Russia launches invasion of Ukraine - MASTER THREAD

[GrandpaBernard]

International Monetary Fund: US, find a real solution rather than printing your way out of debt

The IMF has warned the US that its massive fiscal deficits have stoked inflation and pose “significant risks” for the global economy.

[GrandpaBernard]

Germans were too h0m0 for himimage.jpg

[GrandpaBernard]

Grandpa Turd does not know the difference between potential ad actual. No... NATO has not imposed militarily... By choice.

nato does not want to further embarrass itself

[GrandpaBernard]

BattlingNelsonabout your neighbors
image.png

[GrandpaBernard]

Barely 10% of Europeans believe Ukraine can still defeat Russia, finds poll

Hollywood and DC ignore fact that Russia's army is bigger than when the war began and Ukraine can't keep up

By Bryan Dean Wright. Bryan Dean Wright is a former CIA officer and member of the Democratic Party who resides in Oregon. He contributes on issues of politics, national security and the economy.

First, Ukraine lacks the soldiers to win. Kiev has lost AT LEAST 70,000 killed in action, with another 100,000 otherwise combat ineffective.

And that’s a crisis. As Ukraine’s Commander of Joint Forces said on April 11, there are seven to 10 times more Russian soldiers than there are Ukrainians on the battlefield.

Naturally, the White House and Ukraine’s defenders will insist that while Ukraine has been bloodied, so too has Russia.

But that’s no longer relevant. The Pentagon now says that Moscow has already recovered from their previous losses, with their overall force now 15% larger than when the invasion began.

Which takes us to the second reason why 90% of Europeans think the war is lost: the West’s war machine can’t keep up.

As one of Kiev’s top military officers told Politico recently, Ukraine can’t possibly produce what they need for the battlefield and neither can the U.S. nor Europe. In fact, there’s no magic weapon that’ll solve Ukraine’s lack of manpower — that’s the foundational problem.

Nevertheless, Russia’s war machine continues churn out a shocking amount of war materiel. To the point, the Pentagon assesses that they’ve re-stocked all of their previously destroyed tanks.

In other words, Russian President Vladimir Putin has managed to weather the sanctions storm — and then some.

Which takes us to the third and final reason for why only 10% of Europeans think Ukraine can win: bad leadership.

As a Zelenskyy aid told Time Magazine back in November, whatever anti-corruption efforts are in place in Ukraine, they’re not working.

"People [in the government and military] are stealing like there’s no tomorrow."

Next, Zelenskyy himself is under fire for being disconnected from the true state of his military and, critics say, his heavy-handed leadership.

Taken together, perhaps that’s why an increasing number of Ukrainians think the war is lost as well.

A poll back in November showed that 42% of Ukrainians said they were willing to negotiate a peace with the Russians to end to the war.

That number is up from just 29% in January 2023.

Instead, the world’s focus should be on peace, not advancing another $60 billion in war aid that even Ukrainian generals say won’t save them.

That’s the blunt reality that 90% of Europeans understand, even if America’s Hollywood stars and D.C. politicians do not.

[Kris Silver]

So are the US finally waking up? Are they really about to send a monster load of stuff to Ukraine? I can hardly believe what I hear the speaker saying. Wow!

Got any latest newest info sources on it Bat? A fair bit is loans I read, which half can be written off, after November 24. That's clearly been a Republican bartering point. So they won't write off any debt they get Ukraine into, whilst Democrats actually will give them it as desperately needed aid as much as they can.

I've a few posters in mind that will like that.

To me it's like witnessing say, flood victims in the next town along, with their houses destroyed and anything left being stolen. They're desperate for help.

You offer them, loans. A crippling amount of debt to take advantage of people already in a terrible situation through no fault of their own.

It's cruel. Not to say that's a like for like situation at all. But to those that argue it all be loans. That's quite literally how it can be seen.

[Citizen Koba]

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/17/p...ill/index.html

Bit slippery really. Sold as $61 bil for UA but actually only $14 bil in direct aid with 10 of that 14 repayable (improbable)

23 bil for the yanks to replenish their own stockpiles, and 11 bil for Yankish operations in the region. Which leaves about 13 bil for the neighbourhood watch

I mean 14 billion buys a lot of stuff, but they weren't kidding when they said most of the money gets spent in the US

[Citizen Koba]

Barely 10% of Europeans believe Ukraine can still defeat Russia, finds poll

Hollywood and DC ignore fact that Russia's army is bigger than when the war began and Ukraine can't keep up

By Bryan Dean Wright. Bryan Dean Wright is a former CIA officer and member of the Democratic Party who resides in Oregon. He contributes on issues of politics, national security and the economy.

First, Ukraine lacks the soldiers to win. Kiev has lost AT LEAST 70,000 killed in action, with another 100,000 otherwise combat ineffective.

And that’s a crisis. As Ukraine’s Commander of Joint Forces said on April 11, there are seven to 10 times more Russian soldiers than there are Ukrainians on the battlefield.

Naturally, the White House and Ukraine’s defenders will insist that while Ukraine has been bloodied, so too has Russia.

But that’s no longer relevant. The Pentagon now says that Moscow has already recovered from their previous losses, with their overall force now 15% larger than when the invasion began.

Which takes us to the second reason why 90% of Europeans think the war is lost: the West’s war machine can’t keep up.

As one of Kiev’s top military officers told Politico recently, Ukraine can’t possibly produce what they need for the battlefield and neither can the U.S. nor Europe. In fact, there’s no magic weapon that’ll solve Ukraine’s lack of manpower — that’s the foundational problem.

Nevertheless, Russia’s war machine continues churn out a shocking amount of war materiel. To the point, the Pentagon assesses that they’ve re-stocked all of their previously destroyed tanks.

In other words, Russian President Vladimir Putin has managed to weather the sanctions storm — and then some.

Which takes us to the third and final reason for why only 10% of Europeans think Ukraine can win: bad leadership.

As a Zelenskyy aid told Time Magazine back in November, whatever anti-corruption efforts are in place in Ukraine, they’re not working.

"People [in the government and military] are stealing like there’s no tomorrow."

Next, Zelenskyy himself is under fire for being disconnected from the true state of his military and, critics say, his heavy-handed leadership.

Taken together, perhaps that’s why an increasing number of Ukrainians think the war is lost as well.

A poll back in November showed that 42% of Ukrainians said they were willing to negotiate a peace with the Russians to end to the war.

That number is up from just 29% in January 2023.

Instead, the world’s focus should be on peace, not advancing another $60 billion in war aid that even Ukrainian generals say won’t save them.

That’s the blunt reality that 90% of Europeans understand, even if America’s Hollywood stars and D.C. politicians do not.

Estimates of UA dead were 70k last August at the height of the offensive, and 20-30k in April 4 months earlier so climbing at as much as 10k a month (300+ per day). Sound high? Even currently UA command recently acknowledged 100-200 dead per day and that's whilst on the defensive and assuming it isn't an underestimate.

Even at a relatively conservative 5k dead per month the UA lost another 35 -40k KIA since last August. Maybe 2.5x that injured (and guesstimate 1x that irrecoverable also although it's not 100% clear whether the figure was KIA only or irrecoverables since the RU and UA sometimes conflate the two)

[BattlingNelson]

BattlingNelsonabout your neighbors
image.png

Your source RIA is russian equivalents of 'Völkischer beobachter' and 'Der Stürmer'.

[BattlingNelson]

Got any latest newest info sources on it Bat? A fair bit is loans I read, which half can be written off, after November 24. That's clearly been a Republican bartering point. So they won't write off any debt they get Ukraine into, whilst Democrats actually will give them it as desperately needed aid as much as they can.

I've a few posters in mind that will like that.

To me it's like witnessing say, flood victims in the next town along, with their houses destroyed and anything left being stolen. They're desperate for help.

You offer them, loans. A crippling amount of debt to take advantage of people already in a terrible situation through no fault of their own.

It's cruel. Not to say that's a like for like situation at all. But to those that argue it all be loans. That's quite literally how it can be seen.

If those loans are lend-lease. Hmmmm.... Did the UK ever pay back from what it received? I wouldn't worry that much tbh. It's the short term that's crucial. Shells, ATACMS, Patriots.

I saw something more specific last night, but I cannot really be bothered to look right now as details of the bill surely flows soon anyway.