with the US, which always reserved a first strike option to counter the anticipated Soviet use of overwhelming conventional forces in Europe.
With Russia renouncing their no-first-use policy, they were effectively conceding that they could no longer rely on overwhelming numbers of conventional forces for their military aims.
Haven’t read thread (did use search, though) so apologies if already posted:
(as a sort shadenfraude-y little respite…)
Hopefully there’s one or two Ukraninan numbers that they like.
The traditional form of Russian government, tyranny moderated by periodic assignation.
But if this all works out, if we do not blow up the world, this could be the last gasp of the Soviet Union as an ideal. Maybe, just maybe, Russia can become a normal country.