Russia-Ukraine war and related tensions Megathread

[2016]

Russian Forces have taken the Airport of Berdiansk. Berdiansk lies in between Malitopol and Maruipol!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berdiansk_Airport
Very important Airfield in the South! Heavy armoured Russian Vehicles spotted on the Airport!

[NOVA Green]

Illegal anti-war protests have continued in Russia with at least 325 arrests made in 30 cities and towns yesterday according to the Washington Post:

"...And others played a game of cat and mouse with police. Instead of massing in one place — difficult in Moscow or St. Petersburg, given the massive deployments of riot police — many protests were smaller, some just a few dozen people, moving from place to place to avoid arrest.

Even so, more than 325 protesters were arrested in 30 cities and towns across Russia on Saturday, almost half of them in Moscow, according to the rights group OVD-Info. In the three days since the invasion of Ukraine began, more than 2,776 people have been arrested in protests across the country..."



https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/02/26/russia-ukraine-war-news-updates/#link-NDNXJEQL3RBSLOCS4I64VZ4AAU

[Storr]

This would seem to be an attempt to get through to the Russian people that their sons and husbbands are the ones paying the price of this war. Of the documents claimed to be of those captured/killed, most were been born in the 70s and 80s. I'd guess that would be due to career pilots and soldiers which, would have the most experience, being sent in first (??).

The youngest was born on April 19, 1998. Another reminder of who suffers the most in war, the young.

https://twitter.com/DAlperovitch/status/1497654058072649738?s=20&t=Rgk1tpBmQys7J2gnMHWAnw

[NOVA Green]

Putin's actions in Ukraine are undermining far right political parties, including in France and Italy:



https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/26/world/europe/russia-putin-matteo-salvini-marine-le-pen.html

[Frodo]

Putin's actions in Ukraine are undermining far right political parties, including in France and Italy:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/26/world/europe/russia-putin-matteo-salvini-marine-le-pen.html

God bless him. 

[NOVA Green]

Good profile of the rising strength of civilian volunteers and militia groups in the defense of Kiev.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/26/world/europe/ukraine-russia-civilian-military.html

[NOVA Green]

Meanwhile.... cyber attacks continue to hit Russian Government websites Saturday:

"Russian Government Websites Suffer Disruptions

The main Kremlin website and other Russian government websites were inaccessible Saturday amid reports of cyberattacks targeting Moscow in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine.

“Various #Russia government websites including the Kremlin, State Duma and Ministry of Defense are again down,” Netblocks, an internet observatory that monitors global traffic outages, said on Twitter. Network data was “consistent with previous cyberattacks,” it said.

It wasn’t immediately clear who was responsible for the disruption or what caused the outages. Anonymous, a loosely organized group that claims to engage in activist-oriented hacking campaigns, said on Twitter it had “ongoing operations” against Russia’s government websites and took credit for other hacking activity

... "




https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/russia-ukraine-latest-news-2022-02-26/card/russian-government-websites-suffer-disruptions-UpQXfZO7yIMCDR5yY4g9

[NOVA Green]

Some additional info from the Wall Street Journal on the Battle for Kiev and elsewhere...

"...A Russian column that attempted to advance from the West, on the highway linking Kyiv to Lviv, was destroyed in nighttime fighting inside Kyiv, witnesses said. Bodies lay on the ground, amid the smoldering remains of armored vehicles and trucks. Presumed Russian infiltrators, traveling in civilian vehicles, were also gunned down by Ukrainian troops as they tried to approach the Ukrainian Parliament building, the witnesses said. Intense firefights were reported in other locations throughout the capital.

After daybreak on Saturday, Ukrainian regular troops and volunteers of the newly formed Territorial Defense force regained the upper hand, erecting roadblocks, firing positions and other fortifications around the city, particularly in the government district and near bridges spanning the Dnipro river. Trucks accompanied by police ferried ammunition as civilians lined up patiently in grocery stores, at pharmacies and teller machines.

A large supermarket on Kyiv’s Antonovycha street was well stocked, with fresh bread, pineapples and Italian cheese, and some of the checkout lanes still accepted Apple Pay. A handful of basement bars reopened as makeshift shelters, serving espressos before the 5 p.m. curfew kicked in. At one bar, customers were asked to show their passports to prove that they weren’t Russian citizens.

The biggest lines in the Ukrainian capital were at the recruitment centers for the Territorial Defense. At one sports facility converted for this purpose, several hundred volunteers, commanded by career military officers, loaded crates of ammunition into civilian vehicles and sped off to their positions...

...

South of Kyiv, Russian airborne troops attempted a landing in the strategic town of Vasylkiv, the location of a Ukrainian military airfield. Firefights broke out during the night but by morning hundreds of Ukrainian troops and irregular volunteers armed with assault rifles patrolled Vasylkiv’s main road. Along the highway running between Kyiv and Odessa near Vasylkiv, security forces and local volunteers wearing armbands were looking for stray Russian troops who might be hiding in the woods.

Ukrainian soldiers said they had driven off most of the Russian landing force in Vasylkiv. Kyiv also said Ukrainian forces had downed a Russian Il-76 transport plane full of airborne troops near Vasylkiv. That claim couldn’t be independently confirmed. In the late morning, contrails of two jet fighters engaging in a dogfight could be seen in the blue skies above the town.

..."





https://www.wsj.com/articles/russias-assault-on-ukraine-presses-forward-as-street-battles-rage-in-kyiv-11645864200

[Don Vito Corleone]

Watching Indian media I can tell the English language (liberal/left) media is turning against Putin even as the Hindi language media are still in the neutral camp.  It will not surprise me if Modi is now getting pressure to take a more pro-Ukraine stance.

You speak Hindi?

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Some dude on an emo Facebook group actually went through a lot of trouble to reach out to members of a Ukrainian emo band, and confirmed that they are all safe and OK for now. They have fled to Western Ukraine.

[NOVA Green]

Some dude on an emo Facebook group actually went through a lot of trouble to reach out to members of a Ukrainian emo band, and confirmed that they are all safe and OK for now. They have fled to Western Ukraine.

Happy to hear they are well...

Still might be interesting had they chosen to join the volunteer resistance.

"Russian Battalion overrun by Ukranian Emos with guns" after being deafened by disturbing musical barrage"

[Storr]

I'd like to imagine all they had to tell the Russians was "we don't have any fuel".

(It sounds like more heated language was used than that, though.)
https://twitter.com/tanjamaier17/status/1497657141422968836?s=20&t=uHloRE0lN...

[Person Man]

Some additional info from the Wall Street Journal on the Battle for Kiev and elsewhere...

"...A Russian column that attempted to advance from the West, on the highway linking Kyiv to Lviv, was destroyed in nighttime fighting inside Kyiv, witnesses said. Bodies lay on the ground, amid the smoldering remains of armored vehicles and trucks. Presumed Russian infiltrators, traveling in civilian vehicles, were also gunned down by Ukrainian troops as they tried to approach the Ukrainian Parliament building, the witnesses said. Intense firefights were reported in other locations throughout the capital.

After daybreak on Saturday, Ukrainian regular troops and volunteers of the newly formed Territorial Defense force regained the upper hand, erecting roadblocks, firing positions and other fortifications around the city, particularly in the government district and near bridges spanning the Dnipro river. Trucks accompanied by police ferried ammunition as civilians lined up patiently in grocery stores, at pharmacies and teller machines.

A large supermarket on Kyiv’s Antonovycha street was well stocked, with fresh bread, pineapples and Italian cheese, and some of the checkout lanes still accepted Apple Pay. A handful of basement bars reopened as makeshift shelters, serving espressos before the 5 p.m. curfew kicked in. At one bar, customers were asked to show their passports to prove that they weren’t Russian citizens.

The biggest lines in the Ukrainian capital were at the recruitment centers for the Territorial Defense. At one sports facility converted for this purpose, several hundred volunteers, commanded by career military officers, loaded crates of ammunition into civilian vehicles and sped off to their positions...

...

South of Kyiv, Russian airborne troops attempted a landing in the strategic town of Vasylkiv, the location of a Ukrainian military airfield. Firefights broke out during the night but by morning hundreds of Ukrainian troops and irregular volunteers armed with assault rifles patrolled Vasylkiv’s main road. Along the highway running between Kyiv and Odessa near Vasylkiv, security forces and local volunteers wearing armbands were looking for stray Russian troops who might be hiding in the woods.

Ukrainian soldiers said they had driven off most of the Russian landing force in Vasylkiv. Kyiv also said Ukrainian forces had downed a Russian Il-76 transport plane full of airborne troops near Vasylkiv. That claim couldn’t be independently confirmed. In the late morning, contrails of two jet fighters engaging in a dogfight could be seen in the blue skies above the town.

..."





https://www.wsj.com/articles/russias-assault-on-ukraine-presses-forward-as-street-battles-rage-in-kyiv-11645864200

Then they need some hound dogs to tree them Ruskies!

[jaichind]

Watching Indian media I can tell the English language (liberal/left) media is turning against Putin even as the Hindi language media are still in the neutral camp.  It will not surprise me if Modi is now getting pressure to take a more pro-Ukraine stance.

You speak Hindi?

Since I am following Indian elections right now I do look at Hindi news sites and read some of their news using google translate.

[ηєω ƒяσηтιєя]

https://twitter.com/imraansiddiqi/status/1497607326487826435

[certified hummus supporter 🇵🇸🤝🇺🇸🤝🇺🇦]

Idk how accurate this is

https://mobile.twitter.com/globalismstan/status/1497663038232530944

[Person Man]

https://twitter.com/imraansiddiqi/status/1497607326487826435

Well, he’s getting fired.

[Stand With Israel. Crush Hamas]

Serbia and India are hardly alone in failing to condemn the Russian invasion:

Israel fails to sign onto US text condemning Russia at UNSC

You know, Israel should ask itself, who is allied with Iran, and  Hezbollah, Spoliler alert, it's Russia.

Oh, they know this.

Russia is on Israel's Syrian border. The status of Syria has basically boxed Israel in, forcing them to make nice with Putin even as Putin repeatedly stabs them in the back.

[Omega21]

Chechen forces raise Russian flag over Hostomel Airport next to Kyiv


https://twitter.com/Himat75/status/1497644567050571782

[Storr]

A welcome sign set up for the Russians by a Ukrainian babushka:

https://twitter.com/NikaMelkozerova/status/1497670992876945408?s=20&t=Rgk1tp...

[President Johnson]

Idk how accurate this is

https://mobile.twitter.com/globalismstan/status/1497663038232530944

Almost need a meme for the Virgin Putin at this point.

[Aurelius]

Idk how accurate this is

https://mobile.twitter.com/globalismstan/status/1497663038232530944

That's if you uncritically believe Ukrainian estimates of Russian fatalities, which there's no good reason to this early in the war. If those estimates were accurate, Ukraine would be inflicting casualties at a 10:1 ratio, which would mean Russia was not advancing as fast as they are most likely.

[compucomp]

Good profile of the rising strength of civilian volunteers and militia groups in the defense of Kiev.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/26/world/europe/ukraine-russia-civilian-military.html

Here's a good example of an article that is intended as a positive piece towards Ukraine but in reality is not positive at all and shows that they are still in deep trouble. If arming the civilian population were the optimal way for Ukraine to defend itself, why bother having an army at all? Why would Ukraine use its cities as fortifications, giving some credibility towards Russian accusations of "human shields" (that the Americans have also used BTW), if they were capable stopping the Russians before reaching the cities and protecting their population from harm, which is what their army should hope to do? Desperate times call for desperate measures, sure, Ukraine has to try everything at this point, but spinning the desperate measures as some kind of win is the realm of propaganda.

[Aurelius]

https://twitter.com/imraansiddiqi/status/1497607326487826435

The news anchor is objectively correct, but feel free to clutch pearls over the fact that he didn't use the latest approved euphemisms.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

Chechen forces raise Russian flag over Hostomel Airport next to Kyiv


https://twitter.com/Himat75/status/1497644567050571782

Of course the Chechens were the one to finish the job...