Russia - threadbanned users in OP

Username does NOT check out.

It's the nuclear threat of Russsia that is the real threat , not what he is doing on the ground . They probably have eneogh Nuclear weapons to destroy Europe , that is why dialogue and comprise I see as the only solution, I wish Putin was toppled, but apparently ther is at least 50% support for him in Russia.

We in Ireland and Europe now need to end our dependence on gas and oil from Russia. I well remember growing up in savage cold winters in North Co. Dublin in the late 60s and 70s and going to bed with double socks, double gloves, hot water bottles and a Foxford blanket. We had no central heating and we survived. Today's generation (my own adult kids included) have their boilers banging away all day, (with Russian oil). Up to March 2020, our car was used every single day. Thanks to the pandemic, that stopped. We as a family, re-discovered walking. It will be difficult to stop buying Russian oil but we will have to. It might look like a step backward but it's a step forward, imo.

I choose to give credene to the US secretary of State:

" March 6, 2022 4:22 pm

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed on Sunday that the U.S. is working with Warsaw on plans to supply Ukraine with Russian-made fighter jets.

“We are working with Poland as we speak to see if we can backfill anything that they provide to the Ukrainians,” Blinken told CNN in an interview.

Poland would give MiG-29 fighters, which its pilots are trained to fly, and in turn, Poland would receive U.S.-made F-16s."

The Daily Mail is claiming the deal has been approved.

I guess the flunky maintaining that site on a weekend is out of the loop.

https://www.politico.eu/article/us-secretary-of-state-confirms-plans-to-supply-ukraine-with-fighter-jets-via-poland/

Russia can and will use its nuclear force the very moment the west armies crossed the border into Russia.. Nato beat Russia highly likely in like for like war. That's why everyone should be concerned about Ukraine. May not be putting boots on the grounds, the west. Giving them aircraft and weapons is an act of war against the Russian military. Russia has not declared war on the west it has against Ukraine,. West by giving Ukraine lethal weapons has decided to declare war on Russia using Ukraine army as a proxy. How Russia will look at that support longterm in near future is unknown, but they could at any time declare war. That's what put chills in my bones when does Russia decide the western support had gone too far and has to step in to help their army from losing. Could they target an airfield in Nato country that has migs?

That Israel figure is surprising considering total population is only 8M or so.

No one is suggesting to attack Russia. This is about liberation of Ukraine

Have you asked any Ukrainians what they think about that plan???

Not sure if he has backtracked on his back track yet.

I accept. Russia looks at the west's assistance as helping the enemy. When does it become serious for them to take action on it? West has declared war. All rests on, Putin's inner circle outlook. West actions are placing more Russian soldiers' lives at risk will they have to defend them. I don't know what Russian military leaders are considering. When fighter aircraft is brought into Nato countries and then used against Russian military people. That ain't nothing that serious upping the ante in an already bad situation. 

A nuclear war with NATO would be thousand times worse than whats happening now - it would probaly lead to the end of Europe, is comprimise not a better solution ?

if Russia had not such nuclear backup, I would agree with all the military intervention, but the sad reality is they do. nightmare scenario.

As I said it's an ultimatum to leave Ukraine within a specified time period 3 to 4 days and an immediate cessation of hostilities. Go back to your lands and there will be no attack. If you stay we will force you out. I think all Putins inner circle would jump at the chance to get out of this quagmire. If Putin disagrees then they'll need to deal with him. I doubt very many would be willing to put their lives and that of their extended families on the line for a guy who'll probably be dead in 18months anyway.

Poor, poor Russia. Why can't the whole world just stay out of it, and leave Russia alone with Ukraine so it can kick the sh*t out of Ukraine in peace in their illegal, unfounded and unjust invasion? Weh.

I wouldn't consider myself to be a military expert but as far as I know the Russians stopped building tanks in the early 2000s when production of the T-90 moved to India. The Russian defense budget then began to be spent on modernising the existing tank inventory while military contractors were tasked with the development of a next generation tank.

The Russian tanks that were used in the initial invasion of Ukraine date from the 1970s and 1980s. I'm specifically talking about the likes of the T-72 and T-80 battle tanks, over the years they have been modernised to use heavier armor and improved weaponry. In the Gulf War, those tanks were shown to be outdated relative to U.S. M1 Abrams which began production in 1979. The T-90 was produced afterwards. In the Chechen War, all of the Russian battle tanks proved to be death traps in urban warfare and a new tank model was required.

The T-14 Armata is the 'next generation' tank and we haven't seen any footage of it in Ukraine. It first made an appearance in the 2015 Victory Day parade and only a handful of them have been seen over the years. In 2016, it was claimed that the tank was in full production but only 7 of them have ever been seen at one time at a Victory Day parade.

It has been speculated that the T-14 was a piece of propaganda and that Russia didn't have the financial resources to order sufficient numbers for the manufacturer to put it into full time production and instead opted for the cheaper option of upgrading the older tanks.

It's possible that there are thousands of tanks mothballed in underground facilities in Siberia but the issue is likely to be whether there are personnel available to operate and support them. Fuel consumption is another issue - they are not known for their fuel efficiency and the T-80 tank in particular is reported to consume fuel at the same rate whether it is on the move or the engine is idling.

There were reports of the T-14 being deployed in Syria and that in a battle with insurgents one was destroyed and two others badly damaged but there was never any footage.