Russia - threadbanned users in OP

You don't need hiking/military boots if you're fighting a prolonged urban action; not that Ukraine has as strict a dress code as we're used to in NATO or Western armies at the best of times. These are guys that are used to sitting in trenches for weeks on end; they don't have daily PT consisting of cross-country hikes where they'd need good shoes at all times.

In fact I would actually argue the complete opposite: if you wanted to show a fake unit surrendering you would probably have them looking as identical as possible. And you would probably block most of their faces with masks; rather than having them completely visible. And you would have made sure they all had obvious Ukraine flags or arm bands; and so on and so forth.

Anyway I'm not going to keep arguing the toss: it's possible it's a fake sure but I don't really see any compelling evidence it is fake.

It appears that the escalate to de-escalate policy applies to more than just large scale war, one of the best and most up to date reads on the current Russian nuclear policies is a 2019 thesis by Frank Kirbyson, Naval Postgraduate School:-

"The expanded role for nuclear weapons in the 2000 Military Doctrine indicates the Russian Federation adopted an “escalate to de-escalate” strategy. The 2000 Military Doctrine expanded on Russia’s classification of conflicts to include: (1) armed conflicts; (2) local wars; (3) regional wars; (4) global (large-scale) war"

And for anyone thinking that NATO involvement won't go nuclear the author concludes that current Russian nuclear policies supports (perhaps even encourages) the idea of a first strike escalation of large scale conventional conflict into nuclear conflict:-

"The 2000 Military Doctrine goes on further to state “A large-scale war utilizing only conventional weapons will be characterized by the high likelihood of escalating into nuclear war.” The expanded purpose of nuclear weapons and Russia’s clear linkage between conventional attacks and nuclear response strongly support the idea of an escalatory strategy"

It's an very good read for anyone wondering what the current Russian nuclear policy is.

"This thesis examines aims to contribute to the current debate on whether or not the Russian Federation currently possesses an “escalate to de-escalate” nuclear strategy through a comprehensive look at the evolution of Russian military doctrine, capabilities and weapons development, and major annual exercises. The cumulative assessment of this research arrives in agreeance with the 2018 Nuclear Posture Review in that the Russian Federation possesses an “escalate to de-escalate” strategy. However, this research further suggests that Russia assigns an operational role for nonstrategic nuclear weapons in the event of large-scale conflict with either the United States (and/or its NATO allies) or China.

What i dont get is why doesnt the west escalate? why dont they threaten to go into a full war if they do not stop attacking Ukraine put all they're nukes on alert and face putin down see if they really want it. I think all this pandering and sitting on the fence is going ot be disasterous and further strenghten Russia in the long term i mean if we allow Ukraine a democracy to literally be butchered and absorbed by Russia the west may aswell just proclaim Russia and China as rules of the world thru force and will to kill innocent people because we are basically telling them "you can do as you please so long as you have nuke"

Seems quite skeptical - none of them are injured or look like they've spent a month under siege.

That ties in with a Guardian eye witness report yesterday - says many people were shot in Bucha in the first few days of the war.

Horrible stuff to be witnessing. With 4 young kids at the start of all this I’m thinking no WW3 please, but now I’ll look back at our generations handling of this as cowardly, privileged and shameful.

We all fear Nukes as the end of civilisation but Fcuk me what civilisation is this if kids and innocent people can be abused like this. It’s barbaric

i dread looking back in time and feeling shame we didn’t demand more from the world.

How long can NATO sit back and really watch this happen?

Sanctions to suit the privileged, hit them on the energy stuff and least for Fcuk sake

I saw a Russia expert make this point a few days ago. The more the Goebbels style lies and propaganda whips the population up, the harder it becomes for the regime to even get an 'out' from the Ukraine war.

Yep. It's been described as a Firehose of Falsehood. I understand how it works on a macro level but I struggle to understand how a thinking individual can hold that contradictory stuff in their brain at the same time.

Kosovo keen to expedite NATO membership. Presume some fear of Russian backed Serbian threat.

EU will need to stay united while also keeping a close eye on Hungary now more than ever. Orbans victory speech concerning.

Interesting commentary from Donnacha Ó Beacháin on the tonight show.

He said we need to sever our reliance on Russian oil/gas as the Baltic states have done.."they are drug dealers with tanks and we are addicts"

Said their economy is small only the size of Italy..

I was surprised at Oracle's move as Larry Ellison is pretty much a horrible person, disappointed at Microsoft's reaction but not surprised at JP Morgan.

“America must be ready for the possibility of an extended war in Ukraine with unpredictable outcomes. We should prepare for the worst and hope for the best. We must look at this as a wake-up call,” the letter urged.

“We need to make this a permanent, long-lasting stand for democratic ideals and against all forms of evil.”

Full disclosure - I have worked for all three.

Russia is a small economy but al lot of what they sell is essential.

Globally important in fertilizer, energy, raw materials, esp rare minerals.

Relying on them now though is giving them leverage over us.

It is going to be a very hard break.