Russia invades Ukraine Feb 2022

[Banks of the Bann]

You're just not allowed to put forward different long widely put forward arguments that these sorts of geopolitical turbulence is always bit more complex that the black and white take from the likes of Gerry. He's literally the troll from Billy Goats Gruff ... no one is allowed to cross his bridge 

It's interesting you don't apply your logic for the Israel-Palestine conflict here.

• Hamas knew October 7th would result in devastating reprisals
• Israel duly obliged
• Palestinians know Israel will never accept any perceived threat to its people or territory
• Refusing to comply, treat or surrender will only result in more bloodshed, therefore they should just accept the new status quo
• Refusal to do so means the bloodshed is on Palestinian hands, not Israel's.

That's how it works in your book, yes? I wonder whatever could be the difference here.

This will probably have Skull diving into the bushes for a week or two.

He'll pop up later with a new (old) YouTube video imploring us all to 'give it a go'.

[Banks of the Bann]

It now appears that Trump and Musk are threatening Ukraine with the the shut off of Starlink if they don't sign a deal on minerals.

Blackmail pure and simple.

https://www.reuters.com/business/us-could-cut-ukraines-access-starlink-internet-services-over-minerals-say-2025-02-22/

[theskull1]

As I keep saying.... explaining is not excusing.
Time will tell how the Ukrainians feel about what took place here and what might have been if more straight up diplomacy had been employed in the early stages. Personally I think a lot of the ordinary Ukrainians will see that they were played/used by the West. Certainly when you see the squeeze the US is putting on them at the moment, they'll very much be getting that sense now that the big powers are seeking to divide up the scraps. What a sorry tragic tale and needless loss of many hundreds of thousands of lives..... all good from a LNG export, Military industrial complex and Blackrock perspective though. I'm very cynical about the perverse incentives which exist on the Western side... the lack of diplomatic efforts to work a deal looked very strange to me from the get go. Looks very much like they're cashing in their chips and Ukraine is footing the bill

[Wildweasel74]

U don't know what Ukrainians are thinking u clown. Your the biggest bullshitter on the board, and that hard to beat considering some of the old posters on the US politics thread.

[Milltown Row2]

Hundreds and thousands of lives could have been saved had Russia decided not to invade.. they were not liberating

[theskull1]

From 10 years ago... pretty poignant

Investigative journalist Robert Parry talks about Russia's move to invade Ukraine's Crimean peninusla and the role of the US and the west in fomenting crisis there.

[Banks of the Bann]

As I keep saying.... explaining is not excusing.
Time will tell how the Ukrainians feel about what took place here and what might have been if more straight up diplomacy had been employed in the early stages. Personally I think a lot of the ordinary Ukrainians will see that they were played/used by the West. Certainly when you see the squeeze the US is putting on them at the moment, they'll very much be getting that sense now that the big powers are seeking to divide up the scraps. What a sorry tragic tale and needless loss of many hundreds of thousands of lives..... all good from a LNG export, Military industrial complex and Blackrock perspective though. I'm very cynical about the perverse incentives which exist on the Western side... the lack of diplomatic efforts to work a deal looked very strange to me from the get go. Looks very much like they're cashing in their chips and Ukraine is footing the bill

So much BS to get through, your BS and Mearsheimers BS.

First of all, save your vomit inducing crocodile tears about the needless deaths. You spread propaganda for the Russians, the aggressor, the invader. That damns you. You have Ukrainian blood on your hands, as complicit as any Russian propagandist in a Russian TV studio. Your reach is miniscule but you're doing the same work. That blood will never wash off.

We know where you got your little soundbite from, the mad German owl woman. You thought it sounded so clever but you're fooling no one. Every time you attempt to explain Russia's actions you're excusing them. You found it 'understandable' a few posts back, remember?. And something else, you've never criticised Russia's actions. Not once. Not the indiscriminate bombings, the use of thermobaric munitions against the civilian population of Mariupol, the rape of men, women and children, the murder, rape, torture, beheading and castration of POWs. You've had nothing to say about any of it because your ideology allows you to shrug it off, as with Syria.

You state you were suspicious of the lack of diplomatic effort from the western side before the start of the war. Again no mention of Russia. You're a f**king joker. Russia had already built up their invading force and were demanding the NATO roll back to 1997 limits. That is, something they knew was NEVER going to happen. In other words, war could not be stopped by western diplomacy. Everyone implored them not to invade but they thought they could Blitzkreig Ukraine. They thought wrong and their mighty crack forces landed at Holostomel and were wiped out immediately.

And in any case, this war is not about a NATO threat to Russia. It is a lie. NATO meant safety and security from Russia. Well, it used to, now it means nothing with Trump in power in the US.

Which brings me on to Mearsheimer, he is little more than a pitiful Russian shill at this stage. Russian advances at the front have been so slow it would take 83 years to conquer Ukraine at this rate. And not only that, it has slowed down to almost nothing. Russia holds about 20% of Ukraine, yet somehow Mersheimer thinks they will have 30-40% within a year. Fantasy. PM is not a good interviewer, he doesn't have the knowledge to push back against these bullshitters.

Similarly with troop recruitment, he tries to paint over the fact that Russia also has a manpower issue and had to ask NK for troop assistance.

Mearsheimer is also persisting with this 'ethnic Russians in Eastern Ukraine' fallacy. He is a smart man so he must know it's not true. Russian speaking Ukrainians are no more Russian than you or I are Englishmen. Every Ukrainian I know speaks Russian and they despise Russia. 'Despise' doesn't even some close actually.

Ukraine hasn't been played by the west. Europe was weak and the US was too cautious. This war could and should have been over by now. As it is, they now appear to be in the process of being betrayed by Trump. Not only that but Trump is attempting a criminal shakedown while they fight for their lives.

As for your prediction of what Ukrainians think or even more ridiculously what they will think in the future.....WW called it correctly, you're a clown.

[Banks of the Bann]

From 10 years ago... pretty poignant

Investigative journalist Robert Parry talks about Russia's move to invade Ukraine's Crimean peninusla and the role of the US and the west in fomenting crisis there.

Thankfully I didn't have to waste much time with this one.

I did laugh though when the college student masquerading as an interviewer said 'Russia has invaded Crimea, ESCALATING TENSIONS'.

Parry states that 'International law is in the eye of the beholder.' Nope sorry Robert. It's very clear.

And he, like Holohoax, doesn't know what a coup d'etat is.

It's a rehash of the CIA coup nonsense that has been debunked time and again.

Let's be clear, Yanukovych was still president when he ran to Moscow because he was about to be impeached.

He betrayed his voters by reneging on his election promises, refusing to sign the deal he brokered and parliament ratified. He was also corrupt and stole BILLIONS. The corruption alone should have seen him gone.

It's always the same with Holohoax, he just posts the same tired old shite. Over and over and over.

[theskull1]

Just ignore me Gerry.

Posting this to anyone who's doesn't see this conflict to be as black and white as our trustworthy media has curated it.

Jeffrey Sachs is an American economist, academic, and public policy analyst known for his work on economic development, poverty reduction, and sustainability. He has advised governments and international organizations, including the UN, on economic policies. Sachs played a key role in the transition of post-Soviet economies to market systems and was a leading advocate for the UN's Millennium Development Goals. Currently, he is a professor at Columbia University and directs the Center for Sustainable Development.

Thanks to MEP Michael von der Schulenburg for organising the event.

[Banks of the Bann]

'Just ignore me Gerry'

You'd love that wouldn't you. Not a chance Holohoax.

I'm here to counteract your BS.

Here is a suggestion for you...

If you want to convince anybody - why not try to counteract a single one of my arguments?

You don't try because you can't. You can't because I'm telling the truth of what actually happened.

[Banks of the Bann]

Today marks the 3rd Anniversary of the launch of Russia's full scale brutal invasion of Ukraine.

Andrei Illarionov, economist and former senior advisor to Putin, now dissident, outlines what he believes Ukraine needs for real security against Russia:

https://x.com/igorsushko/status/1893948830363590896

It's 17 minutes long but very much worth a listen.

[seafoid]

https://www.ft.com/content/603ba62c-73b2-4e14-846d-e3825c79bf56

Starmer announced that £1.6bn of British export guarantees would be provided to supply more than 5,000 air defence missiles for Ukraine, to be made in Belfast

[RadioGAAGAA]

https://www.ft.com/content/603ba62c-73b2-4e14-846d-e3825c79bf56

Starmer announced that £1.6bn of British export guarantees would be provided to supply more than 5,000 air defence missiles for Ukraine, to be made in Belfast

~£300k a pop ain't cheap.

Certainly not cheap enough to use for hitting drones.

[theskull1]

[Dag Dog]

Grayzone...a very trustworthy source