Guest Post by Paul Craig Roberts
Washington keeps on adding fuel to what it says is a Ukrainian crisis. Washington puppet Jens Stoltenberg, the nominal secretary-general of NATO, says NATO is considering a larger and permanent Black Sea presence. The Black Sea is to Russia what the Mediterranean Sea was to the Romans–mare nostrum, “our sea.” Stoltenberg’s announcement is akin to Russia announcing that Russia is considering establishing a “Chesapeake Bay Battle Group.” Stoltenberg added that NATO is planning to establish battle groups in Romania and in other countries around the Black Sea. Why such dangerous provocative actions at a time of such high tension? Why is Washington pouring gasoline on a fire?
Even I did not suspect this level of Washington irresponsibility. As if this isn’t enough, Stoltenberg declared the Black Sea to be of strategic importance for NATO, and the White House national security advisor said the buildup of forces on Russia’s borders are necessary for future contingencies whether or not Russia invades Ukraine.
I was mistaken to think that Washington took seriously Russia’s warning that she was not going to tolerate any more military buildup on her borders. Washington did not hear, or if Washington did hear is nevertheless determined to provoke a war. This stance presents Russia with only two choices–fight or surrender. Is there any hope that the peoples of the West can realize the insanity of their leaders and stop the march to war? I think not. They cannot even stop their own governments’ war against them. In the Western world democracy is a hoax.
At this time Russia holds all the cards. Will she wait, seeking solace in talks and negotiations, until Washington/NATO are better prepared?
Addendum: Is war upon us? The British armed forces minister James Heappey said today that all British troops are being removed from Ukraine “over the course of the weekend” as a Russian invasion is expected. The British soldiers have been training Ukrainians in the use of Western weapons for an attack on the Donbass republics. Washington believes that such an attack would result in Russian intervention, which can be labeled a “Russian invasion.”
Meanwhile the Kremlin remains mired in negotiations:
MOSCOW, February 11. /TASS/. Deputy chief of the Russian presidential staff Dmitry Kozak has said that Russia’s partners in the Normandy Quartet (Germany, Russia, Ukraine and France) tend to procrastinate on negotiations on a settlement of the intra-Ukrainian conflict – in strict accordance with the instructions they have received from the United States.
“For some reason, our counterparts think that time plays into their hands and that they should drag their feet in the negotiations,” Kozak told the media on Friday following Thursday’s meeting of the Normandy Quartet’s political advisers, which ended inconclusively.
“Moreover, from our friends in a NATO country, we have received a document – an instruction from the US Department of State to all NATO countries regarding the way they should conduct negotiations with Russia concerning the settlement of the conflict and the implementation of the Minsk Accords. It is an instruction on how to stall all negotiations.” https://tass.com/politics/1401971
Update: US pulls its troops out of Ukraine in anticipation of Russian invasion. Having provoked war the superpower runs away.
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Because, not part of the blame game. The Great Satan seeks to provoke an attack first, in order to justify unleashing hell on earth, then all the “patriots” scream ‘Merica . ‘Merica , ‘Merica, and the two minutes of hate become a lifetime of pain death and destruction, just as all the times before. I’ve seen this show before; ends the same way. I want my money back… Christian nation, they said.
“This is the way wars start. All it will take will be one exchange of fire. An aircraft will go down. A ship will be torpedoed. Lives will be lost. The clamor to hit back will begin. The men who run the world’s biggest defense contractors will join the push. The prospect of endless profits from another conflict will be too great to resist.”
https://andmagazine.substack.com/p/biden-stumbles-toward-war-russians
More like real polling (not the lies they release to the public) shows zero support for any war for any reason that is not on our Southern border.
Hope they don’t reinstate the draft for 75 year old soldiers. I really don’t want to go anymore. I will go hide in my yardbarn.
Me too.👵😇
The US hasn’t had a direct conflict with a peer level country since WW2. We specialize in beating up practically helpless countries after bombing the shite out of them, like Grenada, or stealing oil from Iraq and Syria. The US kills more civilians than enemy combatants, and then lies about it and says they were “terrorists”,…as if. Just check the latest botched raid, 13 women and children blown up for a propaganda puff piece.
The US would get its ass handed to it by Russia, and especially by China. China can put more soldiers in uniform than we have people in the whole country, and they wouldn’t give a fig if we killed them all, they’d just send more.
Nothing new… since the formation of the disgustingly evil cia who have been the leading organization and cause of worldwide killing and destruction in collaboration with equally vile war machines like haliburton, then more wars are needed, more destruction, new testing grounds for the latest in killing methods.
These peoples thoughts are evil continuously.
Perhaps that second amendment thing needs to be applied. We hear about it often but its obvious;y not working so well. Maybe a complete work stoppage, logistical halt would work a little better. No war if product and materials don’t move.
From my faraway vantage point, it seems to me that the only way to bring about a desirable and minimally violent end to this madness is a serious general strike that includes consumers, not just producers. Just say no. Anyone on board with this should first watch the ’60s movie The Battle of Algiers. The French broke the strike, but a few years later they withdrew from Algeria.
Numbers or anything else emanating from DC. . . District of Criminals
Remember the Maine, Lusitania, Pearl Harbor, Gulf of Tonkin, Kuwaiti incubator babies, 9-11, WMD, etc. Provocation and feigning innocence is how the US government rolls.
“Appropriate means” used against US submarine in Russian waters – defense ministry
A nuclear-powered submarine belonging to the US Navy defied the warnings to leave Russia’s territorial waters and departed after “appropriate means” had been used, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Saturday…
The ministry added that on February 12 at 10.40 Moscow Time, a Virginia-class submarine belonging to the US Navy was spotted in the area of routine naval exercises of the Pacific Fleet forces in Russia’s territorial waters near Urup Island of the Kuril range.
A warning was transmitted to the crew of the foreign submarine in the Russian and English languages, which said, “You are in Russian territorial waters. Surface immediately!” The US crew ignored the Russian request.
https://tass.com/defense/1402259
Been following that story and noted that the US sub was on a covert observation mission when it got spotted by a Russian anti-submarine patrol.
The sub should not have been spotted, they should always remain a stealth deterent, and by being spotted the commander of the sub failed to protect both his vessel and his mission – if it had been a war time incident the sub would have been sunk or otherwise blown out of the water.
Big, big fail by the US – unless the sub was meant to be spoted as a show of force, which too failed as it sounds like the Russians hit them with high intensity sonar pulses (order to surface) and possibly even droped charges near by (but not “on”) target as they did with the British ship off Crimea recently.
It was the USS Corn Pop.
Capitalism is my god. I shall always want. It maketh me lie down with the servants of Satan and yea though I walk though the shadow of prosperity, stability and happiness, I shall always live in fear, debt and solitude, because muh free market is the tool of the enemy of my Father and leads to naught but death and destruction.
“There is nothing that a big, resource-rich country needs from trade. Indeed, every nation large enough to be self-sufficient will be much better off, over time, by refusing to trade with the rest of the world. The USA has been impoverished, and is now debt-ridden, due to its foolish embrace of free trade and the Ricardian lie.
It’s only a matter of time before China and Russia cut economic ties with the USA. And that will harm the USA, and the West, far more than it harms the rising world powers.”
No, Washington does not want War, Biden wants war to cover up all his Criminal actions. He will be taken down, just a matter of time. Once a Criminal always a Criminal.
They wouldn’t let the Scarecrow start a war to cover his butt. They will allow him to start one to cover their butts though.
So I’m going to be brutally honest here … If the “nice” Canadians can get off their asses and drive several thousand miles to Ottawa in the middle of a very cold winter to protest (and hopefully overturn)the globalist lockdowns then when will Americans rise up to put an end to their demonic, war mongering government and stop killing millions of innocent people all over the world year after year, decade after decade? You’ve got the guns right? Right???…. Yeah, yeah … I know … muh Super Bowl … Peace Out.
You are right. Can’t do anything today, the game is on. One reason I have not watched sports for 35 years. Total waste of time.
It is quite obvious that Russia can kick NATO’s butt in any conventional war with the weapons and forces in the public record:
https://www.sott.net/article/464018-A-war-with-Russia-would-be-unlike-anything-the-US-and-NATO-have-ever-experienced
Otherwise, considering weapons not acknowledged on both sides, (that I, of course, have no knowledge of 😉 ) the outcome is a bit harder to predict, but collateral damage would likely be horrendous.
“Moreover, from our friends in a NATO country, …
I am getting sick and damned tired of Russian diplomats — including Putin himself — referring to the West as “friends”, “partners”, and “colleagues”!!
Yo! Vladimir! The west is NOT your friend! The west is NOT your partner! The west is NOT your colleague!
Yer pal, Comrade Stucky.
RUSSIA,already TOLD all the dumb shits in america what THEIR GOING TO DO..they will show america what a REAL “RED DAWN” is like,a surprise invasion..AND NOT UKRAINE “BUT AMERICA” and the people are to stupid to see it coming…THE WORSE BLOODBATH IN HISTORY IS COMING TO YOU SLEEPING BEAUITYS
IF you notice, America NEVER attacks a country with nukes. We, instead, attack goat herders with abandon. The rest we are scared of.
Well we canukistaners don’t have nukes… but we are pretty low on goat herders, so theres that I guess…
The West doesn’t generally attack each other. Strange, but true.
And lost!
The US has been down this road many times before. It has a long history of provoking wars. The US provoked the Mexican-American war by sending US troop into Mexican territory. Roosevelt provoked Japan when the US froze Japanese assets in the US, embargoed oil and back them into a corner; these are acts of war. Overthrowing the Ukraine government, threats, war games and arming unstable neo-Nazis in Ukraine are not going to end well. While Ukraine is a distraction from the ills and collapse going on in the US there is a legitimate threat of war erupting. The oligarchic overlords think they can conduct a “manageable war” in Ukraine. It will be a heavy media event shock and awe by Russia with a quick end once the missiles start flying. Nevertheless there will be collateral damage to Ukraine and Europe. This type situation could easily spiral out of control into a full fledged nuclear war.
We will attack China and steal the parts our military needs from their factories where they are made. We can steal the parts (cheaper) and assemble them on site and fight without having to transport them across thePacific. This idea should get me promoted to the Joint Chiefs. It probably pays more than Social Security. Perhaps I can get a room in Slo Joes basement to cut down housing costs in DC.
Ahead of your time. Brilliant.
The biggest reason Brandon and his goons need a war is to cover up the fiasco of a mess he’s created all over the entire United States! He thinks we won’t notice the lack of science if we’re blown to smithereens!! Helps with his depopulation plan as well.👵😇