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Tom Mazanec wrote: Thu Dec 15, 2022 1:14 pm

Cool Breeze wrote: Thu Dec 15, 2022 1:00 pm "Truce" in 2023 Tommy? Or are we going to a more diffuse, all out hot war?

Hoping (and praying) for the first but dreading (and expecting) the second.

As am I. Keep up the prayers.

That was awesome when the Russians zinged the war mongering US/NATO by saying, if we bothered targeting anyone with nukes, it would be London. Did you all see that? Talk about trollin'

Russian Missile Barrage Knocks Out Power to Ukrainian Cities
Volodymyr Verbyany
Fri, December 16, 2022 at 7:21 AM EST
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/russian- ... 37161.html

Exclusive: FIFA rebuffs Zelensky’s request to share message of peace at World Cup final
By Matthew Chance, CNN
Updated 8:04 AM EST, Fri December 16, 2022
https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/16/football ... index.html

U.S. Senate Passes Record $858 Billion Defense Act, Sending Bill to Biden
By Reuters
Dec. 15, 2022, at 7:53 p.m.
https://money.usnews.com/investing/news ... -continues

Russia rains missiles on Ukraine's infrastructure, says Kyiv kills civilians
By REUTERS Published: DECEMBER 16, 2022 07:44
Updated: DECEMBER 16, 2022 12:55
https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-725065

1st Full Test of Hypersonic Missile Successful: US Air Force
By Caden Pearson December 13, 2022 Updated: December 13, 2022
https://www.theepochtimes.com/1st-full- ... 20296.html

Russia readies a SECOND monster Yars nuke for combat – as pro-Putin MP threatens 'hotbed of all nastiness' London with missile strike
By WILL STEWART FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 04:36 EST, 15 December 2022 | UPDATED: 12:01 EST, 15 December 2022
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/articl ... -silo.html

Is Russia Preparing To Conduct A Massive New Invasion Of Ukraine From The North?
December 15, 2022
https://themostimportantnews.com/archiv ... -the-north

Moscow appeals for army recruits to fight in Ukraine through propaganda videos
By Uliana Pavlova, CNN
Published 12:11 PM EST, Sat December 17, 2022
https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/17/europe/m ... index.html

Ukraine war: Putin meets generals as Russian missiles pound cities
Published
19 hours ago
By Matt Murphy
BBC News
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64013052

Russia Can Finally See That Putin’s ‘Days Are Numbered’
Anna Nemtsova
Updated Dec. 18, 2022 2:32AM ET / Published Dec. 17, 2022 8:03PM ET
https://www.thedailybeast.com/russia-ca ... e-numbered

Prepare for another Russian attempt to capture Kyiv
RICHARD KEMP
17 December 2022 • 7:00am
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/1 ... ture-kyiv/

Ukraine warns of looming Russian ground offensive in early 2023
By Jacob Geanous
December 17, 2022 2:09pm Updated
https://nypost.com/2022/12/17/ukraine-w ... arly-2023/

Key Ukrainian city’s rapid fall leaves unanswered questions
By SAM MEDNICK
today
https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukrai ... 107b620aac

China must prepare for a Russia weakened by Ukraine war, analysts say
Kinling Lo
+ myNEWS
Published: 9:00pm, 17 Dec, 2022
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diploma ... alysts-say

Here is an interesting read based on operations back a few months. https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1571 ... 31041.html

Why Japan is boosting its arms capability, defense budget
Dec. 18 06:21 am JST 48 Comments
By MARI YAMAGUCHI
https://japantoday.com/category/politic ... ity-budget

Peace Between Jordan and Israel Unraveling, Report Says
Adam Kredo • December 17, 2022 4:59 am
https://freebeacon.com/national-securit ... port-says/

US Planning to Transfer Bomb Precision Kits to Ukraine: Report
Photo of Inder Singh Bisht INDER SINGH BISHTDECEMBER 16, 2022
https://www.thedefensepost.com/2022/12/ ... t-ukraine/

NATO On Edge As Russia Ramps Up Military Activity In The Arctic
By The Jamestown Foundation - Dec 18, 2022, 10:00 AM CST
https://oilprice.com/Geopolitics/Intern ... rctic.html

Vladimir Putin's Former Confidante And 'Top Chef' Rumored To Be Planning Coup: 'This Is Uncharted Territory'
Story by Radar Online • Yesterday 3:00 PM
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/vl ... r-AA15qa1W

TANK-LESS JOB Chilling warning US military is ‘drained, strained & shrinking’ despite threats from Putin & Xi
Chris Bradford
Published: 13:25 ET, Dec 18 2022Updated: 9:54 ET, Dec 19 2022
https://www.the-sun.com/news/6923696/am ... i-threats/

Serbia Seeks Troop Deployment in Kosovo
Belgrade formally asked NATO if its troops could return to northern Kosovo, a request unlikely to be granted
by Dave DeCamp Posted onDecember 15, 2022
https://news.antiwar.com/2022/12/15/ser ... in-kosovo/

17 Dec, 2022 11:41
HomeWorld News
NATO reinforces presence in Kosovo
https://www.rt.com/news/568416-nato-kfo ... ce-kosovo/

Lithuania signs $495 million deal to buy HIMARS, ATACMs
By Joe Gould
Friday, Dec 16
https://www.defensenews.com/pentagon/20 ... rs-atacms/

Rumors That Resonate
DISINFORMATION
EUROPE'S EDGE
RUSSIA
December 18, 2022
Edward Lucas
Speculation about Putin’s fate highlights his weakness.
https://cepa.org/article/rumors-that-resonate/

Defending Crimea, Russia Fortifies Annexed Region With Anti-Tank Barriers, Trenches & Mines Amid Ukrainian Offensive
EUROPE
By
Sakshi Tiwari
December 17, 2022
https://eurasiantimes.com/russia-fortif ... -conflict/

17 Dec, 2022 11:37
HomeRussia & FSU
Russia building giant dome over Europe’s largest nuclear plant – official
The structure will shield stores of spent radioactive fuel from Ukrainian attacks
https://www.rt.com/russia/568415-zaporo ... e-ukraine/

A Battle for the Arctic Is Underway. And the U.S. Is Already Behind.
By KENNETH R. ROSEN
12/17/2022 09:16 AM EST
Updated: 12/18/2022 02:34 PM EST
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/ ... c-00071169

16 Dec, 2022 16:51
HomeWorld News
Kissinger outlines Ukraine peace proposal
https://www.rt.com/news/568389-kissinge ... -proposal/

5 minute readDecember 19, 202212:49 PM ESTLast Updated 20 min ago
Russian 'kamikaze' drones hit Kyiv, Putin arrives in ally Belarus
By Tom Balmforth and Valentyn Ogirenko
https://www.reuters.com/world/its-time- ... 022-12-18/

Japan plans to remilitarize at lightning speed
Tokyo publishes formal plan to double defense spending by 2028 including outlays for new counterstrike capabilities aimed at China
By ANDREW SALMON
DECEMBER 16, 2022
https://asiatimes.com/2022/12/japan-pla ... ing-speed/

Japan Unveils Biggest Military Buildup Since WW II Amid China Worries
Friday, 16 December 2022 12:03 PM EST
https://www.newsmax.com/world/globaltal ... d/1100820/

utahbob wrote: Sun Dec 18, 2022 12:54 pm Here is an interesting read based on operations back a few months. https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1571 ... 31041.html

"To start with, I want to stop describing what invaded Ukraine and is still fighting on Putin's side as "the Russian army". It is not the Russian army, it is a kind of military grouping in which the army is not in command everywhere and not always. Let's start there."

That was a good catch up, thanks Bob. The premise of it is something I hadn't seen or thought of.

Tom Mazanec wrote: Mon Dec 19, 2022 7:42 am Why Japan is boosting its arms capability, defense budget
Dec. 18 06:21 am JST 48 Comments
By MARI YAMAGUCHI
https://japantoday.com/category/politic ... ity-budget

"The biggest change in the National Security Strategy is possession of “counterstrike capability” that Japan calls “indispensable." Japan aims to achieve capabilities ”to disrupt and defeat invasions against its nation much earlier and at a further distance” within about 10 years.

This puts an end to the 1956 government policy that shelved capability to strike enemy targets and only recognized the idea as a constitutional last-ditch defense."

This is adding a lot of pressure to the already stressed area. Hundreds of tomahawk missiles from the USA and the creation domestic missile production of offensive capable missiles. Chinese won't like this.

Monday December 19th, 2022.

China and kenya- death trap diplomacy no

I've written a lot of stories in the past about China's debt trap diplomacy . China lends a country billions of dollars for some kind of infrastructure such as a port, and imposes a contract that says if the country can't pay back the loan then China Will own the port or other infrastructure.

China has always demanded that these contract be kept secret, since they're so favorable to China. China. they specify that the work has to be done by Chinese workers, and all materials and services have to be purchased from China. this means that the loan money is used to pay Chinese workers salaries, and also goes back to China in terms of purchases. the result is that the local workers and businesses do not benefit from building the infrastructure, and the country has to repay the loan twice, once to pay the Chinese workers , material, and services, and then still has to repay the entire loan to China. if there are any disputes, then they have to be settled in Chinese courts rather than international courts.

countries go along with these onerous contracts because China bribes the country's political leaders to do so.

in the case of Kenya, the terms of the contract leaked, and I wrote an article about it at the time. The money was loaned to build up the port of Mombasa, and if Kenya defaulted , then China could take control of any asset owned by the Kenyan government, including foreign embassies that were located in other countries.

China has practiced debt trap diplomacy on numerous countries, particularly countries in Africa, where China wanted to gain control of Africa's rich resources.

unfortunately for both China and Africa,
The continent is heading toward a repayment crisis, with 22 of 54 nations at risk of so-called debt distress, according to World Bank and International Monetary Fund criteria.

Biggest African debtors to China:

Angola - $42.6 billion
Ethiopia - $13.7 billion
Zambia - $9.8 billion
Kenya - $9.2 billion

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/china-may-h ... -1.1861001

this is also a debt crisis for China, because it has to choose between forgiving the debt, which means it would lose tens of millions of dollars or else foreclosing on the assets of numerous African countries, which would be a diplomatic disaster, and they'd still lose the money.

https://www.generationaldynamics.com/pg ... 190103.htm