It's bog standard. In wartime you disrupt enemy comms. and try to cause as much confusion as you can and yes, America in their wars have hit these types of targets.
But guaranteeing Russia's security probably means the end of Ukraine as an independent state. That's the reality.
They would have to sign up to never joining NATO, having limits on military capability, maintaining neutrality and dissolving the current govt - and that's just as a start.
I don't think Putin is serious about negotiating really. I think security is part of it but the real goal is a puppet Russian regime in Ukraine and other countries at a later date to push the west/east/NATO boundary back from Moscow more toward the 1997 position.
I'll give them a call...hang on a moment..
Down into Romania now. Dropping off supplies?
Other than the Court of Public Opinion, no.
The problem is that people on all sides are on a knife edge right now. All it takes is one nervous trigger finger and things could go south quickly. And there might not be a Stanislav Petrov or Vasili Arkipov to intervene this time.
For some reason, I just can't get this clip from Hunt for Red October out of my head:
To be honest, a rogue SSBN would probably be more comforting than the sh!tshow we're in now!
Plenty of derision regarding the Russian invasion and lack of progress over the last week, all of it deserved of course, but there are signs that the various offensives are starting to come together now.
The huge armoured column moving towards Kyiv is advancing relatively unhindered too - suggesting that the Ukrainian military's ability to launch surface-to-surface missiles and airstrikes has been seriously diminished to the extent that it is essentially non-existent at this stage. Bad news, the logistical issues can and will be sorted - especially if they no longer have to deal with missile strikes and airstrikes behind their own lines.
It might not seem it at the moment, but I think things are looking bleak for the Ukrainian military.
Putin is f*cked now
Humanitarian and logistical, a little bird tells me..
Well, the Russians made noises in the last 24hrs about Zelensky being the "legitimate leader" of Ukraine. Raised a few eyebrows did that. Honestly if the deal is what you've lined out but Zelensky stays, I'd take that deal all day long.
You’re really living up to your username there
will the reasoning behind their decisions be scrutinised?
Looks ominous now for the Ukranians - The Russians are bombing the cities to pulp like Syria , Putin wants to kill them all .
Appears Kherson in the south has fallen to the Russians
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/military-aircraft-assisting-operation-to-bring-surrogate-babies-born-in-ukraine-to-ireland-1.4816764?mode=sample&auth-failed=1&pw-origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.irishtimes.com%2Fnews%2Fireland%2Firish-news%2Fmilitary-aircraft-assisting-operation-to-bring-surrogate-babies-born-in-ukraine-to-ireland-1.4816764%3FlocalLinksEnabled%3Dfalse
But with that deal Russia can just get rid of Zelensky in round 2 without opposition.
There will be no Ukranian military to oppose it next time.
Thats the whole point of the deal... its not the end game. It is the means to the end.
Heres the answer https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/military-aircraft-assisting-operation-to-bring-surrogate-babies-born-in-ukraine-to-ireland-1.4816764?mode=sample&auth-failed=1&pw-origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.irishtimes.com%2Fnews%2Fireland%2Firish-news%2Fmilitary-aircraft-assisting-operation-to-bring-surrogate-babies-born-in-ukraine-to-ireland-1.4816764%3FlocalLinksEnabled%3Dfalse
Decisive door victory.
Well to be fair the Ukrainians have won the propaganda and social media war. No contest. They're like a well honed instagram model, while Russia looks like the middle aged oullad asking his kids how to work his phone so he can share dad jokes with his mates.
Now the Unkrainians deserve to(and no, they're no angels on a few levels). Their nation was invaded by a nasty prick. If he had invaded the areas where alledged atrocities against Russians were taking place and took them, there would have been mucho tutting and this isn't on, but we wouldn't be in the mess the world is in now. Nope, he went full czar, cocksure of a swift victory and didn't read the room to a remarkably scary degree. To the point where he's running out of options for saving face with his subjects and moving back from a very dangerous precipice.
He's set in motion the bankrupty of his country, increased hardship of his people(though I personally believe this will give him more support) and exclusion from world politics and economics and travel not far off North Korea. If he is the smooth operator some think he is(and he was to a large extent) he needs to do something not stupid and quickly. I predict/hope there will be calls for 'peace talks' beyond the current for optics ones that will give him an out. That will include keeping the Eastern bits of Ukraine and some sort of promise of no NATO on their soil(I again personally suspect NATO will bluster, but will be happy enough with that and play the long game. Putin rattled the cage of the European NATO members and they need time to pull out of their post Soviet sure it's all graaaand funk). EU membership might be on the table, but it's a table as long as the ones in Putin's Kremlin and all the main actors know it. Ukraine is a basketcase of corruption and economics that will take years to fix and they won't be getting into the party until they do. America will largely sit back and grumble publicly but they know the overall score too. Money and investment will pour into Ukraine to hopefully fix the place. It was in dire need of it, the vote for Zelenskyy was the Ukrainian hope for it and this horrible war will copperfasten that and the eyes of the world will be on them not to fúck it up.
If nobody starts pressing big red buttons and the war on the ground comes to an uneasy stalemate followed by a withdrawal - and I know this sounds horrid right now at this terrible moment - but this could be the longterm saving of Ukraine and Ukrainians.
Thoughts on Abramovich one day being president of Russia? Idle speculation of course but probably be an excellent candidate or best of a bad lot candidate.
he’s rich, already a politician, good contacts in the west and wouldn’t approach anyone as a Soviet Union loving megalomaniac
Russian police detaining survivor of siege of Leningrad
At the ballot box and hopefully nowhere else. That's why we want to live in a democracy.
A correction. The military column is not moving. Sentinel radar images have shown that it is staying put for some reason.
He's a murderous kleptomaniac who's deeply in bed with Putin.
Which I guess makes him an ideal candidate.
Usually when countries demand demilitarisation, it's from the big stuff. Ballistic missiles, new jets etc. Not Javlins and AKs. I don't trust that prick one bit, he speaks with forked tongue! but I think if that's the deal they have to go for it.
Relax Brah.
See, Russia is bring the world together. 🤪
Would be amazing. But Russians will not elect anyone who isn't a "strong man". Abramovich comes off as a bit soft! He might be too old by the time Putin let's go of power.
Murderous?
Even worse tbh, not moving and not worried about being struck. Ukrainian military's offensive capabilities have been seriously degraded at this stage. Of course they will be able to continue a staunch defence, but if they are unable to disrupt preparations for a siege situation then they are in bother.
On that point, I suspect they've stopped to wait and see how the offensives play out in the southern cities once they've been captured - specifically the intensity of the insurgencies. That and its allowing them the opportunity to sort out logistical issues.
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