Here we go again-Ukraine once again

[Jimbuna]

West condemns Russian plans for 'sham' Ukraine vote

Western nations have condemned Moscow's plans to hold urgent so-called referendums in parts of Ukraine that are currently under Russian control.

The votes have been called by Russian-backed officials in four Ukrainian regions to ask whether they should become part of Russia.

The US, Germany and France have said they would never recognise the results of such "sham" ballots.

The Nato military alliance said the plans spelt an escalation in the war.

Plans to run polls for five days, starting on Friday, have been announced in the eastern regions of Luhansk and Donetsk - as well as Zaporizhzhia and Kherson in the south.

The quartet represent around 15% of Ukrainian territory - or an area the size of Hungary, according to Reuters news agency.

The suggestion that legitimate and fair polls could be run in the middle of a war were immediately scorned by the West.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz blasted the Russian plans for "sham" votes, while French President Emmanuel Macron labelled them a "parody" of democracy.

"If the Donbas referendum idea wasn't so tragic it would be funny," Mr Macron told reporters in New York, where he is attending the United Nations General Assembly.

He pleaded with neutral countries to change their stance to the war, saying silence or complicity was an "historic error".

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the US would never recognise the votes, calling them "an affront to the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity".

Any referendum planned by invading forces contravenes international law and will have no legal force, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said in a statement.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-62976560

[Jimbuna]

[Jimbuna]

[Jimbuna]

Mobilization in Russian Federation is alarming escalation, - British Foreign Minister Keegan

Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s declaration of partial mobilization in Russia amid the war against Ukraine is a worrying escalation.

This was stated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Great Britain, Gillian Keegan, Censor.NET reports with reference to RBC-Ukraine.

She accused Putin of rewriting history.

"Some statements are very disturbing, and we should strive for calm," the minister said, calling on Russian citizens to "look further than their own mass media."

According to her, the threats should be taken seriously, as Ukraine begins to move forward, recapturing the lands previously seized by Russia.

"Let's be clear - there are Putin's lies. This is Russia's illegal war in Ukraine. And, of course, we will, as before, support Ukraine together with all our NATO allies. We are there, we are on your side - we will help in any way we can." - she emphasized.

The minister also reacted to Putin's nuclear blackmail.

"It's something that we have to take very seriously because, you know, we're not in control. I'm not sure he's in control either. Really, I mean, it's an obvious escalation," Keegan said. Source: https://censor.net/en/n3368584

[Jimbuna]

In China, they reacted to announcement of mobilization in Russia: they called for negotiations

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China reacted to the announcement of partial mobilization in Russia and again called for negotiations.

Chinese Foreign Ministry representative Wang Wenbin said this at a briefing, Censor.NET reports with reference to Sky News.

China calls on Ukraine and Russia "to start dialogue and consultation to find a way to solve common security problems."

"China's position regarding Ukraine is consistent and clear," said Wang Wenbin. Source: https://censor.net/en/n3368589

[Jimbuna]

Russian Federation chose International Day of Peace to escalate its unjustified war, - EU Ambassador Maasikas

The Ambassador of the European Union to Ukraine, Matti Maasikas, noted that the decision of the President of the Russian Federation on partial mobilization was announced on the International Day of Peace, and noted that the EU will continue to support Ukraine even after that.

As Censor.NET reports, Maasikas wrote about this on his Twitter.

"It is not surprising that the Russian Federation chose the International Day of Peace to escalate its unjustified war. Ukraine needs peace on its own terms - with respect for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The EU will continue to support Ukraine to win the war, as it is also fighting for peace for us," Maasikas wrote. Source: https://censor.net/en/n3368596

[Jimbuna]

Mobilization in Russian Federation is sign of Kremlin’s panic, - Prime Minister of Netherlands Rutte

The order for partial mobilization in Russia is a sign of panic in the Kremlin, which should not be taken as a direct threat of full-scale war with the West.

As Censor.NET informs, this was reported by Reuters with reference to the statement of the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte.

"Mobilization calls for referendums in Donbas are all signs of panic. We've heard his (Putin's) rhetoric about nuclear weapons many times before, and it leaves us cold," Rutte said. Source: https://censor.net/en/n3368613

[Skybird]

If one looks close at it and considers the implications, what Putler said is nothing else but a general mobilization in disguise, partitioned into several waves of sub-mobilizations.

All that babbling at the UN will not lead anywhere. Only superior raw force that the Russians cannot compete with will bring this war to an end. Little Olaf and many others are way too civilsed and tame in their thinking to realise this. They will mess this up.

Or in the words of Mike Tyson: Everbody has clever plans - until somebody comes along and starts beating him in the mouth.

[Jimbuna]

Shoygu on Russia’s losses in war: "To date, 5,937 people have died". VIDEO

The Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Serhiy Shoygu stated that the losses of the Russian Federation amount to, allegedly, 5,937 people.

The Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Serhiy Shoygu stated that the losses of the Russian Federation amount to, allegedly, 5,937 people.

He said this during the address, Censor.NET informs.

"Our losses today are 5,937 people. Of the total number of wounded, about 90% have recovered. These are guys who passed through our hospitals and continue to serve," Shoygu said. Source: https://censor.net/en/v3368571

[Reece]

Yes it's almost laughable if it wasn't so serious!!

[Jimbuna]

[mapuc]

If those 300.000 reservist have been in the military within the last 10 years, then they only need 1-2 month training.

Most of them have been in the military for 1 year or 2 depending on how far back they did the service. It's first lately they have reduced it from 2 years to 1 years.

Though further back they did their military service though more training they need.

Markus

[les green01]

putin acting like a two year old again someone better go change his diaper and give him his baby bottle but make sure you spike it but then he nothing but a pansy

[Jimbuna]

[Skybird]

FOCUS writes:
-------------------------
Putin continues ice-cold. Military setbacks in Ukraine, economic problems in Russia, telephone calls with top Western politicians such as, most recently, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz - apparently nothing can dissuade him from his course of violence and destruction.

With the partial mobilization of the Russian armed forces, in which up to 300,000 reservists will be drafted, and the renewed threat of a nuclear strike ("This is not a bluff!"), the Kremlin ruler ignited a new escalation stage in his ruthless campaign against Ukraine and the West. The hardliner with an intelligence service past thus confirmed what experts such as political scientist Andreas Heinemann-Grüder had always feared: peace is not possible with Putin.

The professor from the International Centre for Conflict Studies in Bonn had repeatedly warned the West against caving in to Putin and trying to achieve peace through a "cuddly course". In doing so, he clearly opposed the "peace movements" in Germany and other countries who believed or still believe that Putin can be stopped by demands for a "negotiated solution" or "large-scale diplomatic offensives". Now the expert sees himself - unfortunately - confirmed.

"The partial mobilization and announced annexation should be the end of any illusions according to which Putin should not be provoked because otherwise he would act irrationally. The West should finally support Ukraine in recapturing the occupied territories with battle tanks and combat aircraft. It is a matter of victory or defeat, not of 'a little peace,'" Heinemann-Grüder told FOCUS online.

Although the West is supporting Ukraine militarily and imposing economic sanctions on Russia, European leaders are repeatedly seeking contact with Putin. At the end of May, Chancellor Scholz and French President Macron spoke on the phone with the Kremlin leader for 80 minutes. In the conversation, they urged an immediate ceasefire and a withdrawal of Russian troops. A few days ago, Scholz spoke again with Putin and called for a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine war. Even if it is sensible from the West's point of view not to let the thread of talks break - Putin is not impressed by warm words, pleas or demands. He remains tough and determined to do anything, no matter what Western politicians think and say.

Heinemann-Grüder is convinced: "A peace agreement will no longer be possible with Putin; the regime he represents is structurally incapable of peace." In his view, the only chance of ending the fighting in Ukraine lies in the "complete debacle of Russian warfare." Putin, he said, has no reason to relent as long as he considers himself the victor militarily. "Putin expects to have the longer breath in the war of attrition, and first the West, then Ukraine, will give up."

"Whoever wants to make a new pact with Putin will only get more war," the political scientist told FOCUS online. Faced with the choice of "withdrawal or escalation?", Putin opted for the latter, he said. "He had lost the escalation dominance, wants to regain the initiative and is looking for the decisive battle because he cannot survive a defeat domestically," Heinemann-Grüder said. Russia's partial mobilization is the answer to the Ukrainian offensive, he said. The fiction of a "special operation" is being abandoned, he said.

"The war is arriving in Russia. The war is not made more popular by partial mobilization. The reservists, torn from family and work, do not know what they are fighting and dying for, they are not welcomed as liberators. No one will buy the Russians being victims anymore," the conflict researcher told FOCUS online.

With the four territories to be annexed after sham referendums, Putin has for the first time laid down territorial claims, he said. The annexed territories would be considered state territory in the Russian understanding, which the Kremlin intends to protect by any means, including the threat of nuclear weapons, Heinemann-Grüder predicted. Ukrainian attacks on these territories would be considered an "attack on Russia."

"After the annexation, a harsh terror regime will be established," the expert is convinced. "Anyone who does not accept the Russian passport will then be considered an extremist or terrorist, will be tortured or put in jail. Russian will become the official language, schools will have to adopt the Russian curriculum. Opposition figures will be handed over to the Russian judiciary: North Korea in Russian."

The expert recalled that the West has failed with its previous course towards Putin. "Since 2014, there have been negotiations with Russia, de facto acceptance of the Crimean annexation and construction of the Baltic Sea pipeline. Result: blackmailability instead of interdependence (mutual dependence, the editors)." Referring to the war in Ukraine, he said, "Only as a result of defeat will the regime change, open up and face up to its imperialism, militarism and culture of violence. Only as a result of defeat will Russia be accepted back into the European family of nations."

The conflict researcher is convinced that Putin will continue to test limits and cross red lines. He will continue to threaten the West, he said, and do everything he can to ensure that tensions escalate in Germany as well. "A world food crisis, exorbitant gas and electricity bills, a global recession, new mass migration and the threat of nuclear war are meant to bring civil war to European cities," the expert told FOCUS online. "Russia's elite takes advantage of any weakness, fear of war and divisions in the West."

According to the Bonn professor, "The Russian regime does not think in categories of interdependence, reconciliation of interests and preservation of a peaceful status quo, but follows zero-sum thinking and the Bolshevik motto: Every border that is not unmistakably set offers an opportunity for transgression." He urgently warns, "Anyone who sets out to make a deal with Putin at the expense of the right to self-determination of Ukraine, Poland, the Balts, Moldova, or Georgia only increases the likelihood of an expansion of the war as a result."

To be sure, Heinemann-Grüder believes an end to the war is conceivable. "However, only if Putin has no other choice and international security guarantees for Ukraine are robust."