Russian Tensions
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Surely the economic throttling of the Russian capitalist state will force it to declare war on NATO?
Socialist Alternative (In Russia)
Translate gives:“Well, morning everyone. There is so little good in it. Propaganda media – TASS, Interfax and RIA Novosti – at the same time issued news that work was allegedly being carried out in Ukraine to create nuclear weapons. And that is why Putin is bombing Ukrainian cities. More and more new tales come up with state propaganda, otherwise why didn’t Yanukovych, with whom Putin is friends, stop all this and didn’t tell earlier?
“Meanwhile, anti-war actions have begun in the Far East, which are dispersed by the police. More than 60 people were detained in Vladivostok and Irkutsk, and at least 70 in Novosibirsk.”
If True, the Kremlin is scraping the propaganda barrel.
The same outfit also published this discussion on the operation of the new laws on speech restrictions, short version, it’s impermissible to call for troops out or sanctions and to *knowingly* spread false rumours – I expect, though, even if the process remains remotely fair on that one, the process will become the punishment, and people will be detained while cases are heard.
I’m getting these things via:
Edmund Griffiths who’s spoken with us a few times.Business as usual for Shell
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-60638255
Shell has defended its decision to purchase Russian crude oil
Strange murder of Ukrainian negotiator
Death squads are operating, the question is who’s
Just as a comparison.
America’s Shock and Awe against Iraq began it took 20 days until Baghdad was captured.
Is the Russian advance really as slow as the media pretends?
It is only half the time, 10 days since it began.
I think this may well be a prolonged drawn-out war and not the speedy end that I hope it might be.
Also, I know the figures are very debatable and speculative and will be an underestimate, but the Ukrainian civilian deaths are still in the hundreds, not yet the thousands.
Has Russia been restrained in the ferocity of its attacks on cities? I will stand corrected when more accurate casualties numbers become known and my optimism is proved wrong
Yes, mysterious killing but one that can hardly be blamed on Russia even though it is the sort of thing that might be expected to happen there.
More bad publicity here — an admission that the Azov battalion is involved in defending Mariupol (from the Guardian’s live coverage):
“Russia and Ukraine blame each other as Mariupol evacuation fails again
Pro-Russian separatists and Ukraine’s National Guard accused each other of failing to establish a humanitarian corridor out of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol on Sunday, the second time the sides have attempted to arrange it.
Ukraine 24 television showed a fighter of the Azov Regiment of the National Guard who said Russian and pro-Russian forces that have encircled the port city of about 400,000 continued shelling the areas that were meant to be safe.”Every year the Economist Intelligence Unit publishes a “Democracy Index” ranking the world’s states and classifying them into one of four categories: full democracy, flawed democracy, authoritaian, and hybrid regimes (between flawed and authoritarian).
Here is what the 2021 Report says of Ukraine:
“A total of 13 countries in eastern Europe improved their score in the Democracy Index in 2021, with Moldova and Montenegro registering the biggest improvements. Eleven countries suffered a deterioration in their score, with the Kyrgyz Republic facing the largest decline. There are still no “full democracies” in the region: out of the 28 countries, there are 16 “flawed democracies” (comprising EU eastern member states and most of the western Balkans), four “hybrid regimes” (Armenia, Bosnia and Hercegovina, Georgia, and Ukraine), and eight “authoritarian regimes” (Azerbaijan, Belarus, Russia and all Central Asian states).”
and
“The average score for the region’s “hybrid regimes” declined marginally in 2021, with two countries—
Armenia, and Bosnia and Hercegovina—registering an improvement, while the remaining two — Georgia and Ukraine — recorded worsened scores. Ukraine’s score registered the steepest decline among the four east European countries in this category, and Ukraine now shares 86th place with Mexico in our global ranking, down from 79th place in 2020. Ukraine’s score declined in part as a result of increased tensions with Russia. Government functioning under a direct military threat usually restricts democratic processes in favour of the centralisation of power in the hands of the executive and the security or military apparatus with
the aim of guaranteeing public safety. In Ukraine, the military played a more prominent role in 2021 and exerted more influence over political decision-making; government policy also became less transparent.”It was just below Hong Kong which is 85th. Russia is 124th out of 167. So this is a Wat between a Third Division and a Fourth Division team.
Normally, that would mean it wouldn’t be eligible to join the EU.
What I’d like to know is where are the razor-wire camps for the refugees that we see exist in Turkey and Greece and Libya?
Oh, I forgot. Ukrainian refugees are people “just like us”. They get invited to stay at our homes, in our schools, in our churches.
People who help them and offer sanctuary are not called people traffickers and jailed but charitable humanitarians.
When are people going to see the difference?
Orwell’s doublespeak in Russia.
War and invasion are now illegal words to use. They are “Special Military Operations”.
Alan,
according to this guy, it looks like the Russians are probably on schedule:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5BAZ2bBUzMThey’ve got to slow down due to logistics, also, the Ukrainians have flooded the land round Kyiv, which means mud stops the Russians going off road.
Not sure of the accuracy but this mention in passing of an Italian protest differs from the others.
In the centre of Rome, unions and organisations rallied in a large “procession of peace”, demonstrating against Putin but also NATO.
“No base, no soldier, Italy out of NATO,” chanted pacifists preceded by a large flag in the colours of the rainbow.
“This is perhaps one of the first real demonstrations for peace,” Italian cartoonist, actor and writer Vauro Senesi told AFP.
“Here no one believes we make peace with arms, that we make it by sending arms to one of the parties (Ukraine).”https://uk.news.yahoo.com/protests-ring-europe-demanding-end-203634313.html
When it comes to war, we all become armchair generals, YMS, despite no special qualifications or insider information of what is happening on the ground.
The Ukrainian claim of 10,000 dead Russians simply appears ridiculous.
Ukraine is not willing to compromise on its territorial integrity in talks with Russia but is open to discussing “non-Nato models” for its future, one of its negotiators told Fox News.
Ukraine has pursued membership of the European Union and Nato, both opposed by Moscow. Vladimir Putin has cited Ukraine’s potential membership of Nato as evidence of what he portrays as Nato aggression toward Russia.
“The response that we are getting from the Nato countries is that they are not ready to even discuss having us in Nato, not for the next period of five or 10 years,” negotiator David Arakhamia said in remarks published by Fox News late on Saturday.
“We are ready to discuss some non-Nato models. For example, there could be direct guarantees by different countries like the US, China, UK, maybe Germany and France. We are open to discussing such things in a broader circle, not only in bilateral discussions with Russia but also with other partners.”Well, well. Looks as if Russia might get its way, though Arakhamia might end up being killed mysteriously like that other member of the Ukraine negotiating team.
Both sides are using the term “neo-Nazi” against each other and making Hitler allusions.
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