• tal
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    8 months ago

    The Kremlin warned that American support for Ukraine could turn into a decade-long folly

    If I were to bet, it would be that the US can keep this up for a decade more-readily than you can.

    I don’t think that this is going to keep going for a decade, though.

    https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2024/04/11/the-clock-is-ticking-russia-has-a-one-year-reserve-of-weapons/?sh=1e6a63f915e0

    Russian industry produces 500 or 600 new tanks and maybe a little more than a thousand new fighting vehicles every year. The Russian military loses more than a thousand tanks and close to 2,000 fighting vehicles every year—and the loss rate is increasing.

    There’s a gap—one the Kremlin fills by pulling out of long-term storage tanks and fighting vehicles dating back to the 1970s, or even the ’60s or ’50s in some cases. But these old vehicles are a finite resource. Built during the Soviet Union’s industrial heyday, they cannot be replaced with new production.

    Ominously for the Russians, the most recent projections anticipate that, as early as mid-2025, there won’t be any more old tanks and fighting vehicles left in storage. “Time is running out for Russia,” wrote Artur Rehi, an Estonian soldier and analyst.

    • andrew_bidlaw@sh.itjust.works
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      8 months ago

      “Time is running out for Russia,” wrote Artur Rehi, an Estonian soldier and analyst.

      That’s the phrase we hear for years now. It shouldn’t be taken into consideration. A country of 140mil and 1\4 of land that won’t back off can fight for a very long time until it runs out of resources or people. After two years it sounds like a copium and a reason to just sit and wait, while another country’s clocks are ticking faster.

      • Jesus_666@lemmy.world
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        8 months ago

        Besides, isn’t China already selling ammo to them? I could very well see China selling vehicles to Russia in large quantities, even on loan – and all it will take is Russia to become even more of a Chinese satellite state.

        We tried sitting this out and it didn’t work. Ukraine’s new approach of actively making Russia hurt looks more promising.

        • andrew_bidlaw@sh.itjust.works
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          8 months ago

          Not China directly, but Iran and NK as proxies. Some Chinese banks stopped processing russian businesses’ payments since the start of this year. They don’t want to risk their 50% of market in EU and US over merely 3% purchases from Russia, so they themselves started to clean the room.

        • The Snark Urge@lemmy.world
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          8 months ago

          Russia becoming essentially a Chinese satellite was always how this ended. The question is how much damage is done along the way and how well our nice little international status quo fares in the meantime.

          • Icalasari@fedia.io
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            8 months ago

            Oddly less scared of China running Russia than I am of Putin running Russia

            I guess it’s because the Chinese government at least hasn’t seemed insane enough to make me seriously ponder if we’re about to see nuclear armageddon

            • The Snark Urge@lemmy.world
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              8 months ago

              All other things being equal, there are no benevolent dictators. One more powerful one isn’t an improvement on two weaker ones.

      • avater@lemmy.world
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        8 months ago

        Well the other option would be a quick NATO operation against the russkis in Ukraine but for some reason no one want to take this route, so were kind of out of options here. I would favor a direct hit against Russia in Ukraine anytime. It would end this war quick, would cause a devastating blow against Putin and I personally think that Russia wouldn’t use any nukes, as they are their life insurance and also their big bluff against the west.

          • avater@lemmy.world
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            8 months ago

            What that operation would consist of?

            It could have different stages depending on the current situation on the battlefield. First could be to secure the airspace over Ukraine, so that we provide air support against rockets, drones, jets and helicopers of the Russians and see what they do next. If they keep the war going the next stage could include the use of JDAM’s or even an armored naval, ground and aerial approach against the russian forcees in the east and south of Ukraine to drive them back to their degenerated motherland.

            Last stage would the implementation of a (temporary) defense zone against russia, “peace” and reperations talks and of course the inclusion of Ukraine into the NATO so Russia will think twice about starting this again. Then we will watch what happens in Russia and see if there will be changes for the better so we can try to reestablish our relationships with them. And if not we can keep the sanctions up and let Russia float into insignificance.

            • andrew_bidlaw@sh.itjust.works
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              8 months ago

              I thought your proposed swift response would be less conventional than continuing the land war but with unlocked NATO DLC. I think it would face even more scrutiny than the fast leader-snatching operation and can cause currently undecided countries step in on russian side.

              • avater@lemmy.world
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                8 months ago

                I thought your proposed swift response would be less conventional than continuing the land war but with unlocked NATO DLC

                Well with “unlocked NATO DLC” this operation would be swift one. Russia is barely making progress against Ukraine and loosing a lot of soldiers and equipment, what do you think will happen when a real threat enters the battlefield?

                and can cause currently undecided countries step in on russian side.

                Why join a loosing party or risk a global crisis if the war is only located in Ukraine and has the only goal of driving the russian forces out of the country. Why would someone join the fray to support the russians when it’s all about ending their degenerate “special operation”? I would agree to you when it’s against Russia itself, but in this case it would only be against the forces of Russia in a land that is not Russia. I don’t see the benefits for China or anybody relevant. Maybe Iran will join, but those dipshits wold join everything that is against the west…

                • andrew_bidlaw@sh.itjust.works
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                  8 months ago

                  There’s many of aging dictators around who’d see the fall of russia as being in danger themselves, or seeing NATO being temporally occupied there, thus acting irrationally. No one touches Iran for it’s stable and don’t put much trouble, even Syria is somehow not worthy attention now. And if there’d be a probability of waves of coups or perceived danger of being displaced, NATO risks the need to be deployed here too for it’d hurt way more than whatever these authoritarian regimes do now. It won’t be a symmetric warfare, but random acts of terror and civil wars, imagine Kosovo 2.0. Africa already have some of them, relatively bloodless, some like Houthis or Myanmar never really stopped and can be reignited anew. That’s one of the reasons NATO doesn’t act in full, they perceive this region as a keg of black powder. And they don’t want take responsibility for so much problems at once, as after WW2 when they semi-successfully deprogrammed Germany and Japan via occupation, they had a hard time in Balkans, and recently left Afghanistan for talibs.

                  Well with “unlocked NATO DLC” this operation would be swift one. Russia is barely making progress against Ukraine and loosing a lot of soldiers and equipment, what do you think will happen when a real threat enters the battlefield?

                  Total mobilization, zerg rushes until there’s no one to send, heavy losses on the superior army’s part too, and it counts it’s losses more strictly since Nam, a lot of budget spendings relocated towards replenishing stocks that would probably kill some candidates in democratic countries, weird position in terms of what to do with these two countries after the guns stop shooting that’s still far away from today, thus these politicians can sleep at night. You seem to downplay these things. Besides, current Ukrainian and Russian AF practice warfare now, and even without shiny toys, they manage to use cheap tech efficiently, while using the full might of the US MIC, even just one Abrams, is a logistical puzzle and a costy endeavour. Air and water superiority are examples of what none of them can manage, and there NATO can put it’s weight, but in the field those troops who are currently deployed and survived for years are more experienced than whoever NATO can send. They can teach how to use advanced weaponry right, but there weren’t a conflict like than in Europe for a long time.

                  I’ve seen some lingo in your answers that paints russian threat as a joke, so if you’d want to answer, first, tell me how ukrainians call opposing side’s soldiers, and how russians usually call them back. This two year massacre is a tragedy and I don’t want to talk to someone who sounds like they read to much /k/ another evening. With all due respect.