Monthly Archives: August 2022

President Vladimir Putin says Moscows weaponry is years ahead of rivals as his troops continue to battle in Ukraine.

Russia is ready to sell advanced weapons to allies globally and cooperate in developing military technology, President Vladimir Putin said, adding its latest arms are far superior to those of rival nations.

With the Russian leaders forces beaten back from Ukraines two biggest cities and making slow headway at a heavy cost in the east, the five-month war in Ukraine has so far not proved to be a convincing showcase for Russias weapons industry.

However, the Kremlin leader, addressing an arms show outside Moscow, insisted Russian armaments were years ahead of the competition.

Russia cherishes its strong ties with Latin America, Asia and Africa, and is ready to offer partners and allies the most modern types of weapons from small arms to armoured vehicles and artillery, combat aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles, said Putin.

Almost all of them have been used more than once in real combat operations, he added.

He said Russia could offer new models and systems: We are talking about high-precision weapons and robotics, about combat systems based on new physical principles. Many of them are years, or maybe decades ahead of their foreign counterparts, and in terms of tactical and technical characteristics they are significantly superior to them.

Ukraine has made effective use of United States-supplied weaponry, especially high mobility artillery rocket systems (HIMARS), and Russia has taken a series of major blows, including the devastation of an airbase in the Russian-annexed Crimean Peninsula last week.

Nevertheless, Putin said the forces of Russia and its proxies in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine were fulfilling all their tasks.

Step by step, they are liberating the land of Donbas, he said.

The speech formed part of a pattern of statements since the February 24 invasion in which Putin and Sergey Lavrov, his foreign minister, have talked up the potential for Russia to cooperate with allies such as China, India, Iran and others to build a new international order no longer dominated by the US.

I want to emphasise that Russia stands for the broadest comprehensive development [and] military-technical cooperation. Today in conditions of confidence in the emerging multipolar world, this is especially important, Putin said.

We highly appreciate the fact that our country has many like-minded allies and partners on different continents. These are the states that do not succumb to the so-called hegemon. Their leaders show a real masculine character and do not bend.

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Putin calls Russian arms significantly superior to rivals - Al Jazeera English

There is more in common between Turkey and Russia than one might think.

Both are countries on the periphery of Europe and grappling with the loss of their respective empires.

The process of re-establishing Russian and Turkish great power status has led to a meeting of minds between Moscow and Ankara.

Despite the fact Turkey is a Nato member and the fact Russia and Turkey find themselves on opposite sides in their regional conflicts of Syria, Libya, the South Caucasus, and Ukraine, both share a common interest in cementing their place at the top table of international decision-making.

Indeed, the recent meeting between Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoan and Russian president Vladimir Putin in Sochi on 5 and 6 August was less of a bilateral leaders' summit between two rivals clashing with one another than an attempt to demonstrate their geopolitical weight.

"Despite the current regional and global challenges, the leaders reaffirmed their common will to further develop Russian-Turkish relations", the Kremlin said in a statement released after their talks had ended.

Erdoan went into the meeting with Putin on the back of his successfully brokered agreement between Russia and Ukraine on the resumption of grain exports, which the Turkish leader hopes could form the basis on a long-term peace settlement.

Russia and Turkey have been adept at stoking crises in their neighbourhood and using them to their advantage.

The disintegration of Syria into a state of civil war in 2011 presented an opportunity for Ankara and Moscow to establish a security presence in the Arab world.

While Russia has backed the secular, Alawite regime of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, Turkey has given its support to Sunni Islamists and other opposition forces.

The Syrian conflict became internationalised with Russian and Turkish forces coming into direct confrontation with one another, as demonstrated in the downing of a Russian jet and the targeting of Russian airstrikes on Turkish soldiers in northwestern Syria in 2020.

Despite the open clashes between Russia and Turkey, the freezing of the conflict in Syria as a result of foreign military interventions has served the shared Russian and Turkish geopolitical objectives.

In facilitating ceasefire negotiations between rebel and Assad-backed forces in Aleppo in 2016, Russia and Turkey became principal international actors in finding a resolution to the crisis in Syria.

This proved to be a turning point in the conflict since it formed the basis of the 'Astana Format' talks, which effectively sidelined the West in the Syrian peace process.

The trilateral summits between Russia, Turkey, and Iran are a demonstration that a lasting peace settlement in Syria cannot be possible without Russian and Turkish military force.

A similar picture is being played out in the case of the war in Ukraine today.

Russia and Turkey have intervened in support of forces opposed to one another with the aim of advancing their common regional interests.

The full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine forced the issue of the failed attempts to implement the Minsk peace accords that Russia and Ukraine signed back in 2015.

Russia insists the separatist-held areas of Donetsk and Luhansk in Ukraine should be granted special status before a withdrawal of its troops can take place.

Turkey has given its endorsement of the Minsk accords (an old ceasefire deal on Ukraine) with Erdoan's offer to mediate between Ukraine and Russia welcomed by Kyiv.

The Prussian general and military theorist, Carl von Clausewitz, said that "war is a continuation of policy with other means."

As the fighting between Ukrainian and pro-Russian separatist forces intensifies and descends into a stalemate, the question of whether the Minsk process offers a viable pathway to peace will keep being asked.

The agreement between Kyiv and Moscow on the resumption of grain exports is an indication that a possible negotiated pathway to the conflict has been revived.

This is a concerning development for the West since it creates the conditions for which Russia and Turkey could cement their respective roles in deciding Ukraine's fate in a similar way they have done in Syria.

Russia and Turkey are in a strong position to edge out the West in Ukraine in a repeat of what they have managed to achieve in the Arab world.

Europe is starting to feel the impact of the war in Ukraine through the energy and cost of living crisis.

Germany, the EU's largest economy, has been delaying weapons shipments to Kyiv.

This has forced Poland, the principal hub for the transfer of military equipment to Ukraine, to turn to the United States and others for support.

With fatigue starting to set in on the European continent, there is a real risk that Moscow and Ankara could share the spoils of Ukraine, in a way that leaves its sovereignty and territorial integrity severely compromised.

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How Putin and Erdoan are making the West irrelevant - EUobserver

The 1472nd Naval Clinical Hospital (NCH) is located in Sevastopol in the Crimea.

In recent times standards appear to have slipped, with the hospital allegedly struggling to contain an infestation of rats.

The hospital's administration decided to take drastic action to bring the problem under control.

Officials ordered rat poison to be spread throughout the entire complex, including the kitchens, in a determined attempt to clear out the unwanted and unloved rodents.

WarMonitor, an OSINT investigator who regularly posts about the war in Ukraine, tweeted: "The administration of the 1472nd military hospital in Sevastopol, annexed Crimea, carried out a 'deratization', spreading rat poison throughout the building, including the kitchen.

"Eight Russian soldiers poisoned themselves with food and died, and 18 are fighting for their lives."

READ MORE.

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Ukraine LIVE: 'He will start a war' Horror as Putin tipped for SECOND European invasion - Express

MOSCOW (AP) Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday vowed to expand military cooperation with the countrys allies, noting that Moscow is ready to offer them its most advanced weapons.

Speaking at the opening of an annual arms show outside Moscow that caters to foreign customers, Putin said that Russias arms exports play an important role in the development of a multipolar word, the term used by the Kremlin to describe its efforts to offset what it perceives as U.S. global domination.

Putin hailed the Russian militarys action in Ukraine, which has triggered massive Western sanctions, and thanked Moscows allies for their support.

We highly appreciate that we have many allies, partners and people who share our thinking on various continents, he said.

Putin, whose invasion of Ukraine has been widely condemned as a breach of international law, said leaders of Moscow's allies choose a sovereign, independent course of development and want to collectively solve the issues of global and regional security on the basis of international law, shared responsibility and mutual interests, thus contributing to upholding multipolar world.

Putin didnt name any country in particular, but noted that Russia sincerely values its historically strong, friendly and trusting relations with countries of Latin America, Asia and Africa.

We are ready to offer our allies and partners the most advanced types of weapons: from firearms, armor and artillery to warplanes and drones. the Russian leader said.

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Putin vows to expand arms trade with Russia's allies - Yahoo! Voices

Watch the videos on CNN, YouTube, wherever you like, and you are likely to see the same things I do. A Ukrainian soldier, who might have come into the field as a volunteer with minimal training, aims a shoulder-mounted system. Suddenly, a rocket is pushed out of it. The rocket goes about 50 feet, its engine ignites, and its trajectory curves sharply upward. Seconds later, far in the distance, it suddenly takes a new path downward. It gets close to a tank and explodes. In the blink of an eye, the tank explodes so violently that its turret is thrown hundreds of feet into the air. It happens over and over. I acknowledge that videos of failure are not often put up on YouTube, but the pictures that go up are impressive.

Another type of image that comes up at media sites is the wreckage of Ukrainian cities. Looking down a street with lines of apartment buildings, we see one after another missing chunks of architecture that have been bombed out, and we see marks of fires that have gutted apartments. We see hospitals that have been bombed. A theater, where people took refuge because it was widely separated from legitimate targets, is bombed out, killing scores of people inside. Schools and churches have been bombed. One video I saw included an interview of a Ukrainian farmer in the background, incendiary bombs were falling on his wheat field, setting the crop he had planted on fire.

It seems clear that Ukraine is fighting a war in a new way, with amazing new weapons. But it is nevertheless a war that is in some respects very conventional, with strategies that would be recognized by the Duke of Wellington, if he were alive today. Targets are carefully chosen to do damage to the Russian war machine.

The contrasting Russian strategy may be lost to many people, because we are used to seeing the damage done to London, Hamburg, or Berlin in World War II. In those days, the average distance between a bombs target and its explosion ranged from over a mile, early in the war, to about 150 yards, later on.

The explanation of the damage done by Russian artillery might be that their projectiles are really stupid, compared to Ukraines. Or it might be that Russian strategy is really stupid. Personally, I think it is the second of those choices, because I know Russia has its own cruise missiles. I believe Russian strategy is guided by Putin, who is a really stupid man, who lacks any semblance of compassion and only knows how to get anything done by bullying people. It seems most likely that Russias considered strategy is to terrorize the Ukrainian civilian population, and it has used whatever smart projectiles it had to do that job.

Putin clearly did not think the EU or US would offer the levels of support they do to Ukraine. He thought people in the West were too enthralled with the nice cars they drive to give them up, and were too comfortable in their homes to turn the thermostat down. In June, he called the sanctions imposed by the West on Russia insane, according to a report in The Guardian. My suspicion is that he really believed that average people living in Europe or the US would rather watch other people be murdered than turn their heat to a less comfortable setting. Why would he think that? Well, possibly because he, himself, would rather watch people murdered than put the heat on a less comfortable setting.

So I believe he will certainly lose the war. He will lose it because his strategy is to terrify civilians, and this will not work against Ukrainian strategy, which is to destroy the Russian ability to wage war. So while Russia bombs museums and cropland, Ukraine is bombing tanks, supply trucks, and weapons depots.

Now comes the hard part. While I believe Putin will lose, this really scares me. The reason it has me so upset is that Putin, and important members of his military staff, are so completely lacking in a normal inventory of human emotions that they are openly talking about a variety of nuclear options being put to use.

Dmitry Medvedev, who might be the most pleasant-looking thug in Putins Gang, has been both President and Prime Minister of Russia, at one time or another. Back in early July, a report in U.S. News said he told the US that any attempt to punish Russia for its terrorist attacks in Ukraine was folly. He made clear that the reason it was folly is that Russia has nuclear bombs.

That really is astonishing, especially because the logic of Medvedev would indicate that messing with the US, UK, or France is also folly for the same reason, so Russia should know better. And this shows clearly the insanity of Medvedevs reasoning. Unfortunately, however, the story gets worse.

Early in the invasion, Russia took over control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. The plant was operating and fully staffed when Russian soldiers moved in, and the staff has not been allowed to leave the plant since. The result is that the plant, which has six reactors of 900 megawatts each and is the largest nuclear plant in Europe, is being operated by a staff that is far beyond exhaustion. (And, believe it or not, it has been supplying electricity to Ukraine, though Putin says he expects to be paid for that when the war ends.) The staff are being kept on the job by soldiers who are quite willing to remind them that they could be shot at any time.

On August 8 reports emerged that Russian forces had set up explosives in the Zaporizhzhia plant and were prepared to blow it up. That would mean blowing up six reactors, each of which is, by itself, nearly the size of the reactor that blew up at Chernobyl. Since those reports emerged, there has been a scramble to assess the truth of the matter, and the Institute for the Study of War has said it believes the reports may be false. If course, their opinion could be wrong. One report on this was published by The Brussels Times.

Be that as it may, it is widely understood that Russia has been installing artillery at the nuclear plant and seems to have been using it to bombard Ukrainian cities. The West has accused Russia of using the plant as a shield so it can use the artillery with impunity, as Ukraine would not be willing to return fire, taking the risk of wrecking the plant, and, with it, much or all of its country.

For whatever reason, the nuclear plant has been hit by artillery. Ukraine accuses Russia of this and Russia accuses Ukraine. Personally, I am not willing to say I believe either side, because I can see reasons why either side would bomb the plant, and I think each would certainly lie, if it did.

Clearly, the thing that scares me about this is that I really believe Russia, on Putins orders, could destroy the plant. It could also destroy it by accident as it withdraws, as the purveyors of war in that country may be too ignorant, too stupid, or too evil, to see to its safety.

This is a problem for the entire world. Ukraine and the countries it borders on, including Russia, are among the most productive farming regions in the world. If the Zaporizhzhia plant is destroyed, so will the agriculture of all those regions. Purely apart from the damage the radioactivity would do to people in the region, that could ensure ongoing, worldwide famine.

I might not have any ability to have any effect on the politics, diplomacy, or war in Ukraine. But I do have an ability to point things out here in the US, with a hope of having people take note. And what I want to say is this:

A nuclear power plant is a dirty bomb that only needs a simple detonator to be destructive.

A dirty bomb does not need a nuclear explosion to be destructive. It just throws dangerous radioactive material around, rendering an area unliveable for many, many years. Any nuclear plant could be made into a dirty bomb. Elon Musk, Secretary Granholm, and Warren Buffet please take notice.

Please take note of one last thing: As much as the prospect of Putin losing frightens me, the thought of him winning is clearly worse.

Image: Ralf1969, CC-BY-SA 3.0

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Why I Expect Putin To Lose, & Why That Scares The Hell Out Of Me - CleanTechnica

Igor Girkin, also known as Igor Strelkov, fought in Ukraines Donetsk region in 2014 but decided to sign up after the invasion when he became frustrated with the wars slow progress.

He was travelling on a fake passport to the battle near Kherson when he was arrested.

It is believed that Mr Girkin was attempting to travel in disguise after he was pictured clean shaved without his signature moustache.

His Russian nationalist supporter Alexander Zhuchkovsky said that Mr Girkin had been detained by Russian forces in Crimea, reported The Telegraph.

He said: Strelkov is a man with vast military experience.

It is a great political crime that such a person cannot get to the front.

After leading rebels in Donetsk in 2014 Mr Girkin gained a cult following among Russian nationalists, styling himself as a member of the Russian Imperial army.

He has been accused by Kyiv of shooting dead prisoners, having been known for imposing martial law in the past.

The Kremlin spurned Mr Girkin in Donetsk after rebel fighters shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 on July 7 2014, killing 298 people.

READ MORE:Russian retreat leaves 20,000 soldiers stranded

While he is supportive of Putins invasion, he has criticised the Kremlin for not fully committing to military action.

He told his Telegram followers regarding his decision to join the front line: Sooner or later I will certainly be at the front (this war, as I warned in advance, will be long and difficult).

But not right now.

Read this article:

Putin humiliated as Russia detains own spy chief heading to the front line - Express

His remarks come in the wake of growing calls from some EU leaders to stop issuing visas to Russian citizens due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Last week, Estonia took the unilateral decision to close its borders to Russian citizens with Schengen visas. Kaja Kallas, the Prime Minister, tweeted: Stop issuing tourist visas to Russians.

"Visiting #Europe is a privilege, not a human right.

Politicians from Latvia, Finland and the Czech Republic backed the move and urged Brussels to issue a directive to all EU countries to implement a universal travel ban.

The move elicited a furious response from one of Putin's attack-dogs, who threatened nuclear armageddon in retaliation.

Vladimir Solovyov, a key cog in Putin's propaganda machine, warned a universal visa ban may cause Russia to commit a "preventative nuclear strike".

He wrote on his Telegram channel: "The refusal to issue visas to Russian citizens and the declaration of the Russian Federation as an accomplice of terrorism, puts an end to relations with Europe.

"This means the actual entry into the war with Russia. Severing ties, supplying weapons is direct participation in the war.

"Moreover, in a war with really superior forces, given the number and armament of NATO countries.

"This is a real threat to the existence of Russia and can lead to the use of the doctrine of a preventive nuclear strike."

Latvia became the first country last week to designate Russia a state sponsor of terrorism.

The move will only increase pressure on the US President Joe Biden to follow suit.

Senators have already threatened to pass a motion on the matter with or without the support of the White House.

The Kremlin hit back over the weekend, warning Washington such a move could become a point of no return and see US-Russian relations deteriorate beyond repair.

READ MORE:Putin's troops poisoned in hospital after botched attempt to kill rats

Mr Solovyov owns two houses on Lake Como in Italy that are allegedly worth a combined eight million euros.

However, sanctions placed on him have prevented him from travelling to Italy, a fact he lamented publicly on his TV show.

Russian tourists are increasingly complaining about being discriminated against on their travels.

A man visiting Georgia recently posted on his social media that locals had shouted "country of occupiers" at him, and said he was made to feel guilty about the war in Ukraine.

He wrote: "I was in Georgia. It's a f*k up. Just don't go there.

"The f*k up starts right at the border, where every car with Russian number plates is targeted by people who shout 'country of occupiers'.

DON'T MISSUkraine LIVE: '12 out of 10' Putin's war in TATTERS - Russians crumbleSPOTLIGHT]Russia detains own spy chief[NEWS]Russia delivers extra gas supplies to Hungary[REVEAL]

"On the streets, it's also f*ked up. All the walls are covered in anti-Russian graffiti and slogans expressing support for Ukraine.

"You won't be able to rent accommodation if you have a Russian passport.

"They might not serve you in a cafe. They know Russian but they talk to you on principle in English.

"They curse you for simply being Russian. They make you feel guilty about the war."

"The Russian tourist added: "I had enough after two days. Just don't go there if you are Russian.

"Don't waste your money there. Only go if you come in a tank."

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'You've entered the war' Putin puppet threatens EU with nuclear strike over tourist ban - Express

No matter what indicator you use, Russian President Vladimir Putin is winning in the energy markets.Moscow is milking its oil cash cow, earning hundreds of millions of dollars everyday to bankroll the invasion of Ukraine and buy domestic support for the war.Once European sanctions against Russian crude exports kick in from November, the regions governments will face some tough choices as the energy crisis starts to bite consumers and companies.

Electricity costs for homes and businesses are set to soar from October, as the surge in oil income allows Putin to sacrifice gas revenue and squeeze suppliesto Europe. UK prices are likely to jump by 75%, while in Germany some municipal utilities have already warned prices will increase in excess of 100%. Russia has successfully weaponized energy supplies; Western governments will come under increasing pressure to spend billions either subsidizing household bills or, as is already the case in France, by taking control of power companies.

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Europe's Energy Crisis: Putin is Winning the War in the Oil Market - Bloomberg