Sanctions against Russia

[Jerry_Atrick]

That's a beach invite I would happily pass up.

[facthunter]

Vodka and Sandwitches.  Nev

[kgwilson]

11 hours ago, willedoo said:

A couple of weeks ago the Russians started placing Pantsir air defence systems on top of multi story buildings in Moscow. This one on top of the Defence Ministry building has me wondering what is the purpose of the green camouflage net. It can't be to keep anything cool as it's still winter there. Is it to hide some details from public view?

 

Surely they're not that dumb that they think it will hide it from an attacking enemy. But then again....

 

It's probably the only colour they have. Ordered for the Summer in Ukraine and delivered in the Winter to Moscow. About on par for Russian Logistics.

[facthunter]

It's surprising the roof will carry the weight. Stand out like Dog's balls too.   Nev

[onetrack]

"Tank destroyer?" Ha ha ha haa haa!! These Russian idiots don't have a clue, do they? Tank destroyers need massive armament, why do you think they put 76mm anti-tank cannons on Shermans and Hellcats during WW2?

What do the Orcs think is going to happen the instant the Ukrainians sight one of these things? It might as well go into combat with a bullseye on the front of it - but first the Orcs need to sneak up to within 200-300 meters of a Ukrainian tank, and I'm sure the Ukrainians are going to let that happen.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M18_Hellcat

[willedoo]

There's a million different reasons why this contraption is just wrong. If it wasn't Russian, you would assume it was built as a joke. Maybe it's a good example of where the 100 billion they spent on the military buildup since 2014 has gone. Straight into the pockets of the company directors while they shuffle and forge a bit of paperwork to present junk like this to the clowns in the Kremlin.

[Jerry_Atrick]

I see Tonka have got into the arms market 😉

[willedoo]

There's a lot of talk now about an expected Russian offensive this month. It's likely something will happen as little Putler won't want to see the one year anniversary come around without a big story to feed to the sheep back home. The question is where, how big, and how successful an offensive will be.

 

Packing mobilised meat into the grinder has about twice the number of Russian troops in Ukraine compared to the start of the war. On the other hand, the quality of those reinforcements is low, and in general, Russian equipment is far more depleted now. There's reports that Putler has issued orders for a big offensive to regain the initiative before the end of the month, and other unconfirmed reports that his generals don't think it can be a success.

 

There are plenty of signs of something happening; troop buildups in Luhansk province and a supposed 30,000 troops moved into Mariupol area. Recently, the rate of Russian shelling has slowed down, indicating a conservation of shells for an offensive. Also, the authority controlling the internet in the occupied provinces has issued notice that from the 11th. February, mobile internet services will be dropped for all customers. Obviously OpSec is a concern to them.

 

For Putler, he might be deluded or he might see it as a propaganda push to make a small to medium gain and in true Kremlin style, sugarcoat it as a grand victory. If they truly do try a big push and fail, it could signal the beginning of the end. He would be desperate to make some gains before the tanks and other promised gear arrives in Ukraine over the next few months.

 

It's hard to predict what the Russians will do and what capabilities they have left. Their small gains in the Bakhmut area have been solely due to their readiness to expend large numbers of troops. The casualty rate has been in the high hundreds per day, and they have been attacking in section sized numbers, one wave at a time. It's hard to see that tactic working on a bigger scale in a major offensive. If they do break through the Ukrainian lines with a large force, it leaves them vulnerable to being encircled and eliminated. I can't see much joy for Putler on his first year anniversary, but we'll have to wait and see.

[facthunter]

Cornered wounded animals are the most dangerous. 7.8 earthquake in Turkiye and Syria. Dog is not happy. 

[willedoo]

Suffering G forces and hanging around with Putler appear to have very similar facial effects. The difference with G forces is that by the time you land, your face is normal again.

 

[pmccarthy]

All hang-dog faces, would make great cartoon characters.

[red750]

Putin's troops 'beat their commander, drag him away from front line'

 

Story slideshow here.

[facthunter]

You'll never see Putler on the front line. His support comes from a LONG way behind. Nev

[Jerry_Atrick]

Soon, his support from behind may come with a knife...

Edited February 9, 2023 by Jerry_Atrick

[kgwilson]

He's got the hard right, the hard left, Wagners boss, & all the military heads he's sacked to keep eyes on plus most of the rest of the western world to look out for, not to mention 40 million Ukrainians. 

[willedoo]

It looks like Zelensky and the British PM get on ok.

 

[nomadpete]

And what do they have to laugh about?

 

I'm betting 22nd will be fireworks night, and Z still hasn't received any tanks or jets.

 

What has become of all the advanced AI loitering armed drones that were advertised 20 years ago? If west supplied the real smart anti missile/drone systems, none of Putins old missiles or semismart drones would get through.

[onetrack]

The Russians have obviously restocked their missiles, and have launched another barrage, no doubt timed to flatten as much of Ukraine as they can, before more Western weaponry arrives.

 

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-10/russian-missiles-strike-ukrainian-infrastructure/101959986

 

[willedoo]

It's a bit concerning that Comrade Mosk has blocked the Ukrainian military from using Starlink to control their drones. The statement from SpaceX wasn't very clear on details, but if it hampers front line use of recon and artillery correcting drones by the Ukrainians, then that is a big advantage to Russian forces in their coming push. I hope Елoн is not handing Putler a silver bullet.

[Bruce Tuncks]

I reckon ukraine is missing out on the propaganda value of having a granny challenge him to a fight with AK47's in a paddock.

Of course he would not accept, so I would not bother to tell putin.  the propaganda is aimed at his soldiers.

Apparently the russians admire a macho man as their leader. Exposing him would be worthwhile I reckon.

[Jerry_Atrick]

9 hours ago, willedoo said:

It's a bit concerning that Comrade Mosk has blocked the Ukrainian military from using Starlink to control their drones. The statement from SpaceX wasn't very clear on details, but if it hampers front line use of recon and artillery correcting drones by the Ukrainians, then that is a big advantage to Russian forces in their coming push. I hope Елoн is not handing Putler a silver bullet.

This is what I have read so for: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-64579267

 

It is the BBC, which, although I normally defend it, sometimes makes mistakes which make Auntie's mistakes a storm in a teacup.

 

But. I loved this, which is a quote, so, I assume, wothout firther context to rationalise the quote, means it is verbatim:

Ms Shotwell confirmed that it was acceptable for the Ukrainian military for deploy Starlink technology "for comms", but said her intent was "never to have them use it for offensive purposes".

 

Ms. Shotwell (is the pun intended??) is the presidentn of SpaceX..

 

I don't know about you, but ejecting an uninvited and offensive foreign army from my territory would seem to be defensive, not offensive.. I could be wrong, but would be interested to heart the thoughts of more or less rational folk on this channel.

 

FFS; I reckong ol' Vlad has made an offer to Elon he can't reuse, but it is based on a contingency of Russia achieveing its aims.

 

If I am correct, which I may well not be, it is the flaw of privatised utilities.

[willedoo]

It's a bit odd that Starlink would have known right from the start what their service is being used for in Ukraine, and chose to restrict it on the virtual eve of a major Russian offensive. Why didn't they stop it months ago? The coming days might reveal some clarification. It's possible they are only restricting it for long range strikes against Russia on Russian soil.

 

If they are restricting all military drone usage of Starlink, then it's a very big issue. That would cause even more speculation as to which side Musk is on. Surely they knew announcing this at the time of a Russian offensive would further trash Musk's reputation. He is already seen as a Putin asset by some people for his support for a peace deal ceding Ukrainian territory to Russia. Also, he has previously said Crimea belongs to Russia. Some Americans hold the view that his naturalised citizenship should be revoked, and to deport him back to SA and nationalise his industries as critical industries.

 

That's a bit extreme, but understandable that some doubt his suitability to be providing services to the U.S. military and government. Critical industries shouldn't be controlled by a man/child. Another area where he has copped flak is Twitter, because of the volume of Russian bots and disinformation that has been allowed back since he took over the company. He was a reasonably popular bloke when he was just making electric cars and spaceships, but since he has been trying to become mini-Trump, it's been all downhill in the reputation stakes. If he takes away Starlink access for front line battlefield drones, he will have a lot of Ukrainian blood on his hands.

 

It's understandable that Starlink would only want to supply services for comms to try to remain semi neutral, but the timing of this is very suspect. Why now, when it's been happening already for so long. They would have been far better off sticking with the plan and just keeping quiet about things. When Musk said he couldn't afford to maintain Starlink in Ukraine and threatened to cut it off, it was fairly easy to back down from that idea. This time, it might be harder to put the genie back in the bottle when he realises he's stuffed up again.

[willedoo]

4 hours ago, Jerry_Atrick said:

I reckon ol' Vlad has made an offer to Elon he can't reuse,

Maybe a sweetheart deal on establishing electric car plants in Russia. They could call it the Muskvich.

[red750]

26 minutes ago, willedoo said:

but since he has been trying to become mini-Trump, it's been all downhill in the reputation stakes

A case of "follow the leader."

[willedoo]

Putler has started his 2024 presidential campaign with the slogan 'Strong President, Strong Russia '. Imagine living in a regional shitehole like that and blindly voting for more of the same. I guess the more people they can suck in, the less votes they have to rig. It makes the logistics easier.

 

Edited February 11, 2023 by willedoo