#antimissile system

[tomorrowusa]

What Putin is doing in Ukraine is not just reckless, not just a war of choice, not just an invasion in a class of its own for overreach, mendacity, immorality and incompetence, all wrapped in a farrago of lies. What he is doing is evil. He has trumped up any number of shifting justifications — one day it was removing a Nazi regime in power in Kyiv, the next it was preventing NATO expansion, the next it was fending off a Western cultural invasion of Russia — for what ultimately was a personal flight of fancy that now requires his superpower army turning to North Korea for help. It’s like the biggest bank in town having to ask the local pawnshop for a loan. So much for Putin’s bare-chested virility.

[ ... ]

Putin lately has stopped even bothering to justify the war — maybe because even he is too embarrassed to utter aloud the nihilism that his actions scream: If I can’t have Ukraine, I’ll make sure Ukrainians can’t have it, either.

[ … ]

This is as obvious a case of right versus wrong, good versus evil, as you find in international relations since World War II.

[ … ]

Ukraine needs to inflict as much damage on Putin’s army as fast as possible. That means we need to massively and rapidly deliver the weaponry Ukraine needs to break Putin’s lines in the country’s southeast. I’m talking the kitchen sink: F-16s; mine-clearing equipment; more Patriot antimissile systems; MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, which could strike deep behind Russian lines — whatever the Ukrainians can use effectively and fast.

— New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman, just back from a visit to Kyiv. (archived)

If you're in the US, contact your representative in the House and urge him/her to support the proposed $24 billion in aid to Ukraine.

Representatives | house.gov

If you have the misfortune to be represented by a dumb-ass MAGA zombie like Matt Gaetz and they say no, write back and ask: "Why do you hate freedom?"

Wars don't end just because people in third countries get bored with them.

#invasion of ukraine #stand with ukraine #thomas l. friedman #good vs. evil #vladimir putin #putin is evil #russia's war of aggression #stop genocide by russia #us house of representatives #aid to ukraine #агрессивная война россии #владимир путин #путин хуйло #геноцид #военные преступления #добро против зла #добей путина #руки прочь от украины! #геть з україни #вторгнення оркостану в україну #україна переможе #будь сміливим як україна #правильно проти неправильно #деокупація #слава україні! #героям слава!

[spaceintruderdetector]

''THE COLLECTION EFFORTS of United States intelligence are directed against three targets—technical details, human thinking, and authoritative documents. The field today is presently dominated by technology.

The spy-in-the-sky satellites are the best-known technical devices employed, but they represent only a mere fraction of esoteric, “black box” intelligence devices in use today. Overall, their “take” is small when compared to the less notorious technical collection systems. This is not meant to belittle the system, however; in one 90-minute circling of the globe the satellites—dubbed SAMOS (Satellite Antimissile Observation System)—collect more information than an army of 50,000 foot spies collects in a year.'' 1973

True--For Today's Man magazine: 1973-02 : Fawcett Publications Inc. : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

#espionage #surveillance #paranoia

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

The experience of past wars shows that the first use of a new technical or tactical method of attack is usually highly effective even if a simple antidote can soon be developed. But in a thermonuclear war the first blow may be the decisive one and render null and void years of work and billions spent on creation of an anti-missile system.

An exception to this would be the case of a great technical and economic difference in the potentials of two enemies. In such a case, the stronger side, creating an antimissile defense system with a multiple reserve, would face the temptation of ending the dangerous and unstable balance once and for all by embarking on a pre-emptive adventure, expending part of its attack potential on destruction of most of the enemy’s launching bases and counting on impunity for the last stage of escalation, i.e., the destruction of the cities and industry of the enemy…

In the opinion of many people, an opinion shared by the author, a diplomatic formulation of this mutually comprehended situation, for example, in the form of a moratorium on the construction of antimissile systems, would be a useful demonstration of a desire of the Soviet Union and the United States to preserve the status quo and not to widen the arms race for senselessly expensive antimissile systems. It would be a demonstration of a desire to cooperate, not to fight.

A thermonuclear war cannot be considered a continuation of politics by other means (according to the formula of Clausewitz). It would be a means of universal suicide. —Andrei Sakharov, Here and There: The Threat of Thermonuclear War, American Scientist, May 1969 

[Scott Horton]

#quote #Andrei Sakharov #Here and There: The Threat of Thermonuclear War #Scott Horton #war #nuclear

[obsessed-fanatic]

Possible world rebuilder: Seed Vault in the North pole.

To US allies and to anyone who wants an earth that'll stay alive, have US/United nations Guard it.

I'm talking an arsenal. Tanks. Anti EMP satellite systems that destroy antiweather and antimissile detecting systems. You deflect that enemy Ki blast man. And another American Civil war? Rumours.

Matthew Santoro I think had a video on it, on the seed vault. I remember I said I dosing one of his streams

Seriously guard that.

[lalsingh228-blog]

3D Radar Market to Eyewitness Huge Growth by 2023-2030

Latest business intelligence report released on Global 3D Radar Market, covers different industry elements and growth inclinations that helps in predicting market forecast. The report allows complete assessment of current and future scenario scaling top to bottom investigation about the market size, % share of key and emerging segment, major development, and technological advancements. Also, the statistical survey elaborates detailed commentary on changing market dynamics that includes market growth drivers, roadblocks and challenges, future opportunities, and influencing trends to better understand 3D Radar market outlook. List of Key Players Profiled in the study includes market overview, business strategies, financials, Development activities, Market Share and SWOT analysis: ASELSAN A.S. (Turkey), Northrop Grumman Corporation (United States), Raytheon Company (United States), Thales Group (France), Airbus Defense and Space (United States), BAE Systems plc (United Kingdom), Honeywell International Inc. (United States), SAAB Group (Sweden), ELTA Systems Ltd. (Israel), Indra Sistemas, S.A. (Spain), Rheinmetall AG (Germany). Download Free Sample PDF Brochure (Including Full TOC, Table & Figures) @ https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/sample-report/67400-global-3d-radar-market Brief Overview on 3D Radar: 3D radar is a radar system that provides a three-dimensional view of the range, altitude, and direction using a very narrow pencil beam. The 3D radar system is generally used for air defense and interception. These systems used for numerous applications such as air and terrestrial traffic control, air-defense systems, radar astronomy, aircraft anti-collision systems, antimissile systems, marine radars to locate landmarks and other ships, ocean surveillance systems, outer space surveillance, and rendezvous systems. The factors such as Increased Government Fundings on Security and Increasing Use of Modern Warfare Techniques are driving the global 3D Radar market. However, High Cost Associated with 3D Radar System may hamper the market growth. Key Market Trends: Introduction of Highly Adaptable Multiple Mission Radars Opportunities: Increasing Number of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Growing Deployment of Air & Missile Defense Systems Market Growth Drivers: Increased Government Fundings on Security

Increasing Use of Modern Warfare Techniques Challenges: Lack of Skilled Professionals Segmentation of the Global 3D Radar Market: by Type (Long Range, Medium Range, Short Range), Platform (Airborne, Ground, Naval), Frequency Band (C/S/X band, E/F band, L band, Others) Purchase this Report now by availing up to 10% Discount on various License Type along with free consultation. Limited period offer. Share your budget and Get Exclusive Discount @: https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/request-discount/67400-global-3d-radar-market Geographically, the following regions together with the listed national/local markets are fully investigated: • APAC (Japan, China, South Korea, Australia, India, and Rest of APAC; Rest of APAC is further segmented into Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, New Zealand, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka) • Europe (Germany, UK, France, Spain, Italy, Russia, Rest of Europe; Rest of Europe is further segmented into Belgium, Denmark, Austria, Norway, Sweden, The Netherlands, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania) • North America (U.S., Canada, and Mexico) • South America (Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Rest of South America) • MEA (Saudi Arabia, UAE, South Africa) Furthermore, the years considered for the study are as follows: Historical data – 2017-2022 The base year for estimation – 2022 Estimated Year – 2023 Forecast period** – 2023 to 2028 [** unless otherwise stated]

Browse Full in-depth TOC @: https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/reports/67400-global-3d-radar-market

Summarized Extracts from TOC of Global 3D Radar Market Study Chapter 1: Exclusive Summary of the 3D Radar market Chapter 2: Objective of Study and Research Scope the 3D Radar market Chapter 3: Porters Five Forces, Supply/Value Chain, PESTEL analysis, Market Entropy, Patent/Trademark Analysis Chapter 4: Market Segmentation by Type, End User and Region/Country 2016-2027 Chapter 5: Decision Framework Chapter 6: Market Dynamics- Drivers, Trends and Challenges Chapter 7: Competitive Landscape, Peer Group Analysis, BCG Matrix & Company Profile Chapter 8: Appendix, Methodology and Data Source Buy Full Copy 3D RadarMarket – 2021 Edition @ https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/buy-now?format=1&report=67400 Contact US : Craig Francis (PR & Marketing Manager) AMA Research & Media LLP Unit No. 429, Parsonage Road Edison, NJ New Jersey USA – 08837 Phone: [phone] [email protected]

#Global 3D Radar Market #3D Radar Market Demand #3D Radar Market Trends #3D Radar Market Analysis #3D Radar Market Growth #3D Radar Market Share #3D Radar Market Forecast #3D Radar Market Challenges

[shahananasrin-blog]

[ad_1] Israel increases evacuations as clashes with Hezbollah escalateAs conflict intensified on Israel’s border with Lebanon, Israeli authorities said they were expanding a state-funded evacuation plan to an additional 14 villages. Along with a rare airstrike on the West Bank, the fighting raised fears that the war could expand.Israel’s military said that attacks from Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militia that controls southern Lebanon, had resulted in civilian and military casualties. Amid concerns that the conflict could spill over, the Pentagon said on Saturday that it was sending an antimissile battery and battalions of the Patriot ground-based air defense system to the Middle East. Israeli forces massed along the border with Gaza yesterday ahead of an expected ground invasion of the enclave. Israel’s military efforts to eradicate Hamas “may take a month, two, or three, but in the end, Hamas will no longer exist,” the country’s defense minister, Yoav Gallant, said yesterday.Violence also has been surging across the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where Israel carried out an airstrike against what it described as an underground “terror compound” beneath a mosque in the city of Jenin. The claims had not been independently verified. Two people were killed, according to Palestinian health officials.Gaza aid: Humanitarian groups and the U.N. continued to warn that the first shipment of aid that arrived in Gaza on Saturday — 20 trucks carrying food, water and medicine — was just a fraction of what was needed. Another 14 aid trucks entered Gaza last night.The toll: Israel’s bombardment continued “almost unabated,” while Palestinian armed groups continued with their “indiscriminate rocket firing,” the U.N. said. The death toll in Gaza has reached at least 4,385, and there are more than 13,500 injuries, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health. In Israel, no new fatalities were reported, but injuries had increased to almost 5,000, the U.N. said.A warning: The Israeli military warned that residents of northern Gaza who did not flee to the southern part of the enclave “may be considered a partner in a terrorist organization.” But many people there said that leaving was not an option because of the cost and that it would not guarantee safety.“We can’t even afford to eat,” Amani Abu Odeh said. “We don’t have the money to leave.” An Australian mogul may testify against Trump Anthony Pratt, one of Australia’s wealthiest men, made his way into Donald Trump’s inner circle with money and flattery. In covert recordings, Pratt described Trump’s business practices as being “like the mafia.”Their interactions were ultimately swept up in one of the two federal criminal cases against Trump, in which the former U.S. president is charged with taking classified documents from the White House when he left office. Pratt could testify against Trump at a trial next year.In his interviews with prosecutors, Pratt recounted how Trump once revealed to him sensitive information about U.S. nuclear submarines — including the number of warheads they travel with and their stealthy proximity to Russian waters — an episode that Trump denies.Indigenous Australians say ‘reconciliation is dead’ Australia’s rejection last week of the Indigenous Voice to Parliament — a proposed advisory body — is likely to lead to an irreversible shift in the nation’s relationship with its first peoples.Many Indigenous people perceived it as a denial of their past and their place in Australia, which is far behind other colonized nations in reconciling with its first inhabitants. The defeat of the Voice could not only derail any further reconciliation, but could also unleash a much more confrontational approach to Indigenous rights and race relations in Australia.THE LATEST NEWSAsia PacificThe Chinese video game Honkai: Star Rail combines a taste of the Qing dynasty with the digital age, like holographic bonsai and starskiffs inspired by the third-century poet Zhang Hua.The game borrows from the emerging literary subgenre of silkpunk — created by Ken Liu, author of the “Dandelion Dynasty” series and translator of “The Three-Body Problem” — which Liu said imagined modern worlds founded upon East Asian traditions and mythology.To take control, she had to runNasreen Parveen was just 16, but her family had already arranged an engagement for her. The bruises that covered her body, inflicted by her future in-laws while she worked for them, she said, were evidence that a future of violence and pain lay before her. So she went out onto the ledge of a high window in her mother’s house in her village in West Bengal. Standing on the edge, she saw something that changed her mind. Instead of jumping to her death, she decided to run for her life.This is part one in the series India’s Daughters, about one of the deepest fault lines in India’s politics and society: the conflict over young women’s futures as they reach for the new opportunities offered by a rapidly changing country. [ad_2]

[yermak]

Ukraine Needs More Security Guarantees

Even short of NATO membership, the West should commit to investment, arms provision, intelligence sharing and training

by Andriy Yermak and Anders Fogh Rasmussen

Published on September 29, 2022

When Ukraine’s army is given the weapons it needs, it defeats Russia on the battlefield. That is the lesson the world learned as it watched Ukrainian forces quickly retake the Kharkiv region this month. Since the beginning of September, Ukrainian forces have liberated more than 2,300 square miles of territory in the south and east of the country.

The discovery of further Russian war crimes has darkened the joy of liberation. As in Bucha, Ukrainian forces have uncovered mass graves and evidence of torture in Balakliya, Izyum and villages across the Kharkiv region and beyond. The barbarism of the Russian occupation shows why the world must support Ukraine in finishing this war and bringing those responsible to justice. Ukraine’s allies must ensure this can never happen again.

That is the aim of the recommendations for security guarantees we presented to President Volodymyr Zelensky. We call for the creation of the Kyiv Security Compact between Ukraine and its partners. The principle is simple: Ukraine’s security relies primarily on its ability to defend itself. Ukraine needs long-term contributions from its allies to do this effectively.

This doesn’t replace Ukraine’s ambition to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. This aspiration is safeguarded in Ukraine’s Constitution and remains a sovereign decision. In the long run both NATO and European Union membership would bolster Ukraine’s security. But these goals will take time to achieve. Security guarantees can protect Ukraine now.

Ukraine needs to develop and maintain a significant military capable of withstanding Russia’s armed forces and paramilitary organizations. This requires a multidecade commitment from Ukraine’s allies. We call for sustained investment in Ukraine’s industrial defense base, the transfer of NATO standard weapons, intelligence sharing, and intensive training missions under both EU and NATO flags. We must ensure that the cost of a future attack on Ukraine is too high to bear.

One example of how allies can enhance Ukraine’s security is by providing modern and effective air-defense and antimissile systems. In reaction to Ukraine’s recent victories on the battlefield, Russia has resorted to targeting civilian infrastructure with long-range missiles. This is a war crime. To protect the civilian population and allow reconstruction, Ukraine’s allies must supply what is needed to prevent air attacks.

Security guarantees must come from a core group of Ukraine’s allies with significant military capabilities that are prepared to make politically and legally binding commitments. This could include the U.S., U.K., Canada, Poland, Italy, Germany, France, Australia, Turkey and the Nordic, Baltic and Central European countries.

Alongside the commitments of military support, a broader group of international partners should back a set of sanction guarantees. This would include Group of 7 and EU member states, as well as other countries currently enforcing sanctions on Russia, such as South Korea and Japan. These commitments should also include snapback provisions to reinstate sanctions automatically in case of further Russian aggression.

The Budapest Memorandum of 1994, which included a security promise in return for Ukraine’s giving up its nuclear weapons, proved worthless. The Kyiv Security Compact would be different. It would focus on providing practical material support to enhance Ukraine’s ability to defend itself. Unlike the Budapest Memorandum, Russia can’t block the compact’s application through the United Nations Security Council. If Ukraine is attacked, guarantor states would convene within 24 hours and decide on what action to take within 72 hours.

The global security system is shattered. The traditional frameworks and approaches failed to stop a permanent Security Council member becoming an aggressor and blackmailer. Vladimir Putin believes that faced with a harsh winter, the world’s support for Ukraine will falter. Adopting these recommendations would send a strong signal that it won’t.

Mr. Putin must learn that the free world’s commitment to Ukraine is solid, that his war is futile. Ukraine needs guarantees now. Delaying the process encourages the Kremlin to continue its unlawful war.

Most important, these guarantees would signal to the Ukrainian people that its allies believe in a secure and independent Ukraine. If we get these guarantees right, we can build a new cornerstone for global security. If we fail, it means an open-ended crisis on European soil.

Mr. Yermak is head of the Office of the President of Ukraine. Mr. Rasmussen served as NATO secretary general (2009-14) and prime minister of Denmark (2001-09).

#andriy yermak

[2wq7]

Saudi Arabia defends OPEC+ oil cut decision as ‘purely economic’ - Fox Business

Saudi Arabia defends OPEC+ oil cut decision as ‘purely economic’ - Fox Business Saudi Arabia defends OPEC+ oil cut decision as ‘purely economic’  Fox BusinessSaudis say Biden admin requested oil production cut to come after midterms  Fox NewsDem senator calls on Biden to cut off sales of antimissile systems to Saudi Arabia  Yahoo NewsSaudi Arabia h..

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[rmg171]

[velvialifestylesummit]

Following the assassination of Shinzo Abe in Western Japan, the sceptical death of Shinzo Abe could trigger unknown impact on the militarization of Japan under the platform of WWIII as happened to the weaponry advancement of Germany in providing the advanced defensive missile system for Kyiv resulting the massive destruction of Russian tanks in Ukraine despite the stooping gesture of Lavrov to attend the G20 Summit in Bali where the next visitation of Lavrov to his luxury mansion in England could be stoned by the enmity of London amid the stony bombardments in Ukraine as the military tactics of Russia to confronting the destruction of 1000 tanks by the powerful lockdown of AntiTank missile of NATO that the Neptune Antiship missile of Ukraine and the AntiTank missile TOW of America were rated as the defensive missile system for the year 2022 by the naval warfare in Black Sea that the impact of Neptune and Tow can only be stopped by incessant attacks from destroyers with antimissile system for protection against the high precision of Neptune Antiship missile. Unfortunately the naval warships of Russia failed to meet this prerequisite of naval blockade in tackling the target lockdown of Neptune Antiship missile trajectories. Meanwhile the perilous conditions of Kremlin seems to rule out the visitation of Putin to attend the meeting of G20 amid the Cold War Summit in Europe that the military escalation of Russia to attack the targeted mags of advanced weaponry in EU needs to be activated for the authentic menace from EU that the strained gesture of Kremlin to avert the direct attacks of Russia to NATO shall trigger incredulous impeachment from the military implosions of Russia.

[thebrokencrescent-blog]

Russian troops have withdrawn from Snake Island in the Black Sea after repeated assaults by Ukrainian forces, a move that is a setback for Moscow’s forces and possibly undermines their control over vital shipping lanes for grain in the Black Sea.

The retreat came after sustained Ukrainian attacks — including with powerful, newly arrived Western weapons — made it impossible for Russian forces to hold the island, a small speck of land 20 miles off the coast of Odesa that has played an outsize role throughout the war.

The fortress island has little value except as a base for Black Sea operations and has been a target for the Russians since the first day of the invasion. The Russian withdrawal, coming only a week after the Kremlin bragged about repelling a Ukrainian attempt to retake the island, appeared to be another instance of Moscow’s scaling down its military ambitions in the face of Ukrainian resistance.

Both sides confirmed the retreat on Thursday. The Ukrainians said it had come after a weeklong campaign targeting the island and Russian efforts to resupply the garrison there with missile and artillery fire.

The last Russian soldiers on the island, which is called Zmiinyi in Ukrainian, were reported fleeing overnight on two speedboats, according to the Ukrainian military’s southern command. “There are no more Russians on Zmiinyi,” said Andrii Yermak, the head of the presidential office of Ukraine.

June 30, 2022

The Ukrainians “almost certainly” used newly delivered Harpoon missiles in the attack, according to the British military, which said it was their first demonstrated use.

Satellite images released over the past week showed the results of the battle as seen from space — new large scars dotting the 46 acres of rock and grass rising from the sea.

On Thursday morning, the Ukrainian military said it had used missiles and artillery to knock out yet another Russian antimissile system. “Snake Island is covered in fire, explosions are heard,” the Ukrainian command said. After the Russians pulled out, it was unclear whether the Ukrainians would try to restore their own garrison, given the island’s vulnerability to attack.

[newstfionline]

Wednesday, June 29, 2022

Ottawa police call in Canada Day reinforcements for ‘freedom’ protests (Reuters) Ottawa officials said on Monday they are closing roads and calling in reinforcements to keep anti-government “freedom” protesters from disrupting Canada Day festivities, which are being held for the first time in three years on Friday. This year several groups that say they are protesting against a variety of things—including coronavirus vaccination mandates, globalization and government efforts to limit freedom in Canada—are planning marches and even a dance party. Some of the same organizers were behind a truck convoy that blocked Ottawa’s downtown core around parliament for three weeks, snarling international travel and trade as well as resulting in dozens of arrests. Ottawa officials are still facing criticisms for their handling of the crisis.

NATO to boost high-readiness forces in ‘biggest overhaul’ since Cold War (Washington Post) NATO will sharply increase the number of forces it keeps at a high readiness level to 300,000 in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The move to beef up the alliance’s ability to respond to a crisis is part of the “biggest overhaul of our collective defense and deterrence since the Cold War,” Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Monday. Transforming NATO’s quick-response force, which currently has some 40,000 troops, is just one of the ways the 30-member alliance is responding to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Leaders will also discuss plans to bolster the alliance’s eastern flank, outline a new force model, announce funding decisions and publish a “Strategic Compact” that lays out NATO’s strategy for the years ahead.

Turkey lifts its veto at NATO (NYT) The leaders of the NATO alliance began a summit today with a breakthrough: Turkey dropped its opposition to having Sweden and Finland join NATO. The announcement came after Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, met for almost three hours with his Swedish and Finnish counterparts as NATO leaders gathered in Madrid. “The concrete steps of our accession to NATO will be agreed by the NATO allies during the next two days, but that decision is now imminent,” Finland’s president, Sauli Niinisto, said.

At least 15 dead after Russian strike on shopping mall, Ukraine says (Washington Post) A Russian missile strike on a shopping mall in central Ukraine killed at least 15 civilians and left scores injured, Ukrainian officials said Monday. The strike in the city of Kremenchuk came amid a broader escalation in Russian attacks in recent days and as Group of Seven leaders met at a summit in the Bavarian Alps. The Pentagon said Monday that Russia launched about 60 missile strikes across Ukraine over the weekend, including an attack that hit an apartment building in Kyiv, killing one. Ukrainian officials urged G-7 leaders and other Western nations to supply Ukraine with more sophisticated weapons, including antimissile systems they say would protect their cities against Russian attacks. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters Monday that President Biden has told Zelensky the United States intends to provide Kyiv with advanced air defense capabilities, though he did not provide more details.

The Mess in Occupied Mariupol (NYT) Mariupol, a Ukrainian port city that became emblematic of the savagery of Russia’s military campaign, is now suffering deeply under Russian rule, according to the city’s mayor. The city of 120,000 captive residents has no working sewage system or drinking water, the mayor, Vadym Boychenko, said in a Telegram post this week that described mountains of uncollected trash and a flood of garbage overrunning the streets. He expressed concern that Mariupol could be on the brink of a new disaster of disease, citing the spread of cholera and dysentery and noting frequent burials throughout the city. Russia shelled the city ruthlessly almost from the first minute of its invasion, killing thousands of civilians and Ukrainian fighters. Then, in mid-May, Russian forces crushed the city’s last military resistance in the underground bunkers at a vast steel complex. This week, a Turkish cargo ship became the first to set sail from the Russian-occupied port. The mayor’s report bodes ill for Sievierodonetsk, an industrial city in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, where weeks of battles and months of bombardment have forced the Ukrainian military to withdraw. As in Mariupol, buildings and infrastructure have been devastated. About 8,000 civilians remain in what is left of the city.

Large parts of northeastern India still underwater after record rains (Washington Post) Authorities in northeastern India are airdropping water packets, sending kerosene supplies and racing to restore power after heavy rains drowned the city of Silchar, in the state of Assam. It’s been a week since the city of nearly 230,000 people was submerged in what many describe as the worst floods in recent memory. Some neighborhoods are still under 5 to 8 feet of water. The annual monsoon floods typically hit low-lying areas of Assam, a largely agrarian state, but the record rains this month fell so hard and so fast that they also overwhelmed urban areas such as Silchar. The situation in the city is “still very critical,” said Shamim Ahmed Laskar, a local official from the disaster management authority. “The lanes are very narrow in many parts of the city,” he said. “Rescuers and relief workers are having a hard time taking boats to those areas.” The main challenge now, he said, was reaching those stranded without food, drinking water and medicine.

Indian Muslim journalist, critic of Modi, arrested over tweets (Washington Post) Mohammed Zubair, an Indian journalist and prominent critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was arrested Monday over posts he made on Twitter, with press freedom groups swiftly condemning the charges. Zubair, co-founder of the fact-checking site Alt News, was charged with violating two federal laws: “doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony” and “deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class.” Zubair said last week that he had received notice from Twitter that the Indian government had told the social media company that his account—in its entirety, rather than specific tweets—“violates the law(s) of India.” Zubair, who is Muslim, has in the past exposed hate speech against Muslims and was previously reprimanded by police for a tweet calling out right-wing Hindu activists. Modi has been widely criticized for taking a Hindu-nationalist approach to managing India’s religious tensions and for his treatment of the country’s minority Muslim population.

Fuel sales banned in Sri Lanka (Economic Times) After months of food, fuel, and electricity shortages, Sri Lanka has announced a two-week ban on fuel sales. The country is currently unable to purchase imported oil and will only be allowing the sale of fuel for essential services such as airports, food distribution, agriculture, and health services.

Hong Kong burnishes China ties as luster as global hub fades (AP) Every few generations, Hong Kong transforms itself, evolving from a swampy fishing village to 19th century colonial port, to capitalist outpost and factory after China’s 1949 revolution, to 21st century financial center. As the former British colony marks the 25th anniversary of its return to China, reeling from pandemic curbs that devastated business and a crackdown on its pro-democracy movement, Hong Kong leaders say it is time to transform again. They say the city should become a leader in technology that relies more on its ties with nearby Chinese factory cities than on global trade. Chief Executive-elect John Lee’s government is under pressure to generate new sources of economic growth, looking beyond COVID outbreaks and anti-virus controls that have devastated tourism and business and uncertainty about the legal climate after a crackdown on the city’s pro-democracy movement. Executives frustrated with Hong Kong’s travel controls are leaving the city, business groups say. Some companies are moving for good to Singapore, Bangkok, Dubai or other business centers. “Hong Kong’s strength as a global connector has been greatly reduced,” said Joseph Armas, chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong. Executives have left for cities where “travel is feasible.”

‘An Invisible Cage’: How China Is Policing the Future (NYT) The more than 1.4 billion people living in China are constantly watched. They are recorded by police cameras that are everywhere, on street corners and subway ceilings, in hotel lobbies and apartment buildings. Their phones are tracked, their purchases are monitored, and their online chats are censored. Now, even their future is under surveillance. The latest generation of technology digs through the vast amounts of data collected on their daily activities to find patterns and aberrations, promising to predict crimes or protests before they happen. They target potential troublemakers in the eyes of the Chinese government—not only those with a criminal past but also vulnerable groups, including ethnic minorities, migrant workers and those with a history of mental illness. They can warn the police if a victim of a fraud tries to travel to Beijing to petition the government for payment or a drug user makes too many calls to the same number. They can signal officers each time a person with a history of mental illness gets near a school. While largely unproven, the new Chinese technologies extend the boundaries of social and political controls and integrate them ever deeper into people’s lives. At their most basic, they justify suffocating surveillance and violate privacy, while in the extreme they risk automating systemic discrimination and political repression.

Chlorine gas leak at port in Jordan kills at least 13, injures hundreds (Washington Post) At least 13 people were killed and some 250 sickened when a crane loading gas tanks onto a ship in Jordan dropped one of them, sending plumes of toxic yellow smoke into the air. A video posted by state media, apparently captured by closed-circuit television cameras at the scene, showed the storage tank slipping from a hoist as it was lowered toward the deck of a ship at the port of Aqaba and exploding, engulfing the area in toxic clouds. According to authorities, the tank contained chlorine, a poisonous gas that can be pressurized and cooled to change it into a liquid so it can be shipped and stored. Chlorine is widely used in household products such as bleach, for waste sanitation, and in drinking water and pool water to kill harmful bacteria. If the gas is inhaled or comes into contact with skin or eyes, however, it can cause burning pain, difficulty breathing and fluid in the lungs. Chlorine was used during World War I as a choking agent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

#headlines #news

[lestudio1-bernardbujold]

THE THIRD WORLD WAR - 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin, on Wednesday April 20, oversaw the first test-launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile that he said would make those threatening his country “think twice,” in his latest nuclear saber-rattling since launching his war in Ukraine.

Since sending Russian troops into the neighboring country in late February, Mr. Putin has repeatedly raised the threat of nuclear war in an effort to deter the U.S. and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization from getting involved in the conflict.

The ministry announced Wednesday afternoon it had successfully launched the RS-28 Sarmat system, a heavy intercontinental missile that the ministry said could hit targets anywhere in the world and evade any existing and future antimissile defense systems.

“This truly unique weapon will force all who are trying to threaten our country in the heat of frenzied, aggressive rhetoric to think twice,” Mr. Putin said in televised comments.

[saywhat-politics]

"The Biden administration is sharply reducing the number of U.S. antimissile systems in the Middle East in a major realignment of its military footprint there as it focuses the armed services on challenges from China and Russia," The Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing administration officials. "The Pentagon is pulling approximately eight Patriot antimissile batteries from countries including Iraq, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, according to officials. Another antimissile system known as a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or Thaad system, is being withdrawn from Saudi Arabia, and jet fighter squadrons assigned to the region are being reduced, those officials said."

[girlactionfigure]

Biden Brings Back Baker-Hamilton-Rhodes

News item:

The Biden administration is pulling eight Patriot missile defence batteries from countries in the Middle East, including Iraq, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

US officials told the Journal that in addition to the Patriot batteries, the Pentagon is removing another anti-missile system, the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (Thaad) system, from Saudi Arabia, and jet fighter squadrons that were assigned to the region are being reduced.

The reported withdrawal is a major realignment of Washington’s military footprint in the Middle East and comes as the country aims to focus its efforts and attention towards Russia and China.

In addition to the removal of the equipment is the redeployment of hundreds of American troops operating and supporting the missile defence systems.

At the same time, the administration is continuing with its push to finalize a return to the Iranian nuclear deal. The US has indicated a willingness to remove sanctions placed on Iran in return for a return to the pre-Trump status quo, after which it wants “follow-on” talks about issues not covered in the original deal, like ballistic missile development and support for terrorism.

As always, I am astonished by the American propensity to give up its leverage up front. The previous agreement was worse than worthless. In addition to having holes big enough to drive a massive missile transporter through, it completely legitimizes Iran as a nuclear weapons state by 2030 even if they don’t cheat (which they do). Once sanctions are gone, Iran will have no incentive to make actual concessions.

It’s been suggested that the removal of the missile defense systems from countries under threat from Iran is an effort to sweeten the deal for the Iranians. Certainly the suggestion that it will help “focus … towards Russia and China” is not persuasive, since Russia is allied with Iran in the region, and since China also favors a lifting of sanctions and a return to the deal as soon as possible. Apparently, the threatened “change of focus” doesn’t scare them.

I’m not sure what the US would do with those antimissile systems and troops that would deter China anyway. China is happily conquering the world incrementally by cyber, economic, diplomatic, and possibly biological means. I don’t think Biden is planning to go to war over Taiwan or Hong Kong.

The only way to understand this is that the US has decided that its relationship with Iran is more important than protecting the Arab states from Iranian aggression. A relaxation of sanctions will immediately pump up the Iranian proxy that has been battering Saudi Arabia. Needless to say, this will also be bad for Israel, which is contending with Iran-funded proxies as well.

It is very hard to see how switching its traditional support for the Arab states to Iran is in the long-term American interest, because the Iranian regime has made no secret of its desire to humiliate and even destroy the US. I suspect that American planners believe that the apparent religious motivation of the regime is a sham intended to cover the “true” geopolitical reasons for the conflict and to obtain popular support. The Americans seem to believe that Iranian enmity will dissolve if the US allows them to achieve their regional aims. I am not so sure. It would not be the first time that Westerners have failed to understand the power of Islamic ideology as motivation for action.

The Israeli Chief of Staff, Aviv Kochavi, is on his way to the US to discuss various matters, including Iran. Former PM Netanyahu and PM Bennett agree on their opposition to the deal, but Bennett appears to be willing to talk about the possibility of improving it, while Bibi was not. In any case, I strongly doubt that there is anything that Kochavi can say that will influence the American strategy of appeasing Iran, to which Biden is no less committed than Obama was. Kochavi might be able to extract a promise to provide Israel with additional weapons.

The American strategy was first enunciated in 2006 in the Iraq Study Report. Its main authors were James L. Baker III and Lee Hamilton, and future Obama advisor Ben Rhodes was a contributor. At that time, Iran and Syria were supporting Iraqi insurgents that were taking a heavy toll in American casualties in Iraq. The report advocated making Syria (then still a country) and Iran happy by taking the Golan Heights from Israel, and forcing the establishment of a “unified” Palestinian state in Judea/Samaria and Gaza, among other things. Precisely how weakening the main countervailing power and US ally in the region would reduce aggression from Iran and Syria was not clear (and still isn’t).

Luckily the Bush Administration did not follow the recommendations in the report – at least, not effectively – but it apparently formed the basis for the Obama Administration’s policy toward Iran and Israel. By that time, it was clear that getting Israel to give the Golan Heights to mass murderer Bashar al-Assad wouldn’t fly, but it was still possible to both appease Iran and put the screws on Israel to make concessions to the Palestinians. Although Obama did force Israel to freeze settlement construction and release hundreds of Arab terrorists, he did not succeed in creating a Palestinian state.

Donald Trump took the opposite approach, strengthening Israel and weakening Iran with economic pressure and covert action. Although his opponents like to say that his strategy “failed,” I believe it simply had to be given more time to work. When Biden took over, the Iranian regime was hanging over a cliff by its fingertips. But rather than pushing it off, he threw it a lifeline, and the coterie of anti-Israel officials he had appointed went to work trying to reactivate the Baker-Hamilton-Rhodes policy of appeasement.

America no longer depends on oil from the Gulf, something that I had long wished for. But rather than enabling a pro-Israel policy as I’d hoped, it seems to have allowed the US to abandon Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states, leaving them to the tender mercies of Iran. This in turn has made it possible for Israel to establish normal relations with some of her former Arab enemies. Had the Trump policy been continued, I think we would have seen the development of a strong Israeli-Arab bloc with the power to deter Iranian aggression. Continued “extreme pressure” on Iran might have dried up Iranian support for terrorist proxy militias like Hezbollah and the Houthis. It might even have made it possible for the Iranian opposition to overthrow the very unpopular regime of the ayatollahs. Keeping Trump’s policy toward the Palestinians might have led to the elimination of UNRWA and the rise of a realistic Palestinian Arab leadership that did not believe in the chimerical fantasy of “return.”

But none of that happened. Trump was defeated and today’s Democratic Party, having internalized the views of its left wing – which today border on antisemitism (and sometimes cross over) – threw out the only productive approach to the Middle East that has been tried since Truman’s presidency, and went back to one based on fantasy at best – and Jew-hatred at worst.

Abu Yehuda

#American Politics #Iran #Middle East Politics #U.S Israel Relations

[eretzyisrael]

A Drastic Proposal

In my morning paper there is a discussion of the home front defense drill that will be taking place today, simulating an all-out war with Hamas and Hezbollah. Warning sirens will be activated in various places, and note will be taken of whether schoolchildren and others are able to reach shelter in time. My personal situation is good compared to that of most Israelis; there is a shelter on every floor of the apartment building I live in, and we get about a minute’s warning of rockets from Gaza (flight time is 90 seconds). Rockets from Hezbollah will take a bit longer.

Unfortunately, only about 42% of Israelis (according to my newspaper) have shelters in their homes. That means that they can’t possibly make it to the nearest public shelter in time, so they end up spending long hours or even days in them when there are rocket attacks. Or they depend on the somewhat dubious protection of stairwells. Even a shelter in the basement of a multistory building takes too much time to reach.

Iron Dome and other antimissile systems have provided good protection during the small conflicts that we’ve had in recent years, but in a war with Hezbollah, which is said to have some 130,000 rockets aimed at all parts of Israel, including some dozens of rockets with precise guidance systems that will be targeted at airbases, power stations, fuel depots, and other critical infrastructure, there will not be enough systems to protect most civilians.

There is money budgeted to fix this, but nowhere near enough, and the process is slow and (of course) bogged down by bureaucracy.

Meanwhile, the prospect of a conflict with Iran draws ever more likely as the Iranian regime plays for time with the Western powers. Unless something unexpected happens, like a revolution in Iran, the moment is near when Israel will have to decide: do we permit Iran to become a nuclear power or will we go to war? There is no third option.

War with Iran will involve Hezbollah, which has no other reason for existing. It will certainly trigger Hamas, and the other terror providers in Gaza. It will probably include missile and drone attacks on Israel from the territory of Syria and Iraq, and possibly directly from Iran. Estimates are of more than 1,000 rockets per day; the worst damage will be to border communities, which are in range of Hezbollah’s massive mortars. There will be ground incursions in the north, to try to overrun military installations and civilian communities, kill people and take hostages. We can expect a wave of terrorism from Judea and Samaria, and perhaps even the participation of Palestinian Authority “security” forces. Finally, terrorists among Israel’s Arab citizens will certainly join in, as they did in the last small war with Gaza.

Such a war would extremely traumatic for Israel’s home front, maybe worse than any of her previous wars. Nobody would be safe, and the country would not be the same afterwards, even if we win.

At the same time, war, no matter how it starts, would be portrayed in the international media as a vicious attack by Israel on helpless Lebanese, Gazans, and others. The international anti-Israel conspiracy – there is no other expression that adequately describes the coalition of organizations dedicated to the extirpation of the Jewish state from the world – will launch a coordinated antisemitic campaign throughout the world. This isn’t speculation: we’ve seen it in action every time Israel has acted to defend herself against rocket attacks from Gaza. The objective will be to pressure the international community to prevent an Israeli victory and allow our enemies to prepare for the next round.

I expect that the Biden Administration, like that of Barack Obama, will try to embargo shipments of essential weapons and ammunition to Israel. I believe that the overall climate in the administration and Congress is more anti-Israel today than in the days of Obama, although they have tried to avoid direct public confrontations so far.

What, then, is the best strategy for Israel in this situation?

Can we avoid war by appeasement? We can only delay it. The Iranian leaders do not want a conventional war at this time; the regime prefers to wait until it has prepared its nuclear shield. Once it is in place, it can unleash Hezbollah against Israel while deterring us from retaliating directly against them.

But even without war, a nuclear Iran would be disastrous for Israel. Iran would proceed to establish a sphere of influence over the entire region. It would gain economic and political power. The regime could demand concessions from Israel – a Palestinian capital in Jerusalem, prisoner releases, withdrawal from all or part of Judea and Samaria, an airport in Gaza – and Israel, without allies, would be forced to comply. Each time, the alternative would be war; conventional war, but backed by a nuclear threat.

Little by little our sovereignty would evaporate, foreign investment and trade would dry up, Israelis with foreign passports would leave – and then there would be more demands. It would not be as dramatic as nuclear bombs on Tel Aviv, but just as final.

Israel needs to act soon, and with overwhelming force, against both Iran and Hezbollah simultaneously, in order to prevent massive damage on our home front. Their military capabilities and leadership must be destroyed, and very quickly, before they can strike back and before the US and Europe can intervene. I am talking about a few days, not weeks. It might be that the only way to do that is with unconventional weapons. We need to be prepared to use them.

I understand that this is a drastic proposal. Do you have a better one?

Abu Yehuda

#Iran #terrorism #war