Did world war 3 just start?

[printcraft]

apparently no one knows where Putin is right now?

Golfing? Nah........ I read something about Switzerland and a love child.

 

[T.Lex]

I'm pretty sure he's taken up residence inside Obama's head. And probably Merkel's too.

 

[mrjarrell]

Hmm...Russia may be moving, or have already moved, nukes into Crimea. Putin is looking to restart the Cold War, again. Not sure what he thinks he has to gain by it, though.

https://news.vice.com/article/russi...kes-in-crimea-and-they-might-already-be-there

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Russia was ready to put nuclear forces on alert over Crimea, Putin says - CNN.com

 

[T.Lex]

Here's a kinda odd thing - regular Kremlin-watchers are claiming there's a noticeable absence of trolling in the past couple weeks, with the perception being that it coincides with Putin's scarcity.
Kremlin's Troll Army is Quiet: Sign of a Coup | Andrea Chalupa

On Friday, those of us who share factual information about the situation on the ground in Ukraine noticed an eerie silence had befallen Twitter: Why weren't we being harassed by the Kremlin's troll army? The insults from anonymous paid bots was as constant as Putin's public appearances. So when both disappeared at around the same time we wondered whether the silence of the troll factories was another indication of a slow-motion coup in progress.

I'm not sure how much credence to put into this, but it is the kind of thing that I tend to trust. At least, the factual part of it - a reduction in trolling. Sometimes, Subject Matter Experts can have a gut feeling that something isn't right.

 

[T.Lex]

Aaaand, he's baaaaaack.
BBC News - Russia's Putin reappears after 10-day absence

Russian President Vladimir Putin has appeared in public for the first time since 5 March, quelling intense speculation about his health.
He was meeting Kyrgyzstan President Almazbek Atambayev in St Petersburg.
Commenting on the rumours about his health, Mr Putin said "things would be boring without gossip", RIA Novosti news agency reported.
Earlier, Mr Putin ordered Russia's navy on to a state of full combat readiness in the Arctic.
Russia says the navy drills involve 56 warships, planes and 38,000 personnel.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

NATO intercepts Russian military aircraft - CNN.com

 

[mrjarrell]

The Russians are apparently driving out the protestant churches and worshipers from the territories they've seized. Setting up the Russian orthodox church as the official rebel sanctioned state church.

[video]https://youtu.be/mhEe2PSaEW0[/video]

 

[T.Lex]

Reuters report of potential propaganda war between EU and Russia:
Yahoo!

Gotta whip up popular opinion.

 

[AmmoManAaron]

The Russians are apparently driving out the protestant churches and worshipers from the territories they've seized. Setting up the Russian orthodox church as the official rebel sanctioned state church.

[video]https://youtu.be/mhEe2PSaEW0[/video]

Depressing, but not surprising. Putin is an intelligent imperialist. It may take a few years, but this is definitely not going to end well for Europe...and probably not for anyone.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Putin calls for currency union with ex-Soviet allies

 

[mrjarrell]

Russia threatening Denmark if they join the US/NATO missile defence system. They're heading back to being the old Soviet bear again. You'd think they want a Cold War. The stupidity is strong in Putin.

Russia warns Denmark its warships could become nuclear targets - Telegraph

 

[smokingman]

Number one donor to the Clinton foundation for 2012,2013,and 2014 Ukrainian oligarchs.Nearly double the donations compared to any other group of foreign donors.One donor alone Mr. Pinchuk has donated roughly $13.1 million since 2013.Mr. Schoen arranged roughly a dozen meetings with State Department officials from September 2011 to November 2012 on behalf of or with Mr. Pinchuk. At times those meetings overlapped with Mr. Pinchuk’s other involvements with the Clintons. For instance, in 2012, Mr. Pinchuk took a break from the Clinton Global Initiative to meet upstairs in a hotel suite with Melanne Verveer, a close aide to Mrs. Clinton(Just FYI former Ukrainian presidents son,and one of the 225 richest people on earth https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_Pinchuk He is the man that gave Joe Bidens son a company to run(Ukraine's largest gas company).
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/13/u...ian-executive-with-ties-to-clintons.html?_r=0

Clinton Foundation Donors: List Revealed

Clinton Foundation?s Deep Financial Ties to Ukrainian Oligarch Revealed | Zero Hedge

To serve in the government of Ukraine,one by law has to be Ukrainian.
American Natalie Jaresko, who runs private equity fund Horizon Capital(which just happens to be a primary dealer for the Federal Reserve). She will now be Ukraine’s Finance Minister(after giving up US citizenship,and being given Ukrainian citizenship by a vote of the Ukrainian parliament last month).
Ukraine Goes Abroad for Government Ministers - WSJ

Ukraines largest gas company is now headed by Joe Bidens son.
Biden?s Son Gets Ukrainian Oil Company Gig - ABC News

The US taxpayer just guaranteed Ukrainian bonds until 2019.
US Taxpayers To Fund Ukraine Bailout With Bond Guarantee | Zero Hedge


"Qu Xing, China's ambassador, was quoted by state news agency Xinhua late on Thursday as blaming competition between Russia and the West for the Ukraine crisis, urging Western powers to "abandon the zero-sum mentality" with Russia.

"He said the "nature and root cause" of the crisis was the "game" between Russia and Western powers, including the United States and the European Union.
"He said external intervention by different powers accelerated the crisis and warned that Moscow would feel it was being treated unfairly if the West did not change its approach.
"'The West should abandon the zero-sum mentality, and take the real security concerns of Russia into consideration,' Qu was quoted as saying.

 

[Kutnupe14]

Putin calls for currency union with ex-Soviet allies

Yeah, let's peg our currency on the Ruble rather than the Dollar.

Kut (wonders if anyone is that dumb)

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Kasparov is speaking more on the issue:

If leaders had been a little more afraid of what Putin was capable of in 2008, he wouldn't have tanks crossing a border in Europe today. I say "Hitler" not just to shock people, but to remind them that in this parallel it's still the 1930s. We must act before it's the 40s. And yes, as for who is more dangerous in any objective sense it has to be Putin. He can destroy the world at will due to nuclear arsenal. But Putin having nukes doesn't mean surrendering whatever he wants. It means finding a way to stop him before he is ready to use them. The USSR didn't threaten nuclear war every time US & West blocked its ambitions. They knew Western leaders wouldn't be blackmailed. Today? "Putin vs USSR" not the key. The critical difference is between the fractured & timid West today & the unified free world of the Cold War.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Huh.

Russia to Help Palestine Become Independent State ? Putin / Sputnik International

 

[Dead Duck]

Huh.

Russia to Help Palestine Become Independent State ? Putin / Sputnik International

Ya-
That will go over well....

 

[T.Lex]

Any Palestinian State will likely have at least some coastline (Gaza). Probably be enough room for a navy base.

 

[mrjarrell]

Well, the cat is finally all the way out of the bag. Russians are finally admitting that the Russian military has been behind the fighting in Eastern Ukraine. Their people, their equipment and their officers.

https://news.vice.com/article/russi...p-pretending-they-are-not-fighting-in-ukraine

 

[BogWalker]

Well, the cats is finally all the way out of the bag. Russians are finally admitting thatthe Russian military has been behind the fighting in Eastern Ukraine. Their people, their equipment and their officers.

https://news.vice.com/article/russi...p-pretending-they-are-not-fighting-in-ukraine

I'm shocked, shocked I tell you!