Ukraine

[Dahnsouff]

1 minute ago, Happy Fox said:

All I know is the likes of Putin, Assad, Khamenei etc need to be held to account. So how do we do that? How do we get these guys out of Power?

As with every such observation us pompous twats in the West make, the change has to made internally, not externally, the appetite for change has to be internal, not external.

We can assist and facilitate internal change but we cannot impose it on those in power, it just never works.

[leicsmac]

2 minutes ago, Dahnsouff said:

As with every such observation us pompous twats in the West make, the change has to made internally, not externally, the appetite for change has to be internal, not external.

We can assist and facilitate internal change but we cannot impose it on those in power, it just never works.

Or works only too well.

[SpacedX]

Just now, Dahnsouff said:

As with every such observation us pompous twats in the West make, the change has to made internally, not externally, the appetite for change has to be internal,

I agree, but given the abolition of the politburo and the like minded 'yes men' that he has carefully selected around him, this may not be as forthcoming as some would wish for. It also requires the will to do so and the desire for reform. Even in the event of his death, his legacy and influence may endure. His spectre will continue haunt the Kremlin for years to come. 

[Dahnsouff]

3 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

Or works only too well.

The definiiton of works is then with the victor

[David Hankey]

I hope when Putin is finally dragged to the Hague to answer for all the atrocities he has caused that the Russian nation will be held responsible for reparations of all those war torn cities in Ukraine.

[Dahnsouff]

1 minute ago, Line-X said:

I agree, but given the abolition of the politburo and the like minded 'yes men' that he has carefully selected around him, this may not be as forthcoming as some would wish for. It also requires the will to do so and the desire for reform. Even in the event of his death, his legacy and influence may endure. His spectre will continue haunt the Kremlin for years to come. 

For sure, but unless a second as driven as Putin takes his place, the effect becomes diluted, however likely to be not a quick solution though for the generations or citizens who have to live through it.

[Trumpet]

26 minutes ago, Tommy Fresh said:

There's a difference between threatening action against NATO if they get involved in a conflict involving two non member states and instantly drawing NATO in by invading a NATO state. 

 

Ultimately he doesn't need to threaten NATO, as regardless of what happens it's very unlikely we were or are going to enter the conflict. Chances are he's probably just ensuring that we definitely don't. However the fact he hasn't kicked up more of a fuss over the West supplying weapons to Ukraine should tell you all you need to know about his apetite to draw NATO in to it.

And to expand on this, the harsh reality is Putin will take Ukraine. Whether that be in days, weeks or months. He’ll likely wish he hadn’t as I doubt the Ukrainian people will ever stop fighting, I’d imagine it’ll be an incredibly volatile situation for as long as Russia occupy. I’m sure at this point Putin is only persisting with it because he cannot take failure. I’m equally as sure he’s regretting his decision at this point.

[leicsmac]

10 minutes ago, Dahnsouff said:

The definiiton of works is then with the victor

As history is sadly almost always written.

[String fellow]

6 minutes ago, David Hankey said:

I hope when Putin is finally dragged to the Hague to answer for all the atrocities he has caused that the Russian nation will be held responsible for reparations of all those war torn cities in Ukraine.

One of the many problems with that is that Russia doesn't recognise the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. Remember, Russia plays mainly by its own rules, only accepting the rules of others when it suits them.

[leicsmac]

3 minutes ago, String fellow said:

One of the many problems with that is that Russia doesn't recognise the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. Remember, Russia plays mainly by its own rules, only accepting the rules of others when it suits them.

To be fair, neither do the US and I don't think China do either.

 

All the leading powers play by their own rules when it suits them, it's just a matter of degrees.

[Guest Mickyblueeyes]

7 hours ago, gerblod said:

A few years ago I was in Germany - in the village where my folks live. The police came around telling people to stay inside as there was a rabid dog at large on the edge of the village.

They shot it - not without personal risk.

 

Putin is a rabid dog. Unstable, megalomaniac, psychopathic. The Russian people are largely apathetic and very naive. We thought Russia was changing  in those years following Perestroika and Glasnost. Turns out the Russians prefer mediaeval society.

The West is going to have to find a way of ousting him without it blowing up in our faces.

Mate, if you believe half the shite you've spouted here, youre the only one who is naive. 

 

In fact, the term naive is actually quite polite. 

[Lionator]

45 minutes ago, MPH said:

 

Putin has to be assassinated. That’s the only viable option. 

It’s not going to happen. Watch Russian parliament, he actually has some of the less extreme views on this topic, the next Russian president could be even worse. 

[David Hankey]

48 minutes ago, MPH said:

 

Putin has to be assassinated. That’s the only viable option. 

I agree. And the fact Russia is a nation of 140M people I'm surprised no-one has tried. 

 

It's strange the same goes for Assad in Syria and Mugabe in Zimbabwe although I appreciate the later has since died.

 

But every dog has his day and the 'Day of Reckoning' will eventually come.

[Guesty]

They can't even act like it's just one stray missile.

 

If that was me, I'd be getting away from the windows sharpish. 

[SpacedX]

30 minutes ago, Lionator said:

It’s not going to happen. Watch Russian parliament, he actually has some of the less extreme views on this topic, the next Russian president could be even worse. 

I'm unsure as to why people are unable to comprehend this. This is not simply one man's deranged personal crusade, this is the re-assertion of the imperial Russian empire. 

[foxile5]

51 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

To be fair, neither do the US and I don't think China do either.

 

All the leading powers play by their own rules when it suits them, it's just a matter of degrees.

I believe that the US reserve the right to military action in the event of an American being tried in there.

 

An unreal act of arrogance.

[leicsmac]

10 minutes ago, foxile5 said:

I believe that the US reserve the right to military action in the event of an American being tried in there.

 

An unreal act of arrogance.

As per above, one thing the big players have in common is their contempt for international cooperation when it gets in the way of what they want.

 

Not good news for the future.

[Guest MarshallForEngland]

30 minutes ago, Guesty said:

They can't even act like it's just one stray missile.

 

If that was me, I'd be getting away from the windows sharpish. 

Do you have any more information about this? What type of projectile or explosive was it? Do we know where it came from? Was it in the intended target? 

[foxile5]

1 minute ago, leicsmac said:

As per above, one thing the big players have in common is their contempt for international cooperation when it gets in the way of what they want.

 

Not good news for the future.

Oh yeah. America particularly. They're every inch as bad as Russia but have survived International scorn because Capitalism is the dominant ideology.

 

People love the concept of global peace but can't look in the eye the fact that global peace is virtually impossible.

[Guesty]

2 minutes ago, MarshallForEngland said:

Do you have any more information about this? What type of projectile or explosive was it? Do we know where it came from? Was it in the intended target? 

Nope, just know the tweet was posted by the Defence Reporter from the Kyiv Independent. 

[leicsmac]

8 minutes ago, foxile5 said:

Oh yeah. America particularly. They're every inch as bad as Russia but have survived International scorn because Capitalism is the dominant ideology.

 

People love the concept of global peace but can't look in the eye the fact that global peace is virtually impossible.

Yep. Which really isn't good news because one day the choice will be between global peace or global collapse.

[MPH]

1 hour ago, Lionator said:

It’s not going to happen. Watch Russian parliament, he actually has some of the less extreme views on this topic, the next Russian president could be even worse. 

 

that’s definitely a danger to be wary of..

[Sol thewall Bamba]

The amount of knocked out tanks/BMPs with their turrets ripped clean off is unbelievable. General consensus says that Soviet era tanks have pretty terrible survivability for the crews but a turret popping off like that suggests an ammo cook off caused by the ammo being stored below the turret in a circular carousel. Absolutely zero percentage chance of survival, instant incineration. Fvcking grim. 

[Lionator]

43 minutes ago, Line-X said:

I'm unsure as to why people are unable to comprehend this. This is not simply one man's deranged personal crusade, this is the re-assertion of the imperial Russian empire. 

I would recommend that people watch all of this. 

My observations were while there’s a lot of flawed thinking here, none of it is irrational and none of it is the sign of somebody who’s gone insane. He has people around him with some absolutely insane ideologies but perhaps none more so than those in the Republican Party for example. 
 

Maybe I’m naive but looking at how the war is developing, he basically wants Eastern Ukraine, this is not about rebuilding the USSR, he doesn’t need conventional warfare to do that. It’s about gaining access to the Black Sea, the oil and gas that is in the East of Ukraine. If they occupy the East, they can probably handle that. In the West beyond Kyiv is where they absolutely despise Russians. If they occupy there, there’ll be all sorts of issues, so I think they leave it. 
 

At some point Zelinskyy (providing he’s alive) will have to make concessions). There’s absolutely no way that from a military perspective that Russia don’t win this war. Economically is another matter. Sadly, the longer the resistance, the harsher Russia’s demands will be. I hope the West are reminding Zelinskyy of this. 

[SpacedX]

8 minutes ago, MarshallForEngland said:

Do you have any more information about this? What type of projectile or explosive was it? Do we know where it came from? Was it in the intended target? 

Russian artillery. There's a mass of information available from multiple national worldwide independent news outlets plus embedded journalists on the ground together with extensive footage testifying to the targeting of residential areas in cities such as Irpin, Mariupol, Kherson and Kharkiv. In Cherniv, there are no military targets and yet large tracts of residential housing including schools and a hospital were bombed during an air raid last night. This is a war waged against the civilians of Ukraine, no different to the tactics used in Grozny and Aleppo.