Current Affairs Ukraine

[Lobster Johnson]

View attachment 185618
Caterpillar drives everywhere.

Let them shing!

 

[LinekersLegs]

Wonder if after the annexation tomorrow Putin declares “mission accomplished” and seriously starts suggesting a ceasefire.

 

[bluestevon]

Putins speech tomorrow will be very interesting to hear tbh

 

[tsubaki]

Wonder if after the annexation tomorrow Putin declares “mission accomplished” and seriously starts suggesting a ceasefire.

If he does, the pressure on Ukraine to not escalate it further is going to be absolutely massive.

 

[LinekersLegs]

If he does, the pressure on Ukraine to not escalate it further is going to be absolutely massive.

How would the Russian hawks react to that type of announcement too?

 

[LinekersLegs]

 

[peteblue]

If he does, the pressure on Ukraine to not escalate it further is going to be absolutely massive.

I don’t think it will make the slightest bit of difference to Ukraine. They’ve stated all along that the also want Crimea back so the new pronouncements will make no difference. If the USA and U.K. keep supplying them it will continue….

 

[LostLegend]

 

[Zatara]

How many Russian troops are now surrounded in Lyman?

 

[LinekersLegs]

How many Russian troops are now surrounded in Lyman?

 

[ds3000]

People questioning how Russia could have cut a pipe in the middle of an ocean that spans thousands of miles.

Needle in a haystack stuff.

Could a suicide bomber set off at the source in Russia and then detonate at a previously arranged point in the pipe? X4

 

[NilSatisOptimum]

Exactly what and some more all NATO countries at least should be doing.

Ukraine war: Finland closes border to Russian tourists

It now means all of Russia's European Union neighbours have shut their borders to its tourists.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[PhilM]

It wasn't really. Widely debunked since the soviet archives were opened.

How Did the Cold War Really End? | Archie Brown

In retrospect everything about the cold war’s ending can appear deceptively simple. The Soviet economy could not keep up with that of the United States

www.nybooks.com

If you mean the actual economy of the nineties, the brutal privatisation and lack of a established legal system did the most damage. They barely invested in the military back in those days.

Also, on another note, why are we so sure the UK or any other European nation, would fare better than Russia in a similar conflict? If memory serves France ran out of bullets in Libya...

It might be convenient now but not investing in our military and assuming the Russians/somebody else will make the same mistake next time around is foolish.

In terms of spending, it's a complicated argument but the basis of my comment was the estimated spending of GDP on the military, which is an interesting point.

Within the 1970s and early 1980s, Russian military expenditure is reported to have varied from low tweens to as much as 20% of the Soviet GDP.

Compare this with US expenditure versus GDP (we're not looking at raw £ cost), it's estimated to be between a 50% - 100%+ increase. Was that sustainable?

People mention Regan as the catalyst, yet I'd argue that their sustained military spending, at high rates, regardless of economic conditions were its downfall.

You've got to factor in the political mismanagement of the 70s and 80s and change of economic conditions in general, which also played a huge part in it.

But in times of need, did they redistribute their spending (less of %GDP on military) and invest elsewhere or did they maintain their huge military budget?

Eventually, the building on weakening foundations made it all come apart.

On to the latter part, it's not about being sure yet, rather more the likelihood. As I've mentioned previously, the UK is already short of numerous key items.

https://www.grandoldteam.com/forum/threads/ukraine.114185/page-987#post-9777596. https://www.grandoldteam.com/forum/threads/ukraine.114185/page-995#post-9794516

A recent MOD report suggests that the UK, if alone, alone has the resources to sustain itself in a conflict for between ten days and a week. We'd then run out.

The saving graces are, which I alluded to in one of my previous posts, is standardisation and NATO's supply chain, which enable use to pool resources.

You also have, as @john jako mentioned and discussed previously, the constant process of mutual training, war games and reviews of readiness.

All this, alongside our perchance for being involved in conflicts, mean the UK etc. have a wealth of experience at combat that stand us in good stead.

Like any other army, the British Armed Forces are notoriously inefficient, but compared to the Russians, I'd confidently say we'd fare better in such a conflict.

 

[Spadge Vernacular]

 

[Spadge Vernacular]