#give f-16s to ukraine

[tomorrowusa]

In addition to bombing maternity hospitals, playgrounds, and apartment buildings, Putin's war criminals are now bombing cathedrals.

This was the second time that the vast, sand-yellow Transfiguration Cathedral, which sits in the heart of Odesa’s Unesco-listed historic centre, had been attacked: in the 1930s, it was torn down during Joseph Stalin’s atheism drive. On Sunday morning, the rebuilt version was hit during a Russian airstrike on the city. A missile blew a large hole in the roof, collapsed the altar and left several walls charred by fire. It was one of several strikes on the southern port city in the early hours. Schools, residential buildings and a revered 19th-century mansion also suffered damage. One person was killed and 14 were hospitalised, the regional governor said.

Central Odesa is a designated World Heritage Site.

Putin is having another major hissy fit. His three-day "special operation" to wipe out Ukraine as a country began on 24 February 2022 and marks its 17th month today. He is currently attacking the port city of Odesa because that is where most of Ukraine's grain is exported. If Putin can't have Ukraine, developing countries can't have grain.

Russia has been hitting Odesa relentlessly since Moscow last week pulled out of a deal allowing Ukrainian grain to be exported from the city’s Black Sea ports. The Russian defence ministry has also threatened to treat commercial ships attempting to dock in Odesa as military targets in order to ensure that no grain can leave the city. “Russia’s current strategy is to destroy Odesa. They would never really attack foreign-flagged ships coming to Odesa, so they are attacking Odesa to make it clear that it’s too dangerous here,” said Oleksiy Honcharenko, a Ukrainian MP from the city. He said Ukraine urgently needed more air defence systems. Even by the standards of Russia’s ruthless war strategy, a missile strike on a historic cathedral – one that was consecrated by the patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, no less – was a shocking development. The priests at the scene were dumbfounded. “This is barbarism, it’s terrorism. The people who did this are not people at all,” said Myroslav Vdodovych, the cathedral’s chief priest, as he walked through the ruins in a fluorescent orange helmet, taking calls on his mobile phone and directing emergency workers to spots where there was still rubble to clear.

Of course it's terrorism. Russia has become a terrorist state under Putin. Putin runs the country like the head of a fascist mafia.

We need to send ATACMS and F-16s to Ukraine. Fortunately Ukrainian pilots are already in the process of being trained to fly F-16s.

A lot of the terrorist missiles used against Ukraine are fired from planes flying over the international waters of the Black Sea. Ukraine needs the ability to shoot down Putin's flying terrorists. Let them sleep with the fishes along with the Moskva.

[alcestas-sloboda]

In 2014, Russia shot down MH-17, killing 193 Dutch citizens.

In 2023, Netherlands are to give Ukraine F-16 to avenge them.

[mariacallous]

While the failure to break through Russia’s fortified defensive lines on the southern axis this summer has been disappointing for Kyiv, the news on the diplomatic and political front is far more alarming.

Speaking about the progress of Ukraine’s counteroffensive in early December, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told The Associated Press: “We wanted faster results. From that perspective, unfortunately, we did not achieve the desired results. And this is a fact.”

While Ukraine has achieved some limited successes this year, with results in the Black Sea in the summer and a Kherson-region bridgehead firmly established east of the Dnipro River in the fall, the lack of significant territorial gains is a bitter pill to swallow for Kyiv.

But despite these setbacks, with the final taboos overcome regarding providing the heavy weaponry and long-range missile capabilities needed to win this war, the trajectory of the conflict was still arguably trending in Ukraine’s favor, according to many Western military experts, just as long as the coalition of democratic nation states maintaining Ukraine’s wartime economy held strong and the arms transfers kept arriving.

Winter’s developments, however, paint a far worse picture. Given the immense risks ahead, it is imperative that Kyiv starts preparing now for a future in which that coalition has fragmented.

In Europe, election victories for allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin in Slovakia’s Robert Fico and the Netherlands’ Geert Wilders have potentially added further blocks on European Union financial and military aid packages. Hungary’s Viktor Orban now has more leverage in his attempts to disrupt the bloc’s Ukraine policy, including holding up a new round of sanctions on Russia and a proposed 50 billion euro ($54.9 billion) aid package, even if his opposition to the EU opening accession talks for Ukraine has been successfully navigated by the bloc.

Orban was previously isolated inside the EU, which overtook the United States as the largest overall donor of aid to Ukraine over the summer. If Wilders manages to form a governing coalition and become prime minister, it could not only imperil the planned transfer of Dutch F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, but also become a major threat to future EU aid packages going forward.

Winter has also seen a truck driver protest in Poland and Slovakia, which have been blocking Ukrainian border crossings in a dispute over EU permits for Ukrainian shipping companies, which has in turn impacted the flow of volunteer military aid coming into Ukraine.

While Kyiv will be disappointed by these events, they are not insurmountable. Support for Ukraine remains high in Brussels, and Orban has proved himself capable of relenting on similar packages in the past, leveraging Hungary’s veto in exchange for EU concessions toward Budapest. Individually, member states such as Germany and the Baltic nations also continue to send substantial military aid to Kyiv outside of the structures of the European Union.

The news from the United States, however, is far more bleak. Speaking to reporters on Dec. 4, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan laid out in stark terms that the funds allocated by the government for Ukraine were spent, warning that if Congress did not pass further funding bills, it would impact Ukraine’s ability to defend itself.

“Each week that passes, our ability to fully fund what we feel is necessary to give Ukraine the tools and capacities it needs to both defend its territory and continue to make advances, that gets harder and harder,” Sullivan said.

The White House has been trying to pass a $61.4 billion aid package for Ukraine (part of which would go to replenishing U.S. Defense Department stocks), tied together with a package of aid to Israel and Taiwan, which is being blocked by congressional Republicans in a dispute over the Biden administration’s border policies.

Despite a majority of Republicans supporting increased military aid to Ukraine, bills trying to secure further funding have stalled in both the Senate and the House of Representatives since the caucus of far-right, pro-Trump House Republicans ousted Kevin McCarthy as the speaker of the House of Representatives, replacing him with Ukraine military aid opponent Mike Johnson.

After Johnson was elected speaker, he appeared to walk back his opposition to Ukraine funding, in an apparent bid to win over some of his Reaganite skeptics in the Republican Party. However, he has chosen to try to leverage the urgency of the Biden administration’s Ukraine package to advance the Republicans’ anti-immigration platform.

This is no longer isolated to the House, as even pro-Ukraine senators, such as Lindsey Graham, joined Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in blocking the White House’s security package amid chaotic scenes in the Senate. With Senate Republicans falling in line with the legislative agenda of the House’s hard-right “Freedom Caucus” Republican wing, Ukraine will enter the Christmas period under sustained Russian aerial bombardment with depleted air defense ammunition stocks.

The United States is incapable of replenishing those stocks due to the domestic political wrangling of a small band of hard-line, anti-immigration Republican lawmakers, and Ukrainian civilians will likely die as a result of this amoral legislative obstinance. In Kyiv, where I live, the sense that these conservative lawmakers are willing to recklessly endanger Ukrainian lives for selfish political ends is palpable.

The Biden administration has expressed a willingness to compromise in order to try to break the impasse, but there is no certainty in where these negotiations could go. The size of this aid bill is itself a strategic move. The $61.4 billion package dwarfs any of the previous U.S. aid packages to Ukraine (which as of August 2023 totaled more than $77 billion), representing a more “one and done” approach to meeting Ukraine’s military aid needs for the entirety of 2024 and the remainder of President Joe Biden’s term.

If it passes, there will be no further opportunities in the short term for the Make America Great Again caucus to hold Ukrainian aid to ransom.

But the problems don’t stop there. The United States and Europe have both failed to produce enough artillery ammunition to meet Ukraine’s needs, and this shortfall led to South Korea becoming a larger supplier of artillery ammunition in 2023 than all European nations combined. But Korea’s supplies are not limitless, and U.S. and European production is still not at the levels needed to sustain Ukraine going forward. If this shortfall is not addressed, the consequences could be disastrous.

There are more hopeful signs that these problems are well understood, and that the coalition of nations supporting Ukraine remains committed to the cause in the long term. “Wars develop in phases,” said NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg in a recent interview with the German public broadcaster ARD in early December. “We have to support Ukraine in both good and bad times,” he said.

Everything now points to a long war in Ukraine, although none of this should have been unforeseeable for Western policymakers and defense chiefs. Ukraine’s top military c, Gen. Valery Zaluzhny, gave a much-publicized interview with the Economist in November, in which he said “just like in the first world war, we have reached the level of technology that puts us into a stalemate.”

These comments, however, despite appearing to create the impression of a public rift between Zaluzhny and Zelensky, are not a concession of defeat from the four-star general. Zaluzhny made clear that he is trying to avoid the kind of grinding attritional warfare that favors Russia’s long-term strategy for wearing Ukraine down.

But a long war also heightens one of the biggest threats. Even if the Biden administration manages to get the new aid package over the line, effectively securing Ukraine’s military funding for 2024, the specter of another presidency for Donald Trump still looms large on the horizon. The polling for Biden less than one year away from an election is deeply concerning, and Trump’s prospects for victory need to be taken seriously, even in the face of his growing legal jeopardy.

A second Trump presidency would imperil not just U.S. democracy, but also the entire global world order, and the consequences for Ukraine could be potentially devastating. Trump’s refusal to commit to continuing to support Ukraine should be setting off alarm bells—not just in Kyiv, but across Europe too, where the greatest impacts from this change of policy would be felt.

Trump’s first impeachment was over his attempt to extort Ukraine to search for compromising material that he could use against Biden in the 2020 election, and there is no reason to believe that Trump has moved on from this. Many in Washington expect that a second Trump presidency will be marked by his desire for revenge against anyone that stood in his way. As the U.S. analyst and author Michael Weiss told me, “Trump’s first impeachment was over Ukraine, and he sees it as an abscess to be lanced. … A Trump presidency would be an unmitigated disaster for Ukraine.”

There are also signs that the Russians are acutely aware of this, and that their strategy in the short-to-medium term is simply to hold out in Ukraine long enough for a Trump presidency to pull the plug on the vital military aid keeping the Ukrainians in the fight. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu recently remarked that the Russians expect the war to last beyond 2025, and in an address to his own propaganda think tank, Putin said that Ukraine would have a “week to live” if Western arms supplies were halted.

Ukraine cannot plan for a war that may extend beyond 2025 without preparing for a potential Trump presidency and all that would entail. The Ukrainian government must prepare for every eventuality, including a White House that is actively hostile toward Kyiv. To his credit, Zelensky appears to have acknowledged this possibility, going as far as inviting Trump to visit Kyiv.

Putin has made it perfectly clear that he sees his war in Ukraine as being part of a wider war that he is waging against the entire West. Western policymakers to take him at his word on this. Putin and his regime have been waging a hybrid war against the West for many years, and he considers his support for European extremists such as Fico, Wilders and France’s Marine Le Pen to be part of that war and part of undermining the Western liberal democratic institutions, such as the EU and NATO, that stand in opposition to Putin’s tyranny.

But there is no single individual on the planet more important to Putin’s global war agenda than his pet authoritarian in Mar-a-Lago.

Moscow’s goals in Ukraine remain unchanged; the Putin regime still maintains maximalist aims in Ukraine and is in this war for the long haul, with the total subjugation of Kyiv as its goal. Putin made his position very clear during his annual news conference. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has also been explicit about this, and Europe should take the ongoing threat that a Trump administration poses to Ukraine seriously. There may well be a potential future in which Europe is forced to carry the burden of Ukraine’s war without its North American ally at the helm of the coalition, or even at the head of the collective defense strategy at the heart of European foreign policy.

Looking forward to 2024, there remains no path to peace in Ukraine without a Russian defeat. Looking beyond 2025, the future of Ukraine as a free and democratic nation-state, and potentially the entire security of Europe, hang in the balance.

This is why Europe, in particular, cannot afford to be complacent in the face of the rising threat of a Trump presidency. Opening EU accession talks for Ukraine is a good start, but until the bloc can match or outperform Russia’s current levels of ammunition production, the tide will start to turn against Ukraine if U.S. leadership on this war continues to falter. The truth is that U.S. leadership on this and on any other pressing international issue cannot be guaranteed.

For Ukraine to stand a chance of victory, its allies must begin preparing for catastrophe now.

[misfitwashere]

Ukraine’s F-16s are fighting with help from a USAF electronic-warfare unit

A U.S. Air Force squadron reprogrammed the jets' EW gear before delivery—and expects to upgrade them as needed.

A U.S. Air Force unit loaded Ukrainian F-16s with new electronic warfare capabilities ahead of the jets’ delivery—and plans to reprogram them based on data collected in combat. 

The 68th Electronic Warfare Squadron, a small unit based at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, was tasked with reprogramming the electronic warfare system aboard F-16s being donated by Denmark and the Netherlands to enable them to survive Russian jamming and other electromagnetic attacks.

Air Force engineers first had to understand an unfamiliar electronic warfare system, since the system on the F-16s transferred from Denmark and the Netherlands isn’t used by the U.S. But with data supplied by Denmark and Norway, the unit was able to understand the new system and then sent personnel abroad to develop and test the system with allies, according to a press release.   

“This is not our standard operating procedure,” the 68th EWS director in a statement. “The fact that the team was able to figure out the system in two weeks, go in country with a partner to develop a best-ever mission data file is unheard of and is thanks to the talent here in the squadron and the wing.”

The unit will receive data collected from the Ukrainians during combat, and use that to improve its electronic warfare capabilities, according to the Air Force.   

“With Ukraine now being onboarded as an official foreign military sales case for the 68th EWS, the unit will provide reprogramming capabilities based on feedback from the Ukrainians. Traditionally, feedback from FMS cases is derived from training environments; this case will provide combat-tested data to improve capabilities,” the release said. 

Both sides have used EW capabilities like jamming and spoofing during the Ukrainian-Russo war. Russia’s electronic warfare devices have knocked down many U.S. precision weapons sent to Ukraine. While the Ukrainian F-16s’s reprogrammed EW system won't be able to hold off every threat, it will help the jets survive. 

“When you’re talking about a near-peer conflict, you need all of your coalition partners to operate with the same playbook so you can achieve spectrum dominance,” said the 68th EWS director, whom the press release did not identify by name. “One F-16 with a reprogrammed pod won’t achieve air dominance alone, but it may give you a pocket of air superiority for a moment’s time to achieve an objective that has strategic importance and impact.”

Ukraine received its first batch of F-16s this summer from Denmark and the Netherlands. Belgium and Norway are also planning to transfer jets to Ukraine, and altogether, the country could eventually receive more than 60 jets from Western allies.

From: Defense One

[usafphantom2]

Northrop Grumman releases new photo of B-21 Raider, after receiving prestigious award from Aviation Week magazine

Fernando Valduga By Fernando Valduga 03/21/2024 - 22:28in Military

Northrop Grumman Corporation received the Aviation Week Grand Laureate Award in the defense category for its role as the main contractor in the delivery of the B-21 Raider to the United States Air Force. Aviation Week announced the Grand Laureate winners at its 66ª annual Laureate award in Washington, D.C.

"On behalf of the entire B-21 Raider national team, Northrop Grumman is honored to receive this prestigious award," said Tom Jones, corporate vice president and president of Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems. "The Grand Laureate represents the pioneering spirit, innovative technology and pioneering approach to contract management that gave life to the world's first sixth-generation aircraft."

In the fall of 2023, the U.S. Air Force confirmed that the first B-21 test vehicle had entered a flight test, followed by a low-rate initial production premium. The aircraft is currently undergoing a robust flight test campaign run by the B-21 Combined Test Force at Edwards Air Base in California. The program continues to meet all technical, schedule and accessibility requirements of the Department of Defense on its way to operational capacity.

Developed with the next generation of stealth technology, advanced network capabilities and open systems architecture, the B-21 Raider will serve as the backbone of the U.S. bomber fleet. Capable of carrying conventional and nuclear loads, the B-21 will be one of the most effective aircraft in the sky, with the ability to use a wide combination of isolated and direct attack ammunition.

“This bomber will be able to defend our country with new weapons that have not yet been invented,” said U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin when the B-21 was launched in the spring of 2023. "Even the most sophisticated anti-aircraft systems will have difficulty detecting the B-21." The Raider is also "multifunctional," says Austin. "He can do anything."

Details about the progress of the program were only made available in pieces from the beginning, because the myth of secrecy surrounds the project. Only a few scattered observers recorded the start of the first flight on November 10, 2023, which took the Raider prototype from its place of origin in Palmdale to Edwards Air Base for posterity. Since that day, things have been calm in relation to the B-21. The manufacturer and the U.S. Air Force remained silent about the status of the flight tests. All that is confirmed is that they are happening and that they are obviously on schedule.

Tags: Military AviationB-21 RaiderNorthrop GrummanUSAF - United States Air Force / U.S. Air Force

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Fernando Valduga

Fernando Valduga

Aviation photographer and pilot since 1992, he has participated in several events and air operations, such as Cruzex, AirVenture, Dayton Airshow and FIDAE. He has works published in specialized aviation magazines in Brazil and abroad. He uses Canon equipment during his photographic work in the world of aviation.

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[darkmaga-retard]

Due to continued Western military support, Russia will be forced to use tactical nuclear weapons, said political analyst Sergei Markov, a former advisor to Vladimir Putin, in an interview with Times Radio. Markov expressed concern about the role of the West in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, which, according to him, has increased the tension that nuclear weapons will invariably be used.

“You want to target your rocket missiles to Russian cities, to kill our people, and you, Great Britain, are going to do it. And you think we will keep silent?” said Markov during the interview.

When asked if he sees a tactical nuclear strike by Russian forces, he responded, “Yes, of course, because now a lot of Russian experts — and more and more of them — are saying Russia will have to use tactical nuclear weaponry.”

He specifically noted they will have to be used against NATO airfields.

Markov also discussed potential strikes against British territories. When asked about the topic, he said, “Eventually, of course, British territory may also be attacked… because of course, British missiles may be used from F-16s, but F-16 bases are not in Ukraine, they are based in the Romanian and Polish airfields. Possibly, the Russian army will have to give a real strike to those F-16s, which are on the Romania and Polish airfields.”

Regarding the peace talks, Markov stated that Russia is open to dialogue under certain conditions, such as the democratization of Ukraine and the removal of the “Kyiv regime.” According to him, the key to the agreement is that “Ukraine could be independent like Switzerland.” Overall, the interview points to geopolitical complications and dangers beyond the current effects of the conflict.

[karagin22]

But yet they want to sell ALL of their F-16 to Ukraine and then expect us, the US, to give them F-22s or F-35s to replace them...Why the fuck are we still in NATO in 2023?

[opspro2005]

A propaganda piece, pure and simple. Check the guy's picture, he looks like a male model. A quote from the article:

"Ukrainian air force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said in a separate post on Facebook that Pilshchykov was “a young officer with remarkable knowledge and mega talent,” adding that he “dreamed of F-16s in the Ukrainian sky.”

Odd that this propaganda comes out just days after biden decided to escalate his war by giving ukraine F-16 fighter jets.

[laguzmage]

its the sadly common idea that just because they oppose America that Russia (and Norfh Korea, China etc) cant possibly be corrupt intstitutions themselves. its an incredibly childish and moronic viewpoint.

Yeah its kind of funny, I was reading this article from the BDS movement the other day, and they point out (Correctly), that its good that AXA divested from Russia when they invaded Ukraine, and repeated their stance that they should do the same for Israeli banks.

And awhile back, during the midst of all those Republican senators here saying stuff to the effect of "Actually we should immediately stop giving money/arms to Ukraine and arm Taiwan instead" (Nothing really prompted this right wingers in the US just like Putin for whatever reason but still want to frame their desire to screw over Ukraine in the lens of standing by US allies but oh, oh no there's only one F-16 to give out), Taiwanese diplomats and other government officials were like "Yeah hey we see our fate tied to Ukraine's so please don't screw them"

There's also the myriad of anecdotal stories of Palestinian social media users telling BLM protesters here in the states how to deal with the tactics american cops learn from the IDF. You could really go on and on but its really something how the people In The Trenches as my old boss liked to say don't draw a distinction between whether the people in power are part of Red Team or Blue Team and all of that nuance is just lost the instant it becomes Posting

[bloghrexach]

💥 … remember something related to the ‘military industrial complex? I do!! — all paid by the US taxpayer, right?

By: LaillaB, founder of ‘Reclaim the Narrative’, from LinkedIn …

“The indiscriminate attacks on Gaza ‘may amount to a genocide’, according to the preliminary ruling by the International Court of Justice, a U.S. federal court, as well as dozens of U.N. experts and legal scholars.

**Shortly after Oct. 7, the U.S. government started transferring massive amounts of weapons to Israel.

By Dec. 25, Israel received more than 10,000 tons of weapons in 244 cargo planes and 20 ships from the U.S.

These transfers included more than 15,000 bombs and 50,000 artillery shells within just the first month and a half.

Between October and the beginning of March, the U.S. approved more than 100 military sales to Israel, but publicly disclosed only two sales. A list of known U.S. arms transfers is maintained by the Forum on the Arms Trade.

**The scale of destruction and war crimes in Gaza would not be possible without this continued flow of weapons from the U.S. Despite massive public protests, the Biden administration has been working to give Israel over $14 billion to buy more weapons.**

This is on top of the $3.8 billion the U.S. already gives to the Israeli military annually. Israel is required to use this money to buy U.S.-made weapons.

As a Quaker organization with a long history of work in Palestine and Israel, including in Gaza, AFSC supports a full arms embargo against the pariah state.

The research conducted by Who Profits and the Database of Israeli Military and Security Export, a project affiliated with the Israeli organisation New Profile, has been confirmed that much of these weapons were purchased using ‘U.S. taxpayers’ money through the Foreign Military Sales program, while some were direct commercial corporate sales and purchases …

The world's largest weapons manufacturer, American ‘Lockheed Martin’, supplies Israel with F-16 and F-35 fighter jets, which Israel has been using extensively to bomb Gaza.

Lockheed Martin manufactures AGM-114 Hellfire missiles for Israel's Apache helicopters. One of the main weapon types used in aerial attacks on Gaza, these missiles have been used extensively in 2023. Some 2,000 Hellfire missiles were delivered to Israel sometime between Oct. 7 and Nov. 14.

**On Dec. 28, Lockheed Martin was awarded a $10.5 million contract for continued support for Israel's fleet of F-35 warplanes.

On an Oct. 17 call with investors, Lockheed Martin CEO, Jim Taiclet, “highlighted the Israel and Ukraine conflicts as potential drivers for increased revenue in the coming years."

Cover image: A Judge found 3 actionists guilty of 'trespass' after they stormed Lockheed Martin's weapons factory in Bedford ... #PalAction …

The irony lies in the fact that individuals or entities found guilty of actions against genocide are held accountable, while those who aid and abet such crimes against humanity are often able to operate freely in pursuit of capitalist motives.

Net earnings of $1.9 billion in 2023!! … #LockheedMartin …

#reclaimthenarrative — 🕊🍉 — #FreePalestineNow … #CeaseFireNow

[tomorrowusa]

Another day, another set of Russian war crimes.

Maybe Putin is having a hissy fit because his ventriloquist dummy Tucker Carlson got booted by Fox News this week.

Russian air strikes have hit cities across Ukraine, including the capital Kyiv, killing at least 12 people.

Ten people died in the central city of Uman after missiles hit residential buildings, officials said.

And a woman and her three-year-old daughter were killed in the city of Dnipro, according to the local mayor.

There were also explosions in the cities of Kremenchuk and Poltava, according to the Interfax news agency.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said 10 residential buildings were damaged in Uman and said the attacks showed further international action needed to be taken against Russia.

"Evil can be stopped by weapons - our defenders are doing it. And it can be stopped by sanctions - global sanctions must be enhanced," he said in a tweet.

The head of the Kyiv city military administration said it was the first Russian missile attack on the capital in 51 days. 

Tired of the war? Then give Ukraine F-16 fighter jets now.

Too many people are forgetting that this is a war of conquest by Russia. The war will be over when Russia is pushed out of Ukraine.

As Sec. Antony Blinken and others have said: If Russia stops fighting – that’s the end of the war. If Ukraine stops fighting – that’s the end of Ukraine.

[theculturedmarxist]

Russia: We consider giving Ukraine F-16s an escalation and a nuclear threat.

Nato: And we're giving them 61 of them 😋

[workersolidarity]

🇷🇺🇺🇦 🚨 UPDATE ON THE RUSSO-UKRAINIAN WAR OVERNIGHT EVENTS DAY 623/624

🇺🇸 The United States has emptied the funds allocated for direct budgetary support of Ukraine. Without further appropriations, aid to Ukraine will cease according to USAID.

🇷🇴 Romanian authorities have received the first F-16s designated for the purposes of training and eventually giving the planes to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

In the Odessa direction:

According to sources in the Odessa region, after yesterday's Russian missile strike against a ship at port in Odessa dealt significant damage to the ship, killing a Ukrainian Pilot and injuring 3 Filipino sailers, Ukrainian Forces are said to have taken control over the damaged ship and the port itself. Ukrainian military authorities are said to be occupying the port and unloading the ships contents.

This suggests the damaged ship held deliveries of Military equipment or weaponry.

In the Kherson direction:

As a result of a drone directed HIMARS strike, Ukrainian Forces destroyed a Russian military fuel tanker in the treelines around Mali Kopani, in the area east of Hladkivka, wounding and killing a number of Russian soldiers operating in the area.

The strike reached a significant distance into Russian-held territories in Kherson, over 25km (15.5mi) from the frontlines.

Ukrainian Forces also struck a Russian electronic warfare vehicle using HIMARS rockets in the vacinity west of the village of Obryvka, south of the Ukrainian foothold on the left bank of the Dnieper in Krynky.

Over the previous week, countless (upwards of 20) targeted strikes by Ukrainian Forces using drones and HIMARS in this area have dealt significant attritional damage to Russian Forces operating in the Kherson territory.

At the same time, Russian Forces have consistently been heavily bombing and shelling Ukrainian villages along the right bank of the Dnieper, hitting concentrations of manpower and equipment staging to cross the river to the footholds, slowing the Ukrainian advance in this territory.

The Russian-held village of Oleshki has come under heavy drone bombardment by Ukrainian Forces operating out of Antonivka and Prydniprovske and similarly, Ukrainian Forces operating out of Ivanivka and Korsunka have been supporting their troops in Krynky while hammering Russian positions surrounding the Ukrainian foothold.

In the Zaporizhzhia direction:

Ukrainian Forces continue trying to dig in and fortify their positions along the western flank of Robotyne, with a multitude of Russian FPV drone strikes targeting Ukrainian concentrations of manpower and equipment as the Ukrainians attempt to expand their zone of control over this area.

In one geolocated video along the southern outskirts of Robotyne, Ukrainian Forces targeted Russian troops attempting a medical evacuation of forces in this area using cluster munitions. Most of the strikes did not hit their targets however.

In the Avdiivka direction:

On the northern flank of Avdiivka, west of Kransohorivka, Russian Forces have established control over the fields northeast of Stepove, east of the rail lines, and continue offensive operations to broaden their area of control and dig in deeper into recently taken territory.

Russian Forces have yet to make any serious attempts at pushing west of the rail lines while progress is made north of Kransohorivka. Video evidence shows Ukrainian FPV drone crews targeting Russian positions in the fields north of Kransohorivka, confirming the territory is now firmly under Russian control and the grayzone in this area has expanded considerably.

The goal in this area for Russian Forces in the coming days will be to widen their zone of control over the fields and treelines north of Kransohorivka before attempting any assaults west of the railways.

In the vacinity of Novooleksandrivka, Russian Forces successfully targeted a Ukrainian MBT located in the fields south of the town using a next generation Lancet.In the south of Avdiivka, Russian Forces continue their ground operations in the direction of Sieverne to its west and east both, attempting to envelope the village rather than straight on assault it while Ukrainian Forces attempt to slow the Russian advance here.

Ukrainian Forces are redeploying mechanized strategic reserves from the Kostiantynivka area towards the Avdiivka direction as a result of successful Russian ground operations in this region.

In the Artemovsk direction:

Russian Forces continue heavy pressure on Ukrainian Forces operating in the southern Bakhmut area, in the vacinity of Klischiivka and Andriivka, tying up supporting Ukrainian Forces in this area and making any attempts to redeploy forces in the Avdiivka direction a perilous decision to make.

However, Ukrainian Forces have decided to send an unknown number of reserves in the Avdiivka direction regardless of the situation in the Bakhmut sector.

The result has been slow but steady Russian advances in the forest areas southwest of Artemovsk, to the northeast of Klischiivka.

Russian Forces meanwhile are heavily bombing and shelling Ukrainian positions in Klischiivka and the situation here for Ukrainian Forces is growing more tenuous by the day.

Some reports say Ukrainian Forces have been forced to retreat from certain positions in the northeast of Klischiivka, however more video evidence is needed to illustrate the current situation on the ground.

In the Soledar area:

Ukrainian Forces launched a HIMARS strike targeting a Russian ammunition depot in the area northeast of Soledar, secondary detonations were recorded.

In the Spirne area, Russian Forces were heavily bombing the village, targeting heavy fortifications where Ukrainian Forces continue to hold onto positions in Spirne despite reports claiming otherwise.

In the Lyman direction:

Ukrainian Forces published video evidence showing the destruction of a significant number of Russian armored vehicles south of Pershotravneve after last week's ground operations by Russian Forces along the road between Petropavlivka and Pershotravneve.

No updates coming from the Kupiansk direction.

@WorkerSolidarityNews

[mariacallous]

The Republican Party platform, released ahead of this week’s Republican National Convention, contained many capitalized words—“American Patriots,” “Migrant Invasion,” “God’s Good Grace”—but none of them were “Taiwan.” It was a striking departure from the party’s track record of support for the island and left many guessing where former U.S. President Donald Trump stands on Taiwan heading into a potential second term.

Trump filled in that blank on Tuesday with characteristically blunt comments published in an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek.

In the interview, conducted in late June, he cast doubt on future U.S. support for Taiwan. Asked whether the United States would come to Taiwan’s defense in the event of a Chinese attack, he answered rather elliptically, saying, “Taiwan. I know the people very well, respect them greatly.” He then added, “They did take about 100% of our chip business,” referring to high-end semiconductors, the vast majority of which are currently made in Taiwan. 

Trump went on to suggest that the answer would be conditioned on whether defending Taiwan would be a good deal economically for the United States. “Taiwan should pay us for defense. You know, we’re no different than an insurance company,” he said. “Taiwan doesn’t give us anything.”

Taipei’s representative office in Washington defended the island’s own efforts in a statement to Foreign Policy, saying, “As the threat of military coercion increases, Taiwan is doing its part by actively strengthening deterrence capabilities with the support of the United States under the Taiwan Relations Act.”

Trump’s comments undoubtedly set off new concerns in Taipei, but he has made statements in a similar vein over the past two years. 

In an interview with Fox News last summer, he said, “Taiwan did take all of our chip business,” when asked whether the United States would protect the island. And in several interviews in recent months, he has stuck closer to the traditional U.S. position of “strategic ambiguity” on defending Taiwan (unlike U.S. President Joe Biden, whose administration maintains an official policy of strategic ambiguity but who has personally said on numerous occasions that the United States would defend Taiwan). 

Like his recent comments, Trump has framed strategic ambiguity in transactional terms. In an April interview with Time, when posed the typical question about defending Taiwan, he said, “I wouldn’t want to give away any negotiating abilities by giving information like that to any reporter.”

While Trump’s latest remarks aren’t new per se, as his poll numbers climb higher and the November presidential election draws nearer, they highlight a critical open question: What might Trump’s approach to Taiwan look like in a second term? The answer hinges on whether Trump’s own America First mentality would dominate over the agenda of the China hawks in his national security orbit who are staunch defenders of Taiwan.

Looking back to his presidency offers some clues. Trump was inconsistent on Taiwan—he famously took a call from then-Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen as president-elect, breaking long-standing U.S. norms. But then he quickly tacked back to the typical U.S. talking points, recognizing the so-called “One China” policy in a subsequent call with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Many of his top foreign-policy advisors were China hawks and Taiwan supporters, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo; National Security Advisor John Bolton; Deputy National Security Advisor Matt Pottinger; Peter Navarro, the director of the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy; and Randall Schriver, the assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs. During the course of his administration, they successfully pushed for more support for Taiwan, including the sale of F-16 fighter jets to the island, previously deemed to be too controversial. And at the very end of Trump’s presidency, Pompeo went as far as to cancel the rules barring direct communication with Taiwan.

“I think in the first term, you had a lot of people around Trump who were friendly with Taiwan [and] very skeptical about China,” said Zack Cooper, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. “It’s not clear, though, that that was Trump’s own personal view.”

Trump’s national security team in a second term would likely be more mixed on Taiwan, as several of those former key players have since distanced themselves from Trump, including Bolton and Pottinger. Voices such as Elbridge Colby, a principal at the Marathon Initiative and former Trump official who is thought to still be in Trump’s good graces, have called for a pivot from Ukraine to Taiwan, while others may fall closer in line with the Trump isolationist impulse. 

“I think that’s the core tension within the Trump circle,” Cooper said. Which direction the administration might swing depends on Trump himself and his level of involvement. Trump has already proposed launching a new trade war with China, and he is likely to be very involved in shaping economic policy toward China overall, but it is unclear how directly he would engage in Taiwan policymaking.

If Trump’s own views were to prevail in a second term, Taiwan would likely be in for a rocky four years trying to prove its worth to the president. “Contrary to what some analysts argue, there isn’t an Indo-Pacific exception in Trump’s version of ‘America first,’” Hal Brands, a political scientist at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, argued in a recent essay in Foreign Affairs.

Under the Trump-centric Taiwan foreign policy, several scenarios could unfold. On defense, Trump spoke critically of Taiwan treating the United States like an insurance company in his conversation with Businessweek, but his comment that Taiwan “should pay us for defense” suggests he may mostly be interested in securing a higher premium for U.S. support. 

What kind of payment would Trump be looking for? During his presidency, Trump called for South Korea and Japan to cover a much higher share of the costs for U.S. bases in both countries, but very few U.S. troops are stationed in Taiwan. Taipei already buys billions of dollars’ worth of weapons from Washington, but Trump might consider cutting off new foreign military aid to Taiwan approved under Biden. He would also likely push for Taiwan to increase its military spending, up from 2.6 percent of its GDP today, as his former National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien suggested recently. 

On chips, the Taiwanese government has pushed back on Trump’s claims of unfairness. In an interview with Foreign Policy this month, Alexander Yui, Taiwan’s representative to the United States, said, “Between Taiwan and the U.S., we’re partners in terms of that industry. … The United States is very good at chip design, and we’re very good at manufacturing.” He also referenced the three massive semiconductor factories that Taiwanese tech giant TSMC plans to build in Arizona.

However, Trump’s repeated comments begrudging Taiwan’s semiconductor dominance suggest that he is unsatisfied with the status quo and may push for more domestic chip manufacturing. “Trump has made it clear—he’s going after chips,” said Jason Hsu, a former Taiwanese legislator who is now an Edward Mason fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School. “TSMC could bear the consequences of Trump’s political rhetoric.”

A final scenario that some experts say could unfold if Trump were to dominate Taiwan policy and take it in the most transactional direction is that he could trade Taiwan’s future away in some kind of grand economic bargain with China. The terms of such a deal and its likelihood are far from clear, but experts point to Trump’s past remarks in private diminishing Taiwan’s significance as a sign that such a scenario might be possible.

But Taiwan has some “aces up its sleeve” to head off worst-case scenarios under a Trump administration, argued Craig Singleton, the director of the China program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. 

“Taiwan’s major semiconductor investments in important battleground states, like Arizona, and its substantial military hardware purchases highlight the island’s strategic importance,” Singleton said. “Taiwan also enjoys steadfast bipartisan backing on Capitol Hill, which could prove helpful in navigating choppy diplomatic waters.”

[misfitwashere]

Stockholm is donating its remaining pair of long-serving ASC 890 airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft, a platform based on the Saab 340 regional airliner and equipped with an Erieye active, electronically scanned array radar. The move aims to bolster Ukraine’s air defenses and complement a soon-to-be-delivered Lockheed Martin F-16 combat aircraft fleet. The ASC 890s will give Ukraine’s air defenses an all-seeing eye across the theater, provide timely information about incoming air attacks and transmit situational data to the F-16s via Link 16.

This is a puzzle piece that will make F-16s very, very effective.

[usafphantom2]

The Netherlands allocates 350 million euros to Ukraine to acquire air-to-ground weapons for the F-16 and drones

The Pentagon would have insisted that the Ukrainian F-16s should only be used within the borders of Ukraine.

Fernando Valduga By Fernando Valduga 03/21/2024 - 09:00 in Military, War Zones

The Dutch government announced new aid for Ukraine, with the allocation of more than 150 million euros for the purchase of F-16 ammunition and another 200 million euros for the acquisition of ISR drones.

The announcement came from the Minister of Defense of the Netherlands, Kajsa Ollongren, after the recent meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG).

The Netherlands has taken a proactive position in supporting Ukraine in the midst of the ongoing conflicts, highlighting its commitment to international security and cooperation. The ammunition, designed specifically for use in F-16 aircraft, should be purchased directly from the industry, ensuring timely support for Ukraine's military needs.

In addition to air support, the Dutch government is expanding its contributions to include unmanned aerial systems. With an investment of more than 200 million euros, the Netherlands plans to acquire and donate a substantial number of ISR (Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance) drones to Ukraine. These drones, which have already demonstrated their effectiveness on the battlefield, will be acquired in collaboration with other partners and the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Further demonstrating its support, the Netherlands is fulfilling its previous commitment by sending F-16 fighters to Romania. These jets are not only intended for defensive operations, but also to serve as a crucial component of a training center for Ukrainian and Romanian pilots. This initiative, highlighted by the sending of aircraft along with spare parts and necessary ammunition, was detailed by General Onno Eichelsheim, Commander of the Dutch Armed Forces, during the UDCG meeting.

The Netherlands, in collaboration with Denmark and the United States, leads the UDCG air force coalition. A total of 18 Dutch F-16 jets have been designated for training purposes in Romania, while another 24 are being prepared for delivery in Ukraine. This preparation is a coordinated effort between the coalition partners, illustrating a united front in the provision of military assistance to Ukraine.

The Pentagon would have established "red lines" in relation to the use of Ukrainian F-16 fighters in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, stating that they should only be used within the sovereign territory of Ukraine.

This stance was transmitted by Patrick Ryder, press secretary of the U.S. Department of Defense, in an interview with RFE/RL.

Tags: Military AviationF-16 Fighting FalconRNLAF - Royal Netherlands Air Force / Royal Dutch Air ForceWar Zones - Russia/Ukraine

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Fernando Valduga

Fernando Valduga

Aviation photographer and pilot since 1992, he has participated in several events and air operations, such as Cruzex, AirVenture, Dayton Airshow and FIDAE. He has works published in specialized aviation magazines in Brazil and abroad. He uses Canon equipment during his photographic work in the world of aviation.

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