Potential additional Russian military mobilization
Russian stocks took a hit based on the possibility that Russian president Vladimir Putin may escalate the war. The Russian parliament is considering legislation that could increase punishment for those accused of desertion, destruction of military property, insubordination, etc. These and other disciplinary issues have reared their heads among many Russians serving in Ukraine. The Russians have also taken action towards holding phony annexation votes in areas in Ukraine that they currently control.
From the Business Insider:
The ruble-denominated MOEX stock index tumbled 8.7% to hit the lowest point since August 16, while the dollar-denominated RTS stock index sank 9.2%.
Russia’s potential move to annex occupied Ukrainian territory is a sign of a stark escalation of the conflict with Kyiv, dashing hopes that the war could find an end sooner than previously thought thanks to Ukraine’s strong counter-offensive and steep Russian military losses.
Putin is now seemingly doubling down on the Ukraine invasion with the potential legislation, further strengthening his grip on a war effort that seems to be slipping away in its sixth month.
He also called for Russia’s defense industry to increase its output of weapons. Meanwhile, Russia’s finance ministry is considering plans to raise taxes on energy exports, Kommersant reported, as the Kremlin looks to shore up its budget and war chest amid Western sanctions.
Business Insider has more on the article.
Category: Russia
I study Russian via Skype with some teachers in Russia. One of them just told me that people are scrambling to get out of the country. That the cheapest ticket to somewhere like Thailand is 300,000 rubles (about $4500). Her husband is not affected cause he is a student, but her 44 year old father is called up. She is feeling pretty distraught right about now.
Watch… Russia will uncork a nuke on Ukraine, declare victory and leave.
Putin is already threatening to do exactly that. In the same statement he says he is not bluffing. Many worry he will launch an EMP nuke over Kiev. That would fry every electronic device within about 100 miles.
He is playing right into NATOs hands. He is making an argument for NATO to try to remove him from power. If he comes across as too crazy his own team might take care of him.
If he does throw a nuke in there under some false claim of homeland defense things will go quite poorly. I wonder how many people are leaving the country to avoid the draft and how many are leaving to because they think he is crazy enough to drop a nuke?
Increase weapon production. Hmmm, I thinks that means we will pretend to increase production and we will charge the government more and give kickbacks to Putin and his Oligarch friends.
The MIC grins as the cannon fodder bleeds out. Meanwhile, we are steadily depleting our inventories of weapons as the ChiComs stock up.
Anybody here think that our gutted industrial base can repeat what they did in WWII and gear up to produce the planes, tanks, ships, guns, ect in time to replace what we’ve given away when the time comes that we need it? Nah, me neither.
I heard that the Russians are enlisting hardened criminals from the prison system for duty in Ukraine, which would tend to explain some of the atrocities being reported.
The Wagner MERC team is promising freedom after six months of front-line service.
Just like the Nazis’ Dirlewanger brigade.
Oh, Oskar Dirlewanger! Now that was one fucked up motherfucker!
And very few have taken them up on the offer. Probably because they realize they will be used like those penal units in WWII and fed to the meat grinder.
The T55 is now a front line weapon ,,,again!
Fun fact: The T-55 is the most combat-experienced tank in the history of tanks. T-55’s have been used in every conflict in the past 65 years.
Basically the tank equivalent of an AK-47.
Whoops, forgot the link: T-54/T-55 operators and variants – Wikipedia
Saw in another portion of the interwebs “Mobilization protests underway in Russia, busses are being loaded with new arrests.” and crowds in a major Russian city center yelling “Putin to the trenches!”.
Vlad the Invader is mad. Again.
How long before he does something incredibly stupid (more stupid than invading Ukraine).
At the rate that Putin is depleting the Russian Army and Air
Force, it won’t be long until Xi Jinping is watching May Day Parades from the viewing stand on the Kremlin. By himself.
I think I’ll cash out what’s left of my Bidenflation-depleted investments, wait a few more months until Russia hits rock bottom and buy up everything in Russia. Who’s in? If we move quickly we can build a significant pyramid and buy Putin’s oligarchs out…
Putin essentially evaporated 2 entire Armies in the Ukraine. Calling up 300K veterans and sending them unwilling into the meat grinder could break him.
To put it in perspective Russia has a lot more soldiers, armored vehicles, ships and and air craft than the has US lost in every conflict that we have participated in all the way back to Vietnam combined. (Iraq X3, Iran X2, Afghanistan X2, Panama, Grenada, Syria, Yemen X2, Libya X4, Uganda, Somalia, Kosovo, Bosnia, Lebanon, Niger, Zaire, including all those killed in the 9/11 attacks, embassy bombings, first Twin Towers attack and every other terrorist attack since 1975).
How much do you want to bet that “300,000” turns out to be a much higher number?
Putin lies every time he opens his mouth. His media dutifully repeat these lies every chance they get. Both realize that he will get a ton of pushback if he proposes anything close to full mobilization. Since troop strength, morale, and casualties are all ‘state secrets’, I bet he will take advantage of that to bring in a ton of cannon fodder to try to overwhelm the Ukrainians.
Time to send in more HIMARS and Excalibur rounds!