Russia-Ukraine war and related tensions Megathread

[jaichind]

https://www.newyorker.com/news/essay/the-case-for-negotiating-with-russia

"The Case for Negotiating with Russia"

This would help end it faster, avoiding unnecessary casualties. Just as the military deadlock was evident in Korea, as it is now in Ukraine

"I don't necessarily think Ukraine has to make concessions. I just don't see an alternative to how this all ends

[Stranger in a strange land]

https://www.newyorker.com/news/essay/the-case-for-negotiating-with-russia

"The Case for Negotiating with Russia"

This would help end it faster, avoiding unnecessary casualties. Just as the military deadlock was evident in Korea, as it is now in Ukraine

"I don't necessarily think Ukraine has to make concessions. I just don't see an alternative to how this all ends

You realize that the first and second quotes here contradict, right? Ending the war in a Korea-style deadlock would absolutely be a concession by Ukraine, and it would either lead to the conflict being re-opened in 10-20 years with another invasion (since Russia doesn't completely control any of the oblasts that it "annexed", the justification is already there, at least under Russian Law), or a long-term standoff with the constant risk of war. Interesting that you almost never hear "end the war now to avoid further bloodshed" from actual Ukrainians, even though they're the ones suffering the most from the war.

[pppolitics]

https://twitter.com/NOELreports/status/1697590193816031599

[pppolitics]

https://twitter.com/NOELreports/status/1697553036128760000https://twitter.com/NOELreports/status/1697575389042798593

[GeneralMacArthur]

The case for peace with the Confederacy
injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere

The military industrial complex would love nothing more than for this great civil war to long endure.  Every dead soldier is another dollar in their pockets.  The only ethical thing for Mr. Lincoln to do is to end the war as fast as possible, reach a peace settlement with the southerners and find a way to live in harmony.

This is the only way to avoid the continued loss of life.  Every northern boy who lies bleeding on the battlefield must also lie on President Lincoln's conscience, for it is only thanks to Lincoln's refusal to accept peace, his willingness to allow the great Wall Street war machine to lead him by the nose, that we continue to suffer these unnecessary casualties.  An entire generation of American men sacrificed because Lincoln refuses to sue for peace.

The most galling aspect of this lies in its racial injustice.  Mr. Lincoln has chosen to recruit negros for his war, taking the very boys he claims to protect and shoveling them into the meat grinder.  How many thousands of negros would still be alive today had Mr. Lincoln sued for peace, rather than sending them to die on the battlefields of Gettysburg, Vicksburg and Petersburg?  And yet he comes before Congress and begs for ever more funding for these negro battallions.  Enough is enough.  We must reach a diplomatic conclusion to this endless war, for the sake of the negros, if for nothing else.

[Pres Mike]

Yevgeny Prigozhin might be alive...

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/wagner-boss-prigozhin-resourfaces-dismisses-reports-of-his-elimination-in-new-video/ar-AA1g2Ryb?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=U531&cvid=f8f0a6a7c52b48b1ca6aa1dc113bf2aa&ei=6

[2952-0-0]

https://www.newyorker.com/news/essay/the-case-for-negotiating-with-russia

"The Case for Negotiating with Russia"

This would help end it faster, avoiding unnecessary casualties. Just as the military deadlock was evident in Korea, as it is now in Ukraine

"I don't necessarily think Ukraine has to make concessions. I just don't see an alternative to how this all ends

You realize that the first and second quotes here contradict, right? Ending the war in a Korea-style deadlock would absolutely be a concession by Ukraine, and it would either lead to the conflict being re-opened in 10-20 years with another invasion (since Russia doesn't completely control any of the oblasts that it "annexed", the justification is already there, at least under Russian Law), or a long-term standoff with the constant risk of war. Interesting that you almost never hear "end the war now to avoid further bloodshed" from actual Ukrainians, even though they're the ones suffering the most from the war.

And notice that these calls for negotiations are coming at a time when Ukraine is breaking through the Russian defence lines, and when Ukrainian drones are wreaking havoc inside Russia - including Moscow - on a daily basis. I wonder what could be motivating these calls.

[Hindsight was 2020]

Ah yes the New Yorker article about the opinions of Samuel “all my predictions about how this war was going to go went down in flames” Charap

[Stranger in a strange land]

Yevgeny Prigozhin might be alive...

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/wagner-boss-prigozhin-resourfaces-dismisses-reports-of-his-elimination-in-new-video/ar-AA1g2Ryb?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=U531&cvid=f8f0a6a7c52b48b1ca6aa1dc113bf2aa&ei=6

It's entirely possible Prigozhin filmed a video like this to be released in the event of his death in order to sow confusion. He must have known (or at least suspected) it was coming.

[Pres Mike]

Yevgeny Prigozhin might be alive...

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/wagner-boss-prigozhin-resourfaces-dismisses-reports-of-his-elimination-in-new-video/ar-AA1g2Ryb?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=U531&cvid=f8f0a6a7c52b48b1ca6aa1dc113bf2aa&ei=6

It's entirely possible Prigozhin filmed a video like this to be released in the event of his death in order to sow confusion. He must have known (or at least suspected) it was coming.

It’s also possible it’s AI. I’ve seen some incredible voice synthesizers in the last few months. In the video he says “it’s a nice weekend in late august “.

I suspect it’s not real. Why aren’t more mainstream news reporting it? Why have a fake funeral? Why wait so long to reveal your alive

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

https://www.newyorker.com/news/essay/the-case-for-negotiating-with-russia

"The Case for Negotiating with Russia"

This would help end it faster, avoiding unnecessary casualties. Just as the military deadlock was evident in Korea, as it is now in Ukraine

"I don't necessarily think Ukraine has to make concessions. I just don't see an alternative to how this all ends

Here's an easy way to end the war tomorrow: Russia withdraws to its own borders and ends its illegal war of aggression.

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

https://twitter.com/SamRamani2/status/1696661109091037190?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7C...

I'm sure that won't be a problem for the Russian economy. I've been told for years that Russia is far more than a gas station run by a mob boss.

[pppolitics]

https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent/status/1697752746114621683

[bilaps]

Funny how Ukrainians are so eager to use depleted uranium on their own land which they hope their own people will live on in the future.

[jaichind]

https://www.politico.eu/article/volodymyr-zelenskyy-corruption-scandal-crackdown-treason-ukraine-war-democracy-antac-anti-corruption-action-center/

"Zelenskyy’s corruption crackdown plan raises cover-up fears"

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s move to equate wartime corruption with treason is triggering a backlash from officials and watchdogs, who warn the plan could hobble Ukraine’s main anti-graft forces.

Two senior officials following the proposal, who were granted anonymity to speak candidly, say concerns are growing within Ukraine’s anti-graft agencies that Zelenskyy’s plan will take top corruption cases away from their oversight and pass them to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), which falls under the president’s command.

[jaichind]

https://www.berliner-zeitung.de/wirtschaft-verantwortung/deutschlands-neue-russland-abhaengigkeit-putins-kriegskasse-wird-gefuellt-li.383611

Berliner Zeitung: "Germany's new dependency on Russia: "Putin's war chest is being filled"

The article points out that Germany got rid of gas dependence on Russia, but she returned "through the back door."   
In general, the situation in Europe is similar: the export of nitrogen fertilizers from Russia increased fivefold in the 2022-2023 season. Gas and electricity account for 80-90% of the cost of mineral fertilizers.  So a massive surge in nitrogen fertilizers from Russia is energy imports from Russia by proxy.

[jaichind]

It is funny that the Baltic states are the ones in the Collective West that have the toughest talk but seem to have done the least to cut trade with Russia + proxies.

[jaichind]

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ukraine-russia-war-cbs-news-sees-us-cluster-munitions-used-on-front-lines/

"Ukraine's troops show CBS News how controversial U.S. cluster munitions help them hold Russia at bay"

They're outmanned and outgunned. The Russian forces have almost 10 times more ammunition.

[jaichind]

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/02/world/europe/ukraine-russia-counteroffensive.html

"A Brutal Path Forward, Village by Village"

“Russians have more artillery, more tanks, more drones, and more people,” said a veteran marine named Denis. “And they also fortify very well — whenever they get to somewhere — be it a settlement, a forest belt, or just a field.”

The Russians are also adapting, the marines said, including using new tactics to make the already treacherous minefields even more lethal.
They will lace a pasture filled with mines with a flammable agent, for instance. Once the Ukrainians get to work clearing an opening, the Russians will drop a grenade from a drone, igniting a sea of fire and explosions.

[jaichind]

https://odessa-journal.com/igor-kolomoisky-has-been-formally-charged-with-suspicion-based-on-the-materials-provided-by-the-ssu

"Igor Kolomoisky has been formally charged with suspicion, based on the materials provided by the SSU"

Igor Kolomoisky was a big funder of Zelensky 2019 election campaign.  At least that was what  Zelensky's opponent and incumbent Poroshenko's campaign said.

[jaichind]

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/01/world/europe/ukraine-fight-negotiations.html

"As Ukraine’s Fight Grinds On, Talk of Negotiations Becomes Nearly Taboo
Discussion of a Plan B, should Ukraine fail to win a total victory, has become more fraught than ever, say those who have tried."

With the counteroffensive going so slowly, and American defense and intelligence officials beginning to blame the Ukrainians, Western governments are feeling more vulnerable after providing so much equipment and raising hopes, said Charles A. Kupchan, a professor at Georgetown University and a former American official.

[jaichind]

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/dont-belong-ukrainians-dodging-front-142156128.html

"'Don't belong there': the Ukrainians dodging the front"

The war triggered a patriotic impulse, but some Ukrainians are refusing to fight despite societal pressures, and warnings from authorities cracking down on draft evaders amid a difficult counteroffensive.

[Stranger in a strange land]

Funny how Ukrainians are so eager to use depleted uranium on their own land which they hope their own people will live on in the future.

And what does that tell you about how dangerous depleted uranium actually is?

[pppolitics]

https://twitter.com/WSJ/status/1697953788873629871

[Anti-Trump Truth Socialite JD Vance Enjoying Juror]

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/dont-belong-ukrainians-dodging-front-142156128.html

"'Don't belong there': the Ukrainians dodging the front"

The war triggered a patriotic impulse, but some Ukrainians are refusing to fight despite societal pressures, and warnings from authorities cracking down on draft evaders amid a difficult counteroffensive.

Is it really necessary for you to make eight consecutive posts in such a short span? It’s basically spam. Why not just combine them into one larger post?