I'd love to see the video of these guys coming across those drunks
I don’t think we can take the austerity created by war. And eventually that’ll show at the ballot box
I was going to say it worked for Nelson's Royal Navy and the tot of rum but I think they would have drawn the line at hip flasks! Plus back then things were more about muscle than precision.
Is Emmanuel Macron an optimist or a fool?
I think it would be more that we won't take the austerity, than can't. In other words, in the first instance, it's survivable but people care more about their own standard of living slipping too far. The second is basically starvation where there is little real choice.
In any case, it would make Russia's war strategy quite clear going forward. As long as you don't attack the USA or UK directly and make it an existential question for them, you can chip away at the edges of their sphere, safe in the knowledge that any protracted conflict will bring the West into disunity and general malaise and really only help Russia.
That has been the strategy for decades.
Xi is a much tougher and brutal man than Putin. There really is no comparison.
He will be more strategic about it and leave nothing to chance though.
Id imagine up until last fortnight or so,russia would have grasped the implentation of the 2014 minsk agreement,and used the semi automanus status being secured to sell a win at home
Whatever ones views or otherwise of putin,this war will end in negociations,all wars do,be very suprised if behind scenes talks arent ongoing.....so however difficult it is to stomach,someone will need talk to him in end,as its obvious theres no coup coming anytime soon in russia
That is exactly the case. A powerful leader for life with a largely brainwashed population against a series of democracies, operating on a 4 year electoral cycle, with a populace with a high standard of living and a lot to lose.
its unlikely that we outlast him
Of course they all wars end in negotiation, but it ranges between nuanced compromise and "Do you surrender unconditionally? - Yes" One rather long negotiation and one rather short one, respectively.
If the West is going to feed a load of weapons and other aid into Ukraine only to give up a few months in, then it was a waste of money, and we're not talking insignificant sums, here. Are there noises coming out of Russia that Putin is in any way interested in less than all of Ukraine? To settle for the Donbas? And even if there is, is there any guarantee that he'd stop there in perpetuity?
Exactly. And to elaborate, there's a difference between a 'truce' and a peace. People bang on about the Treaty of Versailles but forget about how the Franco-Prussian war ended...
Thats just the west through and through,virtue-signalling,with skin deep interest in anything outside their small circle
Realistically ukraine needs outside help and alot of it,to repel/stall russian advances before end of summer.....been crying out for no-fly zone since day one of this war,russia now has a massive foothold in the country......while west has pricked around with sanctions,which havnt been anywhere near as effective as taught they would
The only way to stop it for all time is to let ukraine into the eu(though the critism of uk and irish protocol,& ukraines incompleted minsk agreement may be a stumbling block)....eu membership will cause more state to break away from russia,and putin-era will reach its natural endpoint
Medvedev (former president) made this comment on his Telegram channel today : "Who said that in two years time that Ukraine will even exist on the world map?" - which indeed suggests the regime's intentions towards the country are quite sinister.
It would be a significant retreat and defeat for Western democracies.
If he gets the Donbas and the land bridge, then it is a Russian victory.
That maybe an option considered by Scholz Macron and Draghi but London, Washington and Especially Eastern Europe will not allow it.
Who is next Will be there question.
I'm sure you're perfectly aware that just admitting Ukraine into the EU as it currently is would likely be a major destabiliser for the EU, especially after the dust had settled and it becomes a case of a country which didn't have to meet all the entry criteria, and that's a whole pandora's box. It's a pretty loaded suggestion, really, because either choice can be criticised roundly. I would say a joint military intervention by the EU's largest militaries would be a less contentious option, as controversial as that would even be.
You think that Russian can continue at this level in perpetuity??? I doubt it very much, given that now they are heavily dependent on long range shelling, which is increasingly being countered by the heavy weapons the Ukrainians are getting. And as this supply of heavy weapons increases, Russian shelling will decrease as they will be destroyed, and they will again have to commit troops, with resultant higher death / injury nrs. Mobilization is looming higher and higher on the Russian horizon.
There is no scenario where Ukraine joins the EU in the next 20 years.
No matter how much territory Russia takes in Ukraine, it will never be accepted by Ukrainians. It will become another Afghanistan, only 100 times worse. They will bleed Russia to death both in the real sense of the word, and financially. Maintaining an army as an occupying force, has mega costs, and Russia will not always hold the gas and oil advantage it now has.
i thought this was interesting. Certainly more illuminating than the usual.
Well it has the usual apologist nonsense of "The goal was lure the West into a dialogue about Russian concerns. When this failed, in January, for Putin only one option remained: war.". Illuminating to know her perspective alright.
Take no notice of that but it is spot on that he views it as part of a global reordering and not just a regional issue.
Saying he bad man, isn't much use in figuring out what drives him.
Remember what we consider universal human rights are really just a Western Europe perspective pushed out on the world, most of the planet thinks differently.
How many times does it have to be explained to Russia that countries were actively applying to join NATO and that NATO never rocked up and said, "Hey, you're in us, now"
Russian concerns amount to, "Aw, Estonia's in NATO? We were hoping to have it as our own vassal. :("
Yeah, no sh*t. That's why they joined NATO, basically.
Germany's
@heutejournal
is reporting that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is on his way to Kyiv (finally)
He can view things however he likes, it doesn't mean people should indulge him. He is what he is, everyone knows what he is. There's been far too much time and attention given to his "concerns" over the last 2 decades.
Exactly. They're the smelly kid in the playground nobody wants to talk to.
Zelensky would not want to let him make the tea.
No, it's the excellent standard of living.
I think a military intervention is most likely necessary sooner rather than later.
Realistically eu membership is where ukraine is headed,so may aswell get on with it now,as any other time
and it was imo,the main motive behind the russian attack,as a prosperous ukraine will spread instability in russianzone as others such as georgia etc will push for same
It's worth noting because he sees it as an existential fight to the death and part of a way of kicking the West off balance at a time when it is in crisis.
He is willing to burn the whole thing to the ground because he thinks Russia will survive and that Western Europe will not.
It demonstrates that this is much more than about Land etc.
It shows the severity of the threat and it is much greater in scope than a return to Soviet barbarism in Ukraine.
Ukraine is still going thanks to 2 countries, US and Britain. That's the vast vast bulk of their military aid.
There is a lot of reasons for Putin to be optimistic.
Every Artillery shell and piece in Western Europe should be heading East, should be gone weeks ago. It should be treated as the war effort it is. It's not and outside of the US, Britain and Eastern Europe there isn't any appetite to stop him, often the opposite. Normality as quickly as possible .
The three stooges en route to Kyiv to try and collectively browbeat Zylensky into accepting whatever ultimatum Putin has cooked up with them
Europe would be better off if the three of em stumbled across a munition 😂
Please God their plane will have a very bad landing.
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