Sarmat is a silo-based strategic weapon system that uses a ballistic missile of intercontinental range, capable of carrying a broad spectrum of high-powered nuclear and hypersonic munitions.
Can anything from an ICBM be sub-sonic? Sounds like PR gobbledygook.
ETA: I find it interesting that they spelled it out rather than using the acronym. AI?
Well an ICBM is sub-sonic for the first 10 seconds or so after launch before going supersonic
Minimum number of words required?
Maybe. But it’s also a weird word order. “ballistic missile of intercontinental range” versus “intercontinental ballistic missile”. So they were really close on the word count, non-native English speaker, or AI.
Meduza is HQ’ed in Riga, Latvia so could very well be an non-native English speaker issue.
Word by word translation from Russian?
Most countries consider a weapon “hypersonic” only if it can maneuver at hypersonic (mach 5+) speeds during final approach, which an ICBM can’t really do – the warheads follow ballistic paths down to their targets and cannot dodge anti-missile attacks. As the Russian “hypersonic” missiles are believed to be ballistic on final approach, they don’t really qualify, so it’s probably just PR gobbledygook. Mind you, this is one of the toppest secret of top secret weapons, so who knows if they even actually exist in quantity, or are actually capable of what Russia claims they can do, until they’re actually used in combat. Oh, wait, Ukraine shot down a bunch of Kinzhal “hypersonic” missiles a while ago, so yeah, just really fast ballistic missiles, but not able to dodge.
Compared to Ben Wallace (ex UK Defence Minister - and ex soldier) Grant Shapps is a political (in the sense of understanding international politics) and intellectual pygmy, with zero defence experience. He has been appointed for political expediency, not portfolio capability. It does not bode well.
In what passes for politics in the UK, he is a useful ‘political attack dog’ when the govt needs someone to do the media rounds and defend the indefensible. Although, he is said to be one of the more competent at running a ministry.
Fuck the Tories!
It reeked of what the administration considered amateurism.
That patronising tone is quite… well, how to put it?
The older man “tried to pass along some wisdom that might temper the younger man’s zeal"
Zelenskiy’s frustration occluded his capacity for logic.
Oh, did it?
After begging to join Nato, he began to lecture that the organisation is, in fact, a historic relic, with waning significance. He told Biden that France and Germany were going to exit Nato.
Well, who was the guy who said NATO was brain-dead? And when was it said? Also, remember when Germany publicly dismissed not meeting the 2% GDP target for military spending the US wanted to see, and NATO had agreed on? Remember who was Minister of Defense in Germany back then, and maybe also what’s her current job?
Honestly, Zelensky may be a rich and spoiled arsehole, but the arguments brought forth in the quotes and paraphrases in that Guardian piece are weirdly off target.
I can’t help but acknowledge that if the WH would have realised how desperate the situation of Ukraine already was back then, a different realpolitik might have been agreed upon.
Instead, even after the fact, a tiny bit of arrogance trumps.
Were you replying to me?
Oh no, absolutely not. I was referring to the Guardian piece which prompted your comment. Sorry if this came across as an verbal vomit in your direction!
ETA: your comment was spot on. He might be an ass, but in the current situation, he is the right ass on the bucket. (In German, there’s the phrase “Das passt wie Arsch auf Eimer”.)
