Ukraine 2

[Kamaji]

Fifty experts from Syrian military who specialise in deadly barrel bombs that destroy anything within 800ft radius are drafted in to aid Russian forces in Ukraine invasion

By CHRIS JEWERS FOR MAILONLINE
22 May 2022

Vladimir Putin has drafted in feared Syrian barrel bomb specialists to aid in Russia's faltering invasion of Ukraine, according to reports.

The bombs have been used to devastating effect in the 10-year Syrian civil war, with evidence suggesting that Bashar al-Assad's forces using them to kill thousands of civilians and destroy vast swathes of towns and cities.

According to The Guardian, intelligence officers have said more than 50 experts in the creation and deployment of crude explosives travelled to Russia weeks ago to work along-side officials in Moscow's armies.

It is understood that the arrival of the specialists was one of the main reasons behind both the United States and European countries warning that chemical weapons could be used in the conflict in Ukraine.

*  *  *

Source:  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10842433/Ukraine-war-Syrian-barrel-bomb-experts-drafted-help-Putins-forces.html

[Kamaji]

[Hoodat]

I side with neither @Smokin Joe

Your posts do.

One can certainly defend the Azov Battalion's involvement as an alliance similar to the Western Alliance with the Soviets in WWII.  But, to deny the history of the battalion and its role in the on-going attacks in the Dunbas region for eight years is rewritiing history  ---- and to do this with such vehemence is inexplicable.

The Azov Battalion hasn't existed since Jan 2015.

Ukraine's Burisma, Hunter Biden; Ukraine's biolabs, Hunter Biden.  $1 billion dollars to change the prosecutor investigating Burmisa, Joe Biden.

10% to the big guy. 

On December 10, 2019, Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee announced they would levy two articles of impeachment, designated H. Res. 755: (1) abuse of power, and (2) obstruction of Congress, in its investigation of the President's conduct regarding Ukraine.

Ukraine was the vehicle driven to remove a sitting US President from office ----- after three years investigating Russia! Russia! Russia! hit the ground like a safe falling from a 20 story building.   And here we are two short years later, with the same big guy now sitting at the helm, shoulder deep in a never-ending border conflict five thousand miles away writing blank checks to Ukraine, calling for the assassination of the Russian leader and helping the EU expand and fundmentally change NATO from a defensive alliance to an offensive one ---- with the US paying the lion's share of the bill.

And you fail to see even the possibiity of a connection between Russia/Ukrainegte and our current actions.  Words fail me, Joe.

What does Poroshenko's corruption have to do with the current Ukraine administration?

The bottom line is this is not our fight.   We owe Ukraine no weapons, no training, no money.  This is for the European Union to handle and solve to its satisfaction.

Speaking of the European Union. I do seem to recall back in 2014 where  the EU invited Ukraine to apply for membership.  And I also distinctly remember Russia interfering with that process by bribing Ukrainian President (and Soviet puppet) Viktor Yushchenko to sabotage that process.  The Soviet puppet leader was promptly impeached and driven from office for 'poisoning' Ukraine's chance for EU membership.  And it was the removal of the puppet Yuschenko from office that prompted Russia's invasion.

But then you knew all of that already.  Yet you have already chosen a side.

[Hoodat]

One Russian's anti-war protest on the side of his shopping centre

Steve Rosenberg, Russko-Vysotskoye  |  2 days ago



If you drive eight hours north of Moscow, you'll come to a tiny little town called Russko-Vysotskoye.

There is not a great deal to see here, apart from the chicken farm and the church that was reduced to rubble in World War Two.

But there is one thing in this town that is particularly eye-catching: the local shopping centre.

Dmitry Skurikhin owns the building - and you should see what he's done to the front of it.

In giant letters he's painted "Peace to Ukraine, Freedom to Russia!" In bright-red paint he's listed the names of Ukrainian towns that have been attacked by the Russian army.

Mariupol, Bucha, Kherson, Chernihiv, and many more.



"I thought this would be a good way of getting information out," Dmitry tells me.

"Because for the first few weeks of the war our people didn't know what was happening. They thought that some kind of special operation was being conducted to remove drug addicts from the Ukrainian government. They didn't know that Russia was shelling Ukrainian towns."  .  .

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-61515365

[Elderberry]

YouTube removes more than 9,000 channels relating to Ukraine war

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/may/22/youtube-ukraine-invasion-russia-video-removals

Exclusive: Platform takes ‘unprecedented action’ to address content guideline violations since invasion

YouTube has taken down more than 70,000 videos and 9,000 channels related to the war in Ukraine for violating content guidelines, including removal of videos that referred to the invasion as a “liberation mission”.

The platform is hugely popular in Russia, where, unlike some of its US peers, it has not been shut down despite hosting content from opposition figures such as Alexei Navalny. YouTube has also been able to operate in Russia despite cracking down on pro-Kremlin content that has broken guidelines including its major violent events policy, which prohibits denying or trivialising the invasion.

Since the conflict began in February, YouTube has taken down channels including that of the pro-Kremlin journalist Vladimir Solovyov. Channels associated with Russia’s Ministries of Defence and Foreign Affairs have also been temporarily suspended from uploading videos in recent months for describing the war as a “liberation mission”.

YouTube’s chief product officer, Neal Mohan, said: “We have a major violent events policy and that applies to things like denial of major violent events: everything from the Holocaust to Sandy Hook. And of course, what’s happening in Ukraine is a major violent event. And so we’ve used that policy to take unprecedented action.”

In an interview with the Guardian, Mohan added that YouTube’s news content on the conflict had received more than 40m views in Ukraine alone.

“The first and probably most paramount responsibility is making sure that people who are looking for information about this event can get accurate, high-quality, credible information on YouTube,” he said. “The consumption of authoritative channels on our platform has grown significantly, of course in Ukraine, but also in countries surrounding Ukraine, Poland, and also within Russia itself.”

More at link.

[mountaineer]

OSINT Aggregator
@AggregateOsint
#Italy has circulated a 4-point peace plan to the #UnitedNations for the #UkraineRussiaWar - 1. Immediate ceasefire 2. Permanent #Ukrainian neutrality 3. De facto independence for #Crimea and #Donbas 4. Withdrawal of 🇷🇺 troops and end to 🇷🇺 sanctions.
Wall St. Journal: Italy Circulates 4-Point Peace Plan
2:47 PM · May 22, 2022

[Cyber Liberty]

OSINT Aggregator
@AggregateOsint
#Italy has circulated a 4-point peace plan to the #UnitedNations for the #UkraineRussiaWar - 1. Immediate ceasefire 2. Permanent #Ukrainian neutrality 3. De facto independence for #Crimea and #Donbas 4. Withdrawal of 🇷🇺 troops and end to 🇷🇺 sanctions.
Wall St. Journal: Italy Circulates 4-Point Peace Plan
2:47 PM · May 22, 2022

No.

[mountaineer]

Too bad they thought to involve the worthless corrupt UN in this process.

[Cyber Liberty]

Too bad they thought to involve the worthless corrupt UN in this process.

It's rotten on several levels.  It allows Putin to cement the conquests he has done so far, namely Crimea and Dunbar.  Caving on "some territory" is a guarantee there will be reasons (as yet unknown) that will crop up later to justify taking more.

It prohibits Ukraine from entering alliances as it sees fit.  They can't even write a treaty without the UN's say so.

And it allows the evil empire UN to ensure their boot remains on Ukraine's neck forever.

So, it's a firm "No!"  Hard pass.

[DB]

It's rotten on several levels.  It allows Putin to cement the conquests he has done so far, namely Crimea and Dunbar.  Caving on "some territory" is a guarantee there will be reasons (as yet unknown) that will crop up later to justify taking more.

It prohibits Ukraine from entering alliances as it sees fit.  They can't even write a treaty without the UN's say so.

And it allows the evil empire UN to ensure their boot remains on Ukraine's neck forever.

So, it's a firm "No!"  Hard pass.

My vote is send more weapons.

[Hoodat]

OSINT Aggregator
@AggregateOsint
#Italy has circulated a 4-point peace plan to the #UnitedNations for the #UkraineRussiaWar - 1. Immediate ceasefire 2. Permanent #Ukrainian neutrality 3. De facto independence for #Crimea and #Donbas 4. Withdrawal of 🇷🇺 troops and end to 🇷🇺 sanctions.
Wall St. Journal: Italy Circulates 4-Point Peace Plan
2:47 PM · May 22, 2022

Hell no!

[Elderberry]

Ukraine LIVE: Ukraine wipe out Russian weapons after 'useful idiot' reveals EXACT location

https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1614065/ukraine-live-vladimir-putin-volodymyr-zelensky-russia-donbas-update

A RUSSIAN journalist unwittingly helped Ukrainian forces to locate and destroy Russian heavy artillery.

Ukraine forces succeeded for the first time in taking out a Russian 2S4 Tyulpan artillery system near Rubizhne in the Luhansk region. The 2S4 Tyulpan is a powerful weapon and can fire massive 240 mm caliber 221-pound high explosive projectiles for up to 260 miles. Ukrainian soldiers were able to locate the deadly weapon after watching a TV broadcast from the frontline by a Russian journalist.

Viktor Kovalenko, a Ukrainian army veteran, wrote on his Twitter page: "Ukrainian military was able to destroy 2S4 Tyulpan immediately after watching the TV report by the Russian propagandist Alex Koz (useful idiot).

"He proudly reported about this deadly mortar on Russian TV and disclosed the exact location."

More at link.

[Hoodat]

Ukraine LIVE: Ukraine wipe out Russian weapons after 'useful idiot' reveals EXACT location

https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1614065/ukraine-live-vladimir-putin-volodymyr-zelensky-russia-donbas-update

A RUSSIAN journalist unwittingly helped Ukrainian forces to locate and destroy Russian heavy artillery.

Sweet.

[Elderberry]

Centuries of Russian oppression have forged Ukraine’s remarkable resilience

https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert/centuries-of-russian-oppression-have-forged-ukraines-remarkable-resilience/

In the same way that an individual can have mental health conditions, a society can be impacted by emotional and psychological stressors that shape it.

Some Ukrainian psychological practitioners and social scientists have previously endorsed the idea that Ukraine suffers from chronic Post-Traumatic Stress (PTS) which has historically accumulated through events such as the country’s experience under Russian imperialism, the Holodomor, World War II, and the systemic suppression of national and human rights during the Soviet era.

It follows that Ukraine’s national PTS has been severely exacerbated by the events of the past eight years. This includes the killing of protesters during the Euromaidan Revolution, the annexation of Crimea, the war in the Donbas and, of course, the Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion since February 2022. This societal trauma is in addition to the acute PTS directly acquired through personal exposure to the war by more than half a million Ukrainian soldiers, thousands of social services personnel, and countless Ukrainian citizens.

While it may seem counterintuitive, Ukraine’s PTS could actually play a role in the country’s defense and future post-war recovery. This is because PTS tends to “play out” in different ways.

Critically, PTS isn’t static. Those who suffer from PTS often adapt to or compensate for their condition in variable situations. Let’s scale up from the individual level to the national level in how PTS “plays out”, particularly through cognition symptoms (how we think) and arousal symptoms (how we behave and react).

More at link.

[Elderberry]

'A Long Journey': Volunteers From Belarus Fight for Ukraine

https://www.voanews.com/a/6584603.html

Warsaw — One is a restaurateur who fled Belarus when he learned he was about to be arrested for criticizing President Alexander Lukashenko. Another was given the choice of either denouncing fellow opposition activists or being jailed. And one is certain his brother was killed by the country's security forces.

What united them is their determination to resist Lukashenko by fighting against Russian forces in Ukraine.

Belarusians are among those who have answered a call by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for foreign fighters to go to Ukraine and join the International Legion for the Territorial Defense of Ukraine, given the high stakes in a conflict which many see as a battle pitting dictatorship against freedom.

For the Belarusians, who consider Ukrainians a brethren nation, the stakes feel especially high.

Russian troops used Belarusian territory to invade Ukraine early in the war, and Lukashenko has publicly stood by longtime ally, Russian President Vladimir Putin, describing him as his "big brother." Russia, for its part, has pumped billions of dollars into shoring up Lukashenko's Soviet-style, state-controlled economy with cheap energy and loans.

Weakening Putin, the Belarusian volunteers believe, would also weaken Lukashenko, who has held power since 1994, and create an opening to topple his oppressive government and bring democratic change to the nation of nearly 10 million.

For many of the Belarusians, their base is Poland, a country on NATO's eastern flank that borders Belarus and Ukraine, and which has become a haven for pro-democracy Belarusian dissidents before becoming one for war refugees from Ukraine.

Some of the volunteer fighters are already in Poland, and some only pass through briefly on their way to Ukraine.

More at link.

[Elderberry]

Satellite image of Mariupol leads to chilling conclusion

https://www.9news.com.au/world/russia-ukraine-update-satellite-images-show-mass-graves-mariupol/4a62f860-f912-4548-9c25-502b4f1d20ef

New satellite imagery taken over the Ukrainian city of Mariupol has shown Russian forces digging mass graves, an expert said.

Russia has claimed full control of the strategic port city after Ukrainian defenders at the Azovstal steel plant surrendered after weeks of siege.

US satellite company Planet Labs said its latest imagery has revealed three mass graves on the outskirts of Mariupol.

Russian troops have been accused of committing atrocities in Ukraine including the mass killing of civilians.

US military expert Melissa Hanham, of Stanford University, said the apparent graves shown in imagery were capable of holding thousands of bodies.

More at link.

[sneakypete]

Viktor Kovalenko, a Ukrainian army veteran, wrote on his Twitter page: "Ukrainian military was able to destroy 2S4 Tyulpan immediately after watching the TV report by the Russian propagandist Alex Koz (useful idiot).
 

@Elderberry

Viktor Kovalenko

That stupid SOB should be severely beaten every time he shows his stupid face. Ukraine HAD a tactical advantage that was obviously unknown by the Russians,and he blew it by broadcasting it.

[Hoodat]

Anti-war chant at concert in St. Petersburg.

http://www.youtube.com/shorts/kyjN3mdCLxo

[Hoodat]

Massive Fire Breaks Out at Russian Aerospace Institute; Ukraine's Involvement Suspected

Prabhat Ranjan Mishra  |  May 22, 2022 13:16 +08

A massive fire broke out at Russia's aerospace institute in Zhukovsky, which develops fighter aircraft. Experts speculate Ukraine's involvement in the incident. The Aerohydrodynamic Institute, which is 43 miles away from Moscow, plays a key role in the development of rockets and jets.

A former CIA operative suggests that the incident is the result of Kyiv's sabotage campaign inside Russia.



Plumes of black thick smoke were seen at the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute in Zhukovsky, which played a crucial role in the development of the Su-27, MiG-29, and MiG-31 fighters as well as various rockets.

https://www.ibtimes.sg/massive-fire-breaks-out-russian-aerospace-institute-ukraines-involvement-suspected-watch-64737

[sneakypete]

Ukrainian involvement is not impossible,but seems highly unlikely given the Soviet "mindset" that still exists in the Russian military.

I suspect anti-war sabotage from an employee or two that may have lost a child or other relative in the invasion of Ukraine. Russia is just too paranoid for it to be likely foreign saboteurs could infiltrate  an aerospace institute.

Not to mention damn near impossible to get away.

[bilo]

Ukraine LIVE: Ukraine wipe out Russian weapons after 'useful idiot' reveals EXACT location

https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1614065/ukraine-live-vladimir-putin-volodymyr-zelensky-russia-donbas-update

A RUSSIAN journalist unwittingly helped Ukrainian forces to locate and destroy Russian heavy artillery.

It's great that they destroyed the heavy artillery, but I wish they didn't tell how they got the location. If Russian journalists are as dumb as American journalists he would probably have done it again.

[bilo]

PUTIN humiliating to see Ukraine using E-BIKES bicycles to crush Russian attacking tank convoy.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrsMVGqKKmM

The response to Russia's invasion by Ukraine has been eye opening in how they have countered the heavy weapons of Russia. I sure hope our military is taking note.

[Kamaji]

PUTIN humiliating to see Ukraine using E-BIKES bicycles to crush Russian attacking tank convoy.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrsMVGqKKmM

The response to Russia's invasion by Ukraine has been eye opening in how they have countered the heavy weapons of Russia. I sure hope our military is taking note.

[Smokin Joe]

@Elderberry

That stupid SOB should be severely beaten every time he shows his stupid face. Ukraine HAD a tactical advantage that was obviously unknown by the Russians,and he blew it by broadcasting it.

Right. The last thing that Russians need is constructive criticism for their war effort, and doubtless the reporter will be punished for giving the location away, when the reporter might have done the same thing in the future, accidentally to Ukraine's benefit.

[Smokin Joe]

PUTIN humiliating to see Ukraine using E-BIKES bicycles to crush Russian attacking tank convoy.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrsMVGqKKmM

The response to Russia's invasion by Ukraine has been eye opening in how they have countered the heavy weapons of Russia. I sure hope our military is taking note.

The essences of maneuver warfare are mobility and firepower. These vehicles add stealth as well.

Good for this application, and relatively inexpensive.