Russian invasion of Ukraine

[Gabriel]

The Wagner Group is reported to have effectively been kicked out of Belarus, with thousands of its remaining fighters being bussed back into Russia. The Belarusian leader, Alexander Lukashenko, is reported to have refused to finance Wagner's stay in his country.

The VChK-OGPU Telegram channel reports that Wagner fighters are being taken by bus from their camps in Belarus in batches of 500-600 to Voronezh, Rostov and Krasnodar in Russia. The first stage of the withdrawal has already taken place and a second will begin after 13 August.

According to a VChK-OGPU source, Lukashenko refused to pay for Wagner's presence in Belarus and instead expected Moscow to fund it – which apparently it hasn't done. A small number of Wagnerites are expected to stay on in Belarus as military instructors.

round 500 Wagner stormtroopers who survived the battle of Bakhmut are reported to have been recruited for new work in Libya. The stormtroopers are paid 240,000 rubles ($2,471) per month plus another 190,000 rubles ($1,956) monthly to serve in Libya.

The rest of the Wagnerites are officially described as being "sent on vacation", but there is said to be no talk about returning to Belarus. They have been ordered to stay in touch with Wagner in case new tasks are assigned. Wagner is also no longer recruiting new members.

So much for the retarded conspiracies about Wagner being used to attack Ukraine or Poland from Belarus.

[Nymrohd]

So much for the retarded conspiracies about Wagner being used to attack Ukraine or Poland from Belarus.

The junta iν Niger is also adamant that they don't want Wagner there.

[Gabriel]

The junta is Niger is also adamant that they don't want Wagner there.

Wagners about to get shipped off to Siberia.

[alach]

So much for the retarded conspiracies about Wagner being used to attack Ukraine or Poland from Belarus.

Odd.
I'm reading the opposite.
From Sky

Wagner 'building mercenary tent city near Ukraine border'
When Yevgeny Prigozhin was supposedly exiled to Belarus after June's short-lived mutiny, he appeared to take his Wagner mercenaries with him.

It now seems they could be there for some time.

Wagner is reportedly building a tent city to house around 1,000 mercenaries, at the Zyabrovka airfield around 15 miles from the Ukrainian border.

The claims come from the Ukrainian National Resistance Centre, which alleges the camp will be used for "subversive activities" in the Chernihiv region - an area that remains under Ukraine's control.

Wagner has some history holding activities provocatively close to other countries' borders.

The Institute for the Study of War says Wagner has conducted military training exercises near Brest, one of Belarus's largest cities, within a kilometre of the Polish border.

And this, although its a few days old..

Belarus Weekly: Helicopters violate Polish airspace; Wagner moves closer to border

Tensions rise after Belarusian helicopters cross into Polish territory, the country's state border service said on Aug. 1.

Poland also alleges that around 100 Wagner mercenaries are transferred closer to the Suwalki Corridor, bringing tensions to a new high.

[zealo]

That's IF there are elections. Because the Democrats seem desperate to stop Trump from even running in 2024, and any rash decision to forbid him from running in some way, may actually start significant civil conflicts, causing elections to get postponed if not something worse than that. I mean if the Democrats' goal is to quite literally forbid Trump from running, they are playing with fire, as lots of people absolutely worship Trump, and others put a lot of hope for change into him.

Yeah no, the US election won’t get postponed just because the primary guy the Republicans want to have as their candidate might get convicted of a whole array of crimes.

If Trump is found guilty of having taken part in sedition/insurrection and becomes an ineligible felon, what will likely happen after is that DeSantis takes his place in the general election.

[Cynical Asshole]

If Trump is found guilty of having taken part in sedition/insurrection and becomes an ineligible felon, what will likely happen after is that DeSantis takes his place in the general election.

Vivek is actually ahead of him in the polls atm while Desantis is in freefall with no chance of coming back, so there is that. Also this means Biden automatically wins because a lot of people just won't go to vote since they were all in on Trump and don't care about the other candidates. This is at best.

[Nymrohd]

Vivek is actually ahead of him in the polls atm while Desantis is in freefall with no chance of coming back, so there is that. Also this means Biden automatically wins because a lot of people just won't go to vote since they were all in on Trump and don't care about the other candidates. This is at best.

Ramaswamy is auditioning for VP, not for president. But again, Off-Topic.

[Corvus]

If any elections get postponed, it will be the russian one. Peskov, the Kremlin spokesorc, said just the other day it wasn't a democracy but some form of bureaucracy and given pootie is going to win with 90% of the vote there might not be a need to hold a election anyway.

[Cynical Asshole]

If any elections get postponed, it will be the russian one. Peskov, the Kremlin spokesorc, said just the other day it wasn't a democracy but some form of bureaucracy and given pootie is going to win with 90% of the vote there might not be a need to hold a election anyway.

Nah, they won't be postponed. They need to keep appearances and decorum. Even North Korea holds mock elections.

[DarkAmbient]

Nice factory you got there, Moscow, would be a shame if something ha-

[Corvus]

It didn't just make scoped and binoculars but homing heads and aircraft sights. The explosion was blamed on a pyrotechnics factory alongside it. Funny thing is video from the scene has shown 152mm artillery casing blown clear by the blast....

[Elder Millennial]

That's IF there are elections. Because the Democrats seem desperate to stop Trump from even running in 2024, and any rash decision to forbid him from running in some way, may actually start significant civil conflicts, causing elections to get postponed if not something worse than that. I mean if the Democrats' goal is to quite literally forbid Trump from running, they are playing with fire, as lots of people absolutely worship Trump, and others put a lot of hope for change into him.

Let's ignore the conspiracy theories here for a moment. There's only one party in America that wants to cancel elections if they don't go their way, and it's not the Democratic party.

But, I'd just like to point out, that there's no such thing as "not allowing" Trump to run. Trump could be serving a life sentence in federal prison he could still run. More importantly if Cheeto Fuhrer is what you absolutely want, I'd just like to remind you that you are literally allowed to write in any name whether that name is on the ballot or not.

But again, there's only one party that wants to cancel elections or rejects their results when it doesn't go their way. Republicans. So stop.

Stop trying to blame the Democrats for the abyssal disconnect between the GOP base and the general public.

Currently there's no Republican that could win a primary who at the same time could win a general election too.

And while a lot of people (including myself) thought DeSantis might be it (for a brief moment circa late 2020 to early 2021), DeSantis' presidential ambitions died as his "War on Woke" peaked. He stopped looking "conservative but competent" and started looking just weird and unhinged.

[noidentity]

Senator Tommy Tuberville said Monday he did not think Ukraine could win the war against Russia and compared Ukraine’s efforts to a junior high team trying to defeat a college team in a hypothetical sports match.

In an interview with Fox News’s Laura Ingraham on Monday night, Tuberville touted his record voting against funding for Ukraine and said that, while he supported the country’s efforts over Russia, he thought Ukraine was outmatched and that no amount of funding would change that.

“I haven’t voted for a dime to send Ukraine,” Tuberville told Ingraham. “I’m for Ukraine. Russia should have never done this. I was in Ukraine three months with President [Volodymyr] Zelensky before this started. They were already fighting to that point.”

“But, at the end of the day, it’s a junior high team playing a college team,” he continued. “They can’t win. We can throw all the money we want to, but unless we send NATO and our troops over, which we’re not going to do, if I have got anything to do with it, then there’s no chance.”

Tuberville’s comments come amid increasing concern that support for Ukraine might be waning among American voters and among Republicans in Congress.

Oh wow a Republican spouting Russian talking points, shocker (for you as usual, not for anyone else).

[Flarelaine]

Fortifications can be bombed, but minefields require specialized equipment to clear, unfortunately.

Unless you are Russia and can just send your infantry through. The Soviets did, anyway.

- - - Updated - - -

That's IF there are elections. Because the Democrats seem desperate to stop Trump from even running in 2024, and any rash decision to forbid him from running in some way, may actually start significant civil conflicts, causing elections to get postponed if not something worse than that. I mean if the Democrats' goal is to quite literally forbid Trump from running, they are playing with fire, as lots of people absolutely worship Trump, and others put a lot of hope for change into him.

This thread is about the war in Ukraine. Do not bring US politics into it any more than they are directly connected and especially do not bring conspiracy theories here.

[diller]

Senator Tommy Tuberville said Monday....

Your point being?

[Azadina]

Unless you are Russia and can just send your infantry through. The Soviets did, anyway.

Wouldn't mind if Ukraine sent captured ruZZkies on a 3 day special mine clearing operation. They'll need to capture some more though.

[Flarelaine]

Wouldn't mind if Ukraine sent captured ruZZkies on a 3 day special mine clearing operation. They'll need to capture some more though.

Careful. I'm assuming this is sarcasm but it sounds an awful lot like advocating for war crimes.

[Azadina]

Careful. I'm assuming this is sarcasm but it sounds an awful lot like advocating for war crimes.

Sorry, not seeing it quite that way.

People will die clearing the mines, that's one fact I doubt neither will argue. Now you have two groups of people to do the task. Those who are innocent, and those who are guilty. Are you telling me here with straight face, that picking the innocents to die is fine, but making the guilty deal with the problem they created is crime? The law is horseshit if that's the case, and I'll keep my answer in which group should have at it.

[Ivanstone]

Sorry, not seeing it quite that way.

Its against the Geneva Convention to force prisoners to do dangerous work.

Both France and Denmark forced German POW's to clear mines after WWII. Hundreds of them died. That might seem fair to some but humane treatment of prisoners is the difference between a good nation and a shithead nation.

[Veggie50]

Sorry, not seeing it quite that way.

People will die clearing the mines, that's one fact I doubt neither will argue. Now you have two groups of people to do the task. Those who are innocent, and those who are guilty. Are you telling me here with straight face, that picking the innocents to die is fine, but making the guilty deal with the problem they created is crime? The law is horseshit if that's the case, and I'll keep my answer in which group should have at it.

Hmmm you would punish a collective for the deeds of others though. Mind you, in their mind they may very well not be the guilty party. Nor in the history of war tribunals, has a common soldier been convicted for warcrimes because he was part of an invading army.

It's a gut reaction, sure. I personally wouldn't care less if Russian soldiers accidentally blow themselves up with their own mines. But there's a moral highground to keep here.