Russia-Ukraine War (continuing)

A hell of alot of it will never leave the EU, it will be spent directly in EU defence contractors where possible just not at inflated US prices.

Putin's SMO will go down as the biggest blunder in modern history.

I can't think of anything worse.

He's probably destroyed his own country and Ukraine for generations.

Whenever it's over, which might be years away, Ukraine will join the EU and NATO.

It was never designed to be an empire. Yes, Europe depended on the US after WWII but that was a deliberate choice after two self-inflicted catastrophes. The goal was to make war between European states impossible, not to project military power worldwide.

If anything, Putin’s war has forced collective change. A very rapid reduction of dependence on Russian energy, increased defence spending and production and long-term strategic thinking that simply didn’t exist before.

EU support for Ukraine has clearly hurt the Kremlin — and long may that coninue.

F*ck Putin.

Theres massive changes afoot in the EU in both military and monetary systems, which will greatly diminish if not remove American influence. They'll be in place within 3 to 4 yrs. The EU is not like other major superpowers, it has no interest in projecting strength beyond defending its own territory and monetary systems.

Anyone arguing to be outside the EU is a fool. Theres no future in it. Ireland would have been devastated by American tariffs outside the EU, the Balkans would already be back in Russian hands, Poland wouldn't be able to afford the military it has built, Britain has experienced the folly of leaving the union. All the anti EU waffle tries to ignore the fact that if it weren't in position, we'd all be sitting ducks for the big boys.

Or he's just on the ball.

In a message posted on its Telegram channel, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) announced on December 20 that Ukrainian long-range drones hit two Russian Su-27 fighter jets at the Belbek airfield in Russian-occupied Crimea…."Long-range drones of the SBU's Alpha Special Operations Center hit two Su-27 aircraft at the Russian airfield in Belbek, temporarily occupied in Crimea. One of the planes was on a taxiway with a full load and ready for a combat mission," SBU officials wrote

"Support for Ukraine will continue. We are on Ukraine's side; it is a country that defends itself, and the aggressor is Russia. This is the foundation. It's just about how, as optimally as possible - including from the perspective of our national interests - to continue supporting Kyiv," the minister said.

No one contests the initiative for ammunition, but the decision will be taken by the entire government, says the minister

About the fate of the ammunition initiative, according to Zůna, the government as a whole will decide. "A meeting will be prepared for the prime minister, with the participation of experts, who will deal with how to continue in this initiative. Essentially, the ammunition initiative is not contested by anyone; it is about the management process and how to move forward," Zůna informed.

Czech pollies might have done a re-think. The execution of the Serb in Moscow might not have delivered the message or incentives the Kremlin was hoping.

About fifteen years ago, or thereabouts, I was in the Czech Republic laying the foundations for a cross-border business. My last meeting of the day was with a guy who used to be a pilot during the Soviet era, and who explained that he had to conceal the fact he could speak English, otherwise he would not have been allow regularly fly routes to the West.

He went on to say that he was bitterly disappointed to see his son and the son's peers turn their back on everything that the EU had done for the Czech Republic, arguing that "things were better under the Soviets." Like so many Brexiters, these were young people who'd never known any life other than being in the EU, and definitely had no first-hand knowledge of how things were really were under the Soviets. They just believed the Kremlin-sponsored propaganda and (presumably) still do today.

A lot of young people (and not so young) seem to live entirely in an online world, unburdened by any connection to physical reality. Apparently large numbers of women in various parts of provincial England think they might now have to wear a burqa if visiting London. They live in areas with little or no foreign-born populations, and vote for Farage because they're 'worried about immigration'.

https://bsky.app/profile/maks23.bsky.social/post/3magyize6x22n

Putin personally chose Witkoff as the key negotiator with the U,S — WSJ.

So,Witkoff was personally chosen to be negotiator by the president,just not the president of the USA.

The Kompromat must be extensive and heinous.

What a farce!

Saw a great video online of Tommy Robinson attending a boxing event in Saudi Arabia and getting confronted by a British boxer who was Muslim for his hypocrisy of going to a Muslim country when he claims they're all dirty rapists. Watching him squirm was pretty satisfying. It just shows all the guys leading these different factions are just in it for notoriety and soft money.

The freezing of the assets indefinitely as per Article 122 is an important safeguard against a potential French President Bardella blocking a renewal of their freezing. Before this, all the sanctions had to be unanimously renewed every 6 months.

Once again, it's not an empire because it was designed not to be one. Law and economic ties over physical force were used to prevent war within. The EU is slow because it's bound by law. Yes it's a weakness in war but it's also why Europe can be trusted in peacetime.

Reliance on the US wasn’t naïve, it was the post-war settlement (Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan and NATO). These were about stabilising Western Europe while it rebuilt. That was the deal. Now we all know that the US is no longer guaranteed - and can't be trusted - and Europe needs to adjust: defence spending, arms production, energy independence. None of that existed pre-2022 but we are moving along with it. This can't be done overnight.

The EU has already survived being written off multiple times but it's still here. the Cold War division of Europe, the 2008 financial and euro crisis, Brexit, COVID and dealing with Putin's ego. Fertility decline isn't just an EU problem, most developed countries are struggling. Fortunately Russia's meatgrinding will stagnate theirs for another while.

Europe can be messy but certainly isn't built on sand. It’s survived crises that would have shattered most empires because it isn’t one.

US-Russia talks underway in Miami.