He likes the EU money alright (I did mention that) but the days of this may be numbered.
Your right wing paragons in Hungary are the ones who've been thumbing their nose at the fundamental EU rules for years + getting away with it scot free (so much for the Eurosceptic fantasy/nightmare of Germany/France bending said rules and hammering anyone else who does the same).
Germany (and a few others) were indeed dragging their heels on EU oil purchase phase out a few weeks back, but I think Orbán is the only road-block there now. If there's any EU leader a silly slur like "Putin's Pet" applies to, it is him (!), but I think he's mostly out for himself tbh like all such autocratic politicians.
Ultimately I would think a future where Russia take a serious beating in Ukraine (even more than they have already), they have to pull back the army, the Russian economy is ruined, maybe Putin's regime is ousted as a result of all that...is not a very hospitible world for the Putin-wannabe leaders like Orbán IMO. So he does what little he can to help out (perched inside the EU), while not risking too much. Birds of a feather and all that.
That's factually incorrect. You do realise that Ukraine is already in possession of M777's. Explain where you believe these came from, please.
Think its time NATO should consider demilitarizing Russia instead
Interesting, it may mean the Kremlin is gearing up the propaganda to formally announce war in order to solve their manpower issues. If so, taking bets it will be sold as a war against "the West" for Russia's survival.
Deal on Oil embargo reached.
Russian politicians have been saying they're effectively at war with NATO since very near the beginning of this Ukraine invasion, if not at the beginning.
According to Wikipedia in its article on Declaration of War, it says that very few nations have formally declared war since the end of WW2
Since 1945, developments in international law such as the United Nations Charter, which prohibits both the threat and the use of force in international conflicts, have made declarations of war largely obsolete in international relations,[1] though such declarations may have relevance within the domestic law of the belligerents or of neutral nations. The UN Security Council, under powers granted in articles 24 and 25, and Chapter VII of the Charter, may authorize collective action to maintain or enforce international peace and security. Article 51 of the United Nations Charter also states that: "Nothing in the present Charter shall impair the inherent right to individual or collective self-defence if an armed attack occurs against a state."[2]
Few nations have formally declared war upon another since then.[3][4] In addition to this, non-state or terrorist organizations may claim to or be described as "declaring war" when engaging in violent acts.[5] These declarations may have no legal standing in themselves, but they may still act as a call to arms for supporters of these organizations.
That would go a way to explaining why 'military intervention/operation' are the preferred terms to use. Would Putin need to officially declare war in order to get full mobilisation anyway? Could he not just repeat the line about being effectively at war with the West and sign full mobilisation into law?
Is that why the Russians are restoring statues of Lenin, flying the hammer and sickle, why it's leadership, political, militarily, nearly all have been Communist party members.
The brakes ( and steering )in those trucks often left a lot to be desired....maintenance and servicing was not their strong point.
Even Nazi Germany rarely if ever declared war on anybody. They just went ahead and invaded - I don't think there was even a declaration of war when they invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941.
Die Welt reporting that Germany are rolling back on promises of arms to Ukraine and have delivered next to nothing for the last month.
Berlin is getting optimistic about Russian advances in the Donbass.
By some distance, modern Russia is a more open, more tolerant of dissent, better place to live than Soviet Russia.
Modern Russia has a long way to go to get anywhere near the savagery and mass murder of the Soviet Unions repeated campaigns in the Ukraine.
That is not to say Putin's Russia is nice but how exceptionally savage Communist Russia was.
Don't down play the past.
Fuckin idiot driver
A well guided drone or a short encounter with a very small amount of Novichok should reduce that considerably
No and its a lesson for Ireland - you do not need a massive air force to hold off a much larger force.
Squirming Russian ambassador to Britain being interviewed by a clever BBC journalist (who also happens to be Black ,which Russian don’t hold in high regard), who’s frequently and recently been in Ukraine , whereas the Russian hasn’t been there in decades .
https://youtu.be/HVKEPG2eNYE
Nope. But we are an island. It wouldn't take much to blockade the ports etc. I would be more inclined to invest in a credible navy, with mine sweepers, sub-hunters, littoral combat ships and some missile boats ( these can be used for air defence). You would definitely get more bang for your buck investing in a navy.
The lad with the beard is a full on mental case. He's been on a few ofv those shows and every time he's ranting and raving about nuking somewhere or other.
He has a total hard on for this Sarmat missile too. He's like the lad down the pub telling everyone how he'd kick the shít out of this or that fella and that he has the best uppercut you've seen only to fall flat on his face and smash all his teeth when he gets off his stool to go to the Jack's.
Yes, you are 100% right. During those Soviet Russian times the killing of Russians BY Russians must have been frightening - to put it mildly. You now get only 15 years in jail if you say something ‘AWFUL’ . At least you are still let live.
THE BIG BIG change from those Soviet times that Russia has decided to continue with the killing BUT IN ANOTHER COUNTRY
Reports that Russia have made big gains in Severodonetsk last night.Big losses on both sides.Ukraine have been defending well for weeks with experts wodering why they don't retreat across the river to better defensive positions.This retreat may be happening now so if Severodonetsk is lost,it bled the russians of a lot of equipment,time and forces.
You may have read correctly, and it may even by co-incidence be true - but buried somewhere a long way below the headlines will be an acknowledgement that the story is attributable to known fantasist Christopher Steele.
Yet somehow, the headlines are not prefixed with 'Christopher Steele says'.
Yes if you get a chance type Nazino island into google. 5000 people, with incorrect documents, from Urban areas of Moscow and st Petersburg deported to a deserted island in Siberia in 1933 with nothing only a few bags of flour. It makes for very grim reading.
Actually here’s the link https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazino_tragedy
Russian culture again
...
They have circular swap agreements with three countries and just a day or so ago finally agreed to change the constitution so that they can up defence spending to 2%. By all accounts their military is not in the best of health anyway but that doesn't stop people imagining that they are a junior US version of Guns R Us. All of this is moving unsurprisingly slowly and it is just not a good fit for the frenetic spleen venting of social media.
Who cares what he is or thinks he's now accepted the sanctions plan, the actual object of the exercise.
They are a Guns R US
One of the top arms exporters in the world
As an industry yes, but as a country far less so. They, according to their own claims, are not as set up to allocate weaponry that easily despite the insistence by many that the government and the industry are one and the same.
Ukraine response to the latest EU deal. As always it never seems quite enough for very specific reasons.
“If you ask me, I would say far too slow, far too late and definitely not enough,” Reuters reports Ihor Zhovkva, deputy head of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s office, said.
Ukraine is also not happy with the pace of weapons deliveries from the West, he said.
“We are definitely not satisfied,” Zhovkva said in response to a question after his speech. “Had we been satisfied, we would have begun the liberation of Mariupol immediately and thrown away Russian forces from Donbas.”
You can chose to believe that but you can't expect others to.
If it was just the weapons your supposition might be somewhat plausible but it is not, its political as well, it's the rearguard action against sanctions, floating ideas of Ukrainian surrender.
![Photo of [Deleted User]](https://we.vanillicon.com/v2/e050b53be62f0ae2404c620976170938.svg)
![Photo of [Deleted User]](https://wc.vanillicon.com/v2/c635d680d76ce16e490d61f21d7a1353.svg)
![Photo of [Deleted User]](https://w0.vanillicon.com/v2/05bfdb0bc9f81b358ccf2f55186422bb.svg)
