Russia - threadbanned users in OP

Depending on which squadron those Rafale belong to, it could also be a show of force, a reminder that France has more than just it's submarines for that special type of "sunshine in a can". Remember, the Rafale can carry the ASMP nuclear-tipped cruise missile and Rafales supported by A330MRTT or KC-135 would be a typical "package" for that type of mission.

Do I think it's likely? No, and even if it is, I would highly doubt that the aircraft in question would be carrying live missiles, they're too valuable for that. But it is a possibility, especially since I don't remember the French Air Force deploying in this manner before.

I agree .. most likely conspiracy theories gone wild. Cannot remember where I saw it. But in the times we are in if it turned out that way I would not be surprised.

This is the FBI investigation:

There was some serious farm related and food stock fires and explosions in the US these past two years. The conspiracists in the US were off on the one world order stuff. In my little pea brained head I was blaming Russia. The Russian terrorist on the Internet would blame a one world order over themselves. Russians are fairly obsessed with foodstocks as it is and believe it's one way to use as a weapon.

The sooner the Putin terrorist government is finished anyway the safer the world will be.

@TheValeyard Update on this.

And @thomil - Re Rafale fighters

Supporting this flight along the Romanian coast, a French Air Force Airbus A330MRTT (reg. F-UJCP) refueled two French Navy Rafale fighters (f/n FNY5811/2) which took off from the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, yesterday departed from the base in Toulon.

The fighters were refueled first west of Corsica and then again over eastern Romania. The exact whereabouts of the Rafale jets are uncertain due to strong jamming, although a plot appeared south of Crimea.

However, the area’s jamming interference makes it difficult to confirm if the track was not an “echo” of another position.

Ensuring air control of the area was a French Air Force Boeing E-3F (reg. 702), which took off from Avord Air Base in central France.

There'll be an element of that, but, I think the simplest answer is, it's a defensive measure… like they're doing at all major installations.

Jamming horizon is around 420km for aircraft at 32,000ft + … Russia are just about doing 300km at all sites max.

It doesn't take too much power to jam GPS, if they wanted to max it, they could easily and annoy even more countries.

Some very interesting points:

"Our conceit is the notion that, well, something that we could do might make Russia normal, which is like the great fantasy of the 1990s, right? Like there are things we could have done better in the 90s and things we could have done better since… I think that's a lesson that we should learn, that whether Russia invaded Ukraine was not up to us, and what happens in the aftermath is also not up to us, not just in a moral sense, but also in a practical sense. It's unlikely that we're going to be able to affect it very much."

Ah Tucker, looks like it's not an act and he really is batsh!t insane.

https://www.dailydot.com/debug/tucker-carlson-ufo-evolution-joe-rogan/

An American dope changed citizenship to have a Russian passport. Went to Donetsk to fight alongside the nazis. Because he believed in the nazis. 10 years later the nazis called him a spy and kidnapped, tortured and killed him. Russel Bentley had the callsign "Texas". Forever remembered as a dope.

18d6 rends on 6's

There is an article in Der Spiegel about a German AfD representative who was being monitored by he Czech security authorities as part of their investigation into Voice of Europe, a vatnik propaganda outlet operating in Prague.

It seems he was caught on tape complaining that his kgb handlers had paid him in €200 notes and that he wasn't able to conveniently "launder" such large denominations in shops and petrol stations.

I'm absolutely delighted for him.

I'm also holding out further in the hope that some Irish names will emerge out of this affair.

Ukraine: US doubles down, Russia is cool
M. K. BHADRAKUMAR

That is to say, in effect, the direct military assistance to Ukraine will actually amount to about $13.8 billion till end-2024. The Russian experts estimate that this allocation rules out another Ukrainian “counteroffensive.” But that is small comfort, since the increased flow of US weaponry will beef up the Ukrainian military capability to withstand the Russian offensive, which cannot but impact the present balance of forces at the front.
<snip>
From a military angle, in immediate terms, the cutting edge of the aid bill lies in the fact that it opens the gateway for the transfer to Ukraine of tactical missile systems [ATACMS] capable of hitting targets at a distance of up to 300 km, which brings Crimea within its range. Reportedly, French troops are already on the ground in Odessa numbering 1000 and another contingent is expected shortly. This was of course forecast a few weeks ago by the Russian foreign intelligence but Paris had flatly denied it. (here and here)

The bottom line here is that the aid package aims on the one hand to avoid a catastrophic military situation arising at the front in the coming months, which could be politically damaging for Biden’s re-election bid, while on the other hand, the bulk of funds actually goes to the US arms manufacturers in some key “swing states” and gratifies the influential military-industrial complex and the Deep State. source

A view from Douglas MacGregor written in the American conservative:

Is It Game, Set, Match to Moscow?
Douglas Macgregor

and in Foreign policy magazine the US establishment is asking out loud that the EU needs to send it's men in.

Europe—but Not NATO—Should Send Troops to Ukraine
Alex Crowther, Jahara Matisek, and Phillips P. O’Brien

To Halt Russia’s Advance, Kyiv Needs More Boots on the Ground

A taboo has broken in Europe. Only a few months ago, it would have been inconceivable for European leaders to propose sending European troops to Ukraine. But on February 26, French President Emmanuel Macron said the deployment of European forces to Ukraine could not be “ruled out.” Since then, other European officials have joined the chorus; the Finnish defense minister and Polish foreign minister have both suggested that their countries’ forces could end up in Ukraine. These comments, combined with preexisting support for such measures in the Baltic states, show that there is a growing bloc of countries open to direct European intervention in the war. source

meanwhile, Two years of war have impoverished many Ukrainians and the defense lines of the Ukrainian army are in the process of breaking down. No doubt there will be many contributors on this thread anxious to prevent that and are as we speak on their way to the Eastern front to provide their services. We have a rather ugly situation where the funds are just to keep the conflict going so neither side in the US can be blamed for a collapse pre-election while the EU populations are being slow walked into battle. It's obvious since the start of the year that all those retired military men coming out and saying their armies are not ready, implies that politicians across the EU are figuring the same, the Ukranian army cannot push the Russians out, and with so many elections underway they also do not want a sudden collapse impacting elections.

Do you think 1000 French troops are on the ground in Odessa?

Not sure what you were trying to say but when I see a post quote Douglas MacGregor I just think TSDR. Too stupid didn't read. Apologies if you had an actual point.

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