Russia - threadbanned users in OP

As previously reported...

it is looking more and more like deliberate damage. Who would gain the most? Russia can now plead innocence whenever Europe accuses Moscow of energy blackmail, just adding that side note myself.

I think he's a modern day dandy.

There's a whiff of self-inventiveness about him.

He is ok when he is within his own professional bounds but now he has got the bit between his teeth and he's running too fast.

Estonia moving tanks to the border is concerning.

There are recent posts where Biden has stated beyond a reasonable doubt that he will support both Taiwan and Ukraine, and said that Putin should put it out of his mind completely about using nukes or chemical weapons in Ukraine. Furthermore, one of the state department spokesperson's went even further in his description of what would happen if Putin went nuclear, basically the US would destroy most of Russians military in Ukraine, and in a matter of days. I'd say for all his talk, Medvedev is fully aware of what will happen if he actually does use Nukes.

Even the Australian’s are here

In fairness, the US would gain the most from NS1+2 being out of action, seeing as they are making money hand over fist selling us LNG.

Russia is screwed without EU money for pipeline gas, so why would they bomb their own pipeline? Taking out NS just means that the energy blackmails no longer work, as there is now 0% chance of normalising* relations in exchange for much needed energy, whereas before NS was hit there was a <1% chance.

OMG, to think that awful cacophony will be the last approximation of music those walking fertiliser sacks will ever hear. The sheer cruelty of Putin's regime is awful.

One of those genius Bush presidents ordered the unilateral destruction of the US arsenal of strategic nuclear weapons, while the Orcs kept theirs, so The US is restricted to big nuclear bangs.

Sabre-rattling in the Bering Sea by the Russians and Chinese?

https://news.sky.com/story/chinese-and-russian-warships-ships-spotted-off-alaskan-island-12706095?dcmp=snt-sf-twitter

At least they aren't being ostriches.

I do wonder if the mobilization is not actually for Ukraine at all. Because, without proper training and equipment, it's somewhat of a pointless exercise really. So I wonder if the real reason is to have an army ready for martial law at home, or a future war, either of which could be needed soon. Some folks here have been worrying about a nuclear strike. I don't see that happening in the short term; seems the threat of a strike is just as effective a bargaining tool for Russia than an actual strike, and with far less risk for them. So perhaps their plan is to annex those regions, then continue to threaten a nuclear strike but with increasing fervor and brinkmanship until Ukraine/the west backs down. Ordinary Russian's themselves will be increasingly nervous under that brinkmanship- martial law could be needed to keep order (a mobilization helps for that). Alternatively, the brinkmanship goes too far, and a bigger engagement with the West happens. A Russian mobilization is certainly needed for that.

Anyway, it's all very unsettling. But Russia still has an out here- regime change. Their collective consciousness however does not think that's possible right now. Years of oppression has thought them that suffering for the greater glory without objection is the Russian way. The best we can hope for in the near term is that these mobilization protests grow to an unstoppable force. On this count, I will be rooting for the ordinary Russians brave enough to standup when their country (and the world) needs them the most.

I'd suspect Conscripts be sent to secure captured territory and control civilians in occupied zones while what remains of the professional Russian army reorganises and sent to the front.

Notable that there are no air assets over or around the area at the moment. Transponders inactive?