Russia’s not wrong. The warmonger in the White House is making it very clear that this is America’s war against Russia and there is no end in sight.
But Russia’s US ambassador said these “provocative actions” would lead to an escalation with severe consequences.
Anatoly Antonov told Russian state media that Moscow was “trying to appeal to common sense at all levels”, but talk of delivering the Patriot missile system to Kyiv was “deeply disturbing”.
[…]
Moscow has complained that no calls for peace were heard during President Zelensky’s trip to Washington – with spokesman Dmitry Peskov describing this as proof that the US was fighting a proxy war with Russia.
Mr Peskov added that delivering Patriot missiles would not prevent Russia from “achieving its goals during the special military operation”.
“The talks in Washington have shown that neither Ukraine nor the United States is seeking peace. They are simply intent on continuing the fighting,” said Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova.
One thing is certain… both sides are consummate liars who aren’t above using the deaths of their own people for propaganda.
Details: The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation stated that on the morning of 5 December, Ukraine “attempted to carry out strikes with Soviet-made jet unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) on the military airbases of Dyagilevo in Ryazan Oblast and Engels in Saratov Oblast”.
The Ministry said that the Russian air defence system allegedly intercepted Ukrainian UAVs flying at a low altitude.
At the same time, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that “as a result of the fall and explosion of the fragments of jet drones on Russian airfields, the body covering of two aircraft was slightly damaged“, and “three Russian servicemen of the technical staff, who were at the airfield, were fatally wounded“.
Four more Russian servicemen were injured.
It’s curious that they specified a “Soviet” UAV. The USSR had UAVs, but they were for reconnaissance. They would also be at least 20 years old by now. And given that Ukraine has used modern drones incredibly effectively during this war, why would they use ancient Soviet drones for kamikaze attacks on a Russian nuclear base?
My best guess is that this is Putin trying to fake an attack on Russian soil to rally his people, but I don’t leave anything out of the realm of possibilities.
I go back and forth on whether or not we should support Ukraine. I get the geopolitical argument that we should because it saps Russia’s strength and builds support with allies. I get the humanitarian reasons for doing so. I also get the argument that Ukraine is a corrupt kleptocracy teetering on totalitarianism and we shouldn’t support it. I also get the argument that we have very little national interest in the conflict and should stay out.
I get all of it. And I remain somewhat on the fence leaning toward NOT supporting sending more weapons to Ukraine.
BUT… shouldn’t we at least be debating this? Shouldn’t we have a real accounting of where all of the money is going? Especially in light of the FTX debacle, shouldn’t we follow the money? It isn’t asking too much to know what’s happening with our money and why.
In a preview of the intra-party battle ahead, far-right House Republicans, led by MAGA firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, vowed Thursday to fight against Ukraine aid.
She said, at a news conference with other members, that she’d introduced an effort to force a vote on a resolution requiring the Biden administration to provide all documents related to the security assistance that has already been appropriated to Ukraine.
The BBC’s Yogita Limaye is on the ground reporting on new evidence of atrocities emerging in areas around Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, after Russian forces pulled out.
She took the photo below of a shallow grave in the village of Motyzhyn, where four people allegedly shot dead by Russian forces were left. We have blurred parts of the picture.
Three of the bodies have been identified as members of one family, including the head of the village, Olha Sohnenko. The fourth body has not been identified.
Yogita is on her way to Bucha – a town where the discovery of many dead civilians has shocked the world, and seen Russia accused of war crimes.
Eight years ago this week, Putin was invading and taking over Crimea. I wrote a column about it. Here’s a part:
“Hagel proposes downsizing Army to smallest size in decades.” – Associated Press 2/24/14
“Hagel: Dominance of US military ‘can no longer be taken for granted’” – The Daily Caller 2/24/14
“In Crimean capital Simferopol, pro-Russian gunmen seize key buildings.” – BBC 2/27/14
“Obama to Russia: Stay out of Ukraine.” – Politico 2/28/14
“Ukraine erupts as Russian troops take over Crimea.” – New York Post 3/1/14
As American President Obama scolds, Russian President Putin acts. Putin acts without fear of American might because President Obama has proven time and time again that his words have nothing behind them.
[…]
Putin is engaging in realpolitik as America and the rest of the west issues stern warnings and threatens to pull out of the upcoming G8 conference. I’m sure Putin is shaking in his boots at the thought of another gravely-delivered content-free oration from President Obama.
Events do happen in the world that have nothing to do with America or our foreign policy, but this is not one of them. The fact is that Obama’s foreign policy has been an utter failure. He came into office apologetic of America’s might and influence on the world stage. In five years of his administration, we have seen a steady decline in our ability or willingness to influence events around the world.
And now we see the fruit of our president’s intentional neutering of American power in the world. Russia will almost certainly succeed in taking over Ukraine – one way or another. America will stand by and watch with crossed brows and impotent arms. And the downsizing of our military will continue based on fantastical world visions of unicorns and rainbows and glitter emanating from the White House.
When the Eagle sleeps, the Bear rises.
It’s no mystery that as Biden has returned us to Obama’s policies – weaken the military; high oil prices; lead from behind – Putin has returned to conquering his neighbors.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko says he expects to discuss the possible deployment of Iskander and S-400 defense systems to Belarus with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in the coming days.
“[Thursday or Friday] we will talk with the President of Russia about how to strengthen ourselves here in the western direction,” Lukashenko told state news agency Belta Thursday.
“Today we consulted with the military, and we see that it would be desirable to put Iskanders [missile systems] there and place a battalion or two with S-400s somewhere so that we can actually monitor the situation all the way to Berlin,” Lukashenko said.
That is not an argument for direct U.S. military action. Russia is still much weaker than it was during the Soviet days. There is a decent chance that they blow their wad in Ukraine if the Ukrainians put up a fight. I’m not confident of that. The next layer is for Western European nations to defend themselves. I don’t think Putin is crazy enough to attack a NATO country yet, but if he has an easy time in Ukraine, he might.
The biggest worry for Americans is the acceleration of Russian cyberwarfare against America’s economy. They are stepping up that effort. This is not WWII. There are more battlefronts.
But now, with growing fears that Moscow is preparing for a full-scale invasion, the Biden administration has abandoned the U.S.’s normally tight-lipped attitude toward releasing intelligence information and is pursuing a strategic — and according to former officials, unprecedented — declassification campaign aimed at exposing Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
In recent days, U.S. officials have called out a number of Russian “false flag” operations that they say are designed to provide a pretext to invade Ukraine. These have included allegations of a potential Russian-authored chemical assault designed to look like Ukrainian aggression, and even a plot to create a detailed yet fake movie showing the lethal aftermath of a Ukrainian attack. Officials have also publicly named Russian military intelligence as responsible for a disruptive cyber operation that targeted Ukraine’s defense ministry and banks earlier this week.
Experts say the revelations have been aimed at throwing Russia off balance by exposing their plans before they’re brought to fruition — and showing that the U.S. has the capability to surveil many of Russia’s actions.
By the end of the Trump administration, U.S. spy agencies had developed a “much better understanding of what the Russians are doing in a strategic sense,” said a former senior CIA official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive capabilities. “There were some extraordinary sources, obviously those are really fragile, so I’m not sure if those accesses are still in place, but I have to imagine they are.”
It’s also worth noting that last cited paragraph… the Trump Administration had made great strides toward spying on Russia. Once again, the whole “Trump is a puppet of Putin” narrative is a load of whoey.
President Joe Biden reportedly told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday to brace his country for a certain Russian invasion.
Biden told Zelensky that an invasion is virtually certain and to ‘prepare for impact,’ CNN reported. He said Kiev could be ‘sacked’ by Russian forces.
He reportedly said Ukraine would not be getting significantly more military help, including reiterating that no U.S. troops would be deployed there, nor would there be preemptive sanctions on Russia or any progress with NATO.
Ukrainian official told CNN that the call between the two leaders ‘did not go well.’
The warning was not part of a White House readout provided after the call.
The two world leaders conversed on the phone as the Department of Defense was issuing a chilling warning that same afternoon that a Russian invasion into Ukraine ‘could be imminent’ amid a drastic increase in combat forces at the former Soviet state’s borders.
‘We continue to see, including in the last 24 hours, more accumulation of credible combat forces arrayed by the Russians in, again, the western part of their country and in Belarus,’ Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said at a press conference.
Kirby also revealed that troops from Fort Bragg, Fort Carson and Fort Campbell have been placed on heightened alert to deploy to Eastern Europe as tensions in the region compound.
Yikes. Can’t we send our Ukrainian expert, Hunter Biden, to defuse the situation?
Ukraine has sent troops to guard against any Russian incursion on the Chernobyl exclusion zone, with the highly radioactive site believed to be a potential entry point for Kremlin aggressors.
Despite the site in northern Ukraine still being radioactive and mainly harbouring ghost towns and fallow fields, the Chernobyl exclusion zone is believed to be at risk of being conquered, reports The New York Times.
This is because the shortest path from Russia to Kiev would take Putin’s troops through the isolated zone.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has hit back at comments made by his US counterpart Joe Biden about a “minor incursion” by Russia into his country.
Mr Biden had suggested that a “minor” attack might bring a weaker response from the US and its allies.
But Mr Zelensky tweeted: “There are no minor incursions. Just as there are no minor casualties and little grief from the loss of loved ones.”
Plans by Ukraine’s defence ministry to have female soldiers march in high heels instead of army boots in a parade next month have caused angry reactions.
Iryna Gerashchenko, an opposition member of parliament, said it was sexism, not equality.
Ukraine is preparing to stage a military parade on 24 August to mark 30 years of independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union.
The defence ministry say the shoes are part of regulation-dress uniform.
Many in Ukraine expressed shock at the plan, with a group of lawmakers calling on Defence Minister Andriy Taran to offer an apology.
“The story of a parade in heels is a real disgrace,” commentator Vitaly Portnikov said on Facebook, arguing that some officials had a “medieval” mindset.
Ms Gerashchenko said she initially thought the pictures of women soldiers rehearsing in combat trousers and black pumps with block heels was a hoax. She said it was sexism, not equality, and wondered why the ministry thought heels were more important than designing body armour tailored to women.
Russia has fired on and seized three Ukrainian naval vessels off the Crimean Peninsula in a major escalation of tensions between the two countries.
Two gunboats and a tug were captured by Russian forces. A number of Ukrainian crew members were injured.
Each country blames the other for the incident. On Monday Ukrainian MPs are due to vote on declaring martial law.
The crisis began when Russia accused the Ukrainian ships of illegally entering its waters.
The Russians placed a tanker under a bridge in the Kerch Strait – the only access to the Sea of Azov, which is shared between the two countries.
Image copyrightPHOTOSHOTImage captionA tanker under the bridge shut all navigation from and into the Sea of Azov
During a meeting of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, President Petro Poroshenko described the Russian actions as “unprovoked and crazy”.
Kiev (AFP) – Ukrainians were on Sunday celebrating the first day of visa-free access to the European Union, with thousands crossing the border as President Petro Poroshenko proclaimed a dramatic “exit” from Moscow’s grip.
The move is symbolic for Kiev, where a pro-EU revolt in 2014 toppled the previous Russia-backed government and was followed by Moscow’s annexation of the Crimea peninsula sparking a protracted ongoing conflict with pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
“The visa-free regime for Ukraine has started! Glory to Europe! Glory to Ukraine!” Poroshenko tweeted early Sunday as many travellers started crossing the border and posting selfies.
Only those with biometric passports — containing a microchip with personal data, including fingerprints — can take advantage of the visa-free travel for the time being, for stays of up to 90 days every six months that don’t include work.
Russia annexed the Ukrainian peninsula following a military intervention and a hastily organized referendum, which was rejected by the international community.
“The United States does not recognize Russia’s ‘referendum’ of March 16, 2014, nor its attempted annexation of Crimea and continued violation of international law,” said Toner.
“We once again reaffirm our commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
In the statement the US also called on Russia to “cease its attempts to suppress freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, association, and religion” among Crimean Tatars, ethnic Ukrainians, pro-Ukrainian activists and journalists.
(CNN)Fighting in eastern Ukraine between pro-Russian rebels and Ukrainian armed forces is escalating, officials have warned.
A higher number of ceasefire violations were reported between Sunday and Monday evenings, compared with the previous 24 hours, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine said Monday.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said eight Ukrainian soldiers were killed in the Donbass region in two days.
“Russian occupation forces carried out massive attacks across the contact line using all available weapons, including (artillery, mortars and tanks) — all prohibited by the Minsk agreements — and small arms,” the ministry said. At least 26 troops were wounded.
Washington (CNN)Donald Trump said Sunday that Russian President Vladimir Putin won’t make a military move into Ukraine — even though Putin already has done just that, seizing the country’s Crimean peninsula.
“He’s not going into Ukraine, OK, just so you understand. He’s not going to go into Ukraine, all right? You can mark it down. You can put it down. You can take it anywhere you want,” Trump said in an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on “This Week.”
“Well, he’s already there, isn’t he?” Stephanoploulos responded, in a reference to Crimea, which Putin took from Ukraine in early 2014.
And the Dems nominated someone who will continue the foreign policy that allowed this to happen.
Three former lawmakers close to the ousted leader have been found dead in Ukraine in the past two weeks, in what their party has called a consequence of their persecution by Kiev’s new pro-Western government.
Their deaths followed four suicides earlier this year of regional officials who were working under the old regime.
Although Kiev rejects allegations of any connection between the three events, some are calling for a thorough probe to quash any suspicion that top figures in the corrupt old regime are being extrajudicially punished.
Dozens of people have been killed or wounded as fighting escalates along the front line in eastern Ukraine and the battle for Donetsk airport continues.
Artillery fire was reported in several areas of the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions and a hospital in Donetsk city was hit, reports said.
Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian rebels both said they controlled the airport.
As Russia warned Ukraine not to make a strategic mistake, Kiev said more Russian troops had crossed the border.
Russia has repeatedly denied claims that its regular forces are in eastern Ukraine, but has admitted that a number of “volunteers” are fighting alongside the rebels.
Ann Romney says Russia would not have invaded Ukraine had her husband, Mitt, been elected president. In a clear shot at the Obama administration, Romney told Yahoo News and Finance Anchor Bianna Golodryga, “I do not believe there would have been an invasion, of course, in Ukraine. I believe Putin would have known there would’ve been consequences to that.”
(CNN) — Two U.S. jets intercepted six Russian planes that neared U.S. airspace off Alaska on Thursday and Canadian planes intercepted two Russian bombers that approached Canadian airspace, NORAD reported.
A U.S. official told CNN’s Barbara Starr that officials in Washington think the incidents were related to the visit by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, who talked to Canadian officials Wednesday and President Barack Obama on Thursday. The United States promised Ukraine $46 million in nonlethal aid for its battle with pro-Russian militants.
