gcbel comments

Gotta lol at these weak “has Ukraine won yet?” come backs.

It’s a promised Russian victory (you know that supposed conventional and nuclear superpower ) that’s been delayed. Putin ordered his forces to seize Ukraine and topple its government in a few days.

Now, a year later, what’s the situation? Ukraine (the not-superpower in this story) not only didn’t collapse but pushed Russia back. over a hundred thousand Russian soldiers have been eliminated. Russia’s become the number one supplier of (not that great) military equipment to Ukraine. Russian military incompetence and corruption has been brought to the fore. Russia’s hydrocarbon economy is circling down the drain toward unrecoverable ruin. Xi’s made Putie his b. And on and on.

That “special military operation” still “going to plan”?

Zelenskiy, visiting Kherson, vows to drive Russia from all of Ukraine

And power to you. It’s going to be a tough slog.

A clear repudiation of the big lie MAGA crazies. As it should be. But I hope it doesn’t deter the grifter from announcing he’s going to run again.

It’s a trap. Ukraine bombed and serverly damaged the dam and as soon as winter comes it will collapse. 

Translation: It’s a trap. Russians are planning to blow the dam.

How utterly humiliating for Russia. Now wait for the horror stories that the survivors of the Russian occupation will have to tell.

well the goal posts just moved again. now we have to pay to liberate Crimea too.

We can Russia pay for the wall… uh I mean war. and reparations too.

The European Commission urged EU countries and companies to donate more to Ukraine's energy sector.

Over 300 $ billion in frozen Russian assets available. Use them

That show that they were NOT targeting civilians

Where have you been? The Russians have been targeting civilians - kidnapping, torturing and murdering them - for months. Just asked the survivors of Bucha.

Dagestan, as well as the Siberian region of Buryatia, are among several regions where there are complaints that a disproportionate number of ethnic minorities have been deployed to fight and have died in Ukraine.

So, it begins. Moscow, yet again putting the burden on the ethnic minorities and outer regions. It didn’t work so well for them in the past. Let’s see how well that works for them now

Sounds like Russia should focus on their own Neo-Nazis.

Russophobe propaganda.

I recall that same lame protestations about western reporting when the US shared intelligence of Putin intention to invade Ukraine... Anytime Russian outrages and crimes are reported it’s just gaslighting and whiny protestations of “Russophobia”.

the head of a top state-controlled TV station harshly criticized military authorities for hastily sweeping up random people to meet mobilization targets instead of calling up people with specific skills and recent military service, as Putin promised.

Ouch .. but but but that’s not the narrative pro-Putinist posters have been peddling here. Heh heh

Anyway, looks like they getting ready to saddle all the blame for the fiasco (still all going to plan?) on the Russian military

If Western powers didn't openly support the ultra right coup in 2014, this wouldn't have happened.

Still just a fake narrative. Amazingly, it seems Russia may have even believed its own fake narrative; explains why they were so shocked when Ukrainians actually fought back and didn’t welcome Russians as liberators; why Russia was only prepared for a few days war.

As we all know, the real reason is that Putin couldn’t abide a democratizing, west leaning Ukraine on its border. That would threaten his own authoritarian rule.

Moral of the story - it’s dangerous to believe your own gaslighting. Hundreds of thousands of Russians and Ukrainians have paid the price for that.

Sham just like the Crimean referendum was. Pretty transparent ploy to be able to send conscripts.

And, as mentioned in the article, Russia doesn’t even fully control these areas, much of the pre-war population has fled, and already evidence of heavy-handed tactics to generate turn out for the photo ops (their actual vote isn’t even necessary of course).

“All these traces of war crimes are now carefully documented by us. And we know from the experience of Bucha that the worst crimes can only be exposed over time,” 

Yep, and every last bit of it will eventually come to the light of day.

Russia has not responded to the allegations. Both the United Nations and the international Red Cross say they have been denied access to prisoners.

Russia should be pariah among nations.

…their theory that it was Russia who murdered the civilians in Bucha because Russia is willing to openly commit such crimes.

Not a theory. A fact. No amount of gaslighting will change it

"Mass graves are being discovered in Izium after liberation from the (Russians)" 

They’ll find evidence of atrocities everywhere they liberate.

Thursday's contributions bring total U.S. aid to Ukraine to $15.2 billion since Biden took office. U.S. officials said the new commitments were intended to show that American support for the country in the face of Russia's invasion is unwavering.

It’s an okay start. The US needs to stay the course as long as necessary.

Russia has already won.

Sure. Fingers crossed it keeps on “winning” like this…

With, no doubt, air support courtesy of a video game.

Nah, with the support of CAESAR howitzers courtesy of the French.

Each state will now determine whether the procedure can be performed.

so, vote. Don’t like your state’s stance? Vote.

And that why when the US overthrew the last democratically elected government of Ukraine and installed a ruthless, aggressive regime instead…

Pure Kremlin gaslighting.

The Ukrainians showed they were ready to stand up for themselves then. Russia didn’t take the hint and was absolutely shocked when they invaded for the 3rd time and the Ukrainians again fought back. Plan A was a disaster.

Well, son, Russia entered Ukraine to stop the genocide of in Donbass, stop neo-Nazi groups hassling, beating, torturing and in cases murdering Russian speaking Ukrainians, and most importantly, to stop NATO expansion to its borders. 

Geez. These Putin propaganda fictional pretexts again. They’ve been so thoroughly debunked. There was no genocide in the Donbas. No repression of Russian-speaking Ukrainians. And certainly was not to stop NATO expansion or put down “neo-Nazis”.

Putin’s been quite clear about why he’s actually invaded Ukraine; every iota of this human tragedy lies with Russia. mots doing all the raping, murdering, kidnapping, spoliation, destruction of all Ukrainians.

Russian claims disproved:

Claim: The shopping centre was 'non-functioning'

Enough evidence to the contrary - Video, witnesses show the mall was operating. Online easy to find

Claim: The bombing of a weapons depot spread fire to the shopping centre

Video of the missile strike on the mall itself. Distance between factory and mall also make it an unlikely claim .

Claim: The attack was 'staged' or a 'provocation'

bizarre Claim that contradicts their above claims - and think back to the thoroughly debunked Russian claims about Bucha murders and maternity hospital in Mariupol. And no evidence offered by Russia

So, to be clear, witness accounts and independent expert analysis have proven all Russian statements about the strike on mall as false as they pretty much always are. No surprise there.

The U.S. has been building up its presence since shortly before the Russian invasion in late February, adding about 20,000 troops to the 80,000 who were previously in Europe.

We need to take US troop numbers in Europe back to late 1980’s levels.

Joining NATO, or even just talking about it, is what will turn their countries into targets. Why are they doing it? 

You answered your own question. If “just talking about it” puts you in jeopardy from a powerful neighbor then an alliance with others is the smart play. NATO borders are the red line.

Their doing so, at the orders of the Kiev regime no less, is an implicit recognition of the existence of an independent state of Donetsk by those who swore to crush the Donetsk rebellion

No, not really. Ordering a surrender to russian surrogates, whatever they call themselves, doesn’t create any kind of recognition, not even implicit.

I would argue that Russian soldiers in Ukraine since February have committed vast more, and vastly more horrible, war crimes than NATO

Can you provide proof of that claim?

Thats not especially difficult, unfortunately.

Bucha… just for one. no lack of evidence there

Nonsense??

Yep. And now Russians and Ukrainians and the world are paying for putin believing his own propaganda

Certainly explains how the MSM can control the minds of many.

Well, Russian MSM anyway. Not much there than state propaganda these days. Finally stomped everything else out, right?