*** Official Russia vs. Ukraine Discussion - Invasion has begun *** (2 Viewers)

[fatness]

Ukrainian man arrested over Nord Stream pipeline attacks

A Ukrainian man has been arrested in Italy on suspicion of coordinating the 2022 attacks on the Nord Stream gas pipelines, German prosecutors said on Thursday, marking a breakthrough in an episode that sharpened tensions between Russia and the West. Seen by both Moscow and the West as an act of sabotage, the explosions severely damaged three pipelines carrying gas from Russia to Europe, prompting a major escalation in the Ukraine conflict and squeezing energy supplies on the continent. No one has ever taken responsibility for the blasts.

The suspect, identified only as Serhii K. under German privacy laws, was part of a group of people who planted devices on the pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea, a statement from the prosecutor's office said. He and his accomplices had set off from Rostock on Germany's northeastern coast in a sailing yacht to carry out the attack, it said. The vessel had been rented from a German company with the help of forged identity documents via middlemen, it added.

 

[fatness]

Russia "wasted several cruise missiles against an American business," Zelenskyy said, noting it was a company producing domestic utilities, such as coffee machines. "And that too became a target for Russia. Very telling." Mukachevo Mayor Andriy Baloha said the damaged enterprise belonged to Flex Ltd., which is a NASDAQ-listed company. The corporate headquarters of the company — a global technology, supply chain and advanced manufacturing solutions partner — is in Austin, Texas, and its registered office is in Singapore. The company employed thousands of the area's residents, Baloha said. Flex, which grew from a family firm founded in Silicon Valley in 1969, has yet to comment.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/russia-western-ukraine-attacks-1.7614409

 

[fatness]

Earlier, Zelenskyy said Ukraine will hold intensive meetings to gain clarity over what kind of support it can expect from allies. A coalition of more than 30 countries have in principle pledged to contribute to security guarantees but talks came to a standstill when the U.S. remained ambivalent about its role. Zelenskyy reiterated that Ukraine is ready to hold direct talks with Putin. The two leaders have not met in person since late 2019, at a gathering in which several world leaders attended. "And what if the Russians are not ready? The Europeans raised the issue. If the Russians are not ready, then we would like to see a strong reaction from the United States," he said.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/russia-western-ukraine-attacks-1.7614409

 

[fatness]

Russia’s foreign minister warned that Moscow must have an effective veto over any measures to support Ukraine once a peace deal is reached, undermining western plans to provide Kyiv with security guarantees.

In a series of hardline remarks (12:30), Sergei Lavrov said European proposals to deploy troops in Ukraine after a settlement would amount to “foreign intervention,” which he called absolutely unacceptable for Russia. He also poured cold water on the prospect of a Putin–Zelenskyy summit touted by Donald Trump, saying a bilateral meeting at the highest level would only be possible “if all issues requiring discussion are thoroughly prepared.”

Lavrov’s remarks cast doubt on the prospects for peace talks, suggesting that Russia is retreating from the understandings reached in Alaska – where Trump claimed Vladimir Putin had accepted western security guarantees for Ukraine – or that the US administration may have misinterpreted the Kremlin’s position from the outset.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/l...08cd2c6c8e8f14#block-68a6fffa8f08cd2c6c8e8f14

 

[The Z Machine]

or that the US administration may have misinterpreted the Kremlin’s position from the outset.

What???? No way!

 

[SaintsInDome2006]

Looks like a Summit will indeed happen - With India.

 

[SaintsInDome2006]

Russia’s foreign minister warned that Moscow must have an effective veto over any measures to support Ukraine once a peace deal is reached, undermining western plans to provide Kyiv with security guarantees.

In a series of hardline remarks (12:30), Sergei Lavrov said European proposals to deploy troops in Ukraine after a settlement would amount to “foreign intervention,” which he called absolutely unacceptable for Russia. He also poured cold water on the prospect of a Putin–Zelenskyy summit touted by Donald Trump, saying a bilateral meeting at the highest level would only be possible “if all issues requiring discussion are thoroughly prepared.”

Lavrov’s remarks cast doubt on the prospects for peace talks, suggesting that Russia is retreating from the understandings reached in Alaska – where Trump claimed Vladimir Putin had accepted western security guarantees for Ukraine – or that the US administration may have misinterpreted the Kremlin’s position from the outset.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/aug/21/us-minimal-security-guarantees-ukraine-russia-diplomacy-europe-latest-updates-news?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with:block-68a6fffa8f08cd2c6c8e8f14#block-68a6fffa8f08cd2c6c8e8f14

Misinterpreted, or maybe more like misrepresented.

 

[beer 30]

What???? No way!

The What? No way guy would like a word

 

[Don't Toews Me]

Exclusive: Putin's demand to Ukraine: give up Donbas, no NATO and no Western troops, sources say

Vladimir Putin is demanding that Ukraine give up all of the eastern Donbas region, renounce ambitions to join NATO, remain neutral and keep Western troops out of the country, three sources familiar with top-level Kremlin thinking told Reuters.

In the most detailed Russian-based reporting to date on Putin's offer at the summit, Reuters was able to outline the contours of what the Kremlin would like to see in a possible peace deal to end a war that has killed and injured hundreds of thousands of people.
In essence, the Russian sources said, Putin has compromised on territorial demands he laid out in June 2024, which required Kyiv to cede the entirety of the four provinces Moscow claims as part of Russia: Dontesk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine - which make up the Donbas - plus Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in the south.
Kyiv rejected those terms as tantamount to surrender.
In his new proposal, the Russian president has stuck to his demand that Ukraine completely withdraw from the parts of the Donbas it still controls, according to the three sources. In return, though, Moscow would halt the current front lines in Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, they added.
Russia controls about 88% of the Donbas and 73% of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, according to U.S. estimates and open-source data.
Moscow is also willing to hand over the small parts of the Kharkiv, Sumy, and Dnipropetrovsk regions of Ukraine it controls as part of a possible deal, the sources said.
Putin is sticking, too, to his previous demands that Ukraine give up its NATO ambitions and for a legally binding pledge from the U.S.-led military alliance that it will not expand further eastwards, as well as for limits on the Ukrainian army and an agreement that no Western troops will be deployed on the ground in Ukraine as part of a peacekeeping force, the sources said.

The sources cautioned that it was unclear to Moscow whether Ukraine would be prepared to cede the remains of the Donbas, and that if it did not then the war would continue. Also unclear was whether or not the United States would give any recognition to Russian-held Ukrainian territory, they added.
A fourth source said that though economic issues were secondary for Putin, he understood the economic vulnerability of Russia and the scale of the effort needed to go far further into Ukraine.

Doubts Grow on Ukraine Security Plan as Russia Demands Role

Russia supports guarantees based “on the principle of collective security, on the principles of indivisible security,” Lavrov said. “Anything else, anything unilateral is, of course, an absolutely hopeless undertaking.”
Several senior European officials and diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they viewed Lavrov’s comments as an attempt to stall the process, and expressed doubt that Putin is willing to make a deal.

Lavrov’s pushback on security guarantees has effectively fractured Russia’s talks with the US, a European official with knowledge of the matter said. The Kremlin may now try to convince the White House to abandon the push for security guarantees for Ukraine and downgrade the Putin-Zelenskiy meeting to one with lower-level officials in an effort to dodge new US sanctions, the official added.

The threat of encirclement of the Russian military? What is happening near Dobropillia

Almost a week ago, it became known about the breakthrough of Russian assault units in the area of the city of Dobropillia, north of Pokrovsk.

It was reported about a rather deep - up to 10-12 km, according to some reports, up to 15-18 km - wedging of Russian troops into the Ukrainian defense and the threat of their further advance.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine were forced to urgently respond to a dangerous situation.

At this point, they managed to stop the Russian offensive and recapture settlements along the Rubizhne-Zoloty-Kolodyaz-Vesele line. The Ukrainian military also wedged itself into the basis of the Russian performance and created a counter-threat to encircle the entire group that made a breakthrough.

According to a number of reports, some of the Russian units that have advanced the furthest north have already been cut off from the main forces.

According to Ukrainian military expert Konstantin Mashovets, Russian troops are trying to unblock their advanced units with strikes from the right flank between the villages of Shakhove and Nove Shakhove in the direction of Kucheriv Yar, where they managed to advance about half a kilometer.

They also continue attacks on the main section of the northern flank of the offensive on Pokrovsk - in the direction of the village of Rodynske.
"In turn, the Armed Forces of Ukraine continue to counterattack the enemy at the base of the "neck" of his wedge, trying to completely cut the wedge itself in the shortest direction Mykanorivka - Mayak, and also gradually narrow the total area of the enemy's wedge," Mashovets writes.

What Russia Is Doing to Grab Ukrainian Land While It Still Can

As ever growing swarms of surveillance drones make any movement on the battlefield dangerous, the Russians are sending in small groups of soldiers on foot who are harder to detect. They effectively sneak past the Ukrainian troops, regroup and then attack, repeating this cycle as they inch forward.
These groups gained some territory earlier this month, especially in the crucial eastern Donetsk region near the embattled city of Pokrovsk. Larger formations of Russian troops also outflanked some Ukrainian defenses with drones and sheer numbers, raising fears that the frontline could start to crumble as the most concerted effort at peace talks in three years gets underway.

“Given that political negotiations and deals are starting to emerge, Putin is trying to use the short amount of time left to grab as much territory as he can,” said Col. Dmytro Palisa, commander of Ukraine’s 33rd Mechanized Brigade. His team recently moved to an area near Pokrovsk, which Russian troops have been trying to capture for more than a year.
On Sunday, he sat on a dark blue pleather couch inside a dugout near the fighting. Bombs could be heard in the distance. The makeshift room, built of plywood and netting, smelled like soil.
“He doesn’t care how many Russian soldiers die or how much equipment is lost,” Colonel Palisa said of Mr. Putin. “What matters to him now is to seize as much of the Donetsk region as possible. This, in turn, could have a negative consequence for us, because it would force us to enter any negotiations from a weaker position.”

Vitalii Piasetskyi, the chief sergeant of the 93rd Mechanized Brigade, said his brigade’s units were operating in two directions, including between Kramatorsk, one of the two major cities in Donetsk, and Dobropillia, “where the enemy has managed to infiltrate deep into our defensive lines.” He said the unit had stormed and cleared small settlements.
“This is the tactic they are now using — infiltration that succeeded just beyond the limits of our area of responsibility,” Sergeant Piasetskyi said. He said mechanized assaults had become rare, because of the large number of drones in the air that can detect the movement of armored vehicles, trucks and motorcycles.
“It’s a creeping offensive,” he explained. His forces have discovered and eliminated many of the small groups of Russian troops. “But some of these groups do get through,” Sergeant Piasetskyi said.
A soldier from the First Corps Azov of the Ukrainian National Guard stationed at the front near Dobropillia played down the seriousness of the recent Russian incursion. But the soldier, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media, said Russian offensive actions had increased after the most recent flurry of peace talks ended.

Both Sergeant Piasetskyi and Sgt. Oleksandr Karpiuk, of the “Inquisition” unmanned systems battalion in the 59th Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade, reiterated a frequent complaint from the frontline — that the Ukrainian Army does not have enough personnel, not enough drones.
Ukraine also does not yet have the technology to stop specialized Russian drone units that attack supply routes, Sergeant Karpiuk said. The main current defense is to set up netting shields along roads and on vehicles.
The Russian units have inflicted a toll on Ukraine’s drones. The large Ukrainian attack drone known to the Russians as Baba Yaga — named for a Slavic folklore witch who lived in a hut that stood on chicken legs — used to make an average of 70 flights before being shot down. Now it can barely make 10, Sergeant Karpiuk said.
“We need to admit that these units are working,” Sergeant Karpiuk said of the Russians. “All these new drone units are a new threat to us.”

https://x.com/JohnH105/status/1958606964851650808

"Military chiefs from the United States and a number of European countries have completed military options on Ukraine and will now present the options to their respective national security advisers, the U.S. military said on Thursday...

One option was sending European forces to Ukraine but putting the United States in charge of their command and control, sources have told Reuters."

 

[FarFromHome]

Putin is just a thug gangster and just a horrible human being. Like you start ranking villains in history this guy would make most top 10 lists. The best ending i can see is all his high ranking generals just decide they have had enough and resolve this.


Side note. I absolutely love the sites countdowns. All time real life worst villains would be interesting.

 

[fatness]

Russia’s strikes on U.S. factory show it has no interest in peace, Ukraine says
archived article: https://archive.ph/jIBAL
Decent summary of where things are diplomatically today.

Zelensky responded to the president’s message saying Russian President Vladimir Putin needed to be pressured and Ukrainians protected. “President Trump is absolutely right: this must be done not only in defense. But at the same time, we do not reduce efforts in diplomacy, in all our contacts with partners, so that negotiations still take place.” Ukraine and its Western allies, including the United States, are hammering out the “architecture” of security guarantees for Ukraine that would be ready in the next seven to 10 days, Zelensky said in remarks released Thursday. After the talks, he hopes to meet with his Russian counterpart to discuss a final peace deal. The security talks are underway in Brussels.If Putin refuses to meet with Zelensky, a key part of Trump’s push for peace, Ukraine “would like to see a strong reaction from the United States,” Zelensky added, suggesting measures to hurt Russia’s economy, including secondary sanctions and tariffs on those trading with the country.

While the White House has maintained that Russia has agreed to the bilateral meeting between the two leaders and it could take place in a week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has repeatedly quashed expectations of anything imminent.
“Putin is ready to meet with Zelensky only if all issues requiring discussion at the highest level are thoroughly worked out,” he said Thursday, a process that could a very long time.

 

[SaintsInDome2006]

Doubts Grow on Ukraine Security Plan as Russia Demands Role

Russia supports guarantees based “on the principle of collective security, on the principles of indivisible security,” Lavrov said. “Anything else, anything unilateral is, of course, an absolutely hopeless undertaking.”
Several senior European officials and diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they viewed Lavrov’s comments as an attempt to stall the process, and expressed doubt that Putin is willing to make a deal.

Lavrov’s pushback on security guarantees has effectively fractured Russia’s talks with the US, a European official with knowledge of the matter said. The Kremlin may now try to convince the White House to abandon the push for security guarantees for Ukraine and downgrade the Putin-Zelenskiy meeting to one with lower-level officials in an effort to dodge new US sanctions, the official added.

So basically, over the course of this week, the big concession Trump and Witkoff claimed to have achieved in Alaska that Putin had agreed to U.S. and European security guarantees for Ukraine, and that Putin had agreed to meet with Zelensky individually & trilaterally with Trump, were wholly invented. No such agreements happened.

 

[Don't Toews Me]

Meet Flamingo, the missile that brings European Russia within Kyiv’s range

Fabian Hoffmann, a doctoral research fellow and missile expert at the University of Oslo, called the missile "Ukraine’s strongest security guarantee."

"If it can field 3,000 to 5,000 of these (and similar) missiles, ready within 24 to 48 hours to destroy upward of 25 percent of Russia’s economic output, further Russian aggression becomes untenable," he said on social media.

https://x.com/Tatarigami_UA/status/1958735652239155333

iStories recently reported that Russian recruitment was falling, citing federal budget data on sign-up bonuses. In reality, enlistment still runs above 30,000 a month, and the dip reflects changes in published data, not an actual slowdown There are a few nuances, though:
2/ They reported that several regions, including Irkutsk and Vladimir, are struggling with recruitment. That is true, and has been an issue in many areas, which helps explain the steady rise in sign-up bonuses. Some recruits even register in other regions to secure higher payouts
3/ Still, despite ever-higher bonuses, Russia has found ways to offset shortfalls by drawing from the freshly detained and pre-trial prisoners, while increasingly pressuring illegal migrants and conscripts into signing contracts.
4/ These measures affect the quality and morale of the forces and further strain an already overburdened budget. Yet quotas continue to be met. And in fairness to iStories, whose investigative work I greatly respect, they cited Janis Kluge’s calculations pointing at no decline

What losing the Donbas means to Ukraine: ‘Maybe we’ll never return’

Not long before the fall of Bakhmut, Ukraine lost another iconic national brand: Artemsil, the state salt mining company that provided 95 per cent of the country’s salt, in distinctive blue and white packaging.
Its mines in Soledar, meaning “gift of salt”, were put out of action around the same time as Artwinery after shelling caused its shafts to collapse:
Ukraine is now forced to import salt for the first time in its history. The last 100,000 packets were sold at a premium price to fund drones for Ukraine’s military.
The coke mine outside the Donbas city of Pokrovsk was the country’s only source of coking coal that fed the steel industry. It ceased production seven months ago amid fighting above ground.
“From 2014 on, as the Donbas was occupied, we lost a lot of industries, whole sectors like coal and chemicals,” says Tymofii Brik, rector of the Kyiv School of Economics. “When the full-scale invasion started, we lost more territories, we lost more people. But the worst part of what we’ve lost is human capital.”
Azovstal, the country’s largest steelworks, in the Donetsk city of Mariupol, was lost early in the war, alongside 2,500 Ukrainian service personnel taken prisoner.

 

[Sparky Polastri]

What???? No way!

The What? No way guy would like a word

That dude is freakin' awesome. Met him last year. Just a good guy.

 

[Sparky Polastri]

Doubts Grow on Ukraine Security Plan as Russia Demands Role

Russia supports guarantees based “on the principle of collective security, on the principles of indivisible security,” Lavrov said. “Anything else, anything unilateral is, of course, an absolutely hopeless undertaking.”
Several senior European officials and diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they viewed Lavrov’s comments as an attempt to stall the process, and expressed doubt that Putin is willing to make a deal.

Lavrov’s pushback on security guarantees has effectively fractured Russia’s talks with the US, a European official with knowledge of the matter said. The Kremlin may now try to convince the White House to abandon the push for security guarantees for Ukraine and downgrade the Putin-Zelenskiy meeting to one with lower-level officials in an effort to dodge new US sanctions, the official added.

So basically, over the course of this week, the big concession Trump and Witkoff claimed to have achieved in Alaska that Putin had agreed to U.S. and European security guarantees for Ukraine, and that Putin had agreed to meet with Zelensky individually & trilaterally with Trump, were wholly invented. No such agreements happened.

Said pages and pages ago that this only ends with an addition to NATO or all/most of the countries in support of Ukraine having boots on the ground permanently. Putin won't stop on his own accord. He has to be forced to stop.

 

[The Z Machine]

Doubts Grow on Ukraine Security Plan as Russia Demands Role

Russia supports guarantees based “on the principle of collective security, on the principles of indivisible security,” Lavrov said. “Anything else, anything unilateral is, of course, an absolutely hopeless undertaking.”
Several senior European officials and diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they viewed Lavrov’s comments as an attempt to stall the process, and expressed doubt that Putin is willing to make a deal.

Lavrov’s pushback on security guarantees has effectively fractured Russia’s talks with the US, a European official with knowledge of the matter said. The Kremlin may now try to convince the White House to abandon the push for security guarantees for Ukraine and downgrade the Putin-Zelenskiy meeting to one with lower-level officials in an effort to dodge new US sanctions, the official added.

So basically, over the course of this week, the big concession Trump and Witkoff claimed to have achieved in Alaska that Putin had agreed to U.S. and European security guarantees for Ukraine, and that Putin had agreed to meet with Zelensky individually & trilaterally with Trump, were wholly invented. No such agreements happened.

Said pages and pages ago that this only ends with an addition to NATO or all/most of the countries in support of Ukraine having boots on the ground permanently. Putin won't stop on his own accord. He has to be forced to stop.

Maybe the USA leaders haven't asked nicely enough

 

[Sparky Polastri]

It's just so dumb the entire world is playing along with the charade.

 

[FarFromHome]

It's just so dumb the entire world is playing along with the charade.

You really have two paths when dealing with a psycho path who is already in war mode. You talk. Or you squeeze. I have no problem with choosing the talk approach. Throughout our young countries history, outside of dropping the bomb on Japan and a few others, most conflicts ended through diplomatic conversations. Now, for me and in my opinion, knowing when to accept talks aren't working and shifting to squeezing is difficult. What makes this even harder is that it's not actually the United States at war here. Just feels like at some point our country became responsible for the wars continued carnage or its end. Feels kinda unfair to basically blame this administration or previous administrations for this conflict. All my opinion of course.

 

[Dezbelief]

It's just so dumb the entire world is playing along with the charade.

You really have two paths when dealing with a psycho path who is already in war mode. You talk. Or you squeeze. I have no problem with choosing the talk approach. Throughout our young countries history, outside of dropping the bomb on Japan and a few others, most conflicts ended through diplomatic conversations. Now, for me and in my opinion, knowing when to accept talks aren't working and shifting to squeezing is difficult. What makes this even harder is that it's not actually the United States at war here. Just feels like at some point our country became responsible for the wars continued carnage or its end. Feels kinda unfair to basically blame this administration or previous administrations for this conflict. All my opinion of course.

It became our responsibility when we declared to the world we would end this war with one phone call.

 

[FarFromHome]

It's just so dumb the entire world is playing along with the charade.

You really have two paths when dealing with a psycho path who is already in war mode. You talk. Or you squeeze. I have no problem with choosing the talk approach. Throughout our young countries history, outside of dropping the bomb on Japan and a few others, most conflicts ended through diplomatic conversations. Now, for me and in my opinion, knowing when to accept talks aren't working and shifting to squeezing is difficult. What makes this even harder is that it's not actually the United States at war here. Just feels like at some point our country became responsible for the wars continued carnage or its end. Feels kinda unfair to basically blame this administration or previous administrations for this conflict. All my opinion of course.

It became our responsibility when we declared to the world we would end this war with one phone call.

Oh. Got it.

 

[fatness]

5 days of diplomacy, 5 days of deadly Russian attacks on Ukraine

Despite the flurry of diplomacy between the U.S., Russia, Ukraine, and Europe over the last five days on ending the war, Moscow has continued to allow its forces to unleash daily attacks on Ukrainian civilians. At least 31 civilians have been killed and 145 injured in Russian strikes across Ukraine since U.S. President Donald Trump met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Aug. 15.

Hours before Putin walked down the red carpet in Anchorage, Russian attacks killed six civilians and injured 17. The next day, on Aug. 16, three people were killed and 12 were injured as a result of Russian attacks in Kherson Oblast, where the words ‘human safari’ have become synonymous with Russia's first-person-view drone attacks in the area that target civilians.

 

[fatness]

Intelligence Blackout: US Reportedly Cut Off Five Eyes From Ukraine Talks

Tulsi Gabbard, the US director of national intelligence, reportedly has barred America’s closest intelligence allies from accessing information about ongoing Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations. According to CBS News, a classified memo signed by Gabbard on July 20 directed US intelligence agencies to designate all analysis and reporting on the volatile talks as “NOFORN” – meaning no foreign dissemination. That order effectively cut off the so-called Five Eyes alliance – the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand – from intelligence they have long relied on to coordinate with Washington. The memo, multiple US intelligence officials told CBS News, restricted distribution even within the US intelligence community, limiting access only to the agencies that produced the material. The only exceptions were reports already made public.

 

[fatness]

Trump sets new deadline for peace in Ukraine, Graham again threatens with tough legislation

Trump's administration will know within two weeks whether there will be peace in Ukraine, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Aug. 21 in an interview on the Todd Starnes Show, warning that if not, he will "take a different tack." These comments are the latest in a series of deadlines Trump has set for Ukraine's war — none of which have been followed by action when they came and went.

"We will know in within two weeks whether there will be peace in Ukraine. After that we will have to maybe take a different tack," Trump told conservative commentator Todd Starnes.

 

[Sparky Polastri]

It's just so dumb the entire world is playing along with the charade.

You really have two paths when dealing with a psycho path who is already in war mode. You talk. Or you squeeze. I have no problem with choosing the talk approach. Throughout our young countries history, outside of dropping the bomb on Japan and a few others, most conflicts ended through diplomatic conversations. Now, for me and in my opinion, knowing when to accept talks aren't working and shifting to squeezing is difficult. What makes this even harder is that it's not actually the United States at war here. Just feels like at some point our country became responsible for the wars continued carnage or its end. Feels kinda unfair to basically blame this administration or previous administrations for this conflict. All my opinion of course.

How did you get the bold from my comment? Genuine question.

I'll say it again. The ENTIRE WORLD (leadership) is playing along with this charade. That includes the US, but not limited to. It is abundantly clear where Putin's head is and what his goals are. He's only told us all a billion times over the last 10ish years. And now we have 3ish years of recent actions backing up those 10 years of words to solidify things. It's mind boggling.

 

[FarFromHome]

It's just so dumb the entire world is playing along with the charade.

You really have two paths when dealing with a psycho path who is already in war mode. You talk. Or you squeeze. I have no problem with choosing the talk approach. Throughout our young countries history, outside of dropping the bomb on Japan and a few others, most conflicts ended through diplomatic conversations. Now, for me and in my opinion, knowing when to accept talks aren't working and shifting to squeezing is difficult. What makes this even harder is that it's not actually the United States at war here. Just feels like at some point our country became responsible for the wars continued carnage or its end. Feels kinda unfair to basically blame this administration or previous administrations for this conflict. All my opinion of course.

How did you get the bold from my comment? Genuine question.

I'll say it again. The ENTIRE WORLD (leadership) is playing along with this charade. That includes the US, but not limited to. It is abundantly clear where Putin's head is and what his goals are. He's only told us all a billion times over the last 10ish years. And now we have 3ish years of recent actions backing up those 10 years of words to solidify things. It's mind boggling.

Topics like this tend to branch out a bit. This is an example of that. Had ZERO intention of tieing you specifically to the entirety of my response. I just kinda branched out a bit. Sorry if you took it that way. Once again, sorry. Just another reminder to stay out of these topics. I'll see myself out. Ha ha

 

[Dezbelief]

It's just so dumb the entire world is playing along with the charade.

You really have two paths when dealing with a psycho path who is already in war mode. You talk. Or you squeeze. I have no problem with choosing the talk approach. Throughout our young countries history, outside of dropping the bomb on Japan and a few others, most conflicts ended through diplomatic conversations. Now, for me and in my opinion, knowing when to accept talks aren't working and shifting to squeezing is difficult. What makes this even harder is that it's not actually the United States at war here. Just feels like at some point our country became responsible for the wars continued carnage or its end. Feels kinda unfair to basically blame this administration or previous administrations for this conflict. All my opinion of course.

How did you get the bold from my comment? Genuine question.

I'll say it again. The ENTIRE WORLD (leadership) is playing along with this charade. That includes the US, but not limited to. It is abundantly clear where Putin's head is and what his goals are. He's only told us all a billion times over the last 10ish years. And now we have 3ish years of recent actions backing up those 10 years of words to solidify things. It's mind boggling.

Topics like this tend to branch out a bit. This is an example of that. Had ZERO intention of tieing you specifically to the entirety of my response. I just kinda branched out a bit. Sorry if you took it that way. Once again, sorry. Just another reminder to stay out of these topics. I'll see myself out. Ha ha

You are good FFH. I appreciate your insight and viewpoint. You serve our country, myself and most here are just armchair quarterbacks.

 

[Dezbelief]

Trump sets new deadline for peace in Ukraine, Graham again threatens with tough legislation

Trump's administration will know within two weeks whether there will be peace in Ukraine, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Aug. 21 in an interview on the Todd Starnes Show, warning that if not, he will "take a different tack." These comments are the latest in a series of deadlines Trump has set for Ukraine's war — none of which have been followed by action when they came and went.

"We will know in within two weeks whether there will be peace in Ukraine. After that we will have to maybe take a different tack," Trump told conservative commentator Todd Starnes.

Taco

 

[Sparky Polastri]

It's just so dumb the entire world is playing along with the charade.

You really have two paths when dealing with a psycho path who is already in war mode. You talk. Or you squeeze. I have no problem with choosing the talk approach. Throughout our young countries history, outside of dropping the bomb on Japan and a few others, most conflicts ended through diplomatic conversations. Now, for me and in my opinion, knowing when to accept talks aren't working and shifting to squeezing is difficult. What makes this even harder is that it's not actually the United States at war here. Just feels like at some point our country became responsible for the wars continued carnage or its end. Feels kinda unfair to basically blame this administration or previous administrations for this conflict. All my opinion of course.

How did you get the bold from my comment? Genuine question.

I'll say it again. The ENTIRE WORLD (leadership) is playing along with this charade. That includes the US, but not limited to. It is abundantly clear where Putin's head is and what his goals are. He's only told us all a billion times over the last 10ish years. And now we have 3ish years of recent actions backing up those 10 years of words to solidify things. It's mind boggling.

Topics like this tend to branch out a bit. This is an example of that. Had ZERO intention of tieing you specifically to the entirety of my response. I just kinda branched out a bit. Sorry if you took it that way. Once again, sorry. Just another reminder to stay out of these topics. I'll see myself out. Ha ha

Not a big deal. When people respond to posts, I associate their responses with the posts they responded to. That's why I asked the question.

Its true this administration is no better than the rest of them. They are all going along with it for whatever reason.

 

[Dezbelief]

Trump 'not happy' about Russian strike on US factory in Ukraine

"I told (Putin) I'm not happy about it," Trump claimed a day after a Russian missile hit an American electronics plant in western Ukraine.

kyivindependent.com

Ukraine shoots down Russian Orlan 'mother drone' carrying FPVs for first time, military says

Ukrainian anti-aircraft gunners shot down a Russian Orlan drone carrying two first-person-view (FPV) drones under its wings, the 118th Separate Mechanized Brigade reported.

kyivindependent.com

Ukraine shoots down Russian Orlan 'mother drone' carrying FPVs for first time, military says

Ukrainian anti-aircraft gunners shot down a Russian Orlan drone carrying two first-person-view (FPV) drones under its wings for the first time, the 118th Separate Mechanized Brigade reported on Aug. 22.

This marks the first time the Ukrainian military has destroyed a so-called "mother drone" carrying other UAVs, the brigade claimed.

"Anti-aircraft gunners from the 118th Separate Mechanized Brigade destroyed an enemy Orlan drone carrying two FPV drones under its wings," the unit said in a Facebook post.

"Prior to this, the pilots of the pursuit platoon had already shot down dozens of enemy reconnaissance drones — Orlan, Zala, and Supercam — but this was the first time they had managed to destroy a mother drone."

 

[fatness]

Russia’s top diplomat said in an interview released on Friday that “there is no meeting planned” between President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia and President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine. It was the Kremlin’s most direct declaration yet that a summit the White House suggested was imminent was nowhere close to materializing.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/22/world/europe/putin-zelensky-meeting-russia-ukraine-summit.html
archived: https://archive.ph/uqd6C

 

[fatness]

President Trump offered a new—and familiar—deadline for the leaders of Russia and Ukraine to move forward with a peace process or face possible U.S. retaliation, saying that within “two weeks” he’ll make his determination.
“I think I’ll know the attitude of Russian, and frankly Ukraine,” Trump said at the White House Friday, “and then we’ll make a decision about what we’re going to do.” Should the two leaders fail to take steps toward resolving the war in the timeframe, Trump said he could enact “massive sanctions” or “massive tariffs” or he might do nothing and “say it’s your fight.” Trump said he would determine his next steps depending on who he believes is at fault for delaying progress.

“I’ll see whose fault it is,” Trump said. “I know exactly what I’m doing.” He added: “I’ll know within two weeks what I’m going to do,” Trump said.

https://www.wsj.com/world/russia/tr...for-next-steps-to-end-war-in-ukraine-24b546e7
archived: https://archive.ph/si48u

 

[SaintsInDome2006]

Trump on Putin: "he's been very respectful of me and of our country, but not so respectful of others".
- Displays a photo of Putin & Trump together at Alaska.
- Suggests he’s inviting Putin to FIFA.

 

[Don't Toews Me]

Russia strengthens hand in potential peace talks with steady advances in Donbas

Russian troops made a roughly 10-kilometer push toward the Dobropillia–Kramatorsk highway in Donetsk Oblast earlier this month, putting Dobropillia at a greater risk. Ukraine immediately deployed more units to the sector after the Russian tactical breakthrough, retaking some areas but losing others now that the counterattack bogged down.

"(It) appears to indicate that the Ukrainian ability to defend the terrain is essentially decreasing, or degrading rather," Muzyka, director of the defense analysis company Rochan military consultancy, told the Kyiv Independent.

As the peace talks progress, Russia is expected to continue making gains, especially in the Donetsk Oblast, but "an operation collapse" on the Ukrainian side was unlikely even if the pace of advance may accelerate, according to Muzyka.

He believed that Pokrovsk could fall to Moscow in the coming months, but Ukraine's defense elsewhere in Donetsk Oblast would depend on its ability to carry out counterattacks and deploy more units.

Estonia signals readiness to send peacekeepers to Ukraine

Estonia is ready to join a peacekeeping operation in Ukraine, Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal said at a press conference on Aug. 22.

Estonia is ready to send up to one company of troops to partake in peacekeeping efforts in Ukraine, Michal said alongside Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo following a meeting between the two leaders.

China is ready to send troops to Ukraine

China has signaled its willingness to participate in peacekeeping forces for Ukraine. EU diplomats told WELT AM SONNTAG, citing Chinese government circles. However, they stressed that the government in Beijing would only be willing to do so "if the peacekeepers were deployed on the basis of a mandate from the United Nations (UN)".
In Brussels, the plan from Beijing has met with a mixed response. On the one hand, it is said, the inclusion of countries of the Global South such as China could promote acceptance of the stationing of foreign troops to monitor peace. On the other hand, "there is also the danger that China wants to spy in Ukraine above all and takes a clearly pro-Russian position instead of a neutral position in the event of a conflict," said a senior EU diplomat familiar with the current consultations.

Russian soldiers shoot themselves and each other for compensation

Dozens of servicemen from an elite Russian unit deliberately shot themselves and each other to fraudulently claim compensation for war injuries, according to an investigation by the Russian authorities.
One of the culprits was Lieutenant Colonel Konstantin Frolov — call sign “Palach” (or “Executioner”) — who had been dubbed a war hero and featured prominently in state media reports hailing the brave soldiers of Russia’s incursion.
The investigation claimed that overall more than 200 million roubles (£1.8 million) had been claimed from the state budget after soldiers intentionally inflicted non-fatal gunshot wounds on themselves and each other, documenting them as having been suffered in combat.
According to Russia’s Kommersant newspaper, more than three dozen servicemen of Russia’s 83rd Air Assault Brigade participated in the scheme, receiving one-off payments of 3 million roubles (almost £28,000) for their injuries before being reported by a whistleblower.
Alongside financial compensation, the wounds entitled them to take paid leave and access preferential medical treatment.
Some of those who intentionally injured themselves won state awards for courage and bravery in the fight against Ukraine, including the Order of Courage, a top decoration recognising selfless acts of valour.
The alleged ringleaders were Guard Colonel Artyom Gorodilov and Frolov, who admitted to asking other soldiers to shoot at them, aiming away from their vital organs.

‘These are Ukrainian lands’: people in Donetsk pour scorn on Putin’s territorial demands

The consequences of the unceasing war can be seen in nearby Pavlohrad, to the west, in a neighbouring region. A refugee centre has been operating in the city for nearly a year, to receive people with nowhere to go. But as the Russian offensive has intensified, the number of refugees arriving has increased to “350 to 450 people a day for the past two weeks”, according to Kateryna Makarova, the team leader on the site. It compares with 200 a day two months ago, and 100 during the winter.

 

[Don't Toews Me]

Pentagon Has Quietly Blocked Ukraine’s Long-Range Missile Strikes on Russia

The Pentagon has for months been blocking Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles to strike inside Russia, U.S. officials said, limiting Kyiv from employing a powerful weapon in its fight against Moscow’s invasion.

A high-level Defense Department approval procedure, which hasn’t been announced, has prevented Ukraine from firing any U.S.-made long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, against targets in Russia since late spring, the officials said. On at least one occasion, Ukraine sought to use ATACMS against a target on Russian territory but was rejected, two officials said.

The administration this past week approved the sale of 3,350 Extended Range Attack Munition air-launched missiles, or ERAMs, which are set to arrive in Ukraine in about six weeks, two U.S. officials said. The $850 million arms package, mostly funded by European nations and which includes other items, was delayed until after Trump’s summits with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Several U.S. officials said use of the ERAM, with a range between 150-280 miles, would require Ukraine to seek approval from the Pentagon. The State Department didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Drones, armoured vehicles part of Canada’s $2B miliary aid package for Ukraine

Prime Minister Mark Carney says drones, armoured vehicles and other munitions are headed to Ukraine as part of a $2-billion military aid package.
Carney first announced the funds in June at the G7 summit in Alberta but outlined the details of where that money will be spent during a surprise visit to Kyiv today.
Roughly 40 per cent of the fund will procure urgently needed supplies for Ukraine’s war against Russia, including vehicles, arms and medical equipment.
Another third of the funding will support purchases from a list of items prioritized by NATO, including U.S. equipment, munitions and air defence capabilities.
Canada will also contribute to buying drone, counter-drone and electronic warfare capabilities.

Inside Russia’s Shadow Military Sustaining the War

“The Nevsky Battalion is accepting volunteers.” This recruitment ad appeared on Russian social media in summer 2025 and is hardly a one-off. Swap out “Nevsky” for “Wolves,” “Saint George,” or any of three dozen similar formations and a pattern emerges: Russia is leaning ever harder on irregular forces to sustain its war on Ukraine.

Moscow’s use of irregular units has transformed its military into a hybrid war machine. They are institutionalized under state control and deployed at scale, making up as much as 40 percent of the Russian-commanded troops now arrayed against Ukraine. Often tasked with the deadliest and most politically deniable missions, this shadow force gives Moscow a flexible instrument for attritional warfare and covert mobilization. While they expand Moscow’s manpower without triggering domestic political backlash, they erode the professionalism of regular forces, creating exploitable weaknesses in combined-arms proficiency. Still, even after fighting stops, these formations will blur the lines between war and peace.

Russia’s irregular forces in Ukraine are layered and fluid. They range from private military companies — the group formerly known as Wagner and its state-controlled rival, Redut — to regional volunteer battalions such as Tatarstan’s Alga and Timer, far-right paramilitaries like Rusich, penal assault units such as Storm-Z, and the Ministry of Defense’s Combat Army Reserve. Many of these groups operate under the auspices of Russia’s Ministry of Defense or military intelligence. Their personnel typically serve on short-term civilian contracts creating a legal gray zone that blurs the line between formal and informal combatants.

This ecosystem traces back to Russia’s earlier interventions in Chechnya, Georgia, and Donbas, where covert operatives and militias operated alongside regular forces. During the Second Chechen War (1999–2009), the Russian government established multiple indigenous paramilitaries in Chechnya, which became the principle counter-insurgency force enabling the Kremlin to break the backbone of the Chechen insurgency. Russia relied on South Ossetian and Abkhaz militias, armed and trained by Russian forces, to help its regular army in Georgia during the August 2008 war. Before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia used its proxy forces, including the Chechen formations, Wagner Group mercenaries, and the Russian intelligence-backed “People’s Militias” in Donbas to destabilize Ukraine and influence its politics.

Following the partial mobilization crisis of late 2022, the Kremin accelerated irregular recruitment. Redut expanded into a network of over 20 irregular formations, composed of veterans, convicts, migrant laborers, and members of regional militias, deployed across Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts. At the same time, Russia’s 85 regions were tasked with raising their own volunteer battalions. By autumn 2022, between 30 and 50 regions had done so. These regionally branded units were funded through a mix of local budgets, private donors, and political sponsors. With poor standards in training and equipment, they were deployed in high-casualty roles as frontline fillers.

The Ministry of Defense Combat Army Reserve system — originally established in 2015 as a formal volunteer reserve — absorbed some militia units, including Cossack formations and private military companies. These units, though technically affiliated with the Ministry of Defense, often operate alongside territorial defense units and private military companies, navigating overlapping and sometimes conflicting logistics, funding streams, and chains of command. For example, Konvoy — known as the private militia of Sergey Askyonov, the head of temporarily annexed Crimea — operates as both a private military company and a formal Combat Army Reserve unit with fighters signing contracts under both frameworks. This dual status creates parallel chains of command and funding, balancing patronage and regional control with the Ministry of Defense paperwork and benefits. In Russia’s western and southwestern regions bordering Ukraine, Combat Army Reserve units BARS-Kursk and BARS-Belgorod have been framed as “territorial defense units.” While tasked with local defense, these formations also support expeditionary operations in Ukraine, operating under both regional authorities and the Ministry of Defense, splitting funding streams and complicating logistics and reporting.

To reinforce these efforts, Russian oligarchs, state enterprises, and members of parliament have sponsored their own combat units, creating parallel channels of force generation. Ultranationalist formations, such as the Rusich sabotage-reconnaissance battalion, went further by leveraging social media to crowdfund equipment, move funds through cryptocurrency, and tap into criminal networks. An openly fascist group composed of ideologically driven Russian and European volunteers, Rusich functions as a compact, special-forces-style company focused on sabotage and assault reconnaissance. Once linked to Wagner, it now operates outside the Redut structure and maintains autonomy.

Reporting on Russian combat operations often fails to distinguish between regular and irregular forces. Yet, estimates suggest that irregular formations account for between one-third and one-half of Russia’s deployed ground forces in Ukraine, a staggering proportion by any modern standard. Redut alone fields more than 25,000 fighters across 27 rebranded battalions. While precise numbers for all regional volunteer fighters are unknown, Chechnya’s battalions are estimated to total at least 19,000 volunteers, with an additional 10,000 to 15,000 recruits from other regions deployed in 2022. Ukrainian intelligence assesses that between 140,000 to 180,000 convicts had been mobilized as of January 2025 through penal recruitment system. The Ministry of Defense Combat Army Reserve volunteer forces, initially estimated at 10,000 to 30,000 at the start of the war, numbered around 40,000 by mid-2025, according to the Institute for the Study of War. In addition, between 2023 and 2024, Moscow’s centralized recruitment apparatus brought in over 1,500 foreign mercenaries from 48 countries. By far the largest group, with the estimated 603 recruits, came from Nepal. The Central Asian republics, collectively, contributed several hundred fighters, often motivated by economic incentives or promises of citizenship. Several hundred Chinese nationals have fought for Russia as well, despite Beijing’s official denial.

 

[fatness]

Pentagon Has Quietly Blocked Ukraine’s Long-Range Missile Strikes on Russia

The Pentagon has for months been blocking Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles to strike inside Russia, U.S. officials said, limiting Kyiv from employing a powerful weapon in its fight against Moscow’s invasion.

A high-level Defense Department approval procedure, which hasn’t been announced, has prevented Ukraine from firing any U.S.-made long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, against targets in Russia since late spring, the officials said. On at least one occasion, Ukraine sought to use ATACMS against a target on Russian territory but was rejected, two officials said.

I just don't understand why the US keeps trying to hamstring Ukraine while walking on tippy toes around Russia, while Russia is steadily killing more Ukrainian citizens.

 

[rockaction]

Pentagon Has Quietly Blocked Ukraine’s Long-Range Missile Strikes on Russia

The Pentagon has for months been blocking Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles to strike inside Russia, U.S. officials said, limiting Kyiv from employing a powerful weapon in its fight against Moscow’s invasion.

A high-level Defense Department approval procedure, which hasn’t been announced, has prevented Ukraine from firing any U.S.-made long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, against targets in Russia since late spring, the officials said. On at least one occasion, Ukraine sought to use ATACMS against a target on Russian territory but was rejected, two officials said.

I just don't understand why the US keeps trying to hamstring Ukraine while walking on tippy toes around Russia, while Russia is steadily killing more Ukrainian citizens.

I know any comment without a cite is touch and go but this is both admins and it is nukes. It’s nuclear war. And a madman with stockpiles where any first strike changes the world irrevocably. I don’t know what to say.

 

[bagger]

Pentagon Has Quietly Blocked Ukraine’s Long-Range Missile Strikes on Russia

The Pentagon has for months been blocking Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles to strike inside Russia, U.S. officials said, limiting Kyiv from employing a powerful weapon in its fight against Moscow’s invasion.

A high-level Defense Department approval procedure, which hasn’t been announced, has prevented Ukraine from firing any U.S.-made long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, against targets in Russia since late spring, the officials said. On at least one occasion, Ukraine sought to use ATACMS against a target on Russian territory but was rejected, two officials said.

I just don't understand why the US keeps trying to hamstring Ukraine while walking on tippy toes around Russia, while Russia is steadily killing more Ukrainian citizens.

Putin has pics?

 

[fatness]

Ukraine strikes long-range with own weapons without coordinating with US, Zelensky says

Ukraine uses domestically produced weapons to carry out long-range strikes against Russia and does not coordinate such targets with the U.S., President Volodymyr Zelensky said at a press conference during Ukraine’s Independence Day on Aug. 24.

Zelensky’s statement follows a recent report by the Wall Street Journal saying that the U.S. has quietly implemented a review process giving Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth authority to bar Ukrainian long-range strikes inside Russia with American missiles, effectively blocking strikes for months.

 

[fatness]

Moscow says Kyiv has struck a nuclear power plant as Ukraine marks independence day

Russia accused Ukraine Sunday of launching drone attacks that sparked a fire at a nuclear power plant in its western Kursk region overnight, as Ukraine celebrated 34 years since its independence. Russian officials said several power and energy facilities were targeted in the overnight strikes. The fire at the nuclear facility was quickly extinguished with no injuries reported, according to the plant’s press service on Telegram. While the attack damaged a transformer, radiation levels remained within normal ranges.

The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog said it was aware of media reports that a transformer at the plants had caught fire “due to military activity,” but hadn’t received independent confirmation.

map showing location of Kursk, which is much closer to Ukraine than to Moscow.

 

[fatness]

Ukraine liberates 3 villages in Donetsk Oblast, military reports on Independence Day

Ukrainian troops have liberated three front-line villages in Donetsk Oblast from occupying Russian forces, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi announced on Aug. 24, Ukraine's Independence Day. Syrskyi's report followed a working visit to combat zones in eastern Ukraine, where Russia has steadily gained ground in recent months, particularly near the embattled logistics hub of Pokrovsk. Ukrainian forces "successfully counterattacked and cleared" the villages of Zelenyi Hai, Mykhailivka, and Volodymyrivka, Syrskyi said in a social media post published by Ukraine's General Staff.

 

[fatness]

August 24 is independence day in Ukraine.
OPINION: 34 Years Ago Today – How Ukraine Reaffirmed Its Desire to be Independent

To place things in proper context, that same day Yeltsin effectively banned the Communist Party in Russia and took over its assets. He also recognized the independence of Latvia and Estonia. The following day, Belarus also declared independence.

Despite the victory of democratic forces in Moscow, Russian politicians were perturbed by the prospect of Ukraine going its own independent way. Within days, the parliament of the Russian Federation sent a high-level delegation to Kyiv. They witnessed Ukraine’s strong desire to be fully sovereign and for normal relations to be maintained with Russia based on equality. At a joint press conference with the Russian delegation on Aug. 29, Kravchuk referred to the “former USSR” for the first time. On Aug. 30, under mounting public pressure, the presidium of the Soviet Ukrainian parliament eventually agreed to ban the Communist party in Ukraine and nationalize its property.

Finally, on Dec. 1, 1991, the referendum on independence produced a resounding vote in favor in all regions of the country. This was the final nail in the coffin of the Soviet Union. By the end of the month, after more than 70 years, the Soviet empire had ceased to exist.

 

[Chadstroma]

Former CIA Director Petraeus says Putin is ‘the obstacle to peace’ in Ukraine

Former CIA Director David Petraeus told ABC News' "This Week" he's doubtful that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will meet.

abcnews.go.com

 

[Sparky Polastri]

Pentagon Has Quietly Blocked Ukraine’s Long-Range Missile Strikes on Russia

The Pentagon has for months been blocking Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles to strike inside Russia, U.S. officials said, limiting Kyiv from employing a powerful weapon in its fight against Moscow’s invasion.

A high-level Defense Department approval procedure, which hasn’t been announced, has prevented Ukraine from firing any U.S.-made long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, against targets in Russia since late spring, the officials said. On at least one occasion, Ukraine sought to use ATACMS against a target on Russian territory but was rejected, two officials said.

I just don't understand why the US keeps trying to hamstring Ukraine while walking on tippy toes around Russia, while Russia is steadily killing more Ukrainian citizens.

You REALLY dont?

 

[Sparky Polastri]

Moscow says Kyiv has struck a nuclear power plant as Ukraine marks independence day

Russia accused Ukraine Sunday of launching drone attacks that sparked a fire at a nuclear power plant in its western Kursk region overnight, as Ukraine celebrated 34 years since its independence. Russian officials said several power and energy facilities were targeted in the overnight strikes. The fire at the nuclear facility was quickly extinguished with no injuries reported, according to the plant’s press service on Telegram. While the attack damaged a transformer, radiation levels remained within normal ranges.

The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog said it was aware of media reports that a transformer at the plants had caught fire “due to military activity,” but hadn’t received independent confirmation.

map showing location of Kursk, which is much closer to Ukraine than to Moscow.

Is Russia trying to convince us they care about this sort of thing now?

 

[fatness]

Trump has suspended delivery of Patriot missiles, hellfires, Howitzer shells & other systems.

That link appears to be dead, and at least some of the wording in the quotes is from as far back as May, in the Washington Post. What am I missing here? Thanks.

 

[fatness]

‘They’ve Actually Been Flexible’ – Vance Compliments Putin’s Team on ‘Significant Concessions’ in Peace Talks

US Vice President JD Vance said that Russia has been “flexible” in negotiations to end its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, claiming that the Kremlin has in fact made “significant concessions” in its demands. “I think the Russians have made significant concessions to President Trump for the first time in three and a half years of this conflict,” Vance told the iconic weekly news program “Meet the Press” in an interview that aired on Sunday.

“They’ve actually been willing to be flexible on some of their core demands,” Vance said. He noted that one of those concessions include “the recognition that Ukraine will have territorial integrity after the war” without specifying which territories might be retained by Ukraine in such a settlement. Vance thought another generous gesture on the part of Russian autocrat Vladimir Putin was his recognition “that they’re not going to be able to install a puppet regime in Kyiv.”

Russia, the undisputed world hoodwinking champion.

 

[Don't Toews Me]

Hunting Russian Drones in a Prop Plane With Shotguns

In the past year, these two unlikely air warriors have flown around 300 combat missions as part of the 11th Army Aviation Brigade and downed almost half the unit’s total of 120 drones eliminated, according to its deputy commander, Col. Mykola Lykhatskiy.

Ukraine has some of the West’s most advanced air defenses, including the Patriot missile system. It also has F-16 jets that it sometimes uses to down missiles and drones. But it has also developed a series of lower-cost tactics to counter the threat from the skies, ranging from nets to signal jamming.

Soldiers and volunteers also man pickup truck-mounted heavy machine guns to try to take out explosive-laden Shahed drones. Others use vintage Soviet missiles fired from launchers made out of reused shipping containers.

Then there are the men and flying machines of the 11th. When a drone appears on military radar screens, crews scramble to their two-seater Yak-52 trainers, with a sliding glass canopy reminiscent of World War II fighters. Usually, they are airborne within 15 minutes.

Their squadron has brought military aviation back to its very beginnings in World War I, engaging the enemy at close range with a marksman leaning out of his cockpit with a gun.

The Yak-52 is so basic that it has no radar of its own and has to fly in the daytime, when the crew is guided by radio before visual contact. Their cockpit gets so cold in the winter they need thick jackets, gloves and old-school, fur-lined flying helmets.

The successes of these planes and helicopters account for around 10% to 12% of the drones intercepted by Ukraine on a typical day, said Lykhatskiy.

Sometimes pilots get so close they can use their plane’s wings to tilt the drone’s wings and send it off course, said Lykhatskiy. British pilots used that tactic in World War II against Germany’s V-1, widely considered the world’s first missile.

Inside Donetsk as residents flee attacks on Ukrainian region Putin wants to control

The cost of holding on is measured in Ukrainian soldiers' lives and body parts.

Later on, I drive to a National Guard field hospital and the medics of the 14th Operational Brigade who operate under the cover of darkness. The drone activity never ceases, and the war injured, and the dead, can only be safely retrieved at night.

Russian casualties are far higher, perhaps three times as much or more, but it has a greater capacity to absorb losses than Ukraine.

The wounded begin to arrive, the cases growing steadily more serious as night stretches into morning. The casualties are from fighting in Pokrovsk, a city that Russia has been trying to seize for a year, and is now partially encircled. It's a key city in Donetsk's defence, and the fighting has been brutal.

The first man arrives conscious, a bullet wound to chest from a firefight. Next comes another man in his forties covered in shrapnel wounds. It took two days and three attempts to rescue him, such was the intensity of the fighting. Next a man whose right leg has been almost blown off entirely by a drone strike on the road from Pokrovsk to Myrnohrad.

Senior Lieutenant Dima of the 14th Brigade National Guard, a 42-year-old surgeon, moves from patient to patient. This is a medical stabilisation unit, so his job is to patch up the injured as quickly as possible and send them on to a main hospital for further treatment. "It's hard because I know I can do more, but I don't have the time," he tells me.

After all this carnage, I ask him too if Donbas should be surrendered to bring peace.

"We have to stop [the war], but we don't want to stop it like this", he says. "We want back our territory, our people and we have to punish Russia for what they did."

He's exhausted, casualties have been heavier, dozens a day, since Russia's incursion, and the injuries are the worst the doctors have seen since the war began, mostly because of drones.

"We just want to go home to live in peace without this nightmare, this blood, this death," he says.

On the drive out that afternoon, between fields of corn and sunflowers, miles of newly uncoiled barbed wire glint in the sunlight. They run alongside raised banks of red earth, deep trenches and neat lines of anti-tank dragon's teeth concrete pyramids. All designed to slow any sudden Russian advance.

It is believed that Russia has over 100,000 troops standing by, waiting to exploit another opportunity like the earlier breaches around Dobropillia.

These new fortifications carved in the Ukrainian dirt chart a deteriorating situation here in Donetsk. What's left of the region may yet be surrendered by diplomacy, but until then Ukraine, bloodied and exhausted, remains intent on fighting for every inch of it.

Canadian PM Carney, in Ukraine, says he can't rule out sending peacekeepers

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Sunday he backed Ukraine's calls for robust security guarantees as part of any peace deal, saying Canada would not rule out sending troops under such a framework.

During the press conference with Carney, Zelenskiy was asked about a story in the Wall Street Journal which said the Pentagon had for months been quietly blocking Ukraine's use of the U.S.-supplied ATACMS missile to hit targets in Russia.
A source familiar with the matter said while there was never a formal suspension in long-range attacks, the Pentagon had created a review process that has so far not authorized a strike with the ATACMS deep inside Russia.
In response, Zelenskiy said Kyiv has of late been using its own domestically produced long-range weapons to hit targets inside Russia, which are not cleared with Washington.
"Lately we have not been discussing this issue with the United States," he said.

Zelensky doesn't have legitimacy to sign a peace deal, Russia's top diplomat claims

The Kremlin will not accept President Volodymyr Zelensky's signature on legal documents establishing terms for an end to Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with NBC News released on Aug. 24.

"When we come to a stage when you have to sign documents, we would need a very clear understanding by everybody that the person who is signing is legitimate, and ... Mr. Zelensky is not at the moment," Lavrov told NBC News in an interview taped Aug. 22 and aired in full on Aug. 24, Ukraine's Independence Day.

Lavrov said the Kremlin views Zelensky as the "de facto head of the regime" but not a legitimate leader of Ukraine.

https://x.com/BBCSteveR/status/1959896650832359618

In today’s Russian papers no sign that Moscow’s position on Ukraine has changed. But plenty of indications of economic problems: “business stagnation”, “one in two Russians looking for a second job", petrol prices “hit new record high.”

 

[beer 30]

Pentagon Has Quietly Blocked Ukraine’s Long-Range Missile Strikes on Russia

The Pentagon has for months been blocking Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles to strike inside Russia, U.S. officials said, limiting Kyiv from employing a powerful weapon in its fight against Moscow’s invasion.

A high-level Defense Department approval procedure, which hasn’t been announced, has prevented Ukraine from firing any U.S.-made long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, against targets in Russia since late spring, the officials said. On at least one occasion, Ukraine sought to use ATACMS against a target on Russian territory but was rejected, two officials said.

I just don't understand why the US keeps trying to hamstring Ukraine while walking on tippy toes around Russia, while Russia is steadily killing more Ukrainian citizens.

My guess, and I'm going out on a limb here, is there are approximately 5,460 reasons we walk a little softer path with Russia. Most of those reasons are pointed at us in case you need me to less obtuse.

 

[SaintsInDome2006]

Pentagon Has Quietly Blocked Ukraine’s Long-Range Missile Strikes on Russia

The Pentagon has for months been blocking Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles to strike inside Russia, U.S. officials said, limiting Kyiv from employing a powerful weapon in its fight against Moscow’s invasion.

A high-level Defense Department approval procedure, which hasn’t been announced, has prevented Ukraine from firing any U.S.-made long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, against targets in Russia since late spring, the officials said. On at least one occasion, Ukraine sought to use ATACMS against a target on Russian territory but was rejected, two officials said.

The administration this past week approved the sale of 3,350 Extended Range Attack Munition air-launched missiles, or ERAMs, which are set to arrive in Ukraine in about six weeks, two U.S. officials said. The $850 million arms package, mostly funded by European nations and which includes other items, was delayed until after Trump’s summits with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Several U.S. officials said use of the ERAM, with a range between 150-280 miles, would require Ukraine to seek approval from the Pentagon. The State Department didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Note - this applies to any ***US made system. Ukraine is starting to make its own long range systems & it’s acquiring from elsewhere in NATO now.

 

[SaintsInDome2006]

Zelensky doesn't have legitimacy to sign a peace deal, Russia's top diplomat claims

The Kremlin will not accept President Volodymyr Zelensky's signature on legal documents establishing terms for an end to Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with NBC News released on Aug. 24.

"When we come to a stage when you have to sign documents, we would need a very clear understanding by everybody that the person who is signing is legitimate, and ... Mr. Zelensky is not at the moment," Lavrov told NBC News in an interview taped Aug. 22 and aired in full on Aug. 24, Ukraine's Independence Day.

Lavrov said the Kremlin views Zelensky as the "de facto head of the regime" but not a legitimate leader of Ukraine.

This alone demonstrates how contorted this supposed peace process has been. Not only was Putin never going to meet Zelensky, Russia claims Zelensky is entirely not recognized by Russia as someone they will negotiate with.