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On April 15 2022 10:49 JimmiC wrote: Shouldnt they be mad at smoking, ban that. And then maybe at mother nature or posidon. I mean why be mad at Ukraine for an accident and weather?
Did they already forget about hours ago propaganda? "Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them."
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What I love is how this does such a great job at capturing Russian incompetence, insecurity and weakness.
This ship was supposed to be not-shitty. 2 missiles somehow managed to connect and it sunk. Russians couldn't prevent the missiles, it only took 2 missiles, then they lied about it. Juicy and divine.
This didn't need to happen. Russia could have just not tried to invade Ukraine. It is so sad to reflect on how unnecessary this all was. We've spent a lot of time dismantling the "BuT nAzIs!!!111" stuff and that's really their only justification. They were a rat against a wall and now they appear to be on their way to a rat in a garbage can. This will go down as Russia's greatest shame. Putin destroyed his country through his misguided, over inflated ego. I still think this is a dead man's last hurrah. I am sad for the people who Russia who don't deserve to have their lives ruined. All this death for nothing.
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Constant Russian lies are exhausting. There are conflicting lies every single day.
The parralels to Trump are unreal. I don't know how this many people in governments across the globe can be bad faith actors.
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On April 16 2022 03:25 Mohdoo wrote: This ship was supposed to be not-shitty. 2 missiles somehow managed to connect and it sunk. Russians couldn't prevent the missiles, it only took 2 missiles, then they lied about it. Juicy and divine.
What do you mean not shitty? It's 70's tech. This ship was last updated in like 1982 and even then Russians didn't pay Ukraine for the modernization so some systems have been taken out and it's unclear if they were even replaced. I mean, Moskva's system could track 6 targets and provide guidance on 3 of them whereas some western cruisers of its class that are of more modern design can track 80 targets and provide guidance on 20-30.
Another thing is that its missile storage is terrible. Basically all modern missile ships are designed to expel all of the fire from the tubes outside of the ship in case rocket fuel catches fire (it's quite volatile and burns under water too) whereas Moskva had one central storage with 64 rockets and no way to contain/release the fire outside.
A lot of Russian tech is still Cold War era stuff, horribly outdated and outmatched by what NATO has. They do have some high tech and modern systems but those are few and far between (like 100 modern airplanes, a few subs, basically specialized long-range stuff that's not designed for standard warfare).
On another note, it seems like we're really going towards WW3 here...
As US and Japan are conducting joint naval warfare exercises on the Japan Sea some of Russian submarines are testing cruise missiles in the same area. And of course Chinese fleet decided to do exercises near Taiwan at the same time when US delegation is visiting there.
What in the hell is even going on in the world? Seems like everyone is stirring the pot...
I guess we'll have more answers after the weekend when full scale assault will probably start in Ukraine as hundreds of Russian mobile missile launchers are making their way west via train (at the time of writing this they should be about 20h train ride out of Kiyv).
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On April 16 2022 10:54 Manit0u wrote:Show nested quote +On April 16 2022 03:25 Mohdoo wrote: This ship was supposed to be not-shitty. 2 missiles somehow managed to connect and it sunk. Russians couldn't prevent the missiles, it only took 2 missiles, then they lied about it. Juicy and divine.
What do you mean not shitty? It's 70's tech. This ship was last updated in like 1982 and even then Russians didn't pay Ukraine for the modernization so some systems have been taken out and it's unclear if they were even replaced. Uh, no. The ship was last refitted in 2020 and was expected to last until 2040. I'm not sure where you got that info from, but it's definitely wrong.
https://www.navylookout.com/russian-cruiser-moskva-sunk-in-the-black-sea-assessing-the-implications/
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Russian Federation20 Posts
On April 16 2022 10:16 Sadist wrote: Constant Russian lies are exhausting. There are conflicting lies every single day.
-they do it deliberately when they cannot refute some news; the aim is to cast doubts on the matter
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On April 16 2022 10:54 Manit0u wrote:Show nested quote +On April 16 2022 03:25 Mohdoo wrote: This ship was supposed to be not-shitty. 2 missiles somehow managed to connect and it sunk. Russians couldn't prevent the missiles, it only took 2 missiles, then they lied about it. Juicy and divine.
What do you mean not shitty? It's 70's tech. This ship was last updated in like 1982 and even then Russians didn't pay Ukraine for the modernization so some systems have been taken out and it's unclear if they were even replaced. I mean, Moskva's system could track 6 targets and provide guidance on 3 of them whereas some western cruisers of its class that are of more modern design can track 80 targets and provide guidance on 20-30. Another thing is that its missile storage is terrible. Basically all modern missile ships are designed to expel all of the fire from the tubes outside of the ship in case rocket fuel catches fire (it's quite volatile and burns under water too) whereas Moskva had one central storage with 64 rockets and no way to contain/release the fire outside. A lot of Russian tech is still Cold War era stuff, horribly outdated and outmatched by what NATO has. They do have some high tech and modern systems but those are few and far between (like 100 modern airplanes, a few subs, basically specialized long-range stuff that's not designed for standard warfare). On another note, it seems like we're really going towards WW3 here... As US and Japan are conducting joint naval warfare exercises on the Japan Sea some of Russian submarines are testing cruise missiles in the same area. And of course Chinese fleet decided to do exercises near Taiwan at the same time when US delegation is visiting there. What in the hell is even going on in the world? Seems like everyone is stirring the pot... I guess we'll have more answers after the weekend when full scale assault will probably start in Ukraine as hundreds of Russian mobile missile launchers are making their way west via train (at the time of writing this they should be about 20h train ride out of Kiyv). Everyone??? A nuclear power tossed a bunch of tanks over a border. That’s why this is happening.
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On April 16 2022 10:54 Manit0u wrote:Show nested quote +On April 16 2022 03:25 Mohdoo wrote: This ship was supposed to be not-shitty. 2 missiles somehow managed to connect and it sunk. Russians couldn't prevent the missiles, it only took 2 missiles, then they lied about it. Juicy and divine.
+ Show Spoiler + What do you mean not shitty? It's 70's tech. This ship was last updated in like 1982 and even then Russians didn't pay Ukraine for the modernization so some systems have been taken out and it's unclear if they were even replaced. I mean, Moskva's system could track 6 targets and provide guidance on 3 of them whereas some western cruisers of its class that are of more modern design can track 80 targets and provide guidance on 20-30.
Another thing is that its missile storage is terrible. Basically all modern missile ships are designed to expel all of the fire from the tubes outside of the ship in case rocket fuel catches fire (it's quite volatile and burns under water too) whereas Moskva had one central storage with 64 rockets and no way to contain/release the fire outside.
A lot of Russian tech is still Cold War era stuff, horribly outdated and outmatched by what NATO has. They do have some high tech and modern systems but those are few and far between (like 100 modern airplanes, a few subs, basically specialized long-range stuff that's not designed for standard warfare).
On another note, it seems like we're really going towards WW3 here...As US and Japan are conducting joint naval warfare exercises on the Japan Sea some of Russian submarines are testing cruise missiles in the same area. And of course Chinese fleet decided to do exercises near Taiwan at the same time when US delegation is visiting there. What in the hell is even going on in the world? Seems like everyone is stirring the pot... I guess we'll have more answers after the weekend when full scale assault will probably start in Ukraine as hundreds of Russian mobile missile launchers are making their way west via train (at the time of writing this they should be about 20h train ride out of Kiyv).
I'd say that we haven't been this far from WWIII in a while.
Russia is economically and militarily crippled. China is also dealing with major domestic problems (economic and COVID related). And they are supposed to support each other, which they cannot do under the circumstances.
Essentially, this is why Finland and Sweden are joining NATO asap - there's nothing Russia can afford to do to them. It's just empty words and posturing.
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So this should be an interesting couple of weeks from a foreign policy standpoint. Russia is asking India for supplies of staple food and other items. Now this puts India in a catch 22 type of situation as their intelligence has stated China plans another push into India held Himalayas... what do they do? Piss off the West by helping Russia who is aligned with China. Or not and try to reinforce and prepare.
With its departmental stores running out of groceries, sanctions-hit Russia has reached out to Indian retailers and agro exporters for urgent supplies, more so as the EU has stopped supplies for the second month in a row.
The list includes orange marmalade, mango jam, pasta, oats flakes, pancake mix, spaghetti, basmati rice, coffee, tea, cornflakes, rum, ketchup and prawns.
India and Russia are working out an alternative payments mechanism using the rupee and ruble after the West led by the US banned some Russian banks from the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (Swift) system.
Russia has also urged Indian agro and processed food manufacturers and retail associations to set up a joint India-Russia agro industrial park in “Lotos", the special economic zone in the Astrakhan, southern Russia, for producing groceries, spices and other foods to minimize the country’s dependence on food and agro imports.
The Russian embassy in New Delhi shared a list of supply requirements with the Federation of Indian Export Organizations (FIEO). The apex export promotion body is organizing a buyer-seller meet on Tuesday to connect Russian firms with Indian sellers.
As there are no sanctions on food and pharma products, an arrangement for trading in grocery and agri items may not be a problem, said a government official, seeking anonymity.
According to news reports, Russian departmental stores have run out of basics, including sugar, pasta and rice. “Several large Russian companies have reached out to the Russian embassy in New Delhi to look for suppliers in India for a variety of products. We will hold a one-day sensitization programme for importers from Russia and exporters from India. There are a lot of products that Russia is interested in, and a lot of enquiries are flowing in," Ajay Sahai, director general and chief executive, FIEO, said.
A trade association in Russia has also reached out to the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), seeking supplies of food items followed by footwear, artificial jewellery and ready-made garments.
Source
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On April 16 2022 21:55 JimmiC wrote:Show nested quote +On April 16 2022 15:38 Ghanburighan wrote:On April 16 2022 10:54 Manit0u wrote:On April 16 2022 03:25 Mohdoo wrote: This ship was supposed to be not-shitty. 2 missiles somehow managed to connect and it sunk. Russians couldn't prevent the missiles, it only took 2 missiles, then they lied about it. Juicy and divine.
+ Show Spoiler + What do you mean not shitty? It's 70's tech. This ship was last updated in like 1982 and even then Russians didn't pay Ukraine for the modernization so some systems have been taken out and it's unclear if they were even replaced. I mean, Moskva's system could track 6 targets and provide guidance on 3 of them whereas some western cruisers of its class that are of more modern design can track 80 targets and provide guidance on 20-30.
Another thing is that its missile storage is terrible. Basically all modern missile ships are designed to expel all of the fire from the tubes outside of the ship in case rocket fuel catches fire (it's quite volatile and burns under water too) whereas Moskva had one central storage with 64 rockets and no way to contain/release the fire outside.
A lot of Russian tech is still Cold War era stuff, horribly outdated and outmatched by what NATO has. They do have some high tech and modern systems but those are few and far between (like 100 modern airplanes, a few subs, basically specialized long-range stuff that's not designed for standard warfare).
On another note, it seems like we're really going towards WW3 here...As US and Japan are conducting joint naval warfare exercises on the Japan Sea some of Russian submarines are testing cruise missiles in the same area. And of course Chinese fleet decided to do exercises near Taiwan at the same time when US delegation is visiting there. What in the hell is even going on in the world? Seems like everyone is stirring the pot... I guess we'll have more answers after the weekend when full scale assault will probably start in Ukraine as hundreds of Russian mobile missile launchers are making their way west via train (at the time of writing this they should be about 20h train ride out of Kiyv). I'd say that we haven't been this far from WWIII in a while. Russia is economically and militarily crippled. China is also dealing with major domestic problems (economic and COVID related). And they are supposed to support each other, which they cannot do under the circumstances. Essentially, this is why Finland and Sweden are joining NATO asap - there's nothing Russia can afford to do to them. It's just empty words and posturing. This is a strange hot take. We have a power openly invading another country and a large one. Also, your logic on why people wont go to war is basically the opposite of histroy. Authoritari leaders have gone to war for thousands of years BECAUSE of problems at home not the opposite. It allows them to place blame on others and dictract their people from their own failures. People are right to be scared of countries with big militaries, authoritarian rulers, imperialistic goals and rhetoric, domestic issues, and so on. Because these are the exact conditions that lead to invasion and war. Recent example Russia invading Ukraine.
Your logic is sound, but it doesn't fit the context. You can count troops. Russia doesn't have anything in reserves to start a war with. And that also means China doesn't have its most dependable ally. So we're safe, for now, courtesy of some very brave Ukrainians.
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On April 16 2022 22:40 Ghanburighan wrote:Show nested quote +On April 16 2022 21:55 JimmiC wrote:On April 16 2022 15:38 Ghanburighan wrote:On April 16 2022 10:54 Manit0u wrote:On April 16 2022 03:25 Mohdoo wrote: This ship was supposed to be not-shitty. 2 missiles somehow managed to connect and it sunk. Russians couldn't prevent the missiles, it only took 2 missiles, then they lied about it. Juicy and divine.
+ Show Spoiler + What do you mean not shitty? It's 70's tech. This ship was last updated in like 1982 and even then Russians didn't pay Ukraine for the modernization so some systems have been taken out and it's unclear if they were even replaced. I mean, Moskva's system could track 6 targets and provide guidance on 3 of them whereas some western cruisers of its class that are of more modern design can track 80 targets and provide guidance on 20-30.
Another thing is that its missile storage is terrible. Basically all modern missile ships are designed to expel all of the fire from the tubes outside of the ship in case rocket fuel catches fire (it's quite volatile and burns under water too) whereas Moskva had one central storage with 64 rockets and no way to contain/release the fire outside.
A lot of Russian tech is still Cold War era stuff, horribly outdated and outmatched by what NATO has. They do have some high tech and modern systems but those are few and far between (like 100 modern airplanes, a few subs, basically specialized long-range stuff that's not designed for standard warfare).
On another note, it seems like we're really going towards WW3 here...As US and Japan are conducting joint naval warfare exercises on the Japan Sea some of Russian submarines are testing cruise missiles in the same area. And of course Chinese fleet decided to do exercises near Taiwan at the same time when US delegation is visiting there. What in the hell is even going on in the world? Seems like everyone is stirring the pot... I guess we'll have more answers after the weekend when full scale assault will probably start in Ukraine as hundreds of Russian mobile missile launchers are making their way west via train (at the time of writing this they should be about 20h train ride out of Kiyv). I'd say that we haven't been this far from WWIII in a while. Russia is economically and militarily crippled. China is also dealing with major domestic problems (economic and COVID related). And they are supposed to support each other, which they cannot do under the circumstances. Essentially, this is why Finland and Sweden are joining NATO asap - there's nothing Russia can afford to do to them. It's just empty words and posturing. This is a strange hot take. We have a power openly invading another country and a large one. Also, your logic on why people wont go to war is basically the opposite of histroy. Authoritari leaders have gone to war for thousands of years BECAUSE of problems at home not the opposite. It allows them to place blame on others and dictract their people from their own failures. People are right to be scared of countries with big militaries, authoritarian rulers, imperialistic goals and rhetoric, domestic issues, and so on. Because these are the exact conditions that lead to invasion and war. Recent example Russia invading Ukraine. Your logic is sound, but it doesn't fit the context. You can count troops. Russia doesn't have anything in reserves to start a war with. And that also means China doesn't have its most dependable ally. So we're safe, for now, courtesy of some very brave Ukrainians.
I think you are making the mistake of thinking because russia is trying to enlist people from syria and also getting active reservists into the battle its a sign that their depleted. The reason why they have to utilise these measures is because they do call it a special military operation instead of declaring it a war. That means they can not do a general mobilisation and general conscription, they can only call up the active reserve and so on.
The media has created an david vs goliath image and subsequently set up a great success story for ukraine for still being alive, but in reality, when it comes to troops both countries are probably a lot closer. Ukraine has the ukrainian army, the ukrainian territorial defense force, conscripted people, as well as irregular partisan troops vs just the amount of troops that russia has commited to this on the other side. At least when it comes to troops, russia could source a lot more troops within a few months if they would call this a war. I doubt they would be able to defeat the whole of ukraine, simply because the financial support that can be leveraged in favour of ukraine which has the potential to become an even bigger factor the longer this goes on. But it is to soon to tell if russia is unable to get a hold of say eastern ukraine for example.
They don't have declared it a war so far, hopefully it stays that way. Though russian media seems to be bringing up that option recently.
And a lot of the russian military blunders can be explained by the fact that this was indeed planned as a military operation that would be over quickly and not a war. They have demonstrated a lot of mistakes, but I don't think its wise to see their performance in ukraine as a complete picture of how they would fare in a war that they acknowledge and plan for accordingly.
And another thing the war in ukraine demonstrates well is that you don't need russia to be able to win a war, unfortunately its enough if they think they can win it / that it is worth the risk. I don't believe that we are close to ww3, but I also don't think we are further from it than in a long time. With a war going on near nato countries, where one side is supplied by nato states there is a lot more potential reasons for conflict between nato and russia right now than in recent years.
I also don't fully agree with the assessment of china, but that is a different topic.
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On April 16 2022 10:16 Sadist wrote: Constant Russian lies are exhausting. There are conflicting lies every single day.
The parralels to Trump are unreal. I don't know how this many people in governments across the globe can be bad faith actors.
This is a great point. Which country has a non-corrupt, scandal-free government at this point ? Scandies ? My view is that politicians are actually not paid enough in relation to their responsibilities (here in the UK the PM is paid like a first year lawyer or investment banker), so we don't get competent people anymore. Pay for peanuts, get monkeys.
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On April 17 2022 01:04 Artesimo wrote:Show nested quote +On April 16 2022 22:40 Ghanburighan wrote:On April 16 2022 21:55 JimmiC wrote:On April 16 2022 15:38 Ghanburighan wrote:On April 16 2022 10:54 Manit0u wrote:On April 16 2022 03:25 Mohdoo wrote: This ship was supposed to be not-shitty. 2 missiles somehow managed to connect and it sunk. Russians couldn't prevent the missiles, it only took 2 missiles, then they lied about it. Juicy and divine.
+ Show Spoiler + What do you mean not shitty? It's 70's tech. This ship was last updated in like 1982 and even then Russians didn't pay Ukraine for the modernization so some systems have been taken out and it's unclear if they were even replaced. I mean, Moskva's system could track 6 targets and provide guidance on 3 of them whereas some western cruisers of its class that are of more modern design can track 80 targets and provide guidance on 20-30.
Another thing is that its missile storage is terrible. Basically all modern missile ships are designed to expel all of the fire from the tubes outside of the ship in case rocket fuel catches fire (it's quite volatile and burns under water too) whereas Moskva had one central storage with 64 rockets and no way to contain/release the fire outside.
A lot of Russian tech is still Cold War era stuff, horribly outdated and outmatched by what NATO has. They do have some high tech and modern systems but those are few and far between (like 100 modern airplanes, a few subs, basically specialized long-range stuff that's not designed for standard warfare).
On another note, it seems like we're really going towards WW3 here...As US and Japan are conducting joint naval warfare exercises on the Japan Sea some of Russian submarines are testing cruise missiles in the same area. And of course Chinese fleet decided to do exercises near Taiwan at the same time when US delegation is visiting there. What in the hell is even going on in the world? Seems like everyone is stirring the pot... I guess we'll have more answers after the weekend when full scale assault will probably start in Ukraine as hundreds of Russian mobile missile launchers are making their way west via train (at the time of writing this they should be about 20h train ride out of Kiyv). I'd say that we haven't been this far from WWIII in a while. Russia is economically and militarily crippled. China is also dealing with major domestic problems (economic and COVID related). And they are supposed to support each other, which they cannot do under the circumstances. Essentially, this is why Finland and Sweden are joining NATO asap - there's nothing Russia can afford to do to them. It's just empty words and posturing. This is a strange hot take. We have a power openly invading another country and a large one. Also, your logic on why people wont go to war is basically the opposite of histroy. Authoritari leaders have gone to war for thousands of years BECAUSE of problems at home not the opposite. It allows them to place blame on others and dictract their people from their own failures. People are right to be scared of countries with big militaries, authoritarian rulers, imperialistic goals and rhetoric, domestic issues, and so on. Because these are the exact conditions that lead to invasion and war. Recent example Russia invading Ukraine. Your logic is sound, but it doesn't fit the context. You can count troops. Russia doesn't have anything in reserves to start a war with. And that also means China doesn't have its most dependable ally. So we're safe, for now, courtesy of some very brave Ukrainians. I think you are making the mistake of thinking because russia is trying to enlist people from syria and also getting active reservists into the battle its a sign that their depleted. The reason why they have to utilise these measures is because they do call it a special military operation instead of declaring it a war. That means they can not do a general mobilisation and general conscription, they can only call up the active reserve and so on. The media has created an david vs goliath image and subsequently set up a great success story for ukraine for still being alive, but in reality, when it comes to troops both countries are probably a lot closer. Ukraine has the ukrainian army, the ukrainian territorial defense force, conscripted people, as well as irregular partisan troops vs just the amount of troops that russia has commited to this on the other side. At least when it comes to troops, russia could source a lot more troops within a few months if they would call this a war. I doubt they would be able to defeat the whole of ukraine, simply because the financial support that can be leveraged in favour of ukraine which has the potential to become an even bigger factor the longer this goes on. But it is to soon to tell if russia is unable to get a hold of say eastern ukraine for example. They don't have declared it a war so far, hopefully it stays that way. Though russian media seems to be bringing up that option recently. And a lot of the russian military blunders can be explained by the fact that this was indeed planned as a military operation that would be over quickly and not a war. They have demonstrated a lot of mistakes, but I don't think its wise to see their performance in ukraine as a complete picture of how they would fare in a war that they acknowledge and plan for accordingly. And another thing the war in ukraine demonstrates well is that you don't need russia to be able to win a war, unfortunately its enough if they think they can win it / that it is worth the risk. I don't believe that we are close to ww3, but I also don't think we are further from it than in a long time. With a war going on near nato countries, where one side is supplied by nato states there is a lot more potential reasons for conflict between nato and russia right now than in recent years. I also don't fully agree with the assessment of china, but that is a different topic. Equipment breaking down because they have been sitting idle for to long, tanks without smoke launchers or reactive armour plates isn't because this is a 'special operation' and not a war.
Turning it into a war would open up more manpower, but that isn't Russia's problem. faulty, outdated and badly services equipment and rampant corruption is. And you don't solve those issues by conscripting a million teenagers.
War declarations or not, at this point is there is no way Russia is capable of fighting Sweden and/or Finland and Russia's threats are entirely hollow and the world knows it.
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On April 17 2022 01:28 Gorsameth wrote:Show nested quote +On April 17 2022 01:04 Artesimo wrote:On April 16 2022 22:40 Ghanburighan wrote:On April 16 2022 21:55 JimmiC wrote:On April 16 2022 15:38 Ghanburighan wrote:On April 16 2022 10:54 Manit0u wrote:On April 16 2022 03:25 Mohdoo wrote: This ship was supposed to be not-shitty. 2 missiles somehow managed to connect and it sunk. Russians couldn't prevent the missiles, it only took 2 missiles, then they lied about it. Juicy and divine.
+ Show Spoiler + What do you mean not shitty? It's 70's tech. This ship was last updated in like 1982 and even then Russians didn't pay Ukraine for the modernization so some systems have been taken out and it's unclear if they were even replaced. I mean, Moskva's system could track 6 targets and provide guidance on 3 of them whereas some western cruisers of its class that are of more modern design can track 80 targets and provide guidance on 20-30.
Another thing is that its missile storage is terrible. Basically all modern missile ships are designed to expel all of the fire from the tubes outside of the ship in case rocket fuel catches fire (it's quite volatile and burns under water too) whereas Moskva had one central storage with 64 rockets and no way to contain/release the fire outside.
A lot of Russian tech is still Cold War era stuff, horribly outdated and outmatched by what NATO has. They do have some high tech and modern systems but those are few and far between (like 100 modern airplanes, a few subs, basically specialized long-range stuff that's not designed for standard warfare).
On another note, it seems like we're really going towards WW3 here...As US and Japan are conducting joint naval warfare exercises on the Japan Sea some of Russian submarines are testing cruise missiles in the same area. And of course Chinese fleet decided to do exercises near Taiwan at the same time when US delegation is visiting there. What in the hell is even going on in the world? Seems like everyone is stirring the pot... I guess we'll have more answers after the weekend when full scale assault will probably start in Ukraine as hundreds of Russian mobile missile launchers are making their way west via train (at the time of writing this they should be about 20h train ride out of Kiyv). I'd say that we haven't been this far from WWIII in a while. Russia is economically and militarily crippled. China is also dealing with major domestic problems (economic and COVID related). And they are supposed to support each other, which they cannot do under the circumstances. Essentially, this is why Finland and Sweden are joining NATO asap - there's nothing Russia can afford to do to them. It's just empty words and posturing. This is a strange hot take. We have a power openly invading another country and a large one. Also, your logic on why people wont go to war is basically the opposite of histroy. Authoritari leaders have gone to war for thousands of years BECAUSE of problems at home not the opposite. It allows them to place blame on others and dictract their people from their own failures. People are right to be scared of countries with big militaries, authoritarian rulers, imperialistic goals and rhetoric, domestic issues, and so on. Because these are the exact conditions that lead to invasion and war. Recent example Russia invading Ukraine. Your logic is sound, but it doesn't fit the context. You can count troops. Russia doesn't have anything in reserves to start a war with. And that also means China doesn't have its most dependable ally. So we're safe, for now, courtesy of some very brave Ukrainians. I think you are making the mistake of thinking because russia is trying to enlist people from syria and also getting active reservists into the battle its a sign that their depleted. The reason why they have to utilise these measures is because they do call it a special military operation instead of declaring it a war. That means they can not do a general mobilisation and general conscription, they can only call up the active reserve and so on. The media has created an david vs goliath image and subsequently set up a great success story for ukraine for still being alive, but in reality, when it comes to troops both countries are probably a lot closer. Ukraine has the ukrainian army, the ukrainian territorial defense force, conscripted people, as well as irregular partisan troops vs just the amount of troops that russia has commited to this on the other side. At least when it comes to troops, russia could source a lot more troops within a few months if they would call this a war. I doubt they would be able to defeat the whole of ukraine, simply because the financial support that can be leveraged in favour of ukraine which has the potential to become an even bigger factor the longer this goes on. But it is to soon to tell if russia is unable to get a hold of say eastern ukraine for example. They don't have declared it a war so far, hopefully it stays that way. Though russian media seems to be bringing up that option recently. And a lot of the russian military blunders can be explained by the fact that this was indeed planned as a military operation that would be over quickly and not a war. They have demonstrated a lot of mistakes, but I don't think its wise to see their performance in ukraine as a complete picture of how they would fare in a war that they acknowledge and plan for accordingly. And another thing the war in ukraine demonstrates well is that you don't need russia to be able to win a war, unfortunately its enough if they think they can win it / that it is worth the risk. I don't believe that we are close to ww3, but I also don't think we are further from it than in a long time. With a war going on near nato countries, where one side is supplied by nato states there is a lot more potential reasons for conflict between nato and russia right now than in recent years. I also don't fully agree with the assessment of china, but that is a different topic. Equipment breaking down because they have been sitting idle for to long, tanks without smoke launchers or reactive armour plates isn't because this is a 'special operation' and not a war. Turning it into a war would open up more manpower, but that isn't Russia's problem. faulty, outdated and badly services equipment and rampant corruption is. And you don't solve those issues by conscripting a million teenagers. War declarations or not, at this point is there is no way Russia is capable of fighting Sweden and/or Finland and Russia's threats are entirely hollow and the world knows it. I guess I misunderstood your 'you can count troops' comment, apology for that.
Declaring war also opens up a lot of other options though, like turning your industry more and more towards the war effort, making predictions for a hypothetical scenario based on current circumstances and the assumption they stay the exact same is foolish. Russia certainly has the capability for war, that is all you need, because its also unlikely you get a world war because a nation says 'I want a world war'. Its because things escalate to that point and currently we definitely do have escalation potential. Which is why I disagree with 'we are further from ww3 than in a long time', there are many ways this war could spark something that escalates into ww3.
Again, its not about russia winning, its about russia doing another miscalculation like their 'special military operation', or something escalating out of hand. And having a conflict that nato gets more and more involved in and someone's hand could get forced. Lets take one of the worst case scenarios for ukraine atm, what happens if russia would actually use nukes on ukraine for example, beause they think they can get away with it? What do we do if undeniable, very public proof shows up that russia is indeed planning to genocide ukraine? What do we do if russia declares military aid shipments as military targets (something they have aready mentioned as a possibility for a so far idle threat) and they strike at convoy on nato soil, banking on the fact that nuclear deterrence is enough so that nato only protests? What if russia tries an excursion into western ukraine and fighting happens near nato borders, something on nato soil gets hit by accident - What do we do then?
And lot of these scenarios could not just lead to pressure on nations having a stance, they also can lead to dramatic shifts in public opinion to the point where people might even ask for a war. How likely is any of this happening? No idea, like I said, I don't think we will get ww3 either, but we definitely have more potential for it.
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Russia has stated that any Soviet made weapons, or equipment cannot be sold or transferred to other countries without its' permission.
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On April 17 2022 02:12 {CC}StealthBlue wrote: Russia has stated that any Soviet made weapons, or equipment cannot be sold or transferred to other countries without its' permission.
'We did not send any soviet weapons to ukraine, we did send them back to you. According to your plans, ukraine should have fallen by now, so we just parked them there for you to pick up. Did you not get them? You said everything was going according to plan...'
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Their still relying on divide-and-conquer tactics smacks of proper desperation.
If they warn Czech Republic, then they have to warn Slovakia, Poland, Estonia and Lithuania as well. Except that 'Russia warns NATO' is kinda laughable at this point - if one considers conventional warfare only and excludes nuclear options.
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