Originally Posted By atavistic:

Probably better than Moscow.

Originally Posted By Chokey:

#Ukraine: It is alleged that a Russian convoy attempting to leave Mykolaiv for Kherson fell into an ambush near #Snigurovka, and crashed their vehicles, leaving behind a BM-21 Grad pattern MRL and a supply truck. As can be seen, a TDF fighter is inspecting the aftermath. pic.twitter.com/IjIJE7KCpC

— \uD83C\uDDFA\uD83C\uDDE6 Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) March 18, 2022

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FOJjUHZWYAEGdpV?format=png&name=900x900

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FOJjjjuWUAIQnsx?format=jpg&name=medium

The writer is a professor at Georgetown University and served on the US National Security Council staff from 2009-2015

With each passing day it becomes more likely the war in Ukraine will spark the most consequential shift in geopolitics since the end of the cold war, if not the second world war. China is driving this conclusion. Its strategic alignment with Russia before the invasion, combined with its enabling of Russia since the first missile struck, is evocative of the 1950s Sino-Soviet alliance.

Indeed, China is now crossing some dangerous thresholds. According to reports in the Financial Times, China has responded positively to Russian requests for military assistance. Beijing is co-ordinating with Moscow to spread disinformation about US biological weapons labs in Ukraine. Its compliance with global sanctions remains an open question.

China's ultimate position on the conflict  either to maintain its support for Russia, or to re-embrace the geopolitics of stability, growth and integration  will eventually define the world order. Europe now has a historic opportunity to shape China's strategic choices. To do so, European leaders must reject the fantasy of Beijing mediating with Moscow and explicitly convey the costs of its continued or expanded support for Russia. China will dismiss anything short of such a clear signal.

The war in Ukraine is putting substantial stress on China, creating an opening to shape its perceptions and policies. As Xi Jinping prepares for the leadership transition this autumn, the last thing he needs is a geopolitical distraction or, worse, ammunition for his critics. China also faces its worst economic outlook in two decades. Both the structural and cyclical drivers of growth are flagging as covid surges. The war has created historic price spikes and supply disruptions in critical energy and agriculture imports.

Diplomatically, the war reinvigorated US alliances and revitalised sanctions as a diplomatic tool. Now China is presented with an uncomfortable strategic trilemma. First, Beijing wants to remain aligned with Moscow given their common vision, values and substantial energy and military-technology interests. Second, China needs to adhere to the most sacrosanct principles in its foreign policy: protecting sovereignty and territorial integrity. Third, it wants to minimise the damage to its relations with the US and Europe, its top trading partners over the past decade.

Originally Posted By x248716x:

they went to commercial break and put on Muzak elevator music.

Originally Posted By Chokey:

#Ukraine: Another Stugna-P ATGM strike, seemingly against a BMP/MT-LB. Location unknown, but likely recent. pic.twitter.com/pOjiOX1l1W

— \uD83C\uDDFA\uD83C\uDDE6 Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) March 18, 2022

Originally Posted By Chokey:

See Russia is already training the next group of legendary Russia diplomats

It’s like the Chinese wolf warrior diplomats. If you just didn’t say thing everything would go much smoother  pic.twitter.com/we91jVgwFs

Lost Weapons  (@LostWeapons) March 18, 2022

Originally Posted By Mal_means_bad:
Fireballs usually don't cast shadows.

Originally Posted By GutWrench:
What's the alleged death count now for both sides? Anyone?

Originally Posted By GutWrench:
What's the alleged death count now for both sides? Anyone?

Originally Posted By Dracster:

The last numbers I saw were 14.2k Russians and 2800 Ukrainian, not counting civilians.

Originally Posted By M4:

Is it the only news event? Is it the only one that holds enormous consequences for our own country? Is it the only story being told with any emphasis what so ever? Yeah, it is.

The Biden administration could not be happier that there is one subject dominating every single news outlet. Why do you think that is?

Originally Posted By Chokey:

#Ukraine: Another Stugna-P ATGM strike, seemingly against a BMP/MT-LB. Location unknown, but likely recent. pic.twitter.com/pOjiOX1l1W

— \uD83C\uDDFA\uD83C\uDDE6 Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) March 18, 2022

Russian internet regulator Roskomnadzor has accused Google's YouTube of "spreading threats against citizens of the Russian Federation" in a statement released Friday.

"Earlier it became known that YouTube video hosting users are broadcasting commercials with calls to disable the railway communications of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus," the statement added. "The actions of the YouTube administration are of a terrorist nature and threaten the life and health of Russian citizens."

Roskomnadzor did not identify the users broadcasting the alleged threats.

While the statement did not mention blocking YouTube in Russia, an unnamed official told Russian state media outlet Sputnik that YouTube could be blocked "by the end of next week," or as early as Friday.

If YouTube is blocked, it will be the latest salvo in a battle between Russia and American tech platforms following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Google officials did not provide Reuters with a comment on the latest developments.

The Russian government has already blocked or limited access to Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

The country has a Facebook alternative, VKontakte, and domestic photo and video sharing sites are reportedly in the works.

American big tech firms have also taken measures to block or limit access to Russian state media on their platforms. For example, YouTube, which is owned Google's parent company Alphabet, blocked YouTube channels operated by RT and Sputnik.

Originally Posted By Boedy:


Big problems for the west, the rats are backed into a corner with no real viable exit strategy, and that makes them very dangerous. There is just no exit strategy that is going to help Putin here in the short term let alone the long, no off ramp he can take to end all this and walk away unscathed.

He may be able to crush Ukraine's standing army, but the cost to the Russian military will be massive and reverberate throughout Russia, and the economic damage from sanctions will continue.  The west wont let him just keep UKR under any circumstance and there is certain to be a well funded insurgency leading to more blood and treasure lost, and he knows it.

If he cuts and runs he has just wasted a massive amount of blood and treasure for nothing.  That wont play well ether and I cant see him holding on to power in that situation and I think he knows that as well.

I believe he is running out of options quickly and his power is going to start to be challenged more and more. He has to act soon or he knows it is over for him.  What he is willing to do to hold on to power is the real question. It's clear his military isn't strong enough to go toe to toe with NATO so pushing a conventional war into the west isn't going to happen. He cant cut and run and face the certain unrest at home that would bring. What options does that leave him but Nukes to try and scare the west enough they back off?

Originally Posted By Wulfmann:
The Italian type 212 and Greek type 214 U-boats would decimate every asset in the med if things went NATO hot

The Nuke subs would be fodder and the only Kilo class that would have a prayer (a long shot at that) would be retrofitted AIP boats and have not seen any reports an AIP is even in the med for Ivan

Ivan would have to launch missiles within minutes to do anything to our NATO forces in the med before those superior U-boats eliminated the surface ships as well as the subs.
They would never hear them until it was too late

Advanced Chinese and American fighter jets have had several encounters in the East China Sea, a source close to Beijing's military told the Post, saying it reflected the high level of tensions between the two nations.This came as a top US Air Force general said American Lockheed Martin F-35s had had at least one encounter with China's J-20 stealth fighters recently in the East China Sea and that the US side was "impressed".

US Pacific Air Forces commander Kenneth Wilsbach did not mention the time of the encounter, but the source said such close contact became more frequent in the second half of 2020, as tensions escalated between Beijing and Washington under the cloud of a likely "October surprise" in the final days of Donald Trump's presidency.

In an online discussion with military aviation experts  posted on the YouTube channel of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies on Tuesday  Wilsbach also highlighted the US Air Force's observation of the "air superiority" of the J-20s during the encounters.

"They are flying it [J-20s] pretty well. We recently had  I wouldn't call it an engagement  where we got relatively close to the J-20s along with our F-35s in the East China Sea," Wilsbach said in the video, adding that the US pilots had been "relatively impressed" with the command and control associated with the J-20."It's still too early to tell exactly what they intend to do with [the J-20]  whether it's going to be more like an F-35  that is primarily an air superiority fighter that has an air-to-ground capability."

Wilsbach also highlighted the "significant role" played by China's KJ-500 airborne early warning and control aircraft in terms of "capability for long-range fires".

The source  who is close to the Chinese People's Liberation Army  said encounters between the J-20s and F-35 had intensified since the summer of 2020 as the Trump administration moved to enhance ties with Taipei  triggering concerns that the outgoing US president might drag Beijing into military conflict.

"Beijing sent KJ-500 and more J-20s to conduct long-range patrols of the East China Sea in March 2020, when the PLA raised combat alert levels to prevent the American side from staging surprise attacks as the Covid-19 pandemic raged on the mainland," the source added.