Well, I don’t have a crystal ball, but if you’re asking for a yes or no prediction, then absolutely not. Despite all of the bravado, the one thing Putin cannot afford to do is bring NATO directly into the war. Use of a nuke would be the equivalent of when Germany instituted unrestricted submarine warfare in February 1917. Neutrality would become unsustainable. War would become a matter of when, not if.
US will use nukes before Russia does. The aging and brittle hegemon (US) is getting pushed into the corner and I can see it doing something desperate.
I don’t think Germany in 1917 is a realistic equivalent. Germany circa 1917 didn’t have the nuclear capabilities Russia has today. There would be more to consider than there was in 1917, to be sure.
If you have a better historical example of where a neutral country was dragged into war that it wanted no part of due to the deliberate and reckless actions of a belligerent, then I would love if you would enlighten me. And thank you for pointing out that Imperial Germany did not have nuclear weapons. I had to look it up to be sure, but I have made a note for future discussions. If your point is that a nuclear-armed opponent means we must act with more caution in escalating force, then point well understood. If your point is that once a country obtains nuclear weapons it just gets to do whatever it wants to countries who don’t have them, then I find that notion horrifying and cowardly.
I’ve been elsewhere caricatured as a contrarian. Nothing could be further from the truth. I agree with larger world on the conflict in Ukraine.
Russia has to send new troops to Belarus for training, as all of its instructors have been sent to fight and die in Ukraine, in a last-ditch desperation move to generate some momentum in their spring offensive. The Belarus army is much less experienced than the Russian army, and is probably not capable of training boy scouts. Russia is sending troops to 'less experienced' Belarus for training because most of its own instructors have been deployed to Ukraine, says UK intel
Scandinavian countries combine their air forces into a single cohesive unit to counter the Russian threat. This may allow these countries to donate older fighter aircraft, like their collection of over 100 F-16's, to Ukraine. Wouldn't that be exciting? Finland, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway pool their air forces together
Ukraine wants the 62 F/A-18 Hornets as an early Christmas present from Finland. Negotiations are still at an early phase, however. Ukraine officially asks Finland for Hornet fighter jets
If you really thought that was my point, you're a little slow on the uptake. Not sure why, but I was expecting more.
lol comparing your takes to his on this thread is like comparing the Florida football team to the Kansas City chiefs. He’s been polite enough to debate your ridiculous positions and you throw out this garbage? Wow.
Human Verification Interesting to see if the counter is really coming or if Ukraine is just conducting information war to keep Russia off balance. If they do counter I wonder where?
Yes, I suppose flying F-16’s over Ukraine would be exciting, albeit the wrong kind of exciting ... Flying Coffins
The Ukrainians just captured a key piece of Russias air defense system in an intelligence goldmine A curious 'container' that Ukrainian troops captured today looks to actually represent a significant Russian loss and a potential intelligence goldmine. What Ukraine's forces found looks to be a containerized command post that is part of the Krasukha-4 mobile electronic warfare system. The Krasukha-4 is primarily designed to detect and jam large radars, such as those on airborne early warning and control aircraft, such as the U.S. Air Force's E-3 Sentry, and spy satellites. Ukraine Just Captured Part Of One Of Russia's Most Capable Electronic Warfare Systems Ukrainian forces reportedly found this command post container outside of the capital Kyiv. Twitter user @UAWeapons was among the first to identify it as most likely being a component of the Krasukha-4 system, which is also known by nomenclature 1RL257, based on a picture that had emerged online. A complete Krasukha-4 consists of two vehicles, both based on the 8x8 KAMAZ-6350 truck, one with the electronic warfare (EW) system and the other carrying the command post module.
Amazing that it lasted so long without being discovered outside Kiev. Russia has not been anywhere near Kiev in ages.
Our resident troll(s) seem to downplay the accuracy of Ukraine's war reports while promoting the supposed accuracy of reports coming out of Russia. Both sides have a reason to try to claim success--it makes their military look more capable, and everybody supports a winner and fears a capable military. However, only one side has a reason to downplay their success--Ukraine. If Ukraine claims is it beating Russia too easily, then they do not need more weapons or more advanced weapons. So, while enemy casualties are probably inflated on both sides, I find Ukraine's battle reports significantly more credible than Russia's. And their battle reports are generally supported by territorial gains and losses. Russia has claimed to have taken Bahkmut several times since that battle started, and they still do not fully control it. Russia has tried a big spring offensive, and it has failed miserably, with little to show for their efforts. Ukraine may still run out of soldiers at some point and lose this war. But they are doing just fine right now. If they can hold out long enough to get enough tanks for a counter-offensive or two, I believe the tide will turn, and Russia will start losing this war. I don't think the war hinges on the provision of western aircraft to Ukraine, but the supply of tanks.
Yeah pretty funny, they got their heads handed to them in the first weeks and just turned tail and ran. Guess the Ukrainians had better things to do than search the woods for blown up tanks…
Brits say that Russia's attack on Bahkmut is stalled, due to "extreme attrition". Daily clashes have dropped in half, and it appears that Russia is going to focus on other areas for its future attacks. Russia 'largely stalled' in Bakhmut, shifting focus, UK says
