XPost: alt.politics, alt.politics.usa, alt.defense
XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14492279/Russia-Ukraine-troops-terrorists-Putin-Trump-Kremlin-ceasefire.html
Vladimir Putin's army has captured hundreds of Ukrainian
troops fighting in Kursk, with the Russian leader threatening
to threat them 'as terrorists'.
Russia's chief of general staff, Valery Gerasimov, said his
forces had captured about 430 Ukrainian soldiers in the Kursk
region, where Ukraine mounted a surprise counteroffensive
last summer.
In a meeting with Putin, he said: 'The Ukrainian military,
seeing futility of further resistance, started surrendering.
Four hundred and thirty fighters were captured.'
Putin, who today donned military fatigues as he visited troops
in Kursk, cruelly said in response that the captured Ukrainian
troops ought to be 'treated as terrorists, in accordance with
the laws of the Russian Federation.'
Moments earlier US president Donald Trump threatened Russia
with 'devastating' consequences for Russia if Putin does not
agree to a 30-day ceasefire with Ukraine.
. . .
Everybody is posturing - looking for the best 'deal'.
However I think Trump is gonna just IGNORE those
captured Ukrainians - "collateral damage" alas.
However it WILL enrage Zel ... Putin is HOPING
he will nix the recent Trump plan, continue
the war.
Russia, compared to Ukraine, kinda has unlimited
potential. Putin can keep this up for YEARS. It
will wear-down Ukraine, achieve total victory
by default. This is how Putin sees it. Even IF
the USA/EU put lots of money/arms into Ukraine
it'll still be badly hurt. They've burned a LOT
of force and will at this point. Neither the USA
or EU is gonna put a single SOLDIER into Ukraine,
of course .... it's become one of those horrible
proxy wars .........
Likely, Putin wants the entire eastern half of
Ukraine ... kinda right up to the Kyiv city
limits. Trump wants a more moderate solution.
We just have to wait and see how it works out.
Alas, Ukraine, IT is gonna be mostly CUT OUT
of the negotiations. Zel is obsessed with
KILLING ALL RUSSIANS (DO kinda understand)
but that'll NEVER mean any useful peace.
Trump kinda made Ukraine sound SIMPLE on the
campaign stump, but, expected, NOTHING is all
that damned simple. Russia is STRONG and is
NOT gonna give in to anything easily. It has
also found ways AROUND US/EU 'sanctions' and
is NOT really hurting for cash.
Putin is a HARD-ASS in the old time tradition.
He has his 'mission from god' to restore the
old USSR. This is HARD to deal with.
As Trump noted (LOUDLY, PUBLICALLY) to Zel,
a WW3 may indeed lie at the end of a failed
deal. Then nobody anywhere wins - just a new
Dark Age ... assuming ANY humans survive.
The cold/warm-war is BACK, big time. Hard-asses
everywhere. Joe let it happen ... but Trump and
successors have to DEAL. Very very unpleasant.
The USA is not 'rich' anymore - a serious debtor -
so we CAN'T carry the western world any more
by ourselves. A brave, scary, new world.
Note that Iran just told Trump to FUCK OFF - almost
explicitly - about their nuke capabilities. Just
another thorn ......... betcha they HAVE a little
nuke inventory by now ... it's 40s/50s tech folks,
easily within Persian capabilities. Hell, Iran
provided tech advice to NK about building
thermonukes ........ Iran damned well has 'em.
This stinks more and more of the pre-WW1 political
environment.
Oh, final wild-card ... a few months ago Ukraine
mentioned that while it'd sent back all Russian
nuke weapons, it DID still have an inventory of
raw plutonium. Easy for them to make bombs, even
easier to make 'dirty bombs'. You DON'T want
plutonium dusted over yer city !!! Zel could
easily force the evac of Moscow and surrounding
area - don't see how to come back from that.
(oh, NOT the most massive fan of long-dead Rush,
but his GROUP is still ultra-active and widely
read, so)
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