BruceVC

Why do you think that? We first have to identify what the issues are and replacing the " strongman leader" will he a very good first step. Putin is a huge part of the political policies and direction Russia has been going in, a new leader could immediately allow people to protest without being arrested and stop shutting down private sector media houses? Those are just quick wins but some of the change that could be implemented to improve things

I dont know, its hard to think of someone much worse than Putin. Normally when autocratic leaders who endup weakening there country get replaced the person who comes after them is better, not much necessarily much better but definitely better because he has to change things and " fix " the issues that caused his predecessor to be replaced Look at Zimbabwe and Venezuela? The new leaders are better than the previous autocrats

I imagine its for Crimea and ending the Russian occupation and the US\West gets what they always wanted to achieve. An end to Putins hegemony and militancy?

Brave men indeed, you never would seen this before Putins War started? Its an example of the rising discontent from within Russia

Thats all I wanted to hear, thanks for responding I believed you would say it but I wasnt sure. Im glad you responded in this way

Firstly Im not defending what happened to the journalist by the Saudis. It wrong and I condemn it I have always made the same point which you guys dont want to understand. I am saying its not worth cutting ties with Saudi Arabia and impacting the global oil supply. Its just not worth it and Im not going to change my view on that economic reality and impact to all our economies But do me favor, can you state in your own words something like " you unequivocally condemn the various wars crimes and human right abuses committed by the Russian military in Ukraine" Just that, I want you to say it? Humor me ...its not hard? Because it will confirm you are consistent in what you say you believe

As mentioned the Russian retreat has provided the Ukrainians with a wealth of military resources and this link confirms it again, great news

Geez Gorthfuscius, you have completely missed the point of this thread. Its about the Robots trying to replace humans ...and we MUST reject it and fight against it

We have seen what the Russians are most effective at in there military efforts. Targeting civilians building, rape and killing of civilians So of course there mass retreat will be followed by attacks on electricity stations and the attempts to destroy infrastructure and of course @Zoraptor will defend and justify it and we will hear about Kosovo\Bosnia as usual .." yawn" And whataboutism is a distraction to a point raised, here is the definition "the technique or practice of responding to an accusation or difficult question by making a counteraccusation or raising a different issue " So when we say " Russia are using the normal cowardly response and targeting civilian infrastructure" and someone says " yes but look at what happened in Bosnia\Kosovo " that is whataboutism We not talking about Bosnia\Kosovo, we talking about Putins War and one of the charges of war crimes is targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure and this is a war crime because its " unnecessarily destroying civilian property " https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_crime

Thats interesting, AI art winning awards Guess I was wrong

I dont have any understanding of art except for simple things but I definitely wouldnt buy this It just doesnt look like anything to me, sorry to be negative. Also I dont believe AI can recreate certain things that are intrinsically human or require a human to be significant Famous and beloved art needs the creativity and imagination of a human brain and psyche and I dont see how AI will ever do that?

So true and you can see the main reason the journalist got things so wrong is he egregiously overestimated Russia's military strength and performance and completely underestimated the Ukrainian resolve, to quote "The nature of the reported Russian buildup suggests the expanded war, if it happens, will differ fundamentally from the past seven years of simmering stalemate. Russia has the ability to carry out a large-scale joint offensive operation involving tens of thousands of personnel, thousands of armored vehicles, and hundreds of combat aircraft. It would likely begin with devastating air and missile strikes from land, air, and naval forces, striking deep into Ukraine to attack headquarters, airfields, and logistics points. Ukrainian forces would begin the conflict nearly surrounded from the very start, with Russian forces arrayed along the eastern border, naval and amphibious forces threatening from the Black Sea in the south, and the potential (increasingly real) for additional Russian forces to deploy into Belarus and threaten from the north, where the border is less than 65 miles from Kyiv itself." In short, this war will look nothing like the status quo ante of conflict in Ukraine, and that undermines the first justification for U.S. aid: deterring Russia. The Ukrainian military has been shaped to fight the conflict in the Donbass and thus poses little deterrent threat to Russia; provision of U.S. weapons can do nothing to change that. If Moscow is willing to launch a major war, invading the second-largest country in Europe with a population of over 40 million, all while absorbing tremendous economic punishment from the West, then it is unlikely to be deterred by whatever U.S. military assistance can be delivered in the coming weeks. The only weapons systems that could plausibly impose costs that could change Russia’s calculus, such as surface-to-air missiles and combat aircraft, are ones that the United States would be highly unlikely to provide the Ukrainians. And, regardless, they could not be procured, delivered, and be made operational—to say nothing of getting the Ukrainian operators trained up to use them—in time to have an impact on this crisis. Large, modern systems require extensive training and material support.

Great article and good summary, I love this part It was successful in provoking Russia to move equipment and personnel to the southern front, including partly from Kharkiv region, said Berezovets. “Meanwhile [our] guys in Kharkiv were given the best of western weapons, mostly American,” he said. Putin must be absolutely loving the US at the moment, the military hardware and assistance provided to Ukraine has made a huge difference

As the Russians are retreating they abandoning huge amounts of military equipment that include tanks. Very useful for the Ukrainians and there war effort. I assume this is legitimate

" 1000 years of darkness"

Well mostly its because we want Putins War to epic fail because it represents everything we say we opposed to like attacks on the right of sovereignty and we dont like the killing of civilians, war crimes and we believe in Democracy So these things matter? And yes, you right. NATO does matter and it can effectively support Ukraine ...well hopefully

Yes this is long overdue, Russia has been attempting to blackmail the world through energy, like gas to the EU, and trying to worsen starvation so its a good move to encourage a Russian oil price cap. But why do we care, who is going to complain if Russian oil is set at a certain price? It funds Putins War and since we all opposed to that this is good news..less money for Russia Here is the link outside of FT https://worldnewsera.com/news/finance/stock-market/us-warns-of-sanctions-for-buyers-that-ignore-price-cap-on-russian-oil/

I agree, we must be cautious. Its clear the Ukrainians have had military successes but I do think there is some hyperbole and people being overly enthusiastic

I wish autocratic leaders could be removed as easily as that but its unlikely this will happen to end Putins draconian and flawed leadership?

https://www.axios.com/2022/09/09/ukraine-offensive-kharkiv-izyum-russia Much of success of the Ukrainian offensive seems to be around how the Russians fell for a ruse, the Ukrainians publicly stated they were going to attack Kherson so the Ruskies moved much of there forces to that region but then the Ukrainians also attacked the Kharkiv region which completely surprised the mighty Russian bear I remember on Sky News the military analysts were saying " its imprudent that you announce a military campaign so openly " and they were understandably critical of the Ukrainians apparent strategy with this offensive But that was just part of the successful broader subterfuge and the Russians fell for it

So you still believe this invasion is about cleansing Ukraine of Neo-Nazis? And the Nukes and NATO, is that significant or is it just all those Nazis?

Nah, Im not going to change my opinion because Russia vs Saudi Arabia oil production is not on the same scale or importance. The ME is much more significant And my argument as I have mentioned several times is not just about energy but also the reality of how most countries in the ME conduct themselves, so lets be consistent with our outrage and countries "we should be isolating and vilifying " Also you have posted time and time again you think I am a fascist, racist, colonialist etc. Irrespective of what I say so why would this matter? But I appreciate the suggestion, its noted

I always have DSTV on the background when Im working from home and today I have been watching The Queens memorial service almost the whole day. What a monarch, you can see how respected and loved she was for so many people. She carried herself with such dignity and everything was about duty and sacrifice for what the Monarchy represents for the UK and the broader Commonwealth The end of an era for sure

Sure, it could go on for years but I dont think so. I expect an end to current active engagements in the next 1-3 years maximum And my definition of that is where the Ukrainian and Russian forces arent officially fighting on a daily basis

During war collaborators are traitors to there country, I have very little sympathy for them