Ukraine and the Russian invasion, 2022-24

[NoXion]

Mocking the corruption doesn't detract from the horror of civilians being disposed of in mobile crematoria.

I don't believe that was the intention of such mockery.

Our governments are feeding in just enough weapons to enable Ukrainians to be killed at a sustainable rate.

That's quite the claim. I invite you to substantiate it.

There's no political will to rescue them.

I'm sure there are other factors at play. Such as Russia being a nuclear power.

The best we can hope for is that Putin can obliterate enough towns and cities to declare a victory. But he won't ever stop the fighting. He'll carry on weakening Ukraine til his dying day.

Got a working crystal ball, have you? Mine's all foggy.

 

[Spymaster]

Mocking the corruption doesn't detract from the horror of civilians being disposed of in mobile crematoria. Our governments are feeding in just enough weapons to enable Ukrainians to be killed at a sustainable rate. There's no political will to rescue them. The best we can hope for is that Putin can obliterate enough towns and cities to declare a victory. But he won't ever stop the fighting. He'll carry on weakening Ukraine til his dying day.

What a load of bollocks.

 

[likesfish]

the west is chucking everything it can into Ukrainian hands short of sending troops as nobody wants to give vlad the excuse to start throwing nukes.

 

[Aladdin]

Mocking the corruption doesn't detract from the horror of civilians being disposed of in mobile crematoria. Our governments are feeding in just enough weapons to enable Ukrainians to be killed at a sustainable rate. There's no political will to rescue them. The best we can hope for is that Putin can obliterate enough towns and cities to declare a victory. But he won't ever stop the fighting. He'll carry on weakening Ukraine til his dying day.

Let's hope his "dying day " is this week.

 

[Aladdin]

It does seem that Russian equipment is not up to scratch.

I hope the Russian nukes are not up to scratch too...and that they blow up in their face.

 

[likesfish]

There's nothing wrong with Russian kit that's actually maintained and crewed by people who are actually trained.
The Russian Military is "the purely for display purposes "do not attempt actual war with this model. Yes, they have killed thousands and wrecked cities but they haven't achieved any of their goals.
The 2003 invasion of Iraq on which Putin modelled his "special military operation" saw 26 days of combat operations the Georgian war lasted 12 days this has not been quick or clean and Russia was next door.
Anything that didn't look cool trundling down red square was neglected which is fine if all you need your troops to exist on paper so they look like a threat.

 

[Pickman's model]

There's nothing wrong with Russian kit that's actually maintained and crewed by people who are actually trained.
The Russian Military is "the purely for display purposes "do not attempt actual war with this model. Yes, they have killed thousands and wrecked cities but they haven't achieved any of their goals.
The 2003 invasion of Iraq on which Putin modelled his "special military operation" saw 26 days of combat operations the Georgian war lasted 12 days this has not been quick or clean and Russia was next door.
Anything that didn't look cool trundling down red square was neglected which is fine if all you need your troops to exist on paper so they look like a threat.

the auld 2 armies of 'the centurions', one for show and the other to do the business. unfortunately for them the russians only opted for the display model

 

[zahir]

Greece seizes a Russian oil tanker.

Russian tanker barred from sailing off Evia | eKathimerini.com

A Russian oil tanker was blocked from sailing to its destination by the Hellenic Coast Guard after being intercepted off the coast of the island of Evia on Tuesday.

www.ekathimerini.com

Coast guard officials speaking to Kathimerini said the order to seize the ship was issued by the country’s anti-money laundering authority, according to the guidelines for sanctions imposed on Russia by the European Union and NATO over its invasion of Ukraine. According to sources Russian-flagged Pegas was en route to the Peloponnese to transfer its cargo of oil onto another ship when it ran into adverse weather and sailed to safety in a sheltered bay off the seaside town of Karystos in southern Evia, where it was intercepted. Reuters reported that the ship has 19 crew members on board, while also citing a coast guard official as saying that the vessel had been seized, but not its oil cargo.

eta:

Greece seize Russian tanker following EU sanctions; 2nd tanker mystery - Keep Talking Greece

Greek authorities seized Russian-flagged tanker PEGAS citing reasons that the sanctions imposed by t

www.keeptalkinggreece.com

According some media, another tanker of Russian interests, the VF TANKER 2, entered the Gulf of Karystos on April 17 and remained anchored there. Tuesday noon, it remains unclear whether also this tanker has been seized or is/would be allowed to continue its schedule to the Black Sea.

 

[frogwoman]

 

[A380]

the auld 2 armies of 'the centurions', one for show and the other to do the business. unfortunately for them the russians only opted for the display model

So they had a kind of Potemkin battleship then ?

 

[Pickman's model]

So they had a kind of Potemkin battleship then ?

the actual quote is

​

so nothing about navies. however it would be a bold observer who felt that the russian air force or navy had been immune from the same influences which have led the russian army to its current state

the centurions and the praetorians, by jean larteguy, both very much worth reading as i'm sure kebabking would agree

 

[A380]

the actual quote is

View attachment 319272​

so nothing about navies. however it would be a bold observer who felt that the russian air force or navy had been immune from the same influences which have led the russian army to its current state

the centurions and the praetorians, by jean larteguy, both very much worth reading as i'm sure kebabking would agree

I was going more for a riff with the Potemkin villages, the film and the Moskva…

But will look at the book…

 

[Pickman's model]

I was going more for a riff with the Potemkin villages, the film and the Moskva…

But will look at the book…

two books, the centurions, and the praetorians

 

[likesfish]

The Russian Navy has always been an afterthought in Russian thinking and is really really fucking expensive and maintenance-heavy you cant park warships and hope they are still in decent nick a month later.
even museum ships take constant maintenance.
imagine trying to keep a Lamborghini running when every day it's exposed to a salt bath in an arctic gale gets even worse if its modern all those modern electronics can't be maintained with brute force paint and grease.
The Russian navy has a lot of conscripts who arent technical specialists it takes the royal navy ten weeks to train a sailor but over a year to train a tech you cant really turn out technicians quickly nothing is that plug and play on a warship.

 

[existentialist]

Google have said that this isn't true, and they haven't changed anything.

 

[frogwoman]

Cat on the ruins of Mariupol

 

[Pickman's model]

Cat on the ruins of Mariupol

that looks like one mean cat

 

[MickiQ]

that looks like one mean cat

Of course it's a Ukrainian cat, clearly the cats are as badass as the people have turned out to be.

 

[Pickman's model]

Of course it's a Ukrainian cat, clearly the cats are as badass as the people have turned out to be.

i never said it wasn't a ukrainian cat

 

[baldrick]

And this is why they haven’t built any warships since the 1990s, but somehow a select few people have spent an awful lot of money on massive yachts. Total mafia state. Tons of oil money yet much of the population have their arses hanging out living in rural slums with unpaved roads.

I'm on holiday in Marmaris at the mo and Abramovich's Eclipse is moored there. It's fucking ludicrous

 

[MickiQ]

It's bigger than a Type 45 destroyer, It supposedly has a German built anti-missile system so presumably more effective than the Moskva's

 

[IC3D]

It's bigger than a Type 45 destroyer, It supposedly has a German built anti-missile system so presumably more effective than the Moskva's

Perhaps, but would it stop a determined snorkeler with a hand drill.

 

[likesfish]

It's bigger than a Type 45 destroyer, It supposedly has a German built anti-missile system so presumably more effective than the Moskva's

new royal yacht.
pretty sure Pooles finest could make off with it .
SBS the aquatic version of the SaS hang out there.

 

[tim]

.

Of course it's a Ukrainian cat, clearly the cats are as badass as the people have turned out to be.

A Ukrainian regional cat.

 

[frogwoman]

‘I can do whatever I want to you’ Russian soldiers raped and murdered Ukrainian civilians in the village of Bogdanivka — Meduza fucking grim

 

[not-bono-ever]

I'm on holiday in Marmaris at the mo and Abramovich's Eclipse is moored there. It's fucking ludicrous

Cockleshell heroes needed

 

[friedaweed]

I'm on holiday in Marmaris at the mo and Abramovich's Eclipse is moored there. It's fucking ludicrous

Scuttle it then, there's a good chap

 

[friedaweed]

‘I can do whatever I want to you’ Russian soldiers raped and murdered Ukrainian civilians in the village of Bogdanivka — Meduza fucking grim

There's no words for that.

 

[frogwoman]

nice bit of racism along with Russia's 'denazification'

 

[teqniq]

Good thread of reportage on the new Russian offensive and the return of civilians to a city called Mykolaiv: