Russia - threadbanned users in OP

Yes, and that's one of the reasons for the interest in hydrogen. Also, this event has highlighted the critical importance of fertilisers to maintaining the human overpopulation of the planet. Much of that fertiliser is made from natural gas, but if you use solar energy to manufacture hydrogen and convert that to ammonia, it becomes relatively easy to transport compared to hydrogen and is an ideal precursor for making ferilisor - just add nitrogen - ammonium nitrate. I'm not sure why you wouldn't want to just make that in close proximity to your solar farms and cut out the transporting ammonia bit as well.

I find it fascinating that she's so open about her vision for Russia in the future.

Nazi propaganda was actually very similar though. Goebbels portrayed the western powers as deeply corrupt and decadent and the word "democracy" as a byword for corruption and moral decay i.e. people needed to live in an authoritarian state, where the state knew what was best for them and had their best interests at heart.

Before anyone sits down to plan the future relationship between Russia and any soverign/democratic state it would be very wise to Google the following - evaluation of Russia by Finnish intelligence colonel. . IMO I would not bother with the iron curtain. I would just decide to have NOTHING to do with RUSSIA in principal. I might allow a very very small embassy and very tight controls overANY Russian coming into my country. For the first few years and review the relationship after that. I would make it VERY VERY clear that I would have NO intention of EVER invading it. I would let them live in their own SWILL.

if the above is not substantially taken on board then RU will continue biting off bits here and there, continue its strategepy of placing Russians in areas that it wants to sow decent/ conflict, cyberattacks , etc

Whoever REPLACES PUTIN will carryon the same strategy UNLESS they can prove otherwise - and it might take them YEARS to prove so. Part of this proof might be financing the cost of putting back Ukraine to the way it was before the invasion, vacate Crimea, Donbas and lunask

Right. That doesn't detract from the fact that modern nuclear reactors are (significantly) safer than older reactors. Something that is taken into account by nations addressing energy needs. In the future it's obvious that much or most of our energy will come from renewables, however for now we run on a mixture.

As Europe decouples from Russia as an energy source, it means that in the short-term we'll have to go to other sources of fossil fuels (no magic way around that), but in the medium and long term it should definitely help speed up greater transition to renewables.

It's becoming almost more economically viable to just 'filter' it out of sea water - no dangerous, ugly mines necessary.

looks like Kharkiv is the next city to be rid of invaders

IMO solar has no place in Ireland at all, except on the rooftoops of people who are happy with the poor ROI and the very questionable ethics of how the panels are made.

These are purportedly Russian Z cars in Berlin.

Contact CNN and ask them to correct their views then? Germany is the largest economy in Europe.

"Germany would plunge into a deep recession if its supply of Russian natural gas was suddenly shut off, the country's top forecasters warned on Wednesday.

The country would lose 220 billion euros ($238 billion) in economic output over the next two years in the event of such a shock, according to a report by five German economic institutes. German GDP would rise by just 1.9% in 2022, and contract by 2.2% in 2023. Growth would be 2.7% this year if the gas keeps flowing.

Cutting Russian gas would push Europe's largest economy into a "sharp recession," said Stefan Kooths, research director at the Kiel Institute for the World Economy and one of the report's authors.

But a ban on Russian gas in the near term would wreak havoc on Germany, which relied on Russia for about 46% of its natural gas in 2020, according to the International Energy Agency. It uses the fuel to heat homes, generate electricity and help power its factories.

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/04/13/economy/german-economy-russian-gas/index.html

Germany was to shut down gas supplies from Russia there only going to harm their own economy. Will German citizens who are used to certain standard of living put up with the pain of factories shutting down?

Burning it to the ground would give Russia easy, "See? Told you the West hates us!" propaganda fodder and it would be the loss of a perfectly good building that could be used to aid Ukrainians in some way, were the diplomats currently working there to be expelled. It is infuriating what the Russians are doing to ordinary Ukrainians throughout their country, but I think the latter would be a far better way to stick it to Russia.

I don’t think there’s a simple answer to that. It depends on what the objectives are. If the Russian objective was genuinely to fully occupy Ukraine with a walk over and install a puppet government then they have definitely lost. If their objective is the total and utter destabilisation of Ukraine, the destruction of its towns, and enough intimidation to perhaps even convince the people to give up the separatist regions then it could be said they are on track to win.

I don’t think there’ll ever be a simple answer, unless Russia completely withdraws from all parts of Ukraine and declares themselves no longer interested, which is never going to happen.

According to Ukrainian police in Mariupol, there are more than a thousand civilians sheltering in the Azovtal plant, with many of them being women and children.

Edit:

"The occupiers are preparing to start a massive bombing of Azovstal today

According to the Ukrainian military, Russia plans to attack the company with FAB 1000 and FAB 3000 aircraft bombs."