Ukraine V

An interesting article from the excellent David Ignatius in the Washington Post:

https://wapo.st/3ZGgTCB

As he says, nothing justifies Putin's murderous assault on Ukraine, but "know your enemy" - why they do what they do, whether or not justifiable - remains a valid maxim.

 

Article about Russia losing its soft power. The US is certainly taking advantage of this 'moment' by sending reps to the Stans as they and other neighboring States start questioning the Russian 'guarantee' - and Putin's sanity.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...war-in-ukraine-destabilises-old-soviet-allies

 

Well I can’t say I’m disappointed to hear that.

 

“Russian troops are destroying Ukraine's environment leaving behind more than 50 billion in environmental damages. If you believe that the destruction of our precious Mother Earth should be a crime, join our petition demanding that the EU pass a law criminalising ecocide and let's start a ripple effect to protect nature in the entire world!
SIGN THE PETITION
Dear ……
Russian troops are destroying Ukraine's environment, with over 320,000 explosive devices neutralised in the past year alone, and a third of the land now unusable for agriculture. Over 600 species of animals and 880 species of plants are under threat.

Taken together, the losses from this destruction amounts to over 50 billion dollars. What is happening in Ukraine is a war crime. But what happens with the destruction of nature in times of peace?

Not much. In most places of the world, there is no law against ecocide, the systematic and widespread destruction of nature.

But there's hope things could start to change. In a few weeks, Europe will vote on a proposal to criminalise ecocide in a directive under revision. And a petition supported by 1 million people will show them what the world wants.

Sign now demanding the criminalisation of ecocide, and Avaaz will deliver our voices straight to the Committee:
EU: Criminalize ecocide now
International law could hold Putin and his cronies accountable for the destruction of the environment in Ukraine because it is happening during an armed conflict. But there is a huge gap in the law when it comes to times of peace.

That's why an EU law criminalising ecocide would set a huge precedent for all nations around the world on the importance of protecting Mother Nature at all times. And we are close to this historical moment.

Recently, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) urged all member states to criminalise ecocide. But the Council does not make laws, so countries are not obliged to comply with this recommendation.

But EU law is another story, and would bind all EU countries. So sign now and share it with everyone you know.”

 

Russians back-stabbing fellow Russians:

https://news.yahoo.com/mass-backsta...a11v0f39IWt-YI1g6eTFDtJutlNaJMwhbUyDVsPi6IDIS

 

Nothing new under the sun.

 

It makes a refreshing change from defenestration, I guess.

 

My grandfather was very lucky in 1936. He was a CP bigwhig when accused of "taking a train ride with an opportunist" which got him demoted to worker. However he wasn't jailed or killed, because he was Kirov's friend, and the latter wasn't himself killed yet!

Timing is everything!

 

I am, if the US is trying to meddle. Look what happened with the "Arab Spring".

 

Did you read the article? There's nothing there to suggest what you say.

 

This could be trouble:-

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-64957792

 

https://www.eucom.mil/pressrelease/...to-us-unmanned-system-in-international-waters

"This incident follows a pattern of dangerous actions by Russian pilots while interacting with U.S. and Allied aircraft over international airspace, including over the Black Sea. These aggressive actions by Russian aircrew are dangerous and could lead to miscalculation and unintended escalation. "

'unintended escalation' = World War 3.

 

Turks shot down Russian aircraft a couple of years back when it strayed into their airspace for like a second.

Russians banned Turkish tomatoes for 6 months, but they are friends again now.

It's going to take a bit more than a downed drone to start up WW3.

But a happy day for RP, for sure! A mighty American drone cowardly fell to the ground from heroic action by Russian pilots.

 

Did you read what Kirk said?

 

16.9 milion dollars - if the Russians don`t admit liability the Americans will lose their no claim bonus.

 

That's a problem with those early big drones that are too jammed with expensive stuff!

Don't drive your Lambo in a bad neighborhood...

 

One of the Republican candidates for the US presidency, Ron DeSantis, said that supporting Ukraine is not in America's interests, and the war itself is a territorial dispute. On Fox News.

 

Sure, but it wasn't in the article he linked to and he didn't quote a source.

 

Is the message “we own the Black Sea”? They buzzed a RN ship at very low level there quite some time before they invaded Ukraine and now they’re saying they might or might not allow further safe passage of Ukrainian grain carriers. Things are going badly for the Tsar, they need a diversion and a show of imperial power.

 

vs $41M for a Flanker (https://militarymachine.com/most-expensive-military-jets/)

Seems like a good ROI to me.