AD1184
Celestial
There's possibly some missing context here.
There's possibly some missing context here.
nivek
As Above So Below
pigfarmer
tall, thin, irritable
Building a border fence. What a novel idea. Obviously they are all a bunch of Ultra-MAGA racist Finns who endanger Democracy.
Finland starts construction of Russia border fence
Finland starts construction of Russia border fence
IMAGE SOURCE,FINNISH BORDER GUARD
Image caption,
Work on the fence at the Imatra border crossing started on Tuesday
By George Wright
BBC News
Finland has begun constructing a 200km (124 mile) fence on its border with Russia to boost security.
The Border Guard said it will be 3m (10ft) tall with barbed wire on top.
Finland shares the longest European Union border with Russia, at 1,340km (832 miles). At present, Finland's borders are secured primarily by light wooden fences.
Finland decided to build the fence due to a rise in Russians seeking to escape conscription to fight in Ukraine.
The Nordic country also moved closer to joining the Nato alliance on Tuesday. Its parliament started debating a bill to speed up the country's bid, with a vote expected on Wednesday.
Work on the fence at the Imatra border crossing started on Tuesday with forest clearance, while road construction and fence installation are planned to start in March.
Night vision cameras, lights and loudspeakers will be installed in certain sections of the fence.
A 3km pilot project at Imatra is expected to be completed by the end of June, the Border Guard said.
Finland passed new amendments to its Border Guard Act in July to allow the building of stronger fences. The current wooden fences are mainly to prevent livestock crossing the border.
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Finland has sought to strengthen its eastern border. In September, large numbers of Russians started fleeing to Finland after President Vladimir Putin ordered a mobilisation of reservists to fight in Ukraine.
Following Russia's invasion on 24 February last year, both Finland and Sweden decided they wanted to join Nato as soon as possible, after being neutral for years.
But Helsinki faces fewer diplomatic hurdles than Stockholm, and the Finnish government wants to move forward even before Finland's general elections in April.
Only Turkey and Hungary have yet to approve the Finnish and Swedish bids to join the defensive bloc.
Finland starts construction of Russia border fence
Finland starts construction of Russia border fence
Image caption,
Work on the fence at the Imatra border crossing started on Tuesday
By George Wright
BBC News
Finland has begun constructing a 200km (124 mile) fence on its border with Russia to boost security.
The Border Guard said it will be 3m (10ft) tall with barbed wire on top.
Finland shares the longest European Union border with Russia, at 1,340km (832 miles). At present, Finland's borders are secured primarily by light wooden fences.
Finland decided to build the fence due to a rise in Russians seeking to escape conscription to fight in Ukraine.
The Nordic country also moved closer to joining the Nato alliance on Tuesday. Its parliament started debating a bill to speed up the country's bid, with a vote expected on Wednesday.
Work on the fence at the Imatra border crossing started on Tuesday with forest clearance, while road construction and fence installation are planned to start in March.
Night vision cameras, lights and loudspeakers will be installed in certain sections of the fence.
A 3km pilot project at Imatra is expected to be completed by the end of June, the Border Guard said.
Finland passed new amendments to its Border Guard Act in July to allow the building of stronger fences. The current wooden fences are mainly to prevent livestock crossing the border.
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Finland has sought to strengthen its eastern border. In September, large numbers of Russians started fleeing to Finland after President Vladimir Putin ordered a mobilisation of reservists to fight in Ukraine.
Following Russia's invasion on 24 February last year, both Finland and Sweden decided they wanted to join Nato as soon as possible, after being neutral for years.
But Helsinki faces fewer diplomatic hurdles than Stockholm, and the Finnish government wants to move forward even before Finland's general elections in April.
Only Turkey and Hungary have yet to approve the Finnish and Swedish bids to join the defensive bloc.
AD1184
Celestial
Walls don't work. Except in Europe.Building a border fence. What a novel idea. Obviously they are all a bunch of Ultra-MAGA racist Finns who endanger Democracy.
Finland starts construction of Russia border fence
Finland starts construction of Russia border fence
IMAGE SOURCE,FINNISH BORDER GUARD
Image caption,
Work on the fence at the Imatra border crossing started on Tuesday
By George Wright
BBC News
Finland has begun constructing a 200km (124 mile) fence on its border with Russia to boost security.
The Border Guard said it will be 3m (10ft) tall with barbed wire on top.
Finland shares the longest European Union border with Russia, at 1,340km (832 miles). At present, Finland's borders are secured primarily by light wooden fences.
Finland decided to build the fence due to a rise in Russians seeking to escape conscription to fight in Ukraine.
The Nordic country also moved closer to joining the Nato alliance on Tuesday. Its parliament started debating a bill to speed up the country's bid, with a vote expected on Wednesday.
Work on the fence at the Imatra border crossing started on Tuesday with forest clearance, while road construction and fence installation are planned to start in March.
Night vision cameras, lights and loudspeakers will be installed in certain sections of the fence.
A 3km pilot project at Imatra is expected to be completed by the end of June, the Border Guard said.
Finland passed new amendments to its Border Guard Act in July to allow the building of stronger fences. The current wooden fences are mainly to prevent livestock crossing the border.
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Finland has sought to strengthen its eastern border. In September, large numbers of Russians started fleeing to Finland after President Vladimir Putin ordered a mobilisation of reservists to fight in Ukraine.
Following Russia's invasion on 24 February last year, both Finland and Sweden decided they wanted to join Nato as soon as possible, after being neutral for years.
But Helsinki faces fewer diplomatic hurdles than Stockholm, and the Finnish government wants to move forward even before Finland's general elections in April.
Only Turkey and Hungary have yet to approve the Finnish and Swedish bids to join the defensive bloc.
AD1184
Celestial
It seemed like an obviously misleadingly edited video, where Zelensky was in the middle of saying something along the lines of "In the event of [X], the US will have to send troops to fight Russia." And indeed, he was making his standard talking point that the US will have to give Ukraine more aid, because if Ukraine falls, then NATO countries are next in line for Russia. The likelihood of this is debatable, but this is not really a very controversial remark from Zelensky, and is a common rhetorical point used by the Ukrainian government to appeal for Western aid.
Dejan Corovic
As above, so bellow
Building a border fence. What a novel idea. Obviously they are all a bunch of Ultra-MAGA racist Finns who endanger Democracy.
Finland starts construction of Russia border fence
Finland starts construction of Russia border fence
IMAGE SOURCE,FINNISH BORDER GUARD
Image caption,
Work on the fence at the Imatra border crossing started on Tuesday
By George Wright
BBC News
Finland has begun constructing a 200km (124 mile) fence on its border with Russia to boost security.
The Border Guard said it will be 3m (10ft) tall with barbed wire on top.
Finland shares the longest European Union border with Russia, at 1,340km (832 miles). At present, Finland's borders are secured primarily by light wooden fences.
Finland decided to build the fence due to a rise in Russians seeking to escape conscription to fight in Ukraine.
The Nordic country also moved closer to joining the Nato alliance on Tuesday. Its parliament started debating a bill to speed up the country's bid, with a vote expected on Wednesday.
Work on the fence at the Imatra border crossing started on Tuesday with forest clearance, while road construction and fence installation are planned to start in March.
Night vision cameras, lights and loudspeakers will be installed in certain sections of the fence.
A 3km pilot project at Imatra is expected to be completed by the end of June, the Border Guard said.
Finland passed new amendments to its Border Guard Act in July to allow the building of stronger fences. The current wooden fences are mainly to prevent livestock crossing the border.
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Finland has sought to strengthen its eastern border. In September, large numbers of Russians started fleeing to Finland after President Vladimir Putin ordered a mobilisation of reservists to fight in Ukraine.
Following Russia's invasion on 24 February last year, both Finland and Sweden decided they wanted to join Nato as soon as possible, after being neutral for years.
But Helsinki faces fewer diplomatic hurdles than Stockholm, and the Finnish government wants to move forward even before Finland's general elections in April.
Only Turkey and Hungary have yet to approve the Finnish and Swedish bids to join the defensive bloc.
It is hypocritical from an European country first to actively incite Russians to rebel against Putin's dictatorship, but then to deny political asylum to those who oppose Putin.
Yeah, but Ukrainians are so close to victory. With continued supply of most modern weapons this year Ukrainians will wipe floor with Russians. Russian resources ace totally depleted, with 40% of their armoured vehicles already destroyed.
AD1184
Celestial
The Russians are suffering a lot of casualties at Ukrainian hands, I will admit. However, I don't believe that Ukraine is 'close to victory' by any stretch. I don't think that either side is close to achieving their military objectives, and the conflict will have to end ultimately in a negotiated settlement. It is just a question of how many lives both sides are willing to sacrifice before they get to that point.
Dejan Corovic
As above, so bellow
Historically speaking, and that policy goes several centuries back, not just back to WWII, Russian leaders have always opted for policy that lives of Russian men are cheap.
Russian casualties currently stand at about 100k - 150k, probably by the end of this year they'll be around 300k. Their army is around 1.0M, so its 30%.
Russian casualties currently stand at about 100k - 150k, probably by the end of this year they'll be around 300k. Their army is around 1.0M, so its 30%.
nivek
As Above So Below
Russia's troop death toll 'passes 150,000' with bodies of 'human wave' soldiers carried off battlefield 'like a conveyor belt' - as Ukraine clings on to key town
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said on Thursday that 715 Russian soldiers had been killed since Wednesday's count, taking the total to 150,605. Its latest tally came as Moscow continued in its push to encircle Bakhmut, which Russia says would open the way to fully controlling the rest of the strategic Donbas industrial region bordering Russia, one of the main objectives of Putin's invasion. However, doing so has come at a cost. The months-long battle for the city has been compared to a First World War 'meat grinder', with Russia suffering tens of thousands of casualties while making only marginal gains in the region. One military analysts said today Russia was sending in 'human waves', only for its soldiers to be carried off the battlefield 'like a conveyor belt'..
nivek
As Above So Below
AD1184
Celestial
Furthermore, Ukraine has consistently tried to thwart the will of the inhabitants of Crimea in being Russian and not Ukrainian ever since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Ukrainians do not like the Crimeans either: when Crimea was annexed by Russia in 2014, Ukraine dammed the North Crimea Canal, a freshwater canal stretching into Crimea from the Dnieper river which provided nearly 90% of the freshwater to the peninsula. This was a collective punishment upon the inhabitants of Crimea, which Ukraine is supposedly keen to liberate from Russia. Let us not forget that "targeting civilian infrastructure is a war crime" mantra that western media have recently adopted. Does Ukraine wish to liberate the Crimeans, or subjugate them?
Last edited:
nivek
As Above So Below
Elite Russian tank brigade suffers 'catastrophic' losses and is refusing to carry out orders after they were repeatedly told to drive to their deaths through infamous Ukrainian mine-filled crossroads
Russia's elite 155th Brigade is reportedly refusing to advance on the Ukrainian town of Vuhledar after suffering 'catastrophic losses' at the settlement's mine-laden crossing point.The armoured division appears to have mutinied following orders to drive straight into a heavily fortified minefield which has been dubbed the 'corridor of death' following repeated futile advances.
Vuhledar has resisted Putin's suicidal wave tactics for months and nearly wiped out the brigade towards the end of January, now reinforced with powerful American antivehicle mines.
Putin's elite brigade - which served in Syria and has been in Ukraine since the start of the war - lost 130 tanks following sustained orders to attack the position, and is today made up mostly of inexperienced recruits.
A spokesperson for the Ukrainian military told the Kyiv Post: 'The leaders of the brigade and senior officers are refusing to proceed with a new senseless attack as demanded by their unskilled commanders - to storm well-defended Ukrainian positions with little protection or preparation.'
Ukrainian forces around the town of Vuhledar have been locked in 'fierce' battles with Russia in the east for months.
The battered mining town is a hellscape of burned out buildings and artillery bombardment.
(More on the link)
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nivek
As Above So Below
Are sanctions REALLY wrecking life in Russia? As British supermarkets ration eggs and vegetables - thanks in part to Putin's war in Ukraine - shelves in a provincial Russian city are GROANING under piles of fresh food
These revealing photographs show shop shelves in a provincial Russian city groaning under piles of fresh food.As British supermarkets ration eggs and an array of fruit and vegetables amid shortages provoked in large part by the Ukraine war, no such hardships afflict Vladimir Putin’s citizens.
The pictures were taken at a food hall, two superstores and a corner shop in Perm, a city with a population the size of Birmingham in the Ural mountains, a 24-hour drive from Moscow. The images suggest the West’s much-vaunted sanctions on Russia, imposed to punish President Putin for his invasion, are not having a deep bite.
What’s more, the scenes are a reversal of 40 years ago, when many of us watched pitiful TV footage of Russians under the Communist regime queuing for staples such as bread and eggs.
Now it’s Britain’s turn to suffer. Supermarkets here are rationing tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and lettuces as UK farmers struggle with higher energy costs which stop them using hothouses in winter to grow them. Soft fruit, including raspberries, are also hard to find in the shops.
Tony Montalbano, a director of Green Acre Salads in Roydon, Essex, typically produces a million kilograms of baby cucumbers a year, but his glasshouses were empty last month.
He delayed growing his crops to avoid rocketing winter fuel bills of up to £500,000 a month. He expects his production to be cut by up to half this year.
‘It’s sad and frustrating but I can’t afford to grow,’ he said. ‘I must make a profit. If I don’t, there’s no point in me going on. Lots of growers are closing their doors and selling up.’
Jack Ward, chief executive of the British Growers Association, added: ‘Up and down the country, we’ve got empty glasshouses. People who would grow two or three crops of cucumbers a year may cut that to just one, because they want to avoid using more expensive energy.’
Eggs are also being rationed as farmers cannot afford the costs of keeping laying hens warm in energy-guzzling sheds.
The result is that many staples here are far more expensive than in Russia as our chart shows.
Residents of Perm, and elsewhere in Russia, have plenty of cheap food. Low-cost energy in the gas-rich nation means vegetables can be grown in hot houses throughout the bitter winter. Russia is also able to import large quantities of fruit from sympathetic countries, such as Iran, enjoying warmer climates.
Nor is there anxiety over heating homes, while filling cars with plentiful cheap petrol or diesel is a breeze.
PICTURED: Filton Asda in Bristol. British supermarkets ration eggs and an array of fruit and vegetables amid shortages
PICTURED: Food market in the city of Perm, Russia.
(More on the link)
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wwkirk
Divine
Haven't investigated the actual status of Russian markets, but possibly they're examples of a Potemkin Village.Are sanctions REALLY wrecking life in Russia? As British supermarkets ration eggs and vegetables - thanks in part to Putin's war in Ukraine - shelves in a provincial Russian city are GROANING under piles of fresh food
These revealing photographs show shop shelves in a provincial Russian city groaning under piles of fresh food.
As British supermarkets ration eggs and an array of fruit and vegetables amid shortages provoked in large part by the Ukraine war, no such hardships afflict Vladimir Putin’s citizens.
The pictures were taken at a food hall, two superstores and a corner shop in Perm, a city with a population the size of Birmingham in the Ural mountains, a 24-hour drive from Moscow. The images suggest the West’s much-vaunted sanctions on Russia, imposed to punish President Putin for his invasion, are not having a deep bite.
What’s more, the scenes are a reversal of 40 years ago, when many of us watched pitiful TV footage of Russians under the Communist regime queuing for staples such as bread and eggs.
Now it’s Britain’s turn to suffer. Supermarkets here are rationing tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and lettuces as UK farmers struggle with higher energy costs which stop them using hothouses in winter to grow them. Soft fruit, including raspberries, are also hard to find in the shops.
Tony Montalbano, a director of Green Acre Salads in Roydon, Essex, typically produces a million kilograms of baby cucumbers a year, but his glasshouses were empty last month.
He delayed growing his crops to avoid rocketing winter fuel bills of up to £500,000 a month. He expects his production to be cut by up to half this year.
‘It’s sad and frustrating but I can’t afford to grow,’ he said. ‘I must make a profit. If I don’t, there’s no point in me going on. Lots of growers are closing their doors and selling up.’
Jack Ward, chief executive of the British Growers Association, added: ‘Up and down the country, we’ve got empty glasshouses. People who would grow two or three crops of cucumbers a year may cut that to just one, because they want to avoid using more expensive energy.’
Eggs are also being rationed as farmers cannot afford the costs of keeping laying hens warm in energy-guzzling sheds.
The result is that many staples here are far more expensive than in Russia as our chart shows.
Residents of Perm, and elsewhere in Russia, have plenty of cheap food. Low-cost energy in the gas-rich nation means vegetables can be grown in hot houses throughout the bitter winter. Russia is also able to import large quantities of fruit from sympathetic countries, such as Iran, enjoying warmer climates.
Nor is there anxiety over heating homes, while filling cars with plentiful cheap petrol or diesel is a breeze.
PICTURED: Filton Asda in Bristol. British supermarkets ration eggs and an array of fruit and vegetables amid shortages
PICTURED: Food market in the city of Perm, Russia.
(More on the link)
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"The term comes from stories of a fake portable village built by Grigory Potemkin, former lover of Empress Catherine II, solely to impress the Empress during her journey to Crimea in 1787. The original story was that Potemkin erected phony portable settlements along the banks of the Dnieper River in order to impress the Russian Empress and foreign guests. The structures would be disassembled after she passed, and re-assembled farther along her route to be viewed again as if another example of life."
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v5hiusFdHo
nivek
As Above So Below
nivek
As Above So Below
The paragraph in bold below is telling, seems they are planning for this war to last another seven years...
...
A “massive order” of ammunition, ranging from small arms to 155mm artillery rounds, is being prepared in Brussels but only EU and Norwegian manufacturers will be able to take advantage.
France, Germany and Italy, the home of Europe’s biggest arms manufacturers are likely to be the biggest beneficiaries to the detriment of the the UK, which is the world’s seventh largest arms exporter.
“Essentially, this is a zero-sum game and the proposal will bolster European defence industry at the costs of those outside the union,” a diplomatic source in Brussels said.
The EU is close to agreeing on its landmark move to jointly procure ammunition to help Ukraine in its war with Russia and replenish members’ stockpiles.
The plan involves immediately transferring ammunition reserves and “rapidly” sending new joint orders to meet EU and Ukrainian needs as part of “a massive and strong signal to EU industry”.
Hanno Pevkur, the defence minister of Estonia said on Monday he believed ministers would reach a “political consensus” on joint procurement when they are scheduled to meet in Stockholm on Wednesday.
According to the leaked discussion paper that will be in front of ministers, member states are initially being encouraged to offer up their spare stockpiles of ammunition to Kyiv, of which up to 90% of the cost could be reimbursed by Brussels.
There will also be a seven-year plan to start this spring under which European industry will be encouraged to scale up manufacturing to meet both Ukraine’s demands and those of the member states.
“The aggregated demands of both member states and Ukraine provide an opportunity to place a massive order to send industry a clear demand signal, enabling it to ramp up its production capacity in an orderly and enduring way across Europe,” the leaked paper says.
According to the document, 25 EU member states and Norway have confirmed their interest in participating.
The paper calls for a “fast-track” negotiation with suppliers in the EU and Norway over the size and cost of these orders, with contracts to be concluded “between end-April and end-May”.
The EU policy discussion document, known as a non-paper, notes that there may be issues with the current capacity of European industry to meet the demands put upon it.
The solution is not to turn to other major world suppliers, such as the UK, but instead to devise new industrial policies that could trigger a “rapid ramp-up of manufacturing capabilities”, the paper says.
The loss of the European market for its ammunition exports will be a major blow to UK firms. According to ADS, a defence trade association, the British arms industry has an annual turnover of about £25bn and directly employs around 133,000 people, with a similar number of indirect employees.
(More on the link)
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...
UK will miss out on EU’s ‘massive’ increase in arms spending for Ukraine
Britain’s defence industry is to be blocked from profiting from the EU’s vast increase in spending on arms for Ukraine, under a leaked plan seen by the Guardian.A “massive order” of ammunition, ranging from small arms to 155mm artillery rounds, is being prepared in Brussels but only EU and Norwegian manufacturers will be able to take advantage.
France, Germany and Italy, the home of Europe’s biggest arms manufacturers are likely to be the biggest beneficiaries to the detriment of the the UK, which is the world’s seventh largest arms exporter.
“Essentially, this is a zero-sum game and the proposal will bolster European defence industry at the costs of those outside the union,” a diplomatic source in Brussels said.
The EU is close to agreeing on its landmark move to jointly procure ammunition to help Ukraine in its war with Russia and replenish members’ stockpiles.
The plan involves immediately transferring ammunition reserves and “rapidly” sending new joint orders to meet EU and Ukrainian needs as part of “a massive and strong signal to EU industry”.
Hanno Pevkur, the defence minister of Estonia said on Monday he believed ministers would reach a “political consensus” on joint procurement when they are scheduled to meet in Stockholm on Wednesday.
According to the leaked discussion paper that will be in front of ministers, member states are initially being encouraged to offer up their spare stockpiles of ammunition to Kyiv, of which up to 90% of the cost could be reimbursed by Brussels.
There will also be a seven-year plan to start this spring under which European industry will be encouraged to scale up manufacturing to meet both Ukraine’s demands and those of the member states.
“The aggregated demands of both member states and Ukraine provide an opportunity to place a massive order to send industry a clear demand signal, enabling it to ramp up its production capacity in an orderly and enduring way across Europe,” the leaked paper says.
According to the document, 25 EU member states and Norway have confirmed their interest in participating.
The paper calls for a “fast-track” negotiation with suppliers in the EU and Norway over the size and cost of these orders, with contracts to be concluded “between end-April and end-May”.
The EU policy discussion document, known as a non-paper, notes that there may be issues with the current capacity of European industry to meet the demands put upon it.
The solution is not to turn to other major world suppliers, such as the UK, but instead to devise new industrial policies that could trigger a “rapid ramp-up of manufacturing capabilities”, the paper says.
The loss of the European market for its ammunition exports will be a major blow to UK firms. According to ADS, a defence trade association, the British arms industry has an annual turnover of about £25bn and directly employs around 133,000 people, with a similar number of indirect employees.
(More on the link)
.
nivek
As Above So Below
China is building HUNDREDS of new missile sites, producing more WMDs, making weapons that can shoot down satellites and building a military to take on America in a 'large-scale, sustained conflict', US intelligence warn
U.S. intelligence is looking at a plethora of new threats from China, including an increase in nuclear launchers, more threats to Taiwan, space-based missiles, and bolstering its capabilities for Weapons of Mass Destruction. The assessment comes amid increased tensions between Washington and Beijing, which have gotten worse in the wake of the spy balloon China sent over the U.S. and reports Xi Jinping is considering lethal aid to Russia for its war in Ukraine. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden's budget proposal includes an unprecedented increase in funding for the Pentagon during a time of peace - $835 billion, up from the $816 billion in the current budget.
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Dejan Corovic
As above, so bellow
China is building HUNDREDS of new missile sites, producing more WMDs, making weapons that can shoot down satellites and building a military to take on America in a 'large-scale, sustained conflict', US intelligence warn
U.S. intelligence is looking at a plethora of new threats from China, including an increase in nuclear launchers, more threats to Taiwan, space-based missiles, and bolstering its capabilities for Weapons of Mass Destruction. The assessment comes amid increased tensions between Washington and Beijing, which have gotten worse in the wake of the spy balloon China sent over the U.S. and reports Xi Jinping is considering lethal aid to Russia for its war in Ukraine. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden's budget proposal includes an unprecedented increase in funding for the Pentagon during a time of peace - $835 billion, up from the $816 billion in the current budget.
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Well, they are learning from Russians, aren't they?
Hopefully that arms build up will decimate Chinese industrial capacity, like it did destroyed the economy of Soviet Union
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Dejan Corovic
As above, so bellow
How about this?
The Great (Male) Stagnation - Marginal REVOLUTION
You have probably seen something like the following graph which shows real GDP per capita and median male income since 1947. Typically, the graph is shown with family or household income but to avoid family-size effects I use male income. It’s evident that real gdp per capita and median male...
marginalrevolution.com
Do, maybe, wars serve as an distraction?