Ireland's defensive frailty exposed by Russian exercise

Not denying it .......

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Military hardware is costly but if we were to think outside the box a bit we can plan to improve our defence from its current placement. I would be inclined to start with a National Intelligence Organisation. We could also invest in Drones rather than attack aircraft. Navy wise patrol boats and at least one Frigate. Nato is almost certainly now an option we need to consider.

There have been suspicsions of fishing boats being dragged by submarines alright, but more suspecting UK submerged craft than Russian as far as I remember.

sure every air force is using old equipment, the US is using 60 year old b52s

Sure, but there is a big difference in using an old something that is still the best something to use for the job that it was intended to do ..... and having to use old equipment because you ain't getting nothing else.

Projected to fly for another 40 years but they have received regular upgrades over Years the Russian bear is a clone of the American b29 stratofortress from 1943

I know all about, whats your point, they keep them flying, no different

Different tools for different jobs ,flown against plenty of opposition who has the ability to shoot them down from Vietnam to Iraq ,

The may look like 60s technology ,but most current b52s flying are modern airframes ,new engines and avionics ,a formation of b52s have the ability of wiping out a 5km square killing everything insight ,

But with new next generation stealth bombers already flying depending on where you get your information from ,they might not see the next 40 years , but they will have the ability to do a job even if it's limited

We've allowed 40 + countries including Russia to use shannon along with various ports ,the joys of neutrality oddly enough Shannon watch only ever sees the Americans

There equally as bad as each other ,but wait till China comes to the party ,

We will be begging for help from America along with everyone else

But this is the point, when China comes to the party they are going to completely rob the yanks lunch money when they come with it.

This whole situation with the Ukraine is so absolutely stupid from an EU/American point of view. Not only will conflict destabilize the country of Ukraine, completely wrecking it, it will also greatly destabilize Europe, especially Germany, which is de-facto Europe as a whole. Not only that, it will drive the Russian's straight into the arms of the Chinese. Which will be a future disaster scenario. There is no need for any of this current willy-waving nonsense. The best thing in the long run is to leave Ukraine be, split the divide already in the country on a East/West cultural but co-operate division and keep everybody happy, but the hungry hawks on the payroll of continuous division and conflict within the EU/American administration's seem that this current policy of driving conflict and hostility is the best way to go. The Monroe Doctrine should go both ways if the Western Hemisphere is to in any way survive. Somebody needs to inform the hawks before it's too late, or maybe they don't care, or maybe that's the plan?

You can rightly hang the current crisis and the one 8-9 years ago on the likes of Washington. Russia does not want any sort of hegemonic encroachment onto its territory straight from its own borders. That is all they care about, and quite frankly, its also fair enough. It has nothing to do with Putin. This is Russia you are talking about. The Russian people, who over half the country of the Ukraine in the east identify with. I mean, How would Washington or the people of the USA like it if, lets say, the Chinese decided to placate its own global hegemonic force akin to the likes of NATO into Canada, or Mexico? How do you think Washington or the people of the United States would react? Would they just go "ahh yeah fair enough, this sounds totally reasonable" or would they do the exact same thing the Russian nation is doing? Seriously, What's the difference?

The entire swathe of the eastern half of the Ukraine wants nothing to do with the EU, NATO or whatever else you are having. They never have, not since the armies of the German Nationalist Socialist Front went in there and started shooting people in the head and throwing them into open lime ditches. They are deeply deeply suspicious of any other entity approaching from the west ever since then, same goes for the Russian people. They don't want what the EU or the Yanks want to sell them, so why try and push it? Its not going to work that way, only sow division, conflict and ultimately war.

Hegemony has everything to do with it because that is how the United States of America has set itself up since the advent of World War 1. You say it's irrelevant, but it isn't, if it was irrelevant why has the United States got bases and forces strewn throughout the entire globe? Why has she involved herself in all manner of wars, conflicts and coups in every single continent on the planet? The Russians don't want any of that anywhere near them, especially on the fringes of their own borders. And like I said, that is fair enough, because the Americans, both the administration or the general population would not tolerate the likes of China doing the same to the likes of Canada, Mexico, or Cuba, so once again, why should the Russian people or half the people in the Ukraine or all of the Crimea tolerate it?