1. #44681
    Quote Originally Posted by alach View Post
    I doubt it will really do anything. It will set up a fund to help with Ukraine's reconstruction, something that the EU has done a couple years ago.
    I guess maybe the US will get some rare minerals in the future. Maybe.



    I imagine trump and his ilk will probably be long gone before there will be any results of this, but hey, it was a good photo-op.
    If you look up in a map the rare earth minerals are in the Russian controlled areas and IDK if there is enough concentration of them to be worth it. Cuz in mining its not only about the quantity but the concentration. If you have a lot but you need to process a lot more then its not worth it.

    Its whatever tho. If this satisfies him then thats fine. The rest of his cult will eventually come around to it

  2. #44682

  3. #44683
    So, is this a master play by Zelensky?
    "Donald, you can get your minerals, but it requires that Russia gets the fuck out of my country."

  4. #44684
    Not sure I would call it a 'master' play but yes. "Sure lets sign a deal that doesn't really give you anything to show I am willing to play ball and potentially keep the US invested for the short term until there is a change of government"
    It ignores such insignificant forces as time, entropy, and death

  5. #44685
    Big news! JD vance said something true;

    War in Ukraine not ending 'any time soon', Vance says

    At The Current Rate, It Would Take Russia Centuries And Tens Of Millions Of Casualties To Capture Ukraine
    Russian forces managed to capture around 68 square miles of Ukraine in April. But it cost them 4,800 vehicles and more than 36,600 dead and wounded troops, according to one statistician who collects data mostly from official Ukrainian sources including the general staff in Kyiv.
    In the same month, Ukrainian losses were “minimal,” concluded analyst Konrad Muzyka of Rochan Consulting in Poland.

    Ukraine sprawls across 233,000 square miles, 19% of which is under Russian occupation. At the current rates of advance and loss, the Russians would capture the rest of Ukraine in the year 2256 at the cost of 101 million casualties. The current population of Russia is 144 million.

    Incredibly, staggering losses in people and equipment haven’t yet crippled the Russian military in Ukraine. The Kremlin is equipping its forces with thousands of civilian vehicles, including scooters, compact cars and even at least one bus.
    So this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause.

  6. #44686
    Isn't Russia supposed to run out of money for the war at the end of the year? I'm sure they'll keep it going even if they do.

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  7. #44687
    Quote Originally Posted by Dontrike View Post
    Isn't Russia supposed to run out of money for the war at the end of the year? I'm sure they'll keep it going even if they do.
    Sadly we have been hearing that for so long, I will believe it when I see it.

    And yes even if Russia runs out they won't go home, but it 'should' effect their ability to take offensive action
    It ignores such insignificant forces as time, entropy, and death

  8. #44688
    I think in a way they already have. 40% of the russian economy is wrapped up in this war now. If they turned off the war factories and released the soldiers contracts I think they would immediately fall into recession.
    So this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause.

  9. #44689
    This will be lost in the conversation. But I actually decided to do some poking around regarding mineral resource concentrations in Ukraine.

    https://pubs.usgs.gov/myb/vol3/2020-...21-ukraine.pdf
    https://www.geo.gov.ua/en/
    https://www.spglobal.com/market-inte...iable-87318842

    This "mineral deal" is retarded horseshit.

    Ukraine does not actually have any substantial commercially viable "rare earth" or whatever fucking dumb thing deposits, according to the Ukrainian geological survey itself.

    There is a wide spattering of valuable and accessible mineral deposits, just like you'd find in pretty much any country the size of Ukraine, but it's nothing extraordinary or special.

    There's a huge difference between having a mineral deposit and whether those mineral deposits are commercially viable for extraction or not. Most of the Ukrainian stuff, is just not viable. The way the Trump administration talks about these mineral deposits is in the terms of the raw value of the mineral after extraction. Yeah sure Ukraine is sitting on 875462985762 billion dollars of lithium, but almost none of it exists in commercially viable forms for extraction.

    Here's the extra kicker tho. According to the Ukrainian geological survey, their own survey data is "corrupted" as it's based mostly on unreliable Soviet era surveys which were often bloated and manipulated or used unreliable and outdated survey methods. With other words, the Ukrainian professionals are skeptical about their own geological survey maps.

    What I'm fucking annoyed by tho, is that the our media absolutely fails to call this out.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Originally Posted by Deus Mortis View Post
    Some maps
    Check the above.

  10. #44690
    Yeah I knew about some of this, like the uranium, but I believe it was the gas and oil deposits that Putin has been after. They had discovered large amounts in the north-east.
    So this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause.

  11. #44691
    Ukraine has shot down a su30 with a naval drone, which is another word first. Russian sources say the crew bailed and were rescued.

    The drop in oil prices has messed things up for russia. They had been forecasting a budget deficit of around 0.5% of gdp, but revised that to -1.5% and that was at a higher oil price than it is now. They have been burning their sovereign wealth fund to cover the deficit but it is running low.

  12. #44692
    Titan PhaelixWW's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by alach View Post
    Yeah I knew about some of this, like the uranium, but I believe it was the gas and oil deposits that Putin has been after. They had discovered large amounts in the north-east.
    This excellent video was posted a long time ago ITT, and details Putin's likely objectives in this war. Follow this link or scroll to 9:00 for the relevant portion covering the gas and oil deposits:

    R.I.P. Democracy


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    and genius is that genius has its limits."

    --Alexandre Dumas-fils

  13. #44693
    Quote Originally Posted by Elder Millennial View Post
    This will be lost in the conversation. But I actually decided to do some poking around regarding mineral resource concentrations in Ukraine.

    https://pubs.usgs.gov/myb/vol3/2020-...21-ukraine.pdf
    https://www.geo.gov.ua/en/
    https://www.spglobal.com/market-inte...iable-87318842

    This "mineral deal" is retarded horseshit.

    Ukraine does not actually have any substantial commercially viable "rare earth" or whatever fucking dumb thing deposits, according to the Ukrainian geological survey itself.

    There is a wide spattering of valuable and accessible mineral deposits, just like you'd find in pretty much any country the size of Ukraine, but it's nothing extraordinary or special.

    There's a huge difference between having a mineral deposit and whether those mineral deposits are commercially viable for extraction or not. Most of the Ukrainian stuff, is just not viable. The way the Trump administration talks about these mineral deposits is in the terms of the raw value of the mineral after extraction. Yeah sure Ukraine is sitting on 875462985762 billion dollars of lithium, but almost none of it exists in commercially viable forms for extraction.

    Here's the extra kicker tho. According to the Ukrainian geological survey, their own survey data is "corrupted" as it's based mostly on unreliable Soviet era surveys which were often bloated and manipulated or used unreliable and outdated survey methods. With other words, the Ukrainian professionals are skeptical about their own geological survey maps.

    What I'm fucking annoyed by tho, is that the our media absolutely fails to call this out.

    - - - Updated - - -



    Check the above.
    Please, lets leave Trump in the delusion that he scored a win when in reality he signed a deal that isnt worth shit. So long as it keeps the US support Ukraine I see no need to enlighten him.
    It ignores such insignificant forces as time, entropy, and death

  14. #44694
    Quote Originally Posted by alach View Post
    Yeah I knew about some of this, like the uranium, but I believe it was the gas and oil deposits that Putin has been after. They had discovered large amounts in the north-east.
    The theoretical estimated value of Ukrainian fossil fuel reserves is about 700 billion 2019 USD if extracted at market prices (gas prices increased about 30% since then, but oil prices dropped by about 10%).

    But again, these numbers suffer from the same problem as the ones assigned to minerals. This is the theoretical extracted value. Assuming it's all, all of it, 100% extractable at profit. There's absolutely zero indication that would be the case. Parts of it might be accessible, other parts might become more affordably extractable in a few decades if oil and gas prices increase.

    Russia already sunk more money into this war than it could possibly ever extract. Trying to rationalize Putin's actions with this is akin to trying to rationalize Trump's tariffs. They are not playing 4D chess. They are driven by ideology, stupidity and cruelty.

  15. #44695
    Quote Originally Posted by Elder Millennial View Post
    The theoretical estimated value of Ukrainian fossil fuel reserves is about 700 billion 2019 USD if extracted at market prices (gas prices increased about 30% since then, but oil prices dropped by about 10%).

    But again, these numbers suffer from the same problem as the ones assigned to minerals. This is the theoretical extracted value. Assuming it's all, all of it, 100% extractable at profit. There's absolutely zero indication that would be the case. Parts of it might be accessible, other parts might become more affordably extractable in a few decades if oil and gas prices increase.

    Russia already sunk more money into this war than it could possibly ever extract. Trying to rationalize Putin's actions with this is akin to trying to rationalize Trump's tariffs. They are not playing 4D chess. They are driven by ideology, stupidity and cruelty.
    Yeah I'm sure he intended it as a quick land grab, like he did in Georgia, but the resistance held and I think he's spent the last three years and probably at least that many more unable to pull out from embarrassment and shame. Like Trump and tariffs.

    It's been years, but I think I remember when this started Ukraine had actually signed a deal with Shell to begin exploring the oil and gas deposits. Or maybe thar was in the black sea, where they have oil as well.
    So this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause.

  16. #44696
    The invasion makes sense if you think you will conquer the country in 3 days.
    Things obv didn't turn out that way.
    It ignores such insignificant forces as time, entropy, and death

  17. #44697
    The Lightbringer Iphie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Elder Millennial View Post
    This will be lost in the conversation. But I actually decided to do some poking around regarding mineral resource concentrations in Ukraine.

    https://pubs.usgs.gov/myb/vol3/2020-...21-ukraine.pdf
    https://www.geo.gov.ua/en/
    https://www.spglobal.com/market-inte...iable-87318842

    This "mineral deal" is retarded horseshit.

    Ukraine does not actually have any substantial commercially viable "rare earth" or whatever fucking dumb thing deposits, according to the Ukrainian geological survey itself.

    There is a wide spattering of valuable and accessible mineral deposits, just like you'd find in pretty much any country the size of Ukraine, but it's nothing extraordinary or special.

    There's a huge difference between having a mineral deposit and whether those mineral deposits are commercially viable for extraction or not. Most of the Ukrainian stuff, is just not viable. The way the Trump administration talks about these mineral deposits is in the terms of the raw value of the mineral after extraction. Yeah sure Ukraine is sitting on 875462985762 billion dollars of lithium, but almost none of it exists in commercially viable forms for extraction.

    Here's the extra kicker tho. According to the Ukrainian geological survey, their own survey data is "corrupted" as it's based mostly on unreliable Soviet era surveys which were often bloated and manipulated or used unreliable and outdated survey methods. With other words, the Ukrainian professionals are skeptical about their own geological survey maps.

    What I'm fucking annoyed by tho, is that the our media absolutely fails to call this out.

    - - - Updated - - -



    Check the above.
    This is pretty much what every economic geologist in the world has said since there was a first mention of a mineral deal. Like every economic geologist was baffled by this whole thing, since they know what's up. The rest of us just well...we just wondered what the hell?

  18. #44698
    Titan PhaelixWW's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Gorsameth View Post
    The invasion makes sense if you think you will conquer the country in 3 days.
    Things obv didn't turn out that way.
    Ah, yes. The infamous "small victorious war".

    History be rhymin'.
    R.I.P. Democracy


    "The difference between stupidity
    and genius is that genius has its limits."

    --Alexandre Dumas-fils

  19. #44699
    Ukraine has rejected pooties 3 day ceasefire and said a 30 day one is a better idea. In the meantime they say they cant guarantee the safety of anyone visiting Moscow for may day.

    Maybe a coincidence, but the leaders of Serbia and Slovakia, who had been going to attend have now called in sick.

  20. #44700
    Quote Originally Posted by Corvus View Post
    Ukraine has rejected pooties 3 day ceasefire and said a 30 day one is a better idea. In the meantime they say they cant guarantee the safety of anyone visiting Moscow for may day.

    Maybe a coincidence, but the leaders of Serbia and Slovakia, who had been going to attend have now called in sick.
    Xi will be there. So there's exactly zero chance the Ukrainians would risk it.

    Slovakia and Serbia checking out probably has more to do with their respective domestic situations as they are both only barely holding onto power and might not want to risk a domestic backlash while in Moscow.

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