Most of it is former Soviet equipment that they inherited. They do have at least one tank factory that has been producing new tanks and upgrading older ones. Probably the biggest Western toys are the Javelins as they are a real threat to Russian armor. They are domestically producing some antiarmor missiles. All their combat aircraft are ex Soviet as well. Russia will control the air very quickly without outside intervention and then the Ukraine ground forces are toast.
ALERT RUSSIA INVADES UKRAINE - Consolidated Thread
- Thread starter danielboon
- Start date
Biggest danger I see, is some reservist wanker in NATO doing a “Bedford Incident” or some such, and setting off a can of sunshine, by accident. Of course, some up and coming FSB type might set one off, and blame NATO…. Regardless, the odds of this all going sideways grow exponentially with each passing month. It WILL happen. Can it be managed? Will it spread like wildfire- to GNW? Only time will tell. Best of all worlds? Alien invasion that is not a human ELE…
OA
CaryC
Has No Life - Lives on TB
I read the same thing Smokey did. I think it came from 19forty-five. The link to the article was probably at Bongino Report.
Here is a snippet of the article, I found it:
“Putin Is Not Stupid”: This Expert Spent 182 Days on the Russia-Ukraine Battlefields
Image of Russian TOS Unit. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
American Who Spent 182 Days on the Battlefield Speaks Out on Ukraine and Russia: One US civilian has been to Ukraine and seen the border skirmish between Moscow and Kyiv up close and personal. Policy institute president and defense and national security expert Dr. Phillip Karber has visited Ukraine 36 times in the last eight years and has spent a total of 182 days at the front lines of various battlefields observing combat.
1945 caught up with Karber, who heads the Potomac Foundation, for a wide-ranging, detailed, and insightful interview about the situation in Ukraine and Russia. 1945 Defense Editor Brent Eastwood conducted the interview.
You have traveled to Ukraine many times over the years after Russia’s annexation of Crimea. Can you tell us the overall state of readiness when it comes to Ukraine’s military?
Considering the terrible shape the Ukrainian forces were in at the beginning of 2014 after two decades of utter neglect, their resurrection as a fighting force has been nothing short of miraculous.
At the beginning of the conflict on paper, they had 15 ground force brigades with an authorized strength of 55 maneuver battalions. In reality only 16 of the latter were “ready” (defined as having at least two-thirds of required manpower and operable equipment). Moreover, only 25 percent of the ready battalions were deployed on the east side of the Dniepr River opposite Russia (and two of those were lost with the occupation of Crimea).
Neither Western analysts nor Russian planners expected the Ukrainian Army to be able to fight for more than several days. But they mobilized, redeployed their forces to the east, repaired and upgraded old weaponry, and have been fighting for eight years. They have lost some battles and won some battles, but in the process inflicted as many casualties as they have suffered.
Today, Ukraine fields the strongest active Army in Europe — it is larger, more ready with more combat experience than the armies of the last ten countries to join NATO — combined.
The active force equals 40 Battalion Tactical Groups (BTGs), backed up by 100,000 reservists with experience at the front, and units at every level led by a new generation of young aggressive officers who have fought the Russians, know their weakness and are not afraid to exploit them.
Ironically, in terms of stabilizing Eastern Europe, providing a bulwark to Russian revanchism, and significantly improving the defense of Romania, Poland, and the Baltics — NATO would gain more from having Ukraine on its side than Ukraine would get from being in NATO.
We do not appreciate their contribution now, but we will miss them when they are gone.
There is a common line of thinking in Washington that Kyiv would be beaten very quickly by Moscow. What is your take?
If the Washington, DC “desk-commandos” would get off their derrières and go to the front, they would get a more realistic perspective.
The Ukrainians can hold the current 500km line of engagement until the cows come home — in terms of the area covering the Donbas front against the 1st Donetsk and 2nd Luhansk proxy Corps and the causeways from Crimea against its 22nd Corps. And, in defending those prepared positions, they will stack Russian body bags like cordwood.
More at link:
"Putin Is Not Stupid": This Expert Spent 182 Days on the Russia-Ukraine Battlefields - 19FortyFive
I don't know if the guy is right or not, just read his article. All sides in this are saying they are the big bad wolf.
My sunshine worry isnt the West or Russia or even China. They have a vested interest in keeping it conventional. Its Iran, NK taking advantage that I worry about. Also someone like India if China attacks. They panic and hit the button. As long as the Russians dont push beyond the Ukraine or even the Baltics into Europe proper it will stay conventional. Same on the other side if we dont then push into Russia.
northern watch
TB Fanatic
From my email inbox
SmokeyBear
"Need to Know"
I read the same thing Smokey did. I think it came from 19forty-five. The link to the article was probably at Bongino Report.
Here is a snippet of the article, I found it:
“Putin Is Not Stupid”: This Expert Spent 182 Days on the Russia-Ukraine Battlefields
Image of Russian TOS Unit. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
American Who Spent 182 Days on the Battlefield Speaks Out on Ukraine and Russia: One US civilian has been to Ukraine and seen the border skirmish between Moscow and Kyiv up close and personal. Policy institute president and defense and national security expert Dr. Phillip Karber has visited Ukraine 36 times in the last eight years and has spent a total of 182 days at the front lines of various battlefields observing combat.
1945 caught up with Karber, who heads the Potomac Foundation, for a wide-ranging, detailed, and insightful interview about the situation in Ukraine and Russia. 1945 Defense Editor Brent Eastwood conducted the interview.
You have traveled to Ukraine many times over the years after Russia’s annexation of Crimea. Can you tell us the overall state of readiness when it comes to Ukraine’s military?
Considering the terrible shape the Ukrainian forces were in at the beginning of 2014 after two decades of utter neglect, their resurrection as a fighting force has been nothing short of miraculous.
At the beginning of the conflict on paper, they had 15 ground force brigades with an authorized strength of 55 maneuver battalions. In reality only 16 of the latter were “ready” (defined as having at least two-thirds of required manpower and operable equipment). Moreover, only 25 percent of the ready battalions were deployed on the east side of the Dniepr River opposite Russia (and two of those were lost with the occupation of Crimea).
Neither Western analysts nor Russian planners expected the Ukrainian Army to be able to fight for more than several days. But they mobilized, redeployed their forces to the east, repaired and upgraded old weaponry, and have been fighting for eight years. They have lost some battles and won some battles, but in the process inflicted as many casualties as they have suffered.
Today, Ukraine fields the strongest active Army in Europe — it is larger, more ready with more combat experience than the armies of the last ten countries to join NATO — combined.
The active force equals 40 Battalion Tactical Groups (BTGs), backed up by 100,000 reservists with experience at the front, and units at every level led by a new generation of young aggressive officers who have fought the Russians, know their weakness and are not afraid to exploit them.
Ironically, in terms of stabilizing Eastern Europe, providing a bulwark to Russian revanchism, and significantly improving the defense of Romania, Poland, and the Baltics — NATO would gain more from having Ukraine on its side than Ukraine would get from being in NATO.
We do not appreciate their contribution now, but we will miss them when they are gone.
There is a common line of thinking in Washington that Kyiv would be beaten very quickly by Moscow. What is your take?
If the Washington, DC “desk-commandos” would get off their derrières and go to the front, they would get a more realistic perspective.
The Ukrainians can hold the current 500km line of engagement until the cows come home — in terms of the area covering the Donbas front against the 1st Donetsk and 2nd Luhansk proxy Corps and the causeways from Crimea against its 22nd Corps. And, in defending those prepared positions, they will stack Russian body bags like cordwood.
More at link:
"Putin Is Not Stupid": This Expert Spent 182 Days on the Russia-Ukraine Battlefields - 19FortyFive
I don't know if the guy is right or not, just read his article. All sides in this are saying they are the big bad wolf.
This is a great article. Thank you. IMO the problem is airpower. Without aid from the West the Ukrainians will be hammered by the Russian Air Force.
northern watch
TB Fanatic
northern watch
TB Fanatic
Zagdid
Veteran Member
Russia will not suffer a proxy war at its border. However, Poland's border is an entirely different thing.
CaryC
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Sure no problem. Glad to do it.
And yeah, lots of people are putting in their 2 cents. Including me. But like you, I don't think Ukraine has a chance at war. Give a good showing sure but in the end, missles, sat's, air craft, nukes, etc. will win the day. Even if Ukraine has NATO backing.
When it comes to war, I don't think Russia plays well with others.
OldAndCrazy
Pureblood Forever
Da Ukes need to become mountain dwelling goat herders..... that group defeated TWO superpowers with some old HE, cell phones and AK's.
bobfall2005
Veteran Member
This guy has been there and done that. He has been under Russia dones attacks and Russia artillery attacks.I read the same thing Smokey did. I think it came from 19forty-five. The link to the article was probably at Bongino Report.
Here is a snippet of the article, I found it:
“Putin Is Not Stupid”: This Expert Spent 182 Days on the Russia-Ukraine Battlefields
Image of Russian TOS Unit. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
American Who Spent 182 Days on the Battlefield Speaks Out on Ukraine and Russia: One US civilian has been to Ukraine and seen the border skirmish between Moscow and Kyiv up close and personal. Policy institute president and defense and national security expert Dr. Phillip Karber has visited Ukraine 36 times in the last eight years and has spent a total of 182 days at the front lines of various battlefields observing combat.
1945 caught up with Karber, who heads the Potomac Foundation, for a wide-ranging, detailed, and insightful interview about the situation in Ukraine and Russia. 1945 Defense Editor Brent Eastwood conducted the interview.
You have traveled to Ukraine many times over the years after Russia’s annexation of Crimea. Can you tell us the overall state of readiness when it comes to Ukraine’s military?
Considering the terrible shape the Ukrainian forces were in at the beginning of 2014 after two decades of utter neglect, their resurrection as a fighting force has been nothing short of miraculous.
At the beginning of the conflict on paper, they had 15 ground force brigades with an authorized strength of 55 maneuver battalions. In reality only 16 of the latter were “ready” (defined as having at least two-thirds of required manpower and operable equipment). Moreover, only 25 percent of the ready battalions were deployed on the east side of the Dniepr River opposite Russia (and two of those were lost with the occupation of Crimea).
Neither Western analysts nor Russian planners expected the Ukrainian Army to be able to fight for more than several days. But they mobilized, redeployed their forces to the east, repaired and upgraded old weaponry, and have been fighting for eight years. They have lost some battles and won some battles, but in the process inflicted as many casualties as they have suffered.
Today, Ukraine fields the strongest active Army in Europe — it is larger, more ready with more combat experience than the armies of the last ten countries to join NATO — combined.
The active force equals 40 Battalion Tactical Groups (BTGs), backed up by 100,000 reservists with experience at the front, and units at every level led by a new generation of young aggressive officers who have fought the Russians, know their weakness and are not afraid to exploit them.
Ironically, in terms of stabilizing Eastern Europe, providing a bulwark to Russian revanchism, and significantly improving the defense of Romania, Poland, and the Baltics — NATO would gain more from having Ukraine on its side than Ukraine would get from being in NATO.
We do not appreciate their contribution now, but we will miss them when they are gone.
There is a common line of thinking in Washington that Kyiv would be beaten very quickly by Moscow. What is your take?
If the Washington, DC “desk-commandos” would get off their derrières and go to the front, they would get a more realistic perspective.
The Ukrainians can hold the current 500km line of engagement until the cows come home — in terms of the area covering the Donbas front against the 1st Donetsk and 2nd Luhansk proxy Corps and the causeways from Crimea against its 22nd Corps. And, in defending those prepared positions, they will stack Russian body bags like cordwood.
More at link:
"Putin Is Not Stupid": This Expert Spent 182 Days on the Russia-Ukraine Battlefields - 19FortyFive
I don't know if the guy is right or not, just read his article. All sides in this are saying they are the big bad wolf.
I know of no American military person that has been under more Russian attacks than PK.
northern watch
TB Fanatic
danielboon
TB Fanatic
EndGameWW3
@EndGameWW3
·
19m
Russia demands US, NATO response next week on Ukraine https://aje.io/wyhrsdvia
@AJEnglish
@EndGameWW3
·
19m
Russia demands US, NATO response next week on Ukraine https://aje.io/wyhrsdvia
@AJEnglish
I take that as the US saying we will not help you stop the invasion but will maybe help you be a thorn in the side of the Russians.
northern watch
TB Fanatic
psychgirl
Has No Life - Lives on TB
They’re announcing it??
danielboon
TB Fanatic
NATO, US brought world close to brink of nuclear war during talks with Russia - expert
Representative of the Schiller Institute in New York Richard Black said that West needs to give up its violent fantasy of getting win Russia and China
NEW YORK, January 14. /TASS/. The behavior of the US and NATO during talks on security guarantees with Russia in Geneva and Brussels brought the world closer to the brink of the nuclear war and further consultations can be useful only in case the West changes its approaches, representative of the Schiller Institute in New York Richard Black told TASS.
"What NATO and US have done from Monday through Wednesday [consultations with Russia were held on different floors from January 10 to 12 - TASS] on this going week is to bring the world close to the brink of nuclear war by insisting on the continuance of placing the weapons with nuclear strike capability not near but at Russia’s border," Black said.
"What is needed is a new world security architecture, which guarantees all nations security and it includes Russia and the United States. West needs to give up its violent fantasy of getting win Russia and China," the expert noted.
"What is required is a new set of economic relations, which is based on the common development of the productive forces of both the East and West," Black added. "If there is change over the next hours or days coming from NATO and the US, then talks could be profitable. If not - then the likelihood of confrontation and nuclear war increases greatly," the expert noted.
"Where we stand now is we are on the very brink of confrontation which can lead us to world war," Black stressed.
tass.com
Representative of the Schiller Institute in New York Richard Black said that West needs to give up its violent fantasy of getting win Russia and China
NEW YORK, January 14. /TASS/. The behavior of the US and NATO during talks on security guarantees with Russia in Geneva and Brussels brought the world closer to the brink of the nuclear war and further consultations can be useful only in case the West changes its approaches, representative of the Schiller Institute in New York Richard Black told TASS.
"What NATO and US have done from Monday through Wednesday [consultations with Russia were held on different floors from January 10 to 12 - TASS] on this going week is to bring the world close to the brink of nuclear war by insisting on the continuance of placing the weapons with nuclear strike capability not near but at Russia’s border," Black said.
"What is needed is a new world security architecture, which guarantees all nations security and it includes Russia and the United States. West needs to give up its violent fantasy of getting win Russia and China," the expert noted.
"What is required is a new set of economic relations, which is based on the common development of the productive forces of both the East and West," Black added. "If there is change over the next hours or days coming from NATO and the US, then talks could be profitable. If not - then the likelihood of confrontation and nuclear war increases greatly," the expert noted.
"Where we stand now is we are on the very brink of confrontation which can lead us to world war," Black stressed.
NATO, US brought world close to brink of nuclear war during talks with Russia - expert
Representative of the Schiller Institute in New York Richard Black said that West needs to give up its violent fantasy of getting win Russia and China
tass.com
And a lot of foreign aid. The West supported them against the Russkies and China and the Muslim world supported them against us.
Perfect hunting weather - easy tracking and everything wants to stay inside out of the cold. If engines are kept running so they don't take minutes to warm up, the noise makes it difficult to listen.
You're right. I did a post a long time ago which referenced the Russian stand-off weapons (which include air strikes). Those defense lines would fold within a couple of days of continual hammering with air and missile bombardment.
Whoever controls the airspace - and the information/communications space nowadays - controls the battlefield. These cyberattacks could be the harbinger of ramping up, or they could be just the equivalent of probing raids.
I’m pretty confident that Ukraine is building armored personnel carriers as well as tanks.
Rattling sabers while in the midst of a high-level pissing contest - which could possibly go past the point of no return but it doesn't take much to de-escalate from this kind of yammering away.
The other thing to consider regarding support for Ukraine with NATO air is that 1) most EU air forces are not combat-tested except for the British and ours, and 2) nobody - especially the ones who've seen them in operation in Syria - wants to go up against the S200 anti-aircraft systems, much less the S400 units they'd be seeing.
I thought the Israelis were able to fool/ defeat the S400 radars in Syria.
You could very well be correct on that point; I concede that I haven't followed the Israeli work in Syria that closely but I do recall some air strikes. I was thinking more of Syria's northern border with Turkey (a supposed NATO ally which could threaten the Black Sea theater).
If indeed the Israelis were able to spoof those systems, that information would be in hand both from inside info and ELINT gathering. And of course the Russians would be aware of their systems' failure as well and have probably been working to prevent it from happening again.
Just conjecture on my part, though. Lots of smoke and heat but not much light, eh?
It is all a guessing game based on the best info on the internet. Until things kick off we will not know. Even then we will probably never really know.
SmokeyBear
"Need to Know"
I read the same thing Smokey did. I think it came from 19forty-five. The link to the article was probably at Bongino Report.
Here is a snippet of the article, I found it:
“Putin Is Not Stupid”: This Expert Spent 182 Days on the Russia-Ukraine Battlefields
Image of Russian TOS Unit. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
American Who Spent 182 Days on the Battlefield Speaks Out on Ukraine and Russia: One US civilian has been to Ukraine and seen the border skirmish between Moscow and Kyiv up close and personal. Policy institute president and defense and national security expert Dr. Phillip Karber has visited Ukraine 36 times in the last eight years and has spent a total of 182 days at the front lines of various battlefields observing combat.
1945 caught up with Karber, who heads the Potomac Foundation, for a wide-ranging, detailed, and insightful interview about the situation in Ukraine and Russia. 1945 Defense Editor Brent Eastwood conducted the interview.
You have traveled to Ukraine many times over the years after Russia’s annexation of Crimea. Can you tell us the overall state of readiness when it comes to Ukraine’s military?
Considering the terrible shape the Ukrainian forces were in at the beginning of 2014 after two decades of utter neglect, their resurrection as a fighting force has been nothing short of miraculous.
At the beginning of the conflict on paper, they had 15 ground force brigades with an authorized strength of 55 maneuver battalions. In reality only 16 of the latter were “ready” (defined as having at least two-thirds of required manpower and operable equipment). Moreover, only 25 percent of the ready battalions were deployed on the east side of the Dniepr River opposite Russia (and two of those were lost with the occupation of Crimea).
Neither Western analysts nor Russian planners expected the Ukrainian Army to be able to fight for more than several days. But they mobilized, redeployed their forces to the east, repaired and upgraded old weaponry, and have been fighting for eight years. They have lost some battles and won some battles, but in the process inflicted as many casualties as they have suffered.
Today, Ukraine fields the strongest active Army in Europe — it is larger, more ready with more combat experience than the armies of the last ten countries to join NATO — combined.
The active force equals 40 Battalion Tactical Groups (BTGs), backed up by 100,000 reservists with experience at the front, and units at every level led by a new generation of young aggressive officers who have fought the Russians, know their weakness and are not afraid to exploit them.
Ironically, in terms of stabilizing Eastern Europe, providing a bulwark to Russian revanchism, and significantly improving the defense of Romania, Poland, and the Baltics — NATO would gain more from having Ukraine on its side than Ukraine would get from being in NATO.
We do not appreciate their contribution now, but we will miss them when they are gone.
There is a common line of thinking in Washington that Kyiv would be beaten very quickly by Moscow. What is your take?
If the Washington, DC “desk-commandos” would get off their derrières and go to the front, they would get a more realistic perspective.
The Ukrainians can hold the current 500km line of engagement until the cows come home — in terms of the area covering the Donbas front against the 1st Donetsk and 2nd Luhansk proxy Corps and the causeways from Crimea against its 22nd Corps. And, in defending those prepared positions, they will stack Russian body bags like cordwood.
More at link:
"Putin Is Not Stupid": This Expert Spent 182 Days on the Russia-Ukraine Battlefields - 19FortyFive
I don't know if the guy is right or not, just read his article. All sides in this are saying they are the big bad wolf.
Great article; not the piece I initially read though. The one I read was from a few years back.
SmokeyBear
"Need to Know"
... hopefully a ramping up to gain leverage with which to extract a better compromise from the West. Per Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov: "We are convinced, that if there is a will to compromise, one can always find mutually acceptable solutions."
CaryC
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Boy hey, now that's an interesting statement.
Except for the 3 that don't go along. LOL
CaryC
Has No Life - Lives on TB
"Drumbeat Of War Sounding Loud" US Says After Russia Declares Talks At "Dead End"
A top US security official in Europe has warned the "drumbeat of war is sounding loud" amid this week's series of NATO and Russian talks, also as Washington and Brussels continue to condemn Russia's troop build-up near Ukraine.
"We're facing a crisis in European security. The drumbeat of war is sounding loud, and the rhetoric has gotten rather shrill," US ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Michael Carpenter said Thursday.
Source: Associated Press"If the Russians walk away from these talks, it'll be clear that they were never serious about diplomacy in the first place," he added. However, the Russian side was miffed when at the very start of talks Monday in Geneva (and subsequent talks in Brussels and Vienna), the US declared its core demand of no more NATO eastward expansion to be a "non-starter" in the talks.
The US side is still standing by this, also recently accusing Moscow of using its troop placement near Ukraine - said to be up to 100,000 - in order to present "ultimatums" to the West. Further, Carpenter presented the US side as having extended an open hand of dialogue, which officials on both sides have stopped far short of recognizing as "negotiations" on any level.
"We're prepared to extend, we have already extended a hand, to offer a serious genuine dialogue," the envoy added. So for now, after Thursday's talks wrapped of the week of three meetings, the key question remaining is whether the dialogue will be extended. "We're going to have to see if the Russians are prepared to engage," Carpenter concluded. But it remains that:
Meanwhile, Russia's Foreign Ministry has come away from this week's engagement with NATO, the US, and even Ukraine officials (in Vienna) saying it's led to a healthy airing of demands but has hit a "dead end"...
"There is, to a certain extent, a dead end or a difference in approaches," Ryabkov said, citing no real flexibility coming from the US side. "I do not see reasons to sit down in the coming days, to gather again and start these same discussions." The Russian delegation said that proposals from the West for grounds to continue talks would be submitted to President Putin for further consideration, but struck a pessimistic tone.
* * *
According to commentary from Rabobank...
Russia says recent talks with NATO were a failure; US Senator Rubio states it is “almost certain” Putin will move on parts of Ukraine “very soon”; US National Security Advisor Sullivan says he is “taking stock” and is trying to prevent a “potentially massive” Russian invasion; the Director of Russian Studies at CAN says “Russian preparations for an operation are steadily advancing. Support and logistics trickling in, formations with personnel sent from Eastern MD. The outlook, in my view, has grown worse.”; NATO head Stoltenberg says Sweden and Finland will be accepted into the organisation “very quickly” if they decide to join; Der Spiegel reports NATO is preparing for even worse scenarios, such as an armed conflict with the West beyond Ukraine; and the Deputy Russian Foreign Minister suggests Moscow could send troops to Venezuela and Cuba if it does not get what it wants.
"Drumbeat Of War Sounding Loud" US Says After Russia Declares Talks At "Dead End" | ZeroHedge
CaryC
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Just to lighten things up a bit:
Democrats Use Dreaded Filibuster to Block Ted Cruz Bill Sanctioning Russia’s Nord Stream 2 Pipeline
Samuel Corum/Getty Images
Democrats used the Senate filibuster, which they are busy trying to eliminate, to block a bill by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on Thursday that would have sanctioned companies associated with Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline. The bill had 55 votes.
The filibuster requires 60 votes to end debate and move to a final vote, which meant that despite the 55-44 margin, and the votes of five Democrats in favor, the bill could not advance — a win for President Joe Biden’s approach to talks with Russia.
The Biden administration allowed the Nord Stream 2 pipeline to proceed last year — after shutting down the Keystone XL pipeline project in the U.S. to appease environmentalists — saying that the project was too close to completion to reverse.
President Donald Trump had sought to block Nord Stream 2 because it would have made Europe more dependent on Russia’s natural gas, increasing President Vladimir Putin’s leverage in the west and his ability to circumvent pipelines in Ukraine.
Critics were livid at Democrats — and at the establishment media, which pushed the false “Russia collusion” conspiracy theory against Trump while ignoring Democrats’ efforts to appease Russia, even as Putin has amassed troops on the border with Ukraine and threatened to invade.
The United Press International agency reported: “Democratic Sens. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, Mark Kelly of Arizona, Jacky Rosen of Nevada and Raphael Warnock of Georgia joined every Senate Republican in voting in favor of the bill.”
President Biden is urging changes to the filibuster to pass Democrats’ election overhaul bills, declaring that those who opposed him were on the wrong side of history, and on the side of racism. In a speech earlier this week demanding filibuster reform to pass the bills, he asked: “Do you want to be the si– on the side of Dr. King or George Wallace? Do you want to be on the side of John Lewis or Bull Connor? Do you want to be on the side of Abraham Lincoln or Jefferson Davis?”
Democrats Use Dreaded Filibuster to Block Ted Cruz Bill Sanctioning Russia's Nord Stream 2 Pipeline (breitbart.com)
Democrats Use Dreaded Filibuster to Block Ted Cruz Bill Sanctioning Russia’s Nord Stream 2 Pipeline
Democrats used the Senate filibuster, which they are busy trying to eliminate, to block a bill by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on Thursday that would have sanctioned companies associated with Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline. The bill had 55 votes.
The filibuster requires 60 votes to end debate and move to a final vote, which meant that despite the 55-44 margin, and the votes of five Democrats in favor, the bill could not advance — a win for President Joe Biden’s approach to talks with Russia.
The Biden administration allowed the Nord Stream 2 pipeline to proceed last year — after shutting down the Keystone XL pipeline project in the U.S. to appease environmentalists — saying that the project was too close to completion to reverse.
President Donald Trump had sought to block Nord Stream 2 because it would have made Europe more dependent on Russia’s natural gas, increasing President Vladimir Putin’s leverage in the west and his ability to circumvent pipelines in Ukraine.
Critics were livid at Democrats — and at the establishment media, which pushed the false “Russia collusion” conspiracy theory against Trump while ignoring Democrats’ efforts to appease Russia, even as Putin has amassed troops on the border with Ukraine and threatened to invade.
The United Press International agency reported: “Democratic Sens. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, Mark Kelly of Arizona, Jacky Rosen of Nevada and Raphael Warnock of Georgia joined every Senate Republican in voting in favor of the bill.”
President Biden is urging changes to the filibuster to pass Democrats’ election overhaul bills, declaring that those who opposed him were on the wrong side of history, and on the side of racism. In a speech earlier this week demanding filibuster reform to pass the bills, he asked: “Do you want to be the si– on the side of Dr. King or George Wallace? Do you want to be on the side of John Lewis or Bull Connor? Do you want to be on the side of Abraham Lincoln or Jefferson Davis?”
Democrats Use Dreaded Filibuster to Block Ted Cruz Bill Sanctioning Russia's Nord Stream 2 Pipeline (breitbart.com)
CaryC
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Really? Our intelligence knows this? In light of Kabul, or the Jan 6th Insurrection. Am just wondering if this is the "narrative" the US is going to use.
US Official: Russia Prepping Pretext for Ukraine Invasion
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has determined a Russian effort is underway to create a pretext for its troops to potentially further invade Ukraine, and Moscow has already prepositioned operatives to conduct “a false-flag operation” in eastern Ukraine, a U.S. official said Friday.
The administration believes Russia is also laying the groundwork through a social media disinformation campaign by framing Ukraine as an aggressor that has been preparing an imminent attack against Russian forces in eastern Ukraine, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the official wasn’t authorized to discuss sensitive intelligence on the record,
U.S. intelligence officials have determined Russia has already dispatched operatives trained in urban warfare who could use explosives to carry out acts of sabotage against Russia’s own proxy forces — blaming the acts on Ukraine — if Russian President Vladimir Putin decides he wants to move forward with an invasion, the official added.
The new intelligence was unveiled after a series of talks between Russia and the U.S. and western allies this week in Europe aimed at heading off the escalating crisis made little progress.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Thursday said that the U.S. intelligence community has not made an assessment that the Russians, who have massed some 100,000 troops on the Ukraine border, have definitively decided to take a military course of action in Ukraine.
But Sullivan said Russia is laying the groundwork to invade under false pretenses should Putin decide to go that route. He said the Russians have been planning “sabotage activities and information operations” that accuse Ukraine of prepping for its own imminent attack against Russian forces in Eastern Ukraine.
He said that the move is similar to what Kremlin did in the leadup to Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that had been under Ukraine’s jurisdiction since 1954.
US Official: Russia Prepping Pretext for Ukraine Invasion - Breitbart
US Official: Russia Prepping Pretext for Ukraine Invasion
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has determined a Russian effort is underway to create a pretext for its troops to potentially further invade Ukraine, and Moscow has already prepositioned operatives to conduct “a false-flag operation” in eastern Ukraine, a U.S. official said Friday.
The administration believes Russia is also laying the groundwork through a social media disinformation campaign by framing Ukraine as an aggressor that has been preparing an imminent attack against Russian forces in eastern Ukraine, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the official wasn’t authorized to discuss sensitive intelligence on the record,
U.S. intelligence officials have determined Russia has already dispatched operatives trained in urban warfare who could use explosives to carry out acts of sabotage against Russia’s own proxy forces — blaming the acts on Ukraine — if Russian President Vladimir Putin decides he wants to move forward with an invasion, the official added.
The new intelligence was unveiled after a series of talks between Russia and the U.S. and western allies this week in Europe aimed at heading off the escalating crisis made little progress.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Thursday said that the U.S. intelligence community has not made an assessment that the Russians, who have massed some 100,000 troops on the Ukraine border, have definitively decided to take a military course of action in Ukraine.
But Sullivan said Russia is laying the groundwork to invade under false pretenses should Putin decide to go that route. He said the Russians have been planning “sabotage activities and information operations” that accuse Ukraine of prepping for its own imminent attack against Russian forces in Eastern Ukraine.
He said that the move is similar to what Kremlin did in the leadup to Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that had been under Ukraine’s jurisdiction since 1954.
US Official: Russia Prepping Pretext for Ukraine Invasion - Breitbart
Jake Sullivan is about as big a laughingstock as National Security Advisor that I could think of. What a weenie. But he is at least being forthright enough about our intelligence FUBAR or else he's just lying through his teeth again.Really? Our intelligence knows this? In light of Kabul, or the Jan 6th Insurrection. Am just wondering if this is the "narrative" the US is going to use.
US Official: Russia Prepping Pretext for Ukraine Invasion
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has determined a Russian effort is underway to create a pretext for its troops to potentially further invade Ukraine, and Moscow has already prepositioned operatives to conduct “a false-flag operation” in eastern Ukraine, a U.S. official said Friday.
The administration believes Russia is also laying the groundwork through a social media disinformation campaign by framing Ukraine as an aggressor that has been preparing an imminent attack against Russian forces in eastern Ukraine, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the official wasn’t authorized to discuss sensitive intelligence on the record,
U.S. intelligence officials have determined Russia has already dispatched operatives trained in urban warfare who could use explosives to carry out acts of sabotage against Russia’s own proxy forces — blaming the acts on Ukraine — if Russian President Vladimir Putin decides he wants to move forward with an invasion, the official added.
The new intelligence was unveiled after a series of talks between Russia and the U.S. and western allies this week in Europe aimed at heading off the escalating crisis made little progress.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Thursday said that the U.S. intelligence community has not made an assessment that the Russians, who have massed some 100,000 troops on the Ukraine border, have definitively decided to take a military course of action in Ukraine.
But Sullivan said Russia is laying the groundwork to invade under false pretenses should Putin decide to go that route. He said the Russians have been planning “sabotage activities and information operations” that accuse Ukraine of prepping for its own imminent attack against Russian forces in Eastern Ukraine.
He said that the move is similar to what Kremlin did in the leadup to Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that had been under Ukraine’s jurisdiction since 1954.
US Official: Russia Prepping Pretext for Ukraine Invasion - Breitbart
My dad used to remark "He lies when telling the truth would've done just fine".
Really? Our intelligence knows this? In light of Kabul, or the Jan 6th Insurrection. Am just wondering if this is the "narrative" the US is going to use.
US Official: Russia Prepping Pretext for Ukraine Invasion
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has determined a Russian effort is underway to create a pretext for its troops to potentially further invade Ukraine, and Moscow has already prepositioned operatives to conduct “a false-flag operation” in eastern Ukraine, a U.S. official said Friday.
The administration believes Russia is also laying the groundwork through a social media disinformation campaign by framing Ukraine as an aggressor that has been preparing an imminent attack against Russian forces in eastern Ukraine, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the official wasn’t authorized to discuss sensitive intelligence on the record,
U.S. intelligence officials have determined Russia has already dispatched operatives trained in urban warfare who could use explosives to carry out acts of sabotage against Russia’s own proxy forces — blaming the acts on Ukraine — if Russian President Vladimir Putin decides he wants to move forward with an invasion, the official added.
The new intelligence was unveiled after a series of talks between Russia and the U.S. and western allies this week in Europe aimed at heading off the escalating crisis made little progress.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Thursday said that the U.S. intelligence community has not made an assessment that the Russians, who have massed some 100,000 troops on the Ukraine border, have definitively decided to take a military course of action in Ukraine.
But Sullivan said Russia is laying the groundwork to invade under false pretenses should Putin decide to go that route. He said the Russians have been planning “sabotage activities and information operations” that accuse Ukraine of prepping for its own imminent attack against Russian forces in Eastern Ukraine.
He said that the move is similar to what Kremlin did in the leadup to Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that had been under Ukraine’s jurisdiction since 1954.
US Official: Russia Prepping Pretext for Ukraine Invasion - Breitbart
Case of even a blind squirrel finds a nut. I dont see any other way that Russia can justify an invasion. The Ukraine is not suicidal. They arent going to attack and hope for help especially with the US at best saying they may support an insurgency. I have found nothing about Russian people being abused/discriminated against etc in Ukraine. The only other thing could be the Crimean canal. Nope they are going to blow something up and have international inspectors from Belarus, China and Venezuela independently verify that it was the Ukrainians.
danielboon
TB Fanatic
