Ukraine war mega thread

[sabang]

From the Boston Globe-


US can’t absolve itself of responsibility for Putin’s Ukraine invasion

The conflict renders a judgment on post-Cold War US policy. That policy has now culminated in a massive diplomatic failure.



For the media and for members of the public more generally, the eruption of war creates an urgent need to affix blame and identify villains. Rendering such judgments helps make sense of an otherwise inexplicable event. It offers assurance that the moral universe remains intact, with a bright line separating good and evil.

That rule certainly applies to the case of the invasion of Ukraine. Russia is the aggressor and President Vladimir Putin a bad guy straight out of central casting: On that point, opinion in the United States and Europe is nearly unanimous. Even in a secular age, we know whose side God is on.

Yet such snap judgments rarely stand the test of history. With the passage of time, moral clarity gives way to ambiguity. Clear-cut narratives take on hitherto unrecognized complexity. Bright lines blur......


..... By casually meddling in Ukrainian politics in recent years, the United States has effectively incited Russia to undertake its reckless invasion. Putin richly deserves the opprobrium currently being heaped on him. But US policy has been both careless and irresponsible.

As is so often the case, this is an unnecessary war. But the United States is no more an innocent party than the European countries that in 1914 stumbled into war.

Andrew Bacevich is president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.
Full Article- archive.ph

[David48atTD]

Andrew Bacevich is president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.

Two things stand out about the Quincy Institute: its funders and its founders.

The funders are George Soros and Charles Koch.

This might confuse those focused on American politics but is unsurprising to anyone who knows that they share a similar lean on foreign affairs. Similarly, the founders come from the progressive left (Stephen Wertheim, Trita Parsi, Suzanne DiMaggio) and the realist right (Andrew Bacevich).

The initial approach, as Bacevich told me, was a lean and mean group of thinkers to start with, “a fairly narrow focus: ending endless war; democratizing the formulation of foreign policy, which implies ending the elite monopoly; and putting U.S. policy in East Asia and the Middle East on a sound basis based on prudence, realism, and restraint.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlo...ncy-institute/

[sabang]

Wow, what an interesting duo- the Odd Couple! I most certainly share their 'endless war' dissidence- along with many, many other people. Well researched, but out of ammo (unlike the Pentagon).

[baldrick]

By casually meddling in Ukrainian politics in recent years

yes - there was a famous phone call - but I would say it was done under the instructions from his handlers

[pickel]

What else to do, now that Putin is off the menu.

Pierogy and holubchi are much more common in Canada, so they'll get by. Hopefully they kill a lot of Russians.

[Backspin]

It's insane how much American made weapons the Ukrainians had at the nuclear plant to fight to the death. But sense prevailed and they gave up and were released to go home.

[bsnub]

So he is still trying to blame America for an unprovoked invasion that he bleated on about for months, claiming it would never happen. SMH

[baldrick]

It's insane how much American made weapons the Ukrainians had at the nuclear plant to fight to the death.

so what percentage of the projectile weapons in the world are made in the US ?

[Backspin]

The reality of the war instead of the fantasy in the media

1. Dismembering and disorganizing the Ukrainian military achieved in the estimated 24 hours
   
2. Closing the operational cauldron behind the Ukie forces in the Donbass: achieved in 2 weeks (in fact, it is even better, the Russians are now cutting the Ukie forces in the Donbass into two smaller cauldrons, see map here: (you see TWO blue circles, not one anymore
   

Withinthe same two weeks, Russia liberated the entire Sea of Azov coast andmuch of the Black Sea Coast,which is now either under Russian control, or under direct Black SeaFleet blockage.



The Russian military intervention in the Ukraine – a macro view | The Vineyard of the Saker

[panama hat]

Move to Russia.

Strangely, might just do that MK

Nah, you won't. Trying to be 'edgy' doesn't suit you.

[bsnub]

The reality of the war instead of the fantasy in the media

The Vineyard of the Saker is just a shit propaganda mouthpiece of the Kremlin. If you want to talk fantasy, this is it. Lap it up, lemming. The Three Stooges proving their idiocy once again.

[OhOh]

The reality of the war instead of the fantasy in the media

No SPLATTERING, either.

Call that a war? This is a bsnubs war ©NaGastan:

[pickel]

No SPLATTERING, either.

Do you think the children killed in this war are baby Nazi's? Hospitals are being shelled, you sick fuck.

[Backspin]

Stop the freaking war. Make a deal on Ukraine neutrality and be done with it. Russia hasn't even put counter sanctions into effect yet.

Bloomberg - Are you a robot?

Soaring prices are hitting other energy-intensive industries, with papermakers NorskeSkog ASA and Pro-GestSpA haltingmills in Austria and Italy this week. Pro-Gest said that the sellingprice of a ton of paper was lower than the cost of the energyrequired to make it.
Steelmakersincluding AcerinoxSA suspendedoperations at several facilities across Spain after energy pricesmore than doubled in the past two weeks. Despite benchmarkconstruction steel prices surging to record levels in Europe thisweek, many mills using electric-arc furnaces are still likelyunprofitable.


OnWednesday, Norwegian fertilizer maker YaraInternational ASAsaid itwould temporarily cut output of ammonia and urea at its Europeanfacilities to less than half of their capacity because of surging gasprices. Hungarian fertilizer producer Nitrogenmuvex is alsotemporarily halting production, while Borealis AG is curbing output.


Elsewherein Europe, Liberty Steel’s mill at Rotherham in the U.K. has beenforced to stop production due to soaring power costs, according to aperson familiar with the matter. Liberty declined to comment.

[kingwilly]

Make a deal on Ukraine neutrality and be done with it.

Give up their sovereignty, then?

[AntRobertson]

Stop the freaking war. Make a deal on Ukraine neutrality and be done with it. Russia hasn't even put counter sanctions into effect yet.

Bloomberg - Are you a robot?

No Bloomberg, he's just a fucking idiot.

[baldrick]

Stop the freaking war.

how would you do that backspit ?

[pickel]

how would you do that backspit ?

He'd give Putin everything he wants, and not just in Ukraine.

[David48atTD]

Russia hasn't even put counter sanctions into effect yet.

Actually ...

Putin orders a ban on some Russian exports amid sweeping Western sanctions and US energy import restrictions

Russia President Vladimir Putin has signed an order banning the exports of some goods and raw materials.


The order includes a ban or restrictions on "exports outside of the Russian Federation's territory and (or) imports to the Russian Federation's territory of products and (or) raw materials," according to an Interfax news agency translation of the order released on Tuesday.


The document said the ban goes into effect immediately but did not state which goods and raw materials will be affected by the restrictions.

Putin Orders Ban on Some Russian Exports Amid Western Sanctions


Puffy Putin rattling the sabre ... he's got a bit of oil and gas, a few metals ... meh

OH ... and lot's of war making machines ...

[David48atTD]

^ Oh, one more ... lot's of soldiers he's exported to Ukraine, sadly, few of them will be returning home to the Motherland alive.

They'll be buried in mass graves in Belarus

Quote: "I demand:
That from 1 March 2022,the bodies of fallen servicemen of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are covertly removed (at night) to permanent base points and that they are buried in a mass grave (including in the Republic of Belarus) with assignment of a number.
If it is impossible to evacuate the bodies from 1 March 2022, measures should be taken to destroy them on the spot."

Russia orders its military to be buried in mass graves to cover up losses in Ukraine | Ukrayinska Pravda

[OhOh]

Hospitals are being shelled,

By whom?

[bsnub]

By whom?

Who do you think, you lemming?

[baldrick]

He'd give Putin everything he wants, and not just in Ukraine.

everything east of the rhine ?

how did the appeasement of a totalitarian country turn out last time ?

By whom?

that would be the chinese - using trebuchets to hurl cluster munitions of uyghurs at them - that is what the news website I get my facts from says

[harrybarracuda]

Actually ...

Putin orders a ban on some Russian exports amid sweeping Western sanctions and US energy import restrictions

Russia President Vladimir Putin has signed an order banning the exports of some goods and raw materials.

Since the only people taking his shit are chinkystan and pakistan, I guess that's the end of the caviar and shit vodka market.

The Iranians will clean up the former and France and Poland the latter.

[Shutree]

If the Russian president acts rationally,

No reason at all to believe that will happen, sadly.

Which is not to say that things cannot change. I am sure there is wiser counsel in the Kremlin who will be looking for a different path.