Russia - threadbanned users in OP

He seems to be pretty balanced in his reporting.

Surprised though, I'd have thought Iranian drones to have been of low quality since they often copy and poorly reproduce it.

Life is cheap if it comes from the eastern provinces of Russia and thats where the majority are coming from right now

I agree with you when its Moscovites and men from St Petersburg its different, but i dont think we will see many from those areas

They have no appetite for this war, they are the ones travelling to Europe for holidays

In there view this is not there war to fight and they wont

They knocked out 4 guns In a month,

Massive successs .

I think I read somewhere that the US said if Iran provided those drones, It would change their view on what they would be willing to provide ukraine.

Wonder if that is still the case.

So taking out 4 pieces of equipment is a massive successs after 4 weeks, mean while Russia donated hundreds of pieces of equipment to Ukraine.

Who's having the success and who isn't

I don't think the average Muscovite is travelling to Europe for holidays much anymore and it's been a direct consequence of the war, especially for city dwellers of European Russia, that the country has been cut off in some ways from direct interaction with the West. However, supposing that young urban Russians can tolerate that situation long term, the supply of ignorant young men from rural settlements in the far east of Russia is not inexhaustible. 75 percent of Russia's population lives west of the Urals and 75 percent of their population also lives in cities or towns. If Putin mobilises, he's going to have to draw more from places and people which aren't so easily kept in the dark about what's really going on and places and people where joining the army isn't their sole promise of a better life. People to whom life isn't quite as cheap, and that'll be problematic for Putin.

That's if it even gets to that point. There is already notable public dissent against the war within Russia. Because Russia is a place where it pays to train both in mortuary science and double glazing, it leads me to believe that the true public opinion of the war in Russia is significantly more downcast than official polls would say and it will come to a point where the welling resentment against Putin will lead to his downfall. I think Putin knows that, deep down, that he cannot just prosecute this war as long as he wants.

@mcsean2163 .

So basically ukraine looses the east of the country and Crimea and they can never join Nato .

What kind of deal is that ?

Putin wins

I guess that the oil / gas business is not as profitable as it once was, plus fall in employment levels plus inflation? While Putin himself is not hurting, you can be sure that the majority of Russians themselves are.

@mcsean

It is 100 seconds to midnight by reckoning of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists and that is certainly the closest the clock has been set, as far as I know. However, that's not just due to a perceived heightening in the nuclear threat but the grave warnings now being given about climate change being at an unstoppable tipping point. My point of view is that it's far easier for people just to not use nuclear weapons than it is for governments and peoples to accept the short-term economic consequences of trying to get hydrocarbons out of energy production, so I think nuclear weapons and their use make of the lesser of the existential risks facing humanity right now.

I don't believe that Russia is ever going to deploy nuclear weapons in order to achieve victory in Ukraine. They haven't even broken out the gas yet, that we definitely know of. He can't do it - it would reek of desperation, belying the cool, calm exterior he likes to portray, but much more importantly than that, exposes Putin's Russia as an erratic ally and makes sitting on the fence highly problematic for China, potentially creating more international isolation for Russia.

And finally, the sight of a Ukrainian city being blasted apart by a Russian nuclear weapon would cause such an outcry in the West that NATO would be forced to move much more decisively than they are currently doing, whether that means blockading the Black Sea or occupying what's left of Ukraine, or (my preference) assassinating Putin. Western intelligence can probably get to Putin and his circle if they really want to, and in such a way that the Russians couldn't prove who did it, so Putin would do well to choose carefully where and when he escalates this conflict.

Ukrainian aviation conducted airstrikes at 9 gatherings of Russian military and equipment, several bases and 2 positions of air defense units. Ukrainian air defense shot down Su-24 plane, 3 cruise missile and a drone. Ukrainian missile and artillery troops conducted strikes at Russian army reserves at gathering points and at railway station during unloading, - General Staff of Armed Forces of Ukraine says in the morning report

4/5 Russian aircraft taken down in 2 days.

And no losses of Ukrainan aircraft.

I'm just after watching Skandal: Bringing Down Wirecard.

One of the biggest, if not the biggest, financial frauds in Europe had involvement from, or maybe it was even fully controlled by, you guessed, the russians. Their CEO escaped the day it came crushing down to, you guessed, Russia. And there are allegations that he was a GRU asset. The company was used for their involvement in the migrant crisis and far right support. It boggles the mind how Europe became so vulnerable to them, and how difficult it was to bring them down even with undeniable evidence.