War in Ukraine

Violence seems to be a part of the Russian character, unfortunately. Russian journalists were not happy with reporters asking questions about doping by the Russian figure skating star, so they threatened to tear the reporter to pieces.

After alleged death threats over Kamila Valieva doping saga, IOC says 'everybody needs to take a chill pill'

 

UK may be key here. London, aka Londongrad is the favorite of the oligarchs since the brits wash so much dirty Russian money. If they put teeth to sanctions that cuts the oligarchs from travel to/from London Putin may get pressure he doesn't like to go along with the military reluctane

‘Londongrad’ Undermines U.K.’s Tough Talk on Russia Sanctions


The ease with which Russian billionaires can stash billions of dollars in property and other assets in London is taking the bite out of the U.K.’s tough talk on sanctions against Russia for any incursions into Ukraine.

Reports this week that a key piece of legislation designed to fight money-laundering and dirty money inflows into the U.K. from Russia and elsewhere may be delayed aren’t helping.

As the West strives to take a united stance on possible sanctions, the U.K. is struggling to shake off its reputation as the place to be for wealthy Russians looking to park their billions -- one that has earned the British capital the “Londongrad” moniker. The continued ability to bring funds from Russia into the U.K. with secret ownership of assets could dent the effectiveness of sanctions, said Tyler Kustra, a professor of politics at the University of Nottingham.

“A lot of this money is hidden between numerous levels of shell corporations,” he said. “We can sanction a Russian politician, a Russian general as much as we want but we don’t necessarily have the ability to seize their assets because we don’t know who the true owner of those assets are.”

Russia has amassed tens of thousands of troops on Ukraine’s border, sending tensions soaring. While officials in Moscow have repeatedly said they have no intention of invading the country, Western allies are discussing a variety of measures should activity escalate.

The U.S. and its allies are honing in on a package of sanctions that would include targeting Moscow’s ability to convert currency. Energy penalties and cutting off access to the Swift system, which manages 42 million financial transactions daily, are also on the table. The U.K.’s Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said she would not rule out personal sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and is coordinating her efforts with France, Germany and the U.S.

“We will make sure that we have the wherewithal to have a very severe package of sanctions in the case of any Russian incursion into Ukraine,” Truss told Parliament on Jan. 22

The U.K. could also turn to a tool known as Unexplained Wealth Orders. The National Crime Agency plans to increase issuance of such orders if the situation escalates in Ukraine, the i newspaper reported on Thursday. That could mean those suspected of having ties to Putin would have to justify the origins of their wealth or face having U.K. assets confiscated. The NCA didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

 

How many times is Biden going to say "there will be serious consequences if Russia invades Ukraine" and it gets put out on the wire like he hasn't made the same threat 15 times in the last 3 weeks? He just keeps repeating the same thing and it keeps getting pushed by the MSM like it's news.

 

Better yet, why doesn't Putin start withdrawing the troops massed at the borders?

Reminding Putin of consequences is a good thing. Better than Neville Chamberlin's approach to Hitler.

I note you joined GC Tuesday and then started attacking Biden for his "overstated" response and minimizing Putin's conduct.

 

Because an ally (Germany) asked us to?
Germany calls on Congress not to sanction Nord Stream 2 pipeline: report
US Sanctions targeting Nord Stream 2 would undermine the commitment given to Germany in the Joint Statement, weaken the credibility of the US government, and endanger the achievements of the Joint Statement, including the provisions supporting Ukraine. They would ultimately damage transatlantic unity,"

 

Based on this report, Biden basically just called to repeat what he's been saying for a few weeks now. It's worth noting that Putin wanted to schedule this call this coming Monday, but Biden wanted to hold it sooner (today) to just call and keep repeating the same talking points. I'm trying to be objective here, but to me it makes Biden look nervous.

As an aside, I think the evacuation of the embassy and telling Americans to get out, due to an invasion happening in the next 48 hours is Biden's way of covering his ass after Afghanistan. If the Russians do ultimately invade, they will almost surely wait until the Olympics are over for fear of upstaging China and Xi. Highly unlikely they invade as the Olympics are still in progress.

Biden warns Putin of 'swift and severe costs' amid fears of imminent Ukraine invasion

 

Well, of course, Germany has an interest in this too. But the bottom line is you can't please everyone and the sanctions were there to clamp down on Russia's revenue stream and to weaken Russia. Do you agree to every favor your friends ask for? I surely hope not.

 

New intelligence received is why recent actions have been taken by the state department

 

Let's just hope Putin isn't ROTFLHAO after the State Dept makes moves like this and issues statements based on this "new intelligence" that Putin planted.

 

Truth be told, the Russians have always been more paranoid than the Americans, since the Cold War days. Which is why I don't like the squandering moves by Biden.

 

So they’re paranoid that they might invade Ukraine so they evacuated their embassy? That makes no sense

 

Wag that dog Joe.

 

Gazpacho I say.

 

Nope. Likely paranoid that eventually American or NATO troops will show up in Kyiv. Paranoid those parties are using this as a proxy to do just that. Biden has already sent nearly 10,000 more troops to Poland and Lithuania in the past couple of weeks. It can be other factors too. They may believe Ukraine will seize their consulate there.

Look, Putin isn't stupid. He wouldn't telegraph an invasion with moves like shutting down the embassy and such. Or the troop buildup. It's all smoke and mirrors and he's hoping to get some concessions from the US, NATO and Ukraine. Sure, the threat is there, but him actually giving the order is a totally separate thing. Also, please remember this is not like the proxy war in the Donbass region. Putin has already admitted these are Russian Federation troops stationed at the border of Ukraine doing military exercises. So if he invades, he can't blame it on a proxy militia, etc. Putin has already stated flatly his intent is not to invade. So if he does, there's no getting around it and he knows that.

 

To be a fly on that phone call.

 

New poster posting the Russian position right down the line.

 

Veteran poster can't refute new poster's arguments, so instead infers that said new poster is either Russian GRU, someone from Trump's circle or Trump himself? Which is it? Am I Trump? You know I live in Florida. Always been a huge Gator fan.. HUGE!