How novel.

Well, solutions don't appear to be on the table, it appears that the taste for blood is the neo liberal vogue.

Johnson, Truss and Wallace have almost convinced me that it must be May, as they are nuts in May already.

I find the rhetoric insane.

Edited by Stirlingsays (27 Apr 2022 2.08am)

'Who are you and how did you get in here? I'm a locksmith. And, I'm a locksmith.' (Leslie Nielsen)

I don't think that anyone thinks It's ok to throw away tens of thousands of troops holding an impossible line! I certainly haven't heard anyone propose such a strategy!

Neither have I heard anything from the Ukrainians which suggest they are "the State Department's pawns". Quite the reverse. It's them which is pushing the west for more support.

So they must believe there is a solid point to defending their territory in the way they are. I have heard military experts, which none of us here are, suggest that the degradation of Russian forces is much worse than they anticipated and that the supply of advanced anti-tank and anti-air weapons will accelerate that. The conclusion being that defeat in the east is not the forgone conclusion you assume it is. It looks pretty hopeless to me too, but as a non-expert I defer to those who are.

Of course, those who are experts at everything don't do that.

For the avoidance of doubt any comments in response to a previous post are directed to its ideas and not at any, or all, posters personally.

That's my view of what's going to happen, the Ukraine's troops currently in the Donbas are going to be encircled and effectively thrown away.

That's what it looks like to me and we will see if I'm right or not.

Without Nato's weapons this would be over already. If you don't think that makes them Nato's pawns then I think that's just because you prefer different language.

When a peace deal is desired, it will be more Nato's than the Ukraine's decision in my view.

I would never object to warriors defending their country. However, I do object to conscripts being forced into service against their will.....men pushed to the front against their will. I've heard that has happened here.

As for the predictions for how this goes, we will see.

Edited by Stirlingsays (27 Apr 2022 12.49pm)

'Who are you and how did you get in here? I'm a locksmith. And, I'm a locksmith.' (Leslie Nielsen)

No Russian general would talk out of line, those words were planted by the leadership. Even if not, I see no sign of Rustam Minnekayev being sanctioned for what he said so The Kremlin must concur with its deputy commander of The Central Military District

You posted it as though it was an incontrovertible fact, whilst it's obviously just your view! It's probably mine too, given the way things look, but those with greater knowledge than me seem to disagree. I hope they are right.

But they aren't "Nato's weapons" are they? They are weapons donated by countries that are Nato members. It's a very important distinction which Russia tries to obscure at every opportunity to convince people like you that Nato is an aggressor, with a dog in this fight. It isn't. Providing military assistance to Ukraine in these circumstances is the moral responsibility of western nations, but they have been ultra-careful not to involve Nato.

Certainly, all men under 60 were conscripted and I expect some, who have the appropriate experience, are being used at the front. That is a matter for the Ukrainians, who seem to have maintained a high degree of resolve and morale.

We will indeed see how it goes. I have heard predictions that Putin wants the May parades to be celebrating his great "victory", so maybe that will provide the window of opportunity for a settlement.

For the avoidance of doubt any comments in response to a previous post are directed to its ideas and not at any, or all, posters personally.

How much does she charge for a 'quickie'? The wife's visiting family in Truro for the week.

Now Zaha's got a bit of green grass ahead of him here... and finds Ambrose... not a bad effort!!!!