War in Ukraine

Ordinarily you don’t get to brag about winning a war if you lose the peace.

Unless you’re Murica.

 

Yes, it appears you are correct. Being completely without a dog in this fight, I am required to point out that the cutting off of humanitarian aid isn't a small thing in this case. However, it appears this is in concert with Trump's blanket suspension of pretty much all foreign humanitarian aid, along with U.S. non-profits, etc etc. Still, he could have made an exception for Ukraine and he didn't.

 

With Trump on Ukraine I'll take what I can get. He could have suspended military aid too.

 

That is true. Also I’m not sure if we provide meaningful “humanitarian aid” to Ukraine as this order defines it. The deal we have struck with Europe is that they will provide most of the food, medicine, etc, and we will provide munitions. So I’m not sure how much of a gap there might be or for how long, but I’m confident our allies can cover down at least for a while during the review. I’m also confident Ukraine will pass review faster than a lot of other countries we give generous humanitarian aid to.

 

Well, the good news for Russia is that their war effort does not have 900 bomber missions left in it before the economy collapses. Take THAT, Ukraine!

 

so when we cut aid to those countries and poverty increases, what happens? instability. migration, wars, famine...Im all for setting up accountability systems, that isn't what this is about. This is pure leverage and intimidation, not the way to win friends and influence people for the long term.

 

So is the consensus now Putin still has golden showers footage on Trump or has that ship sailed?

 

Kind of outside of the scope of this thread, but I have no problem with a review to see if our foreign humanitarian aid is achieving its intended effect. I do want it turned back on, though, at the earliest opportunity as soon as it passes muster.

 

I have always said that it didn't exist, so I'll stand on that.

 

Some more information on the distinction between humanitarian aid (which is paused) and military aid (which continues) to Ukraine. From what I can gather, much of what is now on pause (long-term projects to assist the Ukrainian economy) was on pause anyway due to the war, but is going to become very important once the fighting stops.

Another fascinating detail in this video is that Hungary and Slovakia have quietly dropped their intransigent resistance in the EU to anything that would hurt Russia. We won’t know the whole reason why for a while, but I believe it’s a combination of factors: primarily, the gas has been cut off, meaning Russia has less leverage and the West has more leverage; Hungary and Slovakia have sensed the change in the direction of the war; and/or we finally found out what Hungary and Slovakia really wanted and started to fill that need better than Russia. According to Broe, Poland seems to think that last factor is pretty important. I remember saying that three years ago. Stop trying to appeal to Orban’s morality and shaming him when you discover to your horror that he doesn’t care. Appeal to his fear, honor, and interest instead. Find out what scares him, and posture to do that. Find out what he wants, and offer to meet that need better than Russia. For what it’s worth, I think we should be doing the same with India. Stop trying to shame them out of trading with Russia and simply offer them a better deal.

 

Raytheon can't build them fast enough. Guess war and political upheaval due to rampant nationalism is good for business

This missile maker has a backlog of more than $200 billion, with ‘unprecedented’ demand for more

Shares of RTX Corp. zoomed toward a record high Tuesday after the defense and aerospace giant, formerly known as Raytheon, guided for a strong 2025, with backlog of more than $200 billion between its aviation and defense businesses.

RTX said it expects sales of between $83 billion and $84 billion in 2025, which would be growth of around 4% to 6% over the last year. The company’s backlog of $218 billion is split into $125 billion for commercial aviation and $93 billion for defense.

 

Ukrainian drone strike hits second Russian oil refinery in a week
Ukraine says its forces successfully hit an oil refinery in the Russian town of Kstovo, around 800 kilometres (500 miles) from the front lines in eastern Ukraine.

Four drones hit a Lukoil company depot, Ukrainian media said, adding that the facility suffered significant damage.

Videos posted on social media showed large flames rising over an industrial facility.

 

it appears that the russians are taking advantage of the sharpshooting skills of the NK and equipping them with sniper gear

North Korean soldiers in Russia: Captured gear raises concerns

Elite units have reached Ukraine, equipped with the latest gear from North Korea and advanced weapons from Russia, including AK-12 rifles. This marks the second instance of Ukrainians capturing this weapon from North Korean soldiers, but the first time featuring a rifle with a 1P87 collimator sight and the presence of the 1PN139-1 thermal sight. This equipment, combined with the almost fanatical motivation and good shooting training of the North Korean soldiers, is more dangerous than it seems.

 

Ukraine has developed a new way to defeat Russia's fiber-optic-controlled drones.

Ukraine Discloses New Method To Defeat Russian Fiber-Optic-Controlled FPV Drones

 

Big bad Russia needs NK soldiers to do their dirty work. Typical bully who can’t take care of their own business.

“As a last resort”, I’d pull every Ukraine out of the occupied area and use poison gas on all occupiers in Ukraine territory.

 

All of Russia’s NK troops have been killed and Russia is having to send in Ethiopians. All they have is garden tools to fight with and so the taking of town after town has slowed down a bit.

 

Why indeed ?

 

20 American mercenaries missing in Ukraine conflict
At least 20 American mercenaries fighting on the side of Ukraine have been reported missing in combat, with casualties among foreign fighters rising sharply over the past six months.

CNN reported this on Thursday after conducting its own investigation. According to the investigation, foreigners have been dying on the Ukrainian front lines in growing numbers as they rush to fill the gaps in Ukraine’s defenses.
..............................
It was gathered that many foreign fighters had confessed that the Ukrainian military provided little coordination.

The Russian Defence Ministry also said that the intensity of combat far exceeded what they experienced in Afghanistan and the Middle East, making survival extremely difficult.

 

Not very bright today, I see. There is a difference between cause and effect. They are not the same thing. When Russia invades a neighbor, killing hundreds of thousands of people and displacing millions more, it is completely normal for sane people to be offended by this. Only a deranged person would justify murder of innocent people by what people say about the murderer AFTER the murder. "This person insulted me after I murdered innocent people--that justifies my killing people." If Putin wanted people to talk nice about him and NOT suggest breaking up Russia into smaller countries, he should not have invaded Ukraine.

So, to summarize:

CAUSE: Russia invading Ukraine for no valid reason.

EFFECT: People say bad things about Russia, suggest disabling the country so they do not continue to do bad things.