Ukraine and the Russian invasion, 2022-24

[UnderOpenSky]

UnderAnOpenSky - an addition, because you were interested in weapons effect of GMLRS.

This (twitter, obvs..) is a video of the effects of the M31A1 Alternative Warhead, which instead of a unitary warhead (a 200lb big bang) or the now banned explosive sub-munitions (lots of little bangs), is in effect like a shotgun shell: it detonates above its target, and sends a cone of tungsten balls to its target.

Its designed to destroy unarmoured targets - vehicle parks, aircraft flight lines, radars, fuel dumps, ammunition dumps, logistics hubs, railway infrastructure, troops in the open, gun lines - though in truth it would also fuck up any tank that got in the way...

(Pendant point: though HIMARS tas taken the public imagination, it's only one of three types of GMLRS launcher in service in Ukraine - the UK and German systems fire twice as many rockets, though it's exactly the same rocket, from the same pod, controlled by the same fire control system)

I'd heard about them. They sound devastating. Thanks re the correction. I was vaguely aware of this and why I said missiles launched from himmars. But of course the same missiles can be launched from other platforms.

I remember visiting the Royal Artillery when I was 18 and thinking of joining the army and seeing an MLRS system and being quite awed when told they basically took out a square kilometer (obviously I didn't end up joining, but that more to going travelling for quite a while and my political views changing somewhat)

 

[TopCat]

“There will be peace when we destroy the Russian army in Ukraine and reach the borders of 1991,” Andriy Yermak, the head of the presidential administration, wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

 

[tim]

“There will be peace when we destroy the Russian army in Ukraine and reach the borders of 1991,” Andriy Yermak, the head of the presidential administration, wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

What else would you expect him to say?

 

[existentialist]

“There will be peace when we destroy the Russian army in Ukraine and reach the borders of 1991,” Andriy Yermak, the head of the presidential administration, wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

Sounds fair enough to me.

 

[TopCat]

What else would you expect him to say?

I don’t have expectations of him but feel this type of gung ho exhortations are somewhat deranged and ultimately do Ukrainians a disservice.

 

[keybored]

ANYWAY, lots of vatniks (and their imperialist running dogs) are having fits of the vapours about the fact that, while a group of Russian soldiers were apparently surrendering, one of them opened fire, with the result that the Ukrainians taking their surrender returned fire, and killed most or all of them.

The usual breathless cries of "war crime" are being uttered, conveniently forgetting the growing number of unarmed civilians who have been tortured to death by Russian soldiers.

Isn't perfidy a war crime?

 

[WouldBe]

I don’t have expectations of him but feel this type of gung ho exhortations are somewhat deranged and ultimately do Ukrainians a disservice.

If burglars broke into your house would you want them completely out or would you be happy if the took up residence in one of the rooms?

 

[Pickman's model]

If burglars broke into your house would you want them completely out or would you be happy if the took up residence in one of the rooms?

Why not ask the Irish how they feel about that situation?

 

[spitfire]

Why not ask the Irish how they feel about that situation?

The vast majority of us are not too happy about it and would like the burglars to fuck off now thanks very much.

I’ve never forgotten the first time i saw a foreign soldier on Irish soil and I only visited the North a couple of times. God knows how it feels to have to live with it on daily basis.

Might be something to do with why I totally support Ukraines right to defend itself.

 

[TopCat]

If burglars broke into your house would you want them completely out or would you be happy if the took up residence in one of the rooms?

I think that’s a really stupid thing to say given the likely forthcoming deaths etc.

 

[maomao]

Might be something to do with why I totally support Ukraines right to defend itself.

Do you think Biden should give the Irish HIMARS. I'm 50/50 on that one.

 

[TopCat]

Should the IRA have fought on to the last man or did they do the right thing and negotiate the GFA?

 

[spitfire]

Do you think Biden should give the Irish HIMARS. I'm 50/50 on that one.

As it’s not a shooting war anymore then we’re probably alright.

Luckily the British army stopped killing people in Ireland a while back.

If the Rifles were currently executing families in Newtownards than I would think differently.

 

[existentialist]

Isn't perfidy a war crime?

Yes, it is.

 

[TopCat]

If the Rifles were currently executing families in Newtownards than I would think differently.

Most of the English on this thread cheering on Ukraine would not give a fuck about Irish deaths at the hand of an occupying army.

 

[teqniq]

Not good:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/11/19/russia-iran-drones-secret-deal/

 

[spitfire]

Most of the English on this thread cheering on Ukraine would not give a fuck about Irish deaths at the hand of an occupying army.

Righty ho.

 

[Kevbad the Bad]

Should the IRA have fought on to the last man or did they do the right thing and negotiate the GFA?

What a crap comparison. One of the reasons the IRA were able to negotiate with the British government was precisely because they had been fighting their guerilla war for a long time and there was a kind of stalemate. If they had thought the armed struggle was truly likely to succeed in the near future I suspect they would have continued with it.

 

[Kevbad the Bad]

Most of the English on this thread cheering on Ukraine would not give a fuck about Irish deaths at the hand of an occupying army.

Most people on this thread are not so much cheering Ukraine as booing the Russian state. Not the same thing.

 

[maomao]

Most people on this thread are not so much cheering Ukraine as booing the Russian state. Not the same thing.

There's a good few middle-aged men in camouflage pyjamas getting excited about artillery systems.

 

[spitfire]

There's a good few middle-aged men in camouflage pyjamas getting excited about artillery systems.

I’ve moved to a onesie now the weather is getting cooler.

 

[Pickman's model]

What a crap comparison. One of the reasons the IRA were able to negotiate with the British government was precisely because they had been fighting their guerilla war for a long time and there was a kind of stalemate. If they had thought the armed struggle was truly likely to succeed in the near future I suspect they would have continued with it.

The ira was not a signatory of the gfa. It was sinn fein in the negotiations. If you look at moloney's secret history of the ira and Anthony mcintyre's good friday: the death of irish republicanism you'll get a different view of the the process. In summary, every principled stand was sold out one by one by the provisional leadership

 

[Dystopiary]

The house analogy doesn't work because colonisers go beyond taking up residence/rewriting borders. Mass murder, torture, rape, displacement, linguicide, destruction of culture, subjugation, assimilation. Fuck that shit whether it's Russian, English, "British", American or anyone. It's not simply about borders.

 

[A380]

Most of the English on this thread cheering on Ukraine would not give a fuck about Irish deaths at the hand of an occupying army.

See the gate is open early tonight,

 

[cupid_stunt]

Most of the English on this thread cheering on Ukraine would not give a fuck about Irish deaths at the hand of an occupying army.

Just because you don't properly read & understand posts on this thread, doesn't give you the right to make projections like that.

 

[WhyLikeThis]

Should the IRA have fought on to the last man or did they do the right thing and negotiate the GFA?

…and woman!

 

[Kevbad the Bad]

There's a good few middle-aged men in camouflage pyjamas getting excited about artillery systems.

Not me. I don't wear pyjamas.

 

[editor]

Most of the English on this thread cheering on Ukraine would not give a fuck about Irish deaths at the hand of an occupying army.

Strange for you to start assuming the nationalities of people posting here and then start claiming to know what they'd think about Irish deaths (not that it's got anything to do with the Russian invasion of Ukraine).

Besides, aren't you English too?

 

[TopCat]

Just because you don't properly read & understand posts on this thread, doesn't give you the right to make projections like that.

You are so patronising and so wrong.

 

[A380]

You are so patronising and so wrong.

Editor just got rid of one knob who thought this thread should be about them. You are (a tiny bit) better than this.