Russian Invasion of Ukraine

[Riggo-toni]

You could cut off that ****'s head and she wouldn't be any dumber.

[China]

Putin Pal Drops Menacing Hint: a ‘Cleansing’ Is Coming for Europe

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s key ally Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has started hinting at what may be next in Russia’s war, and it doesn’t sound pretty.

 

Lukashenko claimed this weekend that he thinks it’s time for Europe to face a “moral cleansing.”

 

“The time has come for the forgetful Europe to give itself a moral cleansing,” Lukashenko said, without going into further detail about what that would entail, according to BelTA.

Lukashenko mentioned that efforts to fight Nazis from World War II, or what Russia calls the “Great Patriotic War,” are not over yet—echoing erroneous Russian claims that they are waging war in Ukraine in order to “denazify” or fight Nazis in Ukraine.

 

It is “a war to destroy the Slavic ethnos, cultures and entire nations. Today we often say that this war is not over yet,” Lukashenko said. “It is not over yet because not everyone who was involved in the monstrous facts of that war… has been punished. That war is not over yet because once again, as at the frontline, we are defending our historical memory.”

 

His plans for a “cleansing” in Europe coincide with Lukashenko’s claims that Ukraine is escalating tensions with Belarus; Lukashenko claimed Sunday that Ukrainian forces fired missiles at Belarus, which he says the Belarusian military successfully shot down.

 

“We are being provoked,” he said, without providing evidence that the missiles had indeed targeted Belarusian military posts. “They are still trying to drag us into the war in Ukraine. The goal is to get rid of both Russia and Belarus at one fling.”

 

His alarming remarks come just weeks after Belarusian authorities announced the government would be forming a new military unit on the border with Ukraine, form a people’s militia, and launch new exercises to prepare for war—moves that raised concerns among U.S. officials that Putin might be leaning on Lukashenko to act in Ukraine.

 

Lukashenko warned this weekend that the military forces of Belarus and Russia are united and that they have formed a single army.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[The Sisko]

Regarding the expired sauces, if expired rations are good enough for the brave troops defending our beloved Mother Russia, it's good enough for you comrade!

 

Quote

Mold, Bugs in Burgers at Russia's McDonald's Substitute Spark Outrage

Some customers of Russia's rebranded McDonald's are not loving it according to images by social media users of orders that have contained some unexpected ingredients.

McDonald's pulled out of Russia following its invasion of Ukraine and a local version of the burger chain called Vkusno & Tochka (tasty and that's that) relaunched in its place to much fanfare last month.

But the Russian version of Happy Meals—called Combos—has reportedly left some customers decidedly unhappy at the additional protein served up.

Images posted have shown what appears to be insect legs and bugs in the burgers, while other pictures document creeping mold on the buns.

Another Twitter user posted a video clip of birds pecking at a stack of burger buns outside an outlet, citing it as a grim example of Russia's experiment with fast food import substitution.

In response to the claims, a spokeswoman for the chain told Newsweek that "product quality and safety is our top priority. When storing and preparing products, all necessary procedures are followed.

"We have already contacted the manufacturer for further clarification. And the entire batch, in which the product of inadequate quality was found, has been discarded."

Of course, there is no shortage of claims about insects being found in the food produced by fast food outlets in the U.S.

However, the reports were enough to prompt opposition politician and television personality Ksenia Sobchak to say on her Telegram channel that the new Russian chain "doesn't quite honor the standards of McDonald's, at least in terms of product quality control."

"Today alone, at least three cases have been recorded when burgers with moldy buns were sold to catering customers," she said, later posting that customers had also been given sauces that had gone beyond their best before date...

 

 

Edited July 6, 2022 by The Sisko

[China]

Russia's war in Ukraine

 

Ukraine expects to harvest 50 million tonnes of grain
 

Ukraine expects to harvest at least 50 million tonnes of grain in 2022 — well below the 85 million tonnes it produced the previous year but still above expectations, said Taras Vysotskyi, the first deputy minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine.

 

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On Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said up to 60 million tons of grain could be stuck in the country by the fall if it continues to face blocked exports.

 

Zelensky said 22 million tons of grain are currently blocked in Ukraine but that number could triple in the next few months. "Then we will be in a really difficult, very difficult situation," he said. The President said he was working with the United Nations to try to open a safe corridor that would allow Ukraine to export grain from its Black Sea ports. 

 

 

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Russia likely to attack Sloviansk, city official says
 

Russia is likely to try and mount an offensive towards Sloviansk, the head of the city's military administration, Vadym Liakh said, adding that Ukrainian forces are currently holding Moscow’s armies on the Siverskyi Donets river.

 

“Probably, they will [attack Sloviansk]. Probably, that is why the incoming hits have become more frequent,” Liakh said Wednesday. “I think that as soon as the enemy is able to carry out assault operations, it will begin the destruction of the infrastructure and the city itself.”

 

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Ukraine says it's fighting back in Donbas, inflicting significant casualties on Russia
 

Ukraine says its military is putting up fierce resistance to Russian forces trying to advance through the eastern Donbas region, inflicting significant losses on Moscow's armies.

The head of the Luhansk region military administration, Serhiy Hayday, says Ukrainian fighters are putting up stiff resistance.

 

“We restrain the enemy on the border of Luhansk region and Donetsk region — the occupiers are suffering significant losses, as they themselves admit,” Hayday said. “Every day, the Russians receive an order to advance further, but they do not always carry it out, because the losses in personnel are very significant.
“During the assault of Lysychansk alone, the enemy lost thousands of dead and wounded. Yes, they have more forces and means, but the Ukrainian army is better prepared and motivated.”

 

Click on the link for more

 

 

[visionary]

 

[RansomthePasserby]

On 7/5/2022 at 11:34 PM, China said:

Putin Pal Drops Menacing Hint: a ‘Cleansing’ Is Coming for Europe

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s key ally Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has started hinting at what may be next in Russia’s war, and it doesn’t sound pretty.

 

Lukashenko claimed this weekend that he thinks it’s time for Europe to face a “moral cleansing.”

 

“The time has come for the forgetful Europe to give itself a moral cleansing,” Lukashenko said, without going into further detail about what that would entail, according to BelTA.

Lukashenko mentioned that efforts to fight Nazis from World War II, or what Russia calls the “Great Patriotic War,” are not over yet—echoing erroneous Russian claims that they are waging war in Ukraine in order to “denazify” or fight Nazis in Ukraine.

 

It is “a war to destroy the Slavic ethnos, cultures and entire nations. Today we often say that this war is not over yet,” Lukashenko said. “It is not over yet because not everyone who was involved in the monstrous facts of that war… has been punished. That war is not over yet because once again, as at the frontline, we are defending our historical memory.”

 

His plans for a “cleansing” in Europe coincide with Lukashenko’s claims that Ukraine is escalating tensions with Belarus; Lukashenko claimed Sunday that Ukrainian forces fired missiles at Belarus, which he says the Belarusian military successfully shot down.

 

“We are being provoked,” he said, without providing evidence that the missiles had indeed targeted Belarusian military posts. “They are still trying to drag us into the war in Ukraine. The goal is to get rid of both Russia and Belarus at one fling.”

 

His alarming remarks come just weeks after Belarusian authorities announced the government would be forming a new military unit on the border with Ukraine, form a people’s militia, and launch new exercises to prepare for war—moves that raised concerns among U.S. officials that Putin might be leaning on Lukashenko to act in Ukraine.

 

Lukashenko warned this weekend that the military forces of Belarus and Russia are united and that they have formed a single army.

 

Click on the link for the full article

Translation: Putin’s army is running out of Russians and needs Belarusian replacements.

[China]

 

[gbear]

He looked to be a bit too close for that shot...

 

[China]

Ukraine forces finally seeing impact of western arms, says Zelenskiy

 

Ukrainian forces are finally seeing the impact of western weapons on the frontlines of the war with Russia, Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said.

 

Experts say while western equipment has been crucial for pushing back Russian forces, the west will need to scale up its supplies, and even mobilise its own defence industries, if it wants to avoid a war of attrition that Ukraine could lose.

 

During his nightly TV address, Zelenskiy said that thanks to western supplies, Ukrainian forces were advancing in two directions in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions on Ukraine’s southern front and dealing blows to Russia by hitting some of its logistics warehouses.

 

“Finally, [Ukraine] feels that western artillery is working very powerfully,” he said, adding that it had “inflicted very noticeable blows on warehouses and other points that are important for [Russia’s] logistics.” He said the Ukrainian strikes had “significantly reduced the offensive potential of the Russian army”.

 

Vladimir Putin hit back, saying that if the west wanted to defeat Russia on the battlefield, it was welcome to try.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[tshile]

18 minutes ago, China said:

Vladimir Putin hit back, saying that if the west wanted to defeat Russia on the battlefield, it was welcome to try.

😂😆

[China]

 

[TradeTheBeal!]

16 hours ago, tshile said:

😂😆

 

 

[China]

Putin to Ukraine: Russia has barely started its action

 

With Russia’s military action in Ukraine in its fifth month, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday warned Kyiv that it should quickly accept Moscow’s terms or brace for the worst, adding ominously that Russia has barely started its action.

 

Speaking at a meeting with leaders of the Kremlin-controlled parliament, Putin accused Western allies of fueling the hostilities, charging that “the West wants to fight us until the last Ukrainian.”

 

“It’s a tragedy for the Ukrainian people, but it looks like it’s heading in that direction,” he added.

 

“Everybody should know that largely speaking, we haven’t even yet started anything in earnest,” Putin said in a menacing note.

 

He declared that Russia remains ready to sit down for talks to end the fighting, adding that “those who refuse to do so should know that the longer it lasts the more difficult it will be for them to make a deal with us.”

 

“We are hearing that they want to defeat us on the battlefield,” Putin said. “Let them try.”

 

Earlier in the conflict, the Kremlin demanded that Kyiv acknowledge Russian sovereignty over the Crimean Peninsula, which it annexed in 2014, and recognize the independence of Moscow-backed separatist regions in eastern Ukraine. Moscow also said it expected Ukraine to bow to the existing situation on the ground, a reference to other land gains it has made since Russian troops rolled into Ukraine on Feb. 24.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, JULY 7

 

Click here to see ISW's interactive map of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This map is updated daily alongside the static maps present in this report.

Russian Defense Ministry Spokesperson Igor Konashenkov announced on July 7 that Russian forces in Ukraine are pausing to rest and regain their combat capabilities, confirming ISW’s assessment that Russian forces have initiated an operational pause.[1] Konashenkov did not specify the intended length of Russian forces’ operational pause. As ISW previously assessed, Russian forces have not ceased active hostilities during this operational pause and are unlikely to do so.[2] Russian forces still conducted limited ground offensives and air, artillery, and missile strikes across all axes on July 7.[3] Russian forces will likely continue to confine themselves to small-scale offensive actions as they rebuild forces and set conditions for a more significant offensive in the coming weeks or months.

 

Key Takaways:

• The Russian Ministry of Defense announced that Russian forces are conducting an operational pause to rest and reconstitute.
• Russian forces continued efforts to advance toward Slovyansk from the southeast of Izyum and may be setting conditions to advance from the southeast of Barvinkove—either toward Slovyansk or toward Kramatorsk.
• Russian forces made marginal gains to the southeast of Siversk and continued offensive operations west of the Lysychansk area.
• Russian forces continued offensive operations to the south and east of Bakhmut.
• Russian forces conducted a limited and unsuccessful attack north of Kharkiv City.
• Ukrainian partisans are likely continuing to target Russian-controlled railways around Melitopol.
• Russian oblasts are continuing to create their own ad hoc volunteer units to compensate for personnel losses in Ukraine.

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

Ukraine-Russia live news: Russians raising ‘true hell’: Governor

 

Deadly Russian shelling reported in Ukraine’s east, despite reports of taking an ‘operational pause’, regional governor says.

 

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed Kyiv’s ambassador to Germany as well as several other top foreign envoys, the presidential website says.
• A Russian rocket has hit a residential building in Kharkiv, eastern Ukraine, injuring six people, according to regional authorities.
• Ukraine says Russian troops are pursuing “relentless” shelling on its eastern Donetsk region.
• The UK says Russia is moving reserve forces close to the Ukrainian border for future offensives.

 

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

Russia's McDonald's replacement runs low on fries

 

Some restaurants in the newly opened "Tasty and that's it" fast food chain, which replaced McDonald's in Russia, will temporarily stop serving fries, according to Russian media.

 

A shortage of the correct variety of potatoes means diners will have to find a different side dish to accompany their burgers and nuggets.

 

The company says it expects to have fries back on the menu by autumn.

 

McDonald's pulled out of Russia in protest at the invasion of Ukraine.

 

The American fast food giant sold its restaurants to a Russian businessman, and in June several of its outlets reopened under the name "Vkusno i Tochka", which translates as "Tasty and that's it".

 

But a month after opening, one of the key items on the menu is in short supply. "Rustic potatoes" - a thicker-cut version of the traditional French fry - may also be unavailable.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

Russian Navy Takes Delivery of World's Longest Submarine

 

The Russian Navy has taken delivery of the world's longest submarine, the research sub Belgorod. The 600-foot, twin-reactor, 24,000-tonne submarine is designed to conduct subsea science with six Poseidon nuclear-armed torpedoes, making it the most heavily-armed "research" vessel in the world.

 

In comments at the delivery ceremony, Russian officials celebrated its groundbreaking scientific capabilities. According to shipyard Sevmash, the vessel is "designed to solve diverse scientific problems, conduct search and rescue operations, and can also be used as a carrier for rescue deep-sea and autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicles." These vehicles could include the secretive spy submarine Losharik, believed to be used for interfering with subsea communications cables.

 

"The submarine Belgorod opens up new opportunities for Russia in conducting various studies, and it allows diverse scientific expeditions and rescue operations in the most remote areas of the world ocean," said Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy Adm. Nikolai Evmenov.

 

 

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

President met with US Senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal

 

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting with United States Senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal who represent the Republican and Democratic parties of the United States.

 

The Head of State thanked the senators for the visit to our country and for the strong tangible support from the USA in times of tremendous challenges related to Russian aggression.

"Bicameral and bipartisan support is really important for Ukraine. We feel it, we feel this unity," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

 

The President informed the representatives of the United States Senate about the situation on the front, which is certainly difficult, yet controlled, and about the existing plans the implementation of which directly depends on the further intensity of security support for Ukraine from international partners.

 

During the meeting, the President separately emphasized the importance of creating the necessary security conditions that would make the educational process possible in educational institutions.

 

"The number one task for us today is for women with children to be able to return to Ukraine by September 1, so that children can go to school, so that students do not leave and can go to universities. It is very important for us to do two things - to repair schools, universities, and also to have a powerful air defense," he said.

 

In this regard, Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on senators to back the decision on providing Ukraine with modern air defense systems.

 

"First of all, we appeal to you so that the Congress supports Ukraine in the matter of supplying modern air defense systems. We must ensure such a level of sky security that our people are not afraid to live in Ukraine," said the Head of State.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[LD0506]

[China]

Powerful long-range US rocket systems have helped destroy 20 depots of Russian artillery ammunition, disrupting Putin's firepower, says Ukraine

 

Ukraine is using US-supplied High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) to undermine Russian artillery superiority by attacking its munition warehouses.

 

Twenty ammunition depots have been destroyed by the advanced weaponry supplied by the West, the Kyiv Independent reports.

 

As Insider's Alisa Shoaib reported, Ukraine has sought new strategies in the eastern Donbas region where the war is concentrated. Earlier tactics, such as relying heavily on drone warfare, have proven less effective in the face of a better-organized Russian force. 

 

The HIMARS are essentially truck-mounted, GPS-guided rocket launchers with a range of around 44 miles.

 

A Russian military blogger Andrey Morozov (widely known as "Murz"), quoted by Illia Ponomarenko, the defense and security reporter at the Kyiv Independent,  said Putin's troops were suffering from growing "munitions hunger" due to recent Ukrainian attacks.

 

Ukraine has released videos of massive explosions depicting how Western military aid is helping to blunt the Russian artillery onslaught in Donbas, where Putin's forces have used their enormous firepower to advance slowly. Insider was not able to verify the video claims.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

“DPR” battalion destroyed in Russian friendly fire

 

In Donetsk region, the Russian military rained fire on the 2nd battalion of the 1st army corps of the "DPR people's militia,” fighting as part of the Russian army, in an apparent coordination failure.

 

That’s according to an intercept released by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), Ukrinform reports.

 

Although the Russians are trying to cover up the incident, soldiers mobilized in the so-called "LPR/DPR" start realizing that they are being used as cannon fodder.

 

In the intercepted call, one of the “DPR” soldiers tells his interlocutor that the battalion attacked by the Russians had been stationed "somewhere near Berdyansk," while its soldiers received no allowances or proper food supplies. Then the unit was deployed to the front line but later decided to retreat after a long idle wait. As they were moving back to their initial positions, they encountered a Russian unit, which engaged the battalion, mistaking it for the Ukrainian forces and effectively destroying it.

 

The Russian side never revealed the exact death toll in the incident.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Riggo-toni]

Gotta say I completely agree with this. Don't understand our timidity.

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/07/11/help-ukraine-win-war-russia-weapons-himars/

 

Opinion  Shorten the war. Send 60 HIMARS to Ukraine 

 

...

The United States and other countries have also been sending growing quantities of heavy weapons to Ukraine. The M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) are proving particularly effective in allowing the Ukrainians to target Russian headquarters and ammunition depots. A Russian military blogger laments that Russian air defenses haven’t been able to stop HIMARS rockets, resulting in “BIG losses in personnel and equipment.”

Those are impressive results considering that Ukraine so far has received only nine HIMARS. The Biden administration just pledged four more in addition to nine others promised by allies. But Ukrainian officials are asking for many more HIMARS and would like to see them equipped with longer-range rockets. Michael G. Vickers, a former undersecretary of defense who helped mastermind the 1980s war against the Red Army in Afghanistan, recently suggested that Ukraine needs 60 to 100 HIMARS or other multiple-launch rocket systems to win the artillery duel.

Why aren’t we sending more HIMARS? I put that question on Friday to a senior U.S. defense official, who responded by pointing out all the difficulties involved, from moving these systems to Ukraine to training enough Ukrainians to operate them to providing spare parts to keep them functioning. All true. But why doesn’t the administration announce right now that it is planning to send 60 HIMARS as soon as practicable and ramp up training to make sure Ukraine has enough operators to use them? That kind of commitment could shift the balance of power on the ground, enabling a Ukrainian counteroffensive to take back lost land. Simply making the announcement would buoy Ukrainian spirits and undermine Russian morale.

 

 

[DCSaints_fan]

22 hours ago, China said:

In the intercepted call, one of the “DPR” soldiers tells his interlocutor that the battalion attacked by the Russians had been stationed "somewhere near Berdyansk," while its soldiers received no allowances or proper food supplies. Then the unit was deployed to the front line but later decided to retreat after a long idle wait. As they were moving back to their initial positions, they encountered a Russian unit, which engaged the battalion, mistaking it for the Ukrainian forces and effectively destroying it.

 

The Russian side never revealed the exact death toll in the incident.

 

Click on the link for the full article

Or they knew it was DPR and they were acting as a blocking unit ... 

Edited July 11, 2022 by DCSaints_fan

[China]

White House: Iran preparing to send Russia drones for Ukraine war

 

The United States believes that the Iranian government is preparing to provide Russia with hundreds of drones in order to help Moscow with its ongoing assault on Ukraine, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters on Monday.   

 

“Our information indicates that the Iranian government is preparing to provide Russia up to several hundred UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles], including weapons-capable UAVs, on an expedited timeline,” Sullivan said at a press briefing.  

 

Sullivan said that the Iranians are preparing to train Russian forces to use the unmanned aerial vehicles as early as this month. It’s unclear if any have been delivered to the Russians at this point in time.   

 

The national security adviser disclosed the information to exhibit the difficulty Russia is experiencing in sustaining its own weapons stockpile as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine comes close to entering its sixth month.  

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

 

[China]

Russian Parliament Gets Proposal For Vladimir Putin To Be Called "Ruler" Instead Of President: Report

 

Loyalists to Russian leader Vladimir Putin have said that he should be referred to as the country's “ruler” rather than “president” in order to move away from terms derived from Western language. 

Citing state-run news outlet RIA Novosti, Newsweek reported that the Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) - seen as traditionally loyal to the Kremlin - proposed the idea of replacing the term “president” with “pravitel”, which means “ruler” in English, because the term “president” has not yet taken “root completely” in Russia. 

 

The party also said that using the term “president” has always “embarrassed” them. They argued that the term was first used at the end of the 18th century in the United States and much later it spread through the world.

 

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, on the other hand, has said that Vladimir Putin has no position on this matter. “Right now all this is at the discussion stage,” Mr Peskov said, adding, “President Putin has no view on this.”

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

Yes, no opinion.  Supreme ruler is fine.