[BartSimpson]

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

... tactical withdrawal. You have to admire the Ukrainian cool, so far.

The Russians won't let so many troops, vehicles, and equipment go so easily. Just wait...Putin will have his thugs draw the Ukrainians out into the open and claim some feeble BS provocation to justify slaughtering them.

The SOB is just too predictable.

Speaking of:

I called it on Russia invading within a week of the closing cermemonies of the Games and now I'm saying the Russians will claim a provocation to slaughter unarmed Ukrainians in order to seize more of Ukraine.

Before the end of summer if Russia hasn't invaded and conquered all of the rest of Ukraine under the "They're Nazis!! and we're protecting the Jews!" pretext I'll be deeply surprised.

[Jabberwalker]

...could be. We had all better get our game together in case they cross into Latvia.

[BartSimpson]

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

...could be. We had all better get our game together in case the cross into Latvia.

If Ivan attacks any of the Baltics he'll go after Estonia first. Ivan hates Estonia.

[bootlegga]

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

...could be. We had all better get our game together in case the cross into Latvia.

At this point, I wonder if the West would really go to bat if Russia moved into the Baltic states...

[Jabberwalker]

It is our treaty obligation to do so. If it happens, Canada is automatically at war with Russia. You can't weasel out of that one.

See how dangerous this game can potentially be? The Russians might very well call our bluff on the Baltic countries, too. They feel the same way about them as they do of the Ukraine. If you don't take a stand, where does it stop? ... back on the banks of the Elbe? Do you think that the Germans will allow themselves to be re-occupied by the Russians?

Kablooey!

[Zipperfish]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

...could be. We had all better get our game together in case the cross into Latvia.

If Ivan attacks any of the Baltics he'll go after Estonia first. Ivan hates Estonia.

Estonia is a fantastic place. Never been there, but have an old-lady friend at work who's showed me pictures. Really cool place. Never settled in well iunder Soviet occupation.

[bootlegga]

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

It is our treaty obligation to do so. If it happens, Canada is automatically at war with Russia. You can't weasel out of that one.

See how dangerous this game can potentially be? The Russians might very well call our bluff on the Baltic countries, too. They feel the same way about them as they do of the Ukraine. If you don't take a stand, where does it stop? ... back on the banks of the Elbe? Do you think that the Germans will allow themselves to be re-occupied by the Russians?

Kablooey!

Theoretically - but the US and UK had obligations to protect Ukraine after it gave up its nukes. Given how quickly and easily they have caved on the Ukraine, I have my doubts if Russia wanted to swallow up another small country that is fairly distant and not geopolitically/economically important to many NATO members. We certainly wouldn't be shipping troops overseas unless the US and other major NATO allies stood up first.

Hopefully I am wrong in this - and Russia never gets emboldened to try and call our 'bluff'. A major war fought now would likely be far more damaging than WW2 was, largely due to new technologies and advanced weaponry.

[Jabberwalker]

bootlegga bootlegga:

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

It is our treaty obligation to do so. If it happens, Canada is automatically at war with Russia. You can't weasel out of that one.

See how dangerous this game can potentially be? The Russians might very well call our bluff on the Baltic countries, too. They feel the same way about them as they do of the Ukraine. If you don't take a stand, where does it stop? ... back on the banks of the Elbe? Do you think that the Germans will allow themselves to be re-occupied by the Russians?

Kablooey!

Theoretically - but the US and UK had obligations to protect Ukraine after it gave up its nukes. Given how quickly and easily they have caved on the Ukraine, I have my doubts if Russia wanted to swallow up another small country that is fairly distant and not geopolitically/economically important to many NATO members. We certainly wouldn't be shipping troops overseas unless the US and other major NATO allies stood up first.

Hopefully I am wrong in this - and Russia never gets emboldened to try and call our 'bluff'. A major war fought now would likely be far more damaging than WW2 was, largely due to new technologies and advanced weaponry.

You had better hope that our NATO allies respond to the call because, if not, it's 1938 all over again and we are probably in the soup. this time around.

[martin14]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

...could be. We had all better get our game together in case the cross into Latvia.

If Ivan attacks any of the Baltics he'll go after Estonia first. Ivan hates Estonia.

And on that note....


http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/ ... J620140319

$1:

(Reuters) - Russia signaled concern on Wednesday at Estonia's treatment of its large ethnic Russian minority, comparing language policy in the Baltic state with what it said was a call in Ukraine to prevent the use of Russian.

Russia has defended its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea peninsula by arguing it has the right to protect Russian-speakers outside its borders, so the reference to linguistic tensions in another former Soviet republic comes at a highly sensitive moment.

Russia fully supported the protection of the rights of linguistic minorities, a Moscow diplomat told the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, according to a summary of the session issued by the U.N.'s information department.

"Language should not be used to segregate and isolate groups," the diplomat was reported as saying. Russia was "concerned by steps taken in this regard in Estonia as well as in Ukraine," the Moscow envoy was said to have added.

The text of the Russian remarks, echoing long-standing complaints over Estonia's insistence that the large Russian minority in the east of the country should be able to speak Estonian, was not immediately available.

But amid the growing Crimea crisis, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania - which like Ukraine were all parts of the old Soviet Union - have expressed growing apprehension over Moscow's intentions.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is currently in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius as part of a trip to reassure the three countries, all European Union and NATO members, of Washington's support.

Fuck, eh.

[xerxes]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

...could be. We had all better get our game together in case the cross into Latvia.

If Ivan attacks any of the Baltics he'll go after Estonia first. Ivan hates Estonia.

That, and Estonians economy is doing very well for a post-soviet state.

[Zipperfish]

Yup. Too bad they just don't drone Putin. But the leaders don't want to be the ones dying.

Time to stick War Pigs on regualr play on my Nano:


Politicians hide themselves away
They only started the war
Why should they go out to fight?
They leave that role to the poor

[BartSimpson]

bootlegga bootlegga:

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

...could be. We had all better get our game together in case the cross into Latvia.

At this point, I wonder if the West would really go to bat if Russia moved into the Baltic states...

Article V of the North Atlantic Treaty. If the Russians attack Estonia we'll probably start by isolating our response to the territory and immediate vicinity of Estonia. If they escalate from there then things will spin into a furball pretty fast.

[Gunnair]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

bootlegga bootlegga:

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

...could be. We had all better get our game together in case the cross into Latvia.

At this point, I wonder if the West would really go to bat if Russia moved into the Baltic states...

Article V of the North Atlantic Treaty. If the Russians attack Estonia we'll probably start by isolating our response to the territory and immediate vicinity of Estonia. If they escalate from there then things will spin into a furball pretty fast.

I haven't seen much in the political 'parts' department these days to support that theory.

[BartSimpson]

Gunnair Gunnair:

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

Article V of the North Atlantic Treaty. If the Russians attack Estonia we'll probably start by isolating our response to the territory and immediate vicinity of Estonia. If they escalate from there then things will spin into a furball pretty fast.

I haven't seen much in the political 'parts' department these days to support that theory.

Exactly. And my read on this is that NATO will have a measured and reserved response to a Russian incursion into Estonia and the Russians will escalate dramatically to counter it. Then we'll ratchet up and bloody them and they'll get angry.

It'd be best to make clear to Moscow right from the start that if they invade Estonia that we'll attack Moscow and that we won't rest until Putin is dead or in chains.

They understand and respect that kind of talk.

But it takes a man to say that kind of thing and the only leader in NATO who's man enough to say that kind of thing is Merkel.

[martin14]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

the only leader in NATO who's man enough to say that kind of thing is Merkel.