Russian invasion of Ukraine

[Gabriel]

Another day, another Cable.

This is getting boring.

Ohh well. Thoughts and prayers. That's the best we can do for response.

[Odinfrost]

So, according to the danish news, the Swedish law enforcement is tracking a boat and is considering the incident as intentional sabotage.
So maybe, just maybe, something bigger will happen

[Poopymonster]

So, according to the danish news, the Swedish law enforcement is tracking a boat and is considering the incident as intentional sabotage.
So maybe, just maybe, something bigger will happen

I hope you guys do. You guys. As in not us. The US. Because the current misadministration won't do shit. Or they'll back dilDon's Vladdy Daddy.

[Yunru]

Ohh well. Thoughts and prayers. That's the best we can do for response.

Meanwhile here we had 17 schools shut down, because someone send email to every school in my country that there is a bomb there. Sounds very russan like.

[Gabriel]

So, according to the danish news, the Swedish law enforcement is tracking a boat and is considering the incident as intentional sabotage.
So maybe, just maybe, something bigger will happen

Why would anything ever happen?

[Gaidax]

The best Europe can do is tow away the whatever throwaway bucket of bolts Russia uses for this shit to rust in some port. And maybe send a letter of a deep concern to the UN about it.

If there is no real action, this will only continue and escalate.

[Iphie]

Why would anything ever happen?

Hey now, we Dutch (Finland may have adopted me I'm still a cloggie sometimes, shut up :P) have sent warships to go patrol the Baltic Sea. It was on YLE this morning.

[alach]

The Swedes have apparently seized and boarded the suspect ship.

Also, Lukashenko just stole another election.

Update:
The vandal ship is owned and operated by Bulgarians, who said "Oops, our bad, didn't notice we dragged our anchor for miles."

[Corvus]

Last week Ukraine hit the Ryazan oil refinery with a couple of drone raids - sorry, 'falling drone debris' hit it. It accounts for 5% of all russian refinery and all processing has halted there as a result.

- - - Updated - - -

Russia's 4th largest oil refinery seems to have suffered a serious case of failing drone debris. Looks like a big fire.

https://mil.in.ua/en/news/drones-att...nery-in-kstov/

[alach]

Time is catching up for putin, and all those drone strikes on refineries from Ukraine sure are helping to speed things along.

Russian economic meltdown as 100s of car dealerships close and steel industry 'tanks'

Car dealerships in Russia are closing in their hundreds as the country's economic crisis continues to deepen.

Late last year, the Russian Central Bank raised interest rates to a record high of 21% in an attempt to control soaring inflation.

The rate hike has affected both companies and shoppers equally, denting both business and consumer confidence.

For Russian businesses, the high interest rates pose an existential threat, as they struggle to pay back loans.

While Russian consumers are finding it increasingly difficult to get credit from their banks.

[caervek]

Time is catching up for putin

The big problem will be which way the Russian people go on it.

Will they go the "Our economy is collapsing because of all the western sanctions brought about by our idiot leader trying to annex another country!" way.

Or will they go the "Our economy is collapsing because of all the western economic attacks brought about by our brave leader trying to defend ethnic Russians from Nazis!" way.

[Gabriel]

The big problem will be which way the Russian people go on it.

Will they go the "Our economy is collapsing because of all the western sanctions brought about by our idiot leader trying to annex another country!" way.

Or will they go the "Our economy is collapsing because of all the western economic attacks brought about by our brave leader trying to defend ethnic Russians from Nazis!" way.

In reality they will go the "only the decadent western pig needs to eat every day xaxaxa. Not getting all the essential nutrients is actually beneficial to you according to independent Russian studies, and eating very little calories will actually make you have a long life. Stupid capitalist pig can't survive without latest gay iPhone? It is actually better to not afford any electronic devices so CIA cannot push western gaytrans propaganda to Russian children!" way.

[Iphie]

The big problem will be which way the Russian people go on it.

Will they go the "Our economy is collapsing because of all the western sanctions brought about by our idiot leader trying to annex another country!" way.

Or will they go the "Our economy is collapsing because of all the western economic attacks brought about by our brave leader trying to defend ethnic Russians from Nazis!" way.

Depends on who ends up in charge, though either way putin will get the blame most likely in good USSR/Russian Empire/virtually-every-authoritarian-regime-on-earth-since-forever tradition. (blame the previous leader.)

[caervek]

Depends on who ends up in charge, though either way putin will get the blame most likely in good USSR/Russian Empire/virtually-every-authoritarian-regime-on-earth-since-forever tradition. (blame the previous leader.)

You're assuming it results in his stepping down or being ousted as party leader, it may well galvanise the people behind him, they aren't exactly known for making intelligent decisions.

[Kaleredar]

The big problem will be which way the Russian people go on it.

Will they go the "Our economy is collapsing because of all the western sanctions brought about by our idiot leader trying to annex another country!" way.

Or will they go the "Our economy is collapsing because of all the western economic attacks brought about by our brave leader trying to defend ethnic Russians from Nazis!" way.

You're assuming it results in his stepping down or being ousted as party leader, it may well galvanise the people behind him, they aren't exactly known for making intelligent decisions.

My impression of the Russian people as a whole is that they don't really care. They don't care about the war, they don't care about dead Ukrainians, they don't care about Putin, they don't care about the Kremlin's party line. They primarily care about keeping their heads down and not being hassled. So they just go about their lives with wherever "the flow" takes them.

And that apathy has allowed this tremendous backslide that Russia is seeing, and worse allowed these atrocities to be committed against Ukraine.

All that to say, if one person got up the dander to off Putin or he was otherwise politically ousted? If it was done in your standard underhanded, duplicitous KGB/Kremlin way I doubt the Russian people would have much to say about it at all. If the next guy in charge says "Yeah we're leaving Ukraine, that Putin guy was a putz" the Russian people would shrug their shoulders and say "yeah, guess he was" and go about their lives.

This is all just assumption, but after years of this and little more than a peep out of the Russian people as a whole beyond a sort of annoyance at things getting more expensive and shittier for them personally, I can't perceive that they have any real investiture into... any of it.

[alach]

More bad news for russia. Putin's plan was to outlast the west, looks like Ukraine will outlast them.

Russian economy meltdown as shopping malls face bankruptcy and bond yields surge

Russian shopping malls are facing mass closures as they struggle to cope with tax hikes and rising loan costs.

Businesses across the country have been rocked by the Central Bank's decision late last year to raise interest rates to a record high of 21%.

The move was made in a bid to bring spiralling inflation back under control, which currently hovers at around 9.5%.

One of the sectors hit hardest by the growing economic crisis is retail, with consumers reining in their spending.

And,

Russia is on pace to run out of financial reserves by this fall, which would cripple war efforts, economist says

[Corvus]

Ukraine also hit another refinery and a gas processing plant.

And the war has also killed sales of military equipment, which is down 92% since the start of the war.

[PhaelixWW]

And the war has also killed sales of military equipment, which is down 92% since the start of the war.

Huh. US military sales are up ~130%, from $140b in 2021 to $320b in 2024.

Weird.

[KrayZ33]

More bad news for russia. Putin's plan was to outlast the west, looks like Ukraine will outlast them.

Russian economy meltdown as shopping malls face bankruptcy and bond yields surge

And,

Russia is on pace to run out of financial reserves by this fall, which would cripple war efforts, economist says

Lets hope so, from what I can tell it seems like the news of the last two years are in line of what is is being reported here.
Aside from some Oligarch that already warned about bankruptcy in 2023, it seems like most reported severe losses over the last 2 years. Halved reserves in 2024 and further depleting.
It would be great if we can keep Ukraine in the field for that long.

Knowing this, it's even more annoying that so many companies helped Russia with their shadowfleet, which are bypassing sanctions. They should all go to prison for crimes against humanity. And obviously, it's also annoying that sanctions took so long, but I guess I'll have to write that up on the success of russian agents that infiltrated political parties (i.e. AFD) in other countries and of course, their operations on social media.

[alach]

Huh. US military sales are up ~130%, from $140b in 2021 to $320b in 2024.

Weird.

I think Corvus means it is because all russian hardware looks like dogshit to the world now, and no one wants it.