I guess it would be like expecting an English-language protest not to be shouting “Three Word Chant! Three Word Chant! Hey-hey! Ho-ho!”
Among all the other things, the EU is also a defense pact, just like NATO. I cannot see the Russian side agreeing to this in any negotiations.
As @Mister44 said, changing tires on large military vehicles in the mud is just no fun.
That reminds me of a conversation way back in 1987 with an executive of the U.S. company that made tires for the F-14. Apparently it was lack of tires that kept Iranian F-14’s out of the air after sanctions were imposed…
For the want of a nail…
My favorite of this type of story is the (much disputed!) Napoleonic tin button theory.
We can only speculate on this. Negotiations are the only way to find out.
It might even occur to both the EU and Russia that the Ukraine cannot be admitted into the EU due to not meeting the necessary criteria. Which basically means: Russia would get quite a bit of what it wants if the Ukraine declared, “once and for all”, not to join NATO. The EU would keep their face. Russia would look like having agreed to something. The Ukraine, however, would be frustrated in the long run.
One has to stop and take a deep breath before enunciating the contradictions and perversions of the Kremlin’s argument about nuclear weapons, because they are so deep and so numerous. In invading Ukraine, in 2014 and again now, Russia has done more for the cause of nuclear proliferation than any country in the world. It has taught the lesson that countries should keep or build a nuclear arsenal, in order to deter large aggressive neighbors from invading them.
I tried to like this post, and got this weird error. I’ve never seen it before. I can like other posts just fine. Any ideas from brainier brains than mine?
i had no trouble adding a like to the above comment just now.
It usually means that you already liked it. Check who liked it & see if you’re there already.
Edit
You’re there!
That may change if the EU goes all in on the Marshall Plan approach, forgives outstanding debt and inflates the economy. If it can be done without debt instruments or faux aid conditions that just loop the cash back to the donor economies (i.e. for real) it might just do the trick.
Build the hell out of rail and road links westwards…
Perhaps get help in to build some law around contracts, support compliance in banking, and boost good governance practices in general.
Rebuilding infrastructure is a big GDP booster.
Thanks!
The officers will probably get it.
The enlisted, maybe.
The fact that the directional signs don’t have local information will help slow down invader navigation.
And since it’s on Twitter, it’s a heads up to the world, to The International Court of Justice, The Hague, that we have a job to do.
Here’s hoping the ICJ is more effective than that recent United Nations General Assembly vote.
Agreed.
…sigh…
The plot thickens but probably not really.
Yeah, China’s diplomats are perfectly capable of making it well known what the government’s desires would be on that issue without being so crude as to ask explicitly. So they may not even be lying.
Known issue- please see A bug in the Like button
ETA this reply was meant for @DreamboatSkanky. Sorry
Official numbers for Germany and the EU are 60-70% men, 40-30% women. It becomes more pronounced in the 18-40 years range, where it approaches 75:25.
There are understandable reasons why it’s younger men who arrive in higher numbers: They can travel farther and more secure, hoping to be able to support their families. So it’s a matter of distance. But still a real demographic effect visible to the naked eye, though not as bad as racist trolls make it out to be.
