Ukraine

[matthewr]

Is WWIII about to start?

Backgrounder here : https://jennycohn1.medium.com/whats-all-the-fuss-about-ukraine-1ba8e53d99ee

 

[Rodrat]

Unless I missed it, China has not been very vocal about the issue which is strange, I am sure they are plotting to see what they can get out of it.

 

[Barrymagrec]

My brother in Law and his Ukranian wife seem relatively unbothered - they live in Kharkiv which is not that far from the border. Not a lot they can do about it anyway.

 

[Dave H.]

I watched Threads the other day (nice night in with my OH - and they say romance is dead!). And I’ve been struck in recent days by the similarity between the initially very-much-background news reports in the early parts of the film and the recent news from Ukraine.

I’ve been there a couple of times - once to a part that’s now annexed, and once not long after the airliner had been shot down with a rocket and massive protests occupied the main square in Kiev. Makes one sad for the folk there who want none of this, but who seem to keep being caught up.

 

[gavreid]

Is WWIII about to start?

Backgrounder here : https://jennycohn1.medium.com/whats-all-the-fuss-about-ukraine-1ba8e53d99ee

It all seems very Chamberlain-like at the moment. I suspect that Nato is powerless to prevent an invasion even if the will were there.

 

[Bananahead]

Unless I missed it, China has not been very vocal about the issue which is strange, I am sure they are plotting to see what they can get out of it.

Reunite with Taiwan (ROC) when nobody is looking?

 

[stuwils]

Powerless to do anything about sanctions as well since we have allowed the offer of cheap gas supply in Europe to put Russia in a position where it has a huge influence on global prices.
Capitalism at its best.
Rgds
Stuart

 

[droodzilla]

There will be a lot of sabre-rattlin, but no (hot) war.

TBH, I'm far more worried about the possibility of the US falling to the far-right in the near future. As Bon Jovi once said, "We're halfway there...".

 

[Nero]

What worries me is what happens when Putin flips the switch on our power utilities and banks. As you say, the sabre-rattling is for newspaper headlines

 

[Sue Pertwee-Tyr]

What worries me is what happens when Putin flips the switch on our power utilities and banks. As you say, the sabre-rattling is for newspaper headlines

I've been watching the new series of the Ch 5 series Warship - life at sea and the Russians seem to spend a lot of time messing around near undersea cables. I'm doubtful that's because they're interested to find out what sort of cable lifters have been used, or whether it is Van Damme or Mogami.

At some point, Russia is going to do something very disruptive, and the west will have sleepwalked into a position of empowering them.

 

[Darmok]

I watched Threads the other day (nice night in with my OH - and they say romance is dead!

You should have followed Threads with "The Day After."

Just to lift your spirits a little.

 

[anubisgrau]

the west will have sleepwalked into a position of empowering them.

Interesting, it seemed like all this mess was initiated with NATO wanting to be on the Russian borders. This can not be the case, it must be something else.

 

[Nero]

Well, do you really think Putin will back away if we promise not to allow Ukraine to accede to NATO? Should not Ukraine be allowed to do what they want as an autonomous state?
Putin is simply 'defending' the rights of 'true indigenous Russians' living in Ukraine, and helped out a few of them by annexing Crimea. It's not a good subtext to promises about future incursions.

 

[mik_rik]

I wonder what would be the response to a state placing nuclear missiles close,say a 100 miles,to the _ _ _ ?

 

[Seeker_UK]

Interesting, it seemed like all this mess was initiated with NATO wanting to be on the Russian borders. This can not be the case, it must be something else.

This is all tied up in the deal made in the 90s to help denuclearize Ukraine. It is a pity that Russia is now reneging its commitments it made under the Budapest Memorandum.

 

[anubisgrau]

Thanks for heads up. I've thought there were other commitments given before Soviets withdrew from Eastern Bloc countries, probably not relevant anymore.

 

[tones]

Unless I missed it, China has not been very vocal about the issue which is strange, I am sure they are plotting to see what they can get out of it.

Very good article in the FT about China and Russia - the title says it all

Russia and China’s plans for a new world order

https://www.ft.com/content/d307ab6e-57b3-4007-9188-ec9717c60023

 

[hifilover1979]

I watched Threads the other day (nice night in with my OH - and they say romance is dead!). And I’ve been struck in recent days by the similarity between the initially very-much-background news reports in the early parts of the film and the recent news from Ukraine.

I’ve been there a couple of times - once to a part that’s now annexed, and once not long after the airliner had been shot down with a rocket and massive protests occupied the main square in Kiev. Makes one sad for the folk there who want none of this, but who seem to keep being caught up.

Scared the shite outta me when I was a youngster that film, not long after Chernobyl either...

A grittier version of The Day After IMO

 

[Bob McC]

What worries me is what happens when Putin flips the switch on our power utilities and banks. As you say, the sabre-rattling is for newspaper headlines

We don’t get gas from Russia.
Any switch pulling will just make prices go through the roof as everyone else competes for Norwegian gas and LPG.

 

[Bob McC]

This is all tied up in the deal made in the 90s to help denuclearize The Ukraine. It is a pity that Russia is now reneging its commitments it made under the Budapest Memorandum.

Ukraine
Not THE Ukraine.