I don’t even think they are Russian. I think they are from Donbass. The USSR produced a lot of AK’s, so there is no need for such an old rifle.
We have to remember that the Donbass militias are also fighting in this conflict.
Ukrainian War Developments
- Thread starter james smith esq
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We have to remember that the Donbass militias are also fighting in this conflict.
Right. I forgot the militias. But still Russia should have considered them and given them the same arm and leg bands.
EU has exhausted all financial sanctions on Russia – bloc’s top diplomat
Josep Borrell says Brussels has hit the wall in terms of what else can be done to harm the country’s economy
The EU has used up all of the possible restrictive measures against Russia in response to the ongoing war in Ukraine, the bloc’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said, in an interview with Franceinfo on Thursday.
“Of course, one can always go further, but we have already reached the limits of what we can do. We have done everything we could,” he said.
Borrell clarified that he was referring to the massive sanctions that have led to a 40% crash of the Russian currency. “These are very heavy sanctions that will put a heavy burden on the Russian economy,” he explained.
According to the foreign-policy chief, the ban on the export of high technologies was the most painful punitive measure for the Russian economy.
On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a military operation in Ukraine to defend the newly-recognized Donbass republics, which broke away from Kiev in 2014. In response, Western countries, including the EU, UK, US, Canada and others introduced or significantly expanded personal and sectoral sanctions, particularly targeting Russia’s sovereign debt and its banking sector. The measures also targeted members of the State Duma, many business figures, as well as, personally, President Vladimir Putin and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Some Russian banks have been cut off from the SWIFT payment system, while international businesses started pulling out from Russia or halting sales to the country.
The game continues. Zelensky calls it Ping Pong. It's an insult to the sport. It should be called "Pass The Bomb".
For the second day, the US rejects Poland's counter-proposal that Poland will hand over their Mig29s to the US in exchange for F16s. The US will then somehow deliver the Mig29s to Ukraine.
For the second day, the US rejects Poland's counter-proposal that Poland will hand over their Mig29s to the US in exchange for F16s. The US will then somehow deliver the Mig29s to Ukraine.
They are from Donbass yes. Militias. But you cannot replace a Mosin-Nagant rifle with an AK. Because these guys use it for sniping.
That is basically a cheapo sniper rifle. The Soviet equivalent would be the Dragunov. In post-Soviet Russia the SVDM or SV-98.
Russia can just ignore it until they cross and then nuke them.
Over the next few days there will be increasing pressure on China to "mediate" and help solve this peacefully. Europeans will try to flatter China by asking them to show how they are now a world leader, Americans will do what they always do and threaten sanctions.
However it is all a trap. What they actually want is for China to put economic and diplomatic pressure on Russia, expending goodwill with Russia in return for them granting concessions. The Ukrainians know they are being backed by America and all of Europe, so they feel they can be unreasonable as they want in their demands. The Russians have no major power in their corner. It is the classical colonial game of divide and conquer. I don't think Russia will change it's stance regardless of what China says, but will see it as a betrayal for decades to come if China ends up in the western camp on this.
The only best approach to this is to treat it like it was a conflict in any other continent. Call on both sides to resolve the issue bilaterally, and maintain relations with both sides. That will be all the support Russia needs for the foreseeable future without antagonising the west needlessly.
Everything that is currently being done to Russia right now was planned to be used on China in the near future. The Anglos didn't expect Putin to actually invade the Ukraine so they had to deploy it on Russia instead.
The good news is Xi is showing strong resilience on this matter, and is being guided by a public largely sympathetic to the Russian cause and suspicious of western intentions. I hope he continues to do so.
However it is all a trap. What they actually want is for China to put economic and diplomatic pressure on Russia, expending goodwill with Russia in return for them granting concessions. The Ukrainians know they are being backed by America and all of Europe, so they feel they can be unreasonable as they want in their demands. The Russians have no major power in their corner. It is the classical colonial game of divide and conquer. I don't think Russia will change it's stance regardless of what China says, but will see it as a betrayal for decades to come if China ends up in the western camp on this.
The only best approach to this is to treat it like it was a conflict in any other continent. Call on both sides to resolve the issue bilaterally, and maintain relations with both sides. That will be all the support Russia needs for the foreseeable future without antagonising the west needlessly.
Everything that is currently being done to Russia right now was planned to be used on China in the near future. The Anglos didn't expect Putin to actually invade the Ukraine so they had to deploy it on Russia instead.
The good news is Xi is showing strong resilience on this matter, and is being guided by a public largely sympathetic to the Russian cause and suspicious of western intentions. I hope he continues to do so.
People will argue about this for years, I am sure, but I can sort of see how this could have happened.
Remember what they say about battle plans not surviving first contact with the enemy?
I think it was even worse with this situation as they were really not sure what the reception for the local civilian populace was going to be and given the shared heritage, I can understand that they would not have wanted to go in to hard and alienate an otherwise friendly population.
Is that what happened?
Again, I am very mindful of the information war at full on that is being waged.
We all saw the gloating clips of the stone and molotov throwing crowds from the early days. It was however a fairly small number of clips being constantly recycled. Was this the case throughout or was the main reaction indifference with the odd spot of enthusiasm as well?
Its the same with the combat footage, we are shown the Russian casualties, but what is inflicted on the other side is not shown.
Can we infer anything, yes, the Russians have pushed forward and herded the Ukrainians into the larger towns and cities, effectively hiding behind the population who are being used as human shields (no doubt about that at all)
As for the rest, it does look as though tough early lessons are being learned. None of which is surprising for an army that has not had a proper combat for about thirty years.
It should be noted the while everyone in eastern europe outside serbia had deep historic reasons for negative attitude towards the russians, ranging from suspicion and distaste to inveterate hatred, there is inveterate hatred between the poles and ukraians of a magnitude at least equal to that between Poland and Russia. Even while the germans imposed a puppet government on ukraine fir the purpose of effectively enslaving Ukrainians and reducing them serfs under the feudal rule of a germans master race, that puppet government on its own initiative and without prompting from the germans, initiated a campaign of racial extermination of poles who lives in the region which the germans lumped into the administrative occupation territory of Ukraine.
while poland may welcome ukrainian refugees to spite the hated russians now, i think there is little question that in the long run ukrainian refugees will eventually serve to inflame polish xenophobia and serve to unearth long buried ethnic antagonisms in easter europe.
while poland may welcome ukrainian refugees to spite the hated russians now, i think there is little question that in the long run ukrainian refugees will eventually serve to inflame polish xenophobia and serve to unearth long buried ethnic antagonisms in easter europe.
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