Russian television tells us that Vladimir Putin would rather go nuclear than accept defeat in Ukraine. President Biden has admonished that “idle comments about the use of nuclear weapons” are “irresponsible.” Opinion polls on both sides show widespread concern about a nuclear exchange. But Putin only talks about nuclear war because he has nothing else to say.
The war in Ukraine has not gone the way Kremlin decision-makers expected. The Ukrainian people have resisted more determinedly than Moscow (or Washington) predicted, and the international community has responded aggressively in a way the Kremlin did not anticipate. This is not like the 2008 invasion of Georgia, which passed with no effective response from the West, or 2014 when Russia seized and illegally annexed Crimea. Moscow effectively got away with those acts of aggression. However, the current war, exceedingly brutal, unprovoked, and unnecessary, has prompted a determined response.
Operations in Ukraine have unmasked Russian conventional power as a paper tiger. While it was widely expected before the invasion that Ukrainian troops would quickly be overwhelmed, Putin’s forces proved to be inexperienced, unmotivated, ineptly led, and poorly supplied. Columns moving on Kyiv ground to a halt and withdrew; forces in the south and east have better managed to seize ground, but whether they can hold it is another matter.
Ukraine’s forces have benefitted from ample supplies from Western countries, which have helped them to blunt Russia’s attacks. The United States and NATO have ruled out direct military intervention, but imagine if there was a force-on-force conventional engagement. Russia’s air forces would quickly cease to exist. The Russian Baltic Fleet would join the Moskva on the sea floor. Russian ground forces would face the full weight of more motivated, better trained, equipped, and supplied NATO forces. It would be a rout.
To get an idea of how this confrontation might unfold, recall the February 7, 2018 firefight in Syria between U.S. special operations forces and hundreds of Russian “mercenaries,” along with some Syrian government troops. The Americans were outnumbered more than ten to one, but a combination of precision airstrikes, lethal indirect fire and determined assault tactics drove the attacking force off with heavy losses. There were no American casualties.
If the Russian Army ever had any deterrence value, the war in Ukraine put an end to it. So, the only thing Moscow has left is its nuclear arsenal. Russia has around 6,000 nuclear warheads, of which about a quarter are deployed and ready to use. True, this force is a fraction the size of the Soviet Union’s nuclear stockpile at its peak, but as the bumper-sticker from those days said, even one nuclear weapon can ruin your whole day.
Bear in mind we have heard this all before. The Kremlin has never been shy about making nuclear threats. In 2008, during the Georgia crisis, Russia threatened Poland with a nuclear response to deploying a U.S. missile defense system. In 2014, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made veiled reference to a nuclear attack over the Crimea issue. And in March 2018, Putin himself unveiled “invincible” new nuclear weapons with a video suggesting an attack on Florida, for some reason.
Of course, threatening to use nuclear weapons and actually using them are two different things. Putin promised “consequences you have never seen” for intervening in Ukraine, but consequences go both ways. The old parameters of nuclear war have not changed. The United States is also a nuclear power, with a force at least as lethal and survivable as Russia’s, and any strategic nuclear attack on the U.S. or its allies would mean an immediate, devastating counterattack. Destruction is still mutually assured.
A Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile system drives past an honour guard during a military parade on Victory Day, which marks the 77th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in Red Square in central Moscow, Russia May 9, 2022. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov.
Putin knows this. He may pretend to be unhinged when it is convenient, but he is not suicidal. Neither is Joe Biden, which is why NATO forces will not intervene directly and push the conflict into the red zone. The alternative would be a war of mutual annihilation between the two old rivals, with China left to pick up the radioactive pieces.
Dr. James S. Robbins is a columnist for USA Today and Senior Fellow in National Security Affairs at the American Foreign Policy Council. Dr. Robbins is a former special assistant in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and in 2007 was awarded the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joint Meritorious Civilian Service Award. He is also the former award-winning Senior Editorial Writer for Foreign Affairs at the Washington Times. His work has also appeared in the Wall Street Journal, National Review and other publications. He appears regularly on international television and radio including the BBC, Voice of America, Al Jazeera, MSNBC, and the Fox News Channel, among others. Dr. Robbins hold a PhD from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and has taught at the National Defense University and Marine Corps University, among other schools. His research interests include terrorism and national security strategy, political theory and military history. Dr. Robbins is the author of The Real Custer: From Boy General to Tragic Hero, This Time We Win: Revisiting the Tet Offensive; and the critically acclaimed Last in Their Class: Custer, Pickett and the Goats of West Point.
Him
May 10, 2022 at 10:23 am
The one flaw in the above article is the assumption that Putin is not suicidal. Given that Adolf Hitler was suicidal in the way he led Nazi Germany to the end of WW2, you have no psychological basis for just assuming Putin is not suicidal. There’s a scene in the movie “12 Strong” where the Jihad fighter pretends to surrender to the American Green Beret, and the American soldier assumes the Jihadist will not be suicidal. American pilots didn’t act as kamikazes in WW2, but that didn’t mean the Japanese didn’t.
Mike
May 11, 2022 at 10:10 pm
China would not be around to pick up the pieces. Xi would be radioactive dust along with Putin.
Alex
May 10, 2022 at 10:55 am
And now, instead of tantrums and fantasies, let’s face it.
Zelensky is a Kremlin agent.
So in just two months:
1. Actively helped the West part with money.
2. Strengthened the ruble.
3. In addition to the Crimea, he gave Donbass to Russia.
4.. Turned off the gas at the whole of Europe, sending it to the Middle Ages.
5. Ruined the pockets of drivers, farmers, entrepreneurs and manufacturers in the EU and the US.
6. Since the beginning of the special operation, almost all major competitors from Russia have left, making room for Russian entrepreneurs.
7. Begging for so many weapons that even Scholz said that the Bundeswehr was running out of weapons “for himself.”
8. He collected all the crap of the Ukrainian Nazi subculture – tattooed Nazis, outcasts, idiots, maniacs, murderers from Europe and other countries in one place, where the Russians kill them in batches and promptly deliver them to Bandera.
9. United the Russian people around their leader. Russia has never known such powerful support for the actions of the President and his cabinet during all the terms of his reign.
10. He sent into emigration the entire corrupt beau monde of the Russian stage and cinema, with pockets full of “wishes” from the grateful Russian people.
Never before has Russia been as good as under Zelensky.
Him
May 10, 2022 at 11:03 am
Alex, please comment on Soviet Russia’s alliance with Nazi Germany at the start of World War 2.
aldol11
May 10, 2022 at 11:53 am
complete idiot
mcswell
May 10, 2022 at 1:30 pm
Clearly Alex is living in a parallel universe. Only it’s not very parallel. Or else he’s just lost his mind.
Mike
May 11, 2022 at 10:12 pm
Really Ivan? Get in your bunker and get ready mofo.
Maverick
May 12, 2022 at 1:08 pm
Yet another little Russian troll
Alex
May 10, 2022 at 11:04 am
And now, instead of tantrums and fantasies, let’s face it.
Zelensky is a Kremlin agent.
So in just two months:
1. Actively extorted money from the West.
2. Strengthened the ruble.
3. In addition to the Crimea, he gave Donbass to Russia.
4.. Turned off the gas at the whole of Europe, sending it to the Middle Ages.
5. Ruined the pockets of drivers, farmers, entrepreneurs and manufacturers in the EU and the US.
6. Since the beginning of the special operation, almost all major competitors from Russia have left, making room for Russian entrepreneurs.
7. Begging for so many weapons that even Scholz said that the Bundeswehr was running out of weapons “for himself.”
8. He collected all the crap of the Ukrainian Nazi subculture – tattooed Nazis, outcasts, idiots, maniacs, murderers from Europe and other countries in one place, where the Russians kill them in batches and promptly deliver them to Bandera.
9. United the Russian people around their leader. Russia has never known such powerful support for the actions of the President and his cabinet during all the terms of his reign.
10. He sent into emigration the entire corrupt beau monde of the Russian stage and cinema, with pockets full of “wishes” from the grateful Russian people.
Never before has Russia been as good as under Zelensky.
Alex
May 10, 2022 at 11:19 am
I had a great holiday on May 8-9 in Germany. Traveled with the whole family. Here is what I saw with my own eyes: Russians, Germans, Russian Germans culturally celebrated the holiday. And some refugees from Ukraine (including about 30% of Bandera Nazis) behaved like devils: they squealed, hysteria, even tried to attack.
For the Bandera Nazis, May 8-9 is a day of tragedy. Their ancestors were destroyed until the mid-50s. As a result, the Bandera pigs were simply taken away by the police. You can immediately see where the people are going, and where the Bandera pigs.
Thanks to the journalists who recorded everything and now the whole world can compare the Great Russian Culture and the culture of Bandera pigs. This happened all over Europe, not just in Germany. It was just great!
And now the Bandera Nazis are waiting for what happened to their ancestors. The holiday showed the main thing: how people rallied against Nazism and it was clear that even the government could not do anything to change the minds of people. No matter what orders they receive, but there are more of us! I congratulate all of us, adequate people, on the Great Victory!
aldol11
May 10, 2022 at 11:52 am
Putin my order a nuclear strike but it won’t be executed, the only one executed will be Putin himself
Alex
May 10, 2022 at 12:41 pm
Jim Chambers (Fergie Chambers) – a journalist from NY spoke about how he SAW the attacks of Ukrainian fascists on peaceful Ukrainians. He told how he SAW what horrors the Bandera Nazis were doing to the Ukrainians. He said that food and medicine appeared when the Russian Liberators came.
He told how he SAW Nazi paraphernalia wherever the military of Ukraine abandoned their positions (swastikas, Mein Kampf books, paintings by Hitler, Bandera, etc.).
He SAW how opponents of the regime of the Ukrainian authorities were detained, tortured and killed. He told how the people of Ukraine are waging their struggle for existence and for peace without Bandera Nazis. He spoke about how the Russian liberators help civilians and the Ukrainians ask the Russians not to leave. The Ukrainians are upset that the Russians came late, they should have come earlier.
He said: “Our American weapons have only exacerbated the useless bloodshed in a battle that the Ukrainian fascists can never win. I am ashamed to carry an American passport with me. The world desperately needs a Russian victory: at the end of Ukrainian Nazism and at the end of the American NATO empire. World needs victory for freedom.”
Eric
May 10, 2022 at 12:43 pm
Russia has a nuclear doctrine that is actually coherent and likely to be followed, despite the sabre rattling rhetoric.
Alex, on the other hand, is completely incoherent. In the past he claimed Zelensky was a “Bandera Nazi” controlled by “the west” but now he’s a Kremlin agent? Incoherent nonsense.
Ukraine this year will probably receive more in aid than the entire Russian defense budget for a year. The longer this goes on the harder it becomes for Russia to “win”. I guess they can change what “win” means but certainly they didn’t take Kiev and they certainly didn’t take the entire Donbass region.
The sooner Europe and the rest of the world switches to locally produced renewable energy the better; it will deprive autocrats including Russia and Saudi Arabia of funding for their evils.
Alex
May 10, 2022 at 1:05 pm
What is the weakness of the US military? Let’s ask the Japanese:
1. Lack of initiative
According to the Japanese, American soldiers unquestioningly and accurately carry out all the orders of their commanders. Discipline is their hallmark. This applies not only to ordinary soldiers, but also to junior commanders.
Of course, this can be perceived as a plus, but there is one nuance – the lack of initiative. The command at the headquarters does not always see the whole situation as a whole, and it can change very quickly. As a result, an order received from headquarters may become irrelevant in a few minutes, and due to high discipline, a US Army officer will not take responsibility for himself, but simply execute it. At times, this led to the loss of tactical initiative and major losses.
The Americans are great at planning, but rarely does an operation go according to plan. As soon as the situation changes, officers in the field face problems because they cannot make a decision on their own. While they contact the command, hoping to receive a saving order, their soldiers die.
On my own behalf, I can add that a similar situation can be observed on the Western Front, during the German Ardennes offensive. In the first days of the attack, the American soldiers were confused and gave way to the positions of the German army. And these were divisions “battered” in battles, which were transferred from the Eastern Front. And what would happen if they had to fight with the Wehrmacht in 1941-1942?
2. Weak character
The Japanese military noted that the Americans were not capable of showing stamina. As soon as the operation does not go according to their plan, and they encounter the first problems, panic sets in. The commanders are trying to think over further tactics, looking for options for retreat.
At this time, the enemy seizes the initiative. Having made a mistake once, an American officer may be frightened and over-cautious in another operation.
3. Patrolling
The document says that the US military is poorly organized to protect their camps and patrol the surrounding areas. In this regard, surprise night attacks are especially successful with the Japanese.
As a rule, the guards are only formally posted, and the fighters allow themselves to sleep in them, feeling relaxed in their own camp. The Japanese military skillfully used this shortcoming.
4. Fear of melee
I want to note that this fact was noted by all opponents of the United States, and not just the Japanese. The American military is betting on technical superiority: artillery, aircraft, tanks. When it comes to close combat, they try to dodge it.
They are afraid of hand-to-hand combat like fire. Perhaps the fact that Japanese soldiers were never afraid of hand-to-hand combat also played a role in the formation of this fear. They were ready to give their lives for the emperor, so they boldly ran to the Americans at full height with a bayonet or sword in their hands.
It is worth adding here that this is not a shortcoming of the American army, but rather its feature. The doctrine of American units initially did not provide for such engagements, relying on overwhelming firepower. The same Wehrmacht, which can be called one of the best armies of that time, also avoided hand-to-hand combat. Both the German military and the Red Army write about this.
5. Not ready to counterattack
Japanese experts note that the Americans are afraid of enemy counterattacks. As soon as the retreating troops begin to “snarl”, the Americans immediately lose interest in the pursuit and move on to their favorite business – positional warfare.
As I wrote above, the Americans preferred to carry out preparatory work at night, and conduct combat operations at night, when bombers and artillery could be effectively used. The Japanese, on the other hand, were not afraid of night raids, since they made the main bet on their infantry. This shortcoming also comes from point 1, because American commanders are used to acting according to the original plan, and are not ready for a serious change in the situation on the battlefield.
6. Weak interaction between infantry and tanks
For successful operations on the battlefield, tanks need infantry support. The American tankers did a good job in the Japanese jungle, but showed little interaction with the infantry.
Having taken a position with the help of tanks, the infantrymen, instead of guarding combat vehicles, rush to solve their tasks. At this point, the tanks remain defenseless against Japanese grenade throwers. This shortcoming is due entirely to lack of experience.
As you can see, the Japanese gradually developed tactics to fight the American troops. If not for the nuclear strikes, it is not known how long Japan’s resistance in World War II would have continued.
In conclusion, I will say that most of these problems in the US Army are tritely connected with the lack of real combat experience. The Wehrmacht learned to fight in Europe, the Red Army in the early years of the war, the Japanese in Indochina. But the American warriors did not have such an opportunity. So it turned out that they are fighting perfectly only on blockbuster screens.
Swedes, French, Germans… All of Europe together tried to defeat Russia in 10-30 days. Now the United States is trying to do this, and so far with the wrong hands – the Bandera Nazis.
Any NATO division will not last even one day on Russian territory – this is a reality. This is understood by military analysts of all countries. But some “journalists-propagandists” make themselves laughable.
The same thing every 70-100 years: “Russia has no weapons, no people, Russian soldiers can’t do anything, etc.” History is cyclical. It’s time to try the US, but not on the territory of my Europe.
Vladolph Putler
May 10, 2022 at 1:23 pm
If Russia actually follows publicly stated doctrine, it theoretically could include a nuclear strike. “Escalate to deescalate”. And regardless of whether Putin is suicidal or not, he would be sacrificing his nation and family, not just himself. In all probability, any use of nuclear weapons would eventually end in a full exchange (uncontrollable escalation) due to the levels of Russian saber rattling.
Russia may have lost conventionally. So far.
And many have suggested that the Victory Day speech would lead to an announcement of mobilization. But Russia might prefer to do that quietly- which is a notion supported by the latest CIA public information release. Most of which have been pretty spot on under William Burns.
Russia’s losses have been considered high, but Russian mobilization casualties would be massive comparatively as poorly trained conscripts and ever worsening equipment (Soviet era junk out of mothballs) and sustainment meet increasingly determined, more numerous, and better equipped Ukrainian resistance.
However, declaring martial law and mobilizing would add SUBSTANTIAL weight, and change the equation. An eye on worldwide flashpoints would be in order.
The steady and successful Ukrainian offensives, and blistering damage being inflicted on Russian forces and equipment, are clearly going to force some decisions from the Kremlin.
Hopefully not yet more STOOPID ones.
Fluffy Dog
May 10, 2022 at 1:28 pm
can we just ignore “Alex”? instead of engaging it in a useless exchange?
Putin is not suicidal. However, he is a psycho. If in your childhood you lived where street fights were common, you might have known a kid with whom nobody wanted to fight. That’s because if the agreed rules stipulated “till first blood,” and he lost by those rules, he’d pick a rock and hit you on the head with it. The kid would not tolerate a loss. The only way to stop him would be to break his arm. Which would also be outside the rules. And that is why he was a psycho. That’s Putin. That’s how he grew up, that’s his mentality.
Vladolph Putler
May 11, 2022 at 12:04 am
An apt point.
But Ukraine’s benefactors can instead of breaking Putin’s arm, pin him down and inflict endless wedgies. Sure, he might get up and announce that he’s gonna go get his dad’s gun. But everyone involved is *already armed*. And more than willing to pin his ass down for some more wedgies.
Alex
May 10, 2022 at 1:54 pm
Graham William Phillips is an outstanding British journalist who objectively and unbiasedly covers events in Ukraine.
He is in a war zone and interviews all sides. He confirms the existence of Bandera Nazis who brutally torture and kill Ukrainians just because they do not want to see Bandera Nazis in their country.
He confirms that the Ukrainians are asking the Russian liberators not to leave them anymore and not to leave.
It is interesting to see how Graham interviews Aiden Aislin, a Briton who fought on the side of Ukraine as part of the Nazi Azov Battalion and was taken prisoner in Mariupol.
The truth will always see the world thanks to such professionals, and not propagandists, who sometimes have never been to Ukraine and are thousands of miles away.
No Nazism. We – free people will win.
Torgo
May 10, 2022 at 1:57 pm
This site has the absolute best Russian trolls on the web. I come for the quality content of the articles as the main course and then afterwards there is always the dessert from the trolls. At this point I can’t even be sure of Alex is a real troll or if he is complete satire; trolling the trolls?
Alex
May 10, 2022 at 3:05 pm
Naturally, only “trolls” can express not propaganda and lies, but provide articles by independent journalists from all over the world: American, British, German, Italian, Chinese, who are found in the war zone itself, and not thousands of miles away. And what can you, Bandera Nazi trolls? Print lies of the Ministry of Lies of Ukraine? Of course yes. After all, you don’t have enough pig brains for more. Watch and cry as the truth triumphs over lies.
Roger Bacon
May 10, 2022 at 2:04 pm
Alex was on vacation lately so he’s making up for it with a wall of text today apparently.
I’m going to enjoy going back and reading his posts a year from now when the Russians have retreated back to their vodka bottles in their own crappy third-would country and Ukraine is free of their filth.
Ukraine will forever be in the Western camp now thanks to Putin. Europe will be free of Russian energy dependence. The world will no longer even think of Russia. It can go back to being insignificant like before Peter the Great.
Alex
May 10, 2022 at 2:10 pm
Yes, that’s how Russians live now. “Vodka, balalaika, earflaps, matryoshka and dirt.”
If you sleep better at night because of such fantasies, then I do not mind. After all, you are all like that – dirty, vicious, uneducated Bandera pigs. We see how you behave in Europe. and we also visit Russia, where life is better than in many European cities.
In a year, you will simply be gone and you will not be able to look at the territory divided between countries, which used to be called Ukraine. The main thing is that there will be no Bandera pigs like you on this territory.
Commentar
May 10, 2022 at 2:56 pm
The great Joe Biden, 46th democrat president of USA, is charting the course for nuclear war in Europe (on behalf of the world of course but without asking their opinion).
He has signed the ground-breaking ‘ukraine lend-lease 2022’ deal with $40 billion on the table paving the way for massive amounts of weapons to Kyiv with truckloads of guns, shells, bullets and rockets available to every man, woman and child in Ukraine.
If Russian forces spot mountains of latest weapons lying around and stuck at Lyiv (Lyov) and unable to move because of some very severe logistics logjam, they’ll easily conclude only a nuke kinzhal would solve the problem.
Whoosh, boom, and a mushroom cloud appears over Lyiv. This will help Biden to ship more weapons to Kyiv as the logjam gets cleared and vast space or room created.
Thus Joe Biden’s plan for $40 billion of military supplies to Kyiv is the greatest idea or plan since the invention or introduction of sliced bread.
Meanwhile on the domestic front, little or no money is being set aside to deal with the coming winter of 2022 where a new wave of covid infections is expected to appear along with the flu. Up to 100 million Americans are expected to fall ill due to new covid and flu this coming winter.
As for the rest of the world, well, they better be prepared for severe shortages of edible oils, grains, medicines, gas, fertilizers, food, cereals and other non-military essentials.
Joe Biden is the most outstanding US president since the 16th president, honest abe.
Joe Biden, the honest democrat president of USA, the light of the world.The shining path of US democracy.
john oak
May 10, 2022 at 3:06 pm
cerca de 50.000 ucranianos ou estão no saco preto ou definitivamente incapacitados e um comentarista/especialista diz que a Russia não tem nada além de armas nucleares. Mesmo quando são necessários 30 países em consórcio de armas para confronta-lo. Eu diria que soa no minimo estranho.
Stefan Stackhouse
May 10, 2022 at 3:54 pm
A combination of nervous fear, garbled lines of communication, and stupid human error could accomplish what all of the learned opinion assures us won’t happen. It would not be the first time.
Does anyone remember “The Bedford Incident”? A commander pushing just a little too aggressively, a crew cowed by fear, and a miscommunication – the Captain shouting “If he fires one, I’ll fire one” – being misinterpreted by an ensign as the command to “Fire One”. Off flies the nuclear ASW, soon followed by the inescapable nuclear torpedoes. Improbable? I suppose. Impossible? I hope we don’t come to see it!
Fluffy Dog
May 11, 2022 at 8:14 am
I keep coming across “Russia has nuclear weapons,” and that got me thinking. And that’s why I am back here with another comment.
I have my doubts about Russian nuclear capabilities. I do not deny that they exist, it’s just I have a hard time believing that all ICBMs are functional. Granted, considering the number of those available, some will work. As for the rest… Maintenance of nukes requires a lot of care, time, and resources. The nuclear charges deteriorate. Electronics deteriorate. Power supplies deteriorate. Since the Russian stockpile dates back to pre-1991, that’s a lot of work, and a lot of expense.
And if you take into account that Russian tanks from the 60s were recently pulled out of storage without the spare parts and even without the engines (stolen and sold), I have a hard time believing that this is not happening to the nukes.
All-in-all, a more realistic assessment of the Russian nuclear threat is needed.
Alex
May 11, 2022 at 12:07 pm
A bit of truth.
The head of the UN monitoring mission, Matilda Bogner, said that the organization has reliable information about the torture of Russian soldiers in Ukrainian captivity:
“Ukraine and Russia must promptly and effectively investigate all allegations of torture and ill-treatment of prisoners of war,” she said.
The military-civilian administration of the Kherson region announced their intention to appeal to Putin with a request to include the region into Russia:
“We intend to live as part of the Russian Federation. We fully cooperate and feel as one with the regions of Russia.”
Pfizer, Moderna, Merck, Gilead are testing medicines in Ukraine, bypassing international safety standards, reducing the costs of research programs and gaining significant competitive advantages. Coronavirus vaccine manufacturers have been involved in US military biological activities.
Along with American pharmaceutical companies and Pentagon contractors, Ukrainian state structures are involved in military biological activities, the main tasks of which are to conceal illegal activities, conduct field and clinical trials, and provide the necessary biomaterial.
The American side expanded its research potential both in the field of creating biological weapons and in the field of obtaining information about antibiotic resistance and the presence of antibodies to various diseases in the population of specific regions.
Ukraine has long become a training ground for Western countries to create biological weapons components and test new samples of pharmaceuticals.
The United States, as part of its military biological program in Ukraine, used Mariupol as a regional center for work with the cholera pathogen.
Evidence was obtained of the emergency destruction of documents confirming work with the US military department. A preliminary analysis of the surviving documentation indicates the use of Mariupol as a regional center for the collection and certification of the cholera pathogen.
The selected strains were sent to the public health center in Kyiv, which is entrusted with the functions of further sending biomaterials to the United States.
This activity has been carried out since 2014, which is confirmed by the acts of transfer of strains.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby on Fox News recalled that the United States supplied weapons to Ukraine long before the start of the Russian special operation.
“The Biden administration was supplying weapons long before the invasion. The first billion dollars that the president allocated for Ukraine did indeed include assistance with lethal weapons … The United States, Canada, Britain, other allies actually helped prepare the Ukrainians, ”Kirby quoted the TV channel as saying.
As military experts and analysts had previously assumed, Ukraine would have brought down all its military power on the Donbass in any case, but Russia was the first to come to the aid of Donyuass.
The world is watching. The world sees. Lies are dying.
Alex
May 12, 2022 at 11:44 am
OK. In Ukraine, 10,000 Russian and 1,000 Russian tanks are destroyed every day. It’s not even funny to read, but it’s not interesting anymore. Let’s talk about the collapsed Russian economy:
The Russian ruble has become the best world currency in 2022. On Thursday, May 12, Bloomberg reported.
According to the latest data, the ruble has grown by 11 percent against the dollar since the beginning of 2022. Thus, it has become the leader among the 31 major currencies monitored by the agency’s experts.
The strengthening of the currency came after the measures taken by the Russian government against the backdrop of Western sanctions, writes Bloomberg. It is clarified that the authorities introduced capital controls, and also obliged exporters to sell foreign exchange earnings. In particular, in March, the President of Russia announced a new procedure for paying for gas by European consumers.
As similar examples, the authors of the article cite the Turkish lira and the Argentine peso, which failed to achieve maximum growth rates after the decisions of the governments of these countries. The Russian currency, on the contrary, responded well to the measures taken, Bloomberg experts conclude.
Only facts, not squeals and fantasies of Bandera Nazis and Slavophobes.
Alex
May 12, 2022 at 12:35 pm
Russia’s oil revenues have grown by 50% since the beginning of the year, despite trade restrictions imposed after the start of a special operation in Ukraine, writes Bloomberg citing a report by the International Energy Agency.
“Russia has earned approximately $20 billion monthly since the beginning of 2022 from cumulative sales of oil and petroleum products at an export level of 8 million barrels per day,” the document says. As the IEA noted, supplies from Russia continue to flow despite the fact that the EU is currently discussing a ban on energy imports, and major international oil companies Shell and Total Energy promise to stop purchases.
Russian energy resources are in high demand in Asia, especially in India and China. Experts emphasize that the reduction in the supply of refined products from Russia, such as diesel fuel, fuel oil and naphtha, has exacerbated tensions on world markets. At the same time, stocks of so-called middle distillates (some types of petroleum products that are obtained as a result of the distillation of hydrocarbons, including heating and marine fuels) are at their lowest level since 2008.
Another collapse of the Russian economy. I am sure that in Russia they clap and thank you.
Jack
May 12, 2022 at 1:18 pm
The big question is how many of Russia’s nukes will blow up on the launch pad?