Canadians are sending T-72s and getting Marders in return (fingers crossed)
Washington clears way for weapon deliveries
The "red line" regarding Western weapon shipments to Ukraine has shifted since the Russian invasion began. While the US and other allies have been hesitant about heavy weaponry, there's a move toward funding these deliveries. A "swap deal" among NATO allies is being set up to get heavy gear over to Ukraine eventually.
As part of this, Canada is expected to hand over a significant number of its T-72 tanks to Ukraine, receiving German Marder infantry fighting vehicles and Fuchs wheeled armored vehicles in exchange. Word is they’ve even asked for even more modern equipment from Germany to make up the difference.
NATO partners like USA and UK decided on heavy weapons delivery only after Russian offensive. Tanks weren't initially on the list. Before this shift, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy remained "cautiously optimistic" that his requests for more heavy weapons meet understanding from partner countries.
Wait, the Canadians actually have M-84s, not T-72s... though I guess it's close enough, right? Unless they were actually talking about the Slovaks 🤣🤣🤣
Lithuania just sent over a massive shipment... I honestly can't tell if this is the grand total or just the latest round of aid they've pushed through https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent/...596420609?s=19
Amanda Allen4 said:What on earth is actually happening with this supposedly "limitless" Russia-China friendship that Putin just went and announced?
Look, Russia isn't just Putin—it’s a whole entity—so it is entirely possible that the Chinese might also want him gone if it serves their own interests better.
And honestly? The most effective way to make that happen right now would be for him to lose the war in Ukraine.
But let's be real, even a "no limit" partnership has its boundaries. For China, overseas trade is infinitely more vital than any exchange they have with Russia. China absolutely needs unrestricted access to international waters for pretty much everything—from shipping out their exports to bringing in massive amounts of energy. Not to mention feeding their own people! Having hundreds of millions of Chinese citizens facing food shortages is definitely not worth maintaining a "no limits alliance" with a second-tier military power. The Russians can't even come close to replacing the volume of goods moving through global ports. There just isn't the infrastructure across Alaska to make it work. And there is zero chance they can replace China's exports to the West. It's honestly kind of sad.
It looks like we might be seeing some Brimstone missiles coming in from the UK soon too... they're anti-tank projectiles, and the cool part is they can actually be launched right from the ground. https://twitter.com/theragex/status/...fhR4xo5OA&s=19
The cost of shipping oil out of Russian ports along the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea is shifting fast. Now, the real question we’re all staring down is how much longer those pipelines can actually stay operational. Like, seriously, how much longer until they eventually get blown sky-high?
I stumbled upon this piece recently and just had to share it with you all. It covers everything from the beginning through the end of March, diving deep into some pretty intense analyses regarding demographics, geography, and the state of the economy
Check out the 12-minute mark and the 18-minute mark if you want the breakdown on oil... Then there's the segment around the 27-minute mark discussing food supplies and synthetic fertilizers... honestly, the predictions there are pretty grim... Around the 36-minute mark, they get into the timing of the invasion... And at about 37 minutes, they cover the actual reasons behind the invasion... Fast forward to the 43-minute mark for the discussion on China and India Oh, and they wrap things up with some silly debate about Bitcoin
If you're interested in what they say about China, jump to the 13-minute mark
The Italian Parliament is throwing its full weight behind sending more weapon shipments to Ukraine https://twitter.com/SamRamani2/statu...98168232402952
The massive shift toward Western weaponry for Ukraine https://www.forbes.com/sites/craigho...nevitable/amp/
Production is going to tank pretty fast if they don't get support from the West, because once those export routes for the wells get shut down, there won't be any way to get them back online without the USA and its partners stepping in. It’s honestly kind of ironic when you think about it. Not only is this energy superpower drawing all its strength to confront the West by exporting fuel to that very same West, but they also desperately need the West just to actually get a huge chunk of those resources out of the country in the first place.
The Switchblades are already on the ground in Ukraine, and word is they’ve already seen some serious action in combat. As for the Predators and Reapers, nothing is set in stone just yet, though we know talks are happening—apparently, there was even a meeting between the Ukrainian ambassadors and folks from General Atomics. Honestly, I doubt a meeting like that would even get off the ground without the green light from the Biden administration. It feels like such a logical next step for arming Ukraine, especially since these drones are such a complete nightmare for the Russians to deal with. They could be operated by people sent over from the US, but my gut tells me the Ukrainians will be running them directly from within Ukraine, and I’m leaning toward them using the Predators they already have in stock rather than jumping straight to the Reapers.
Honestly, I’m not even surprised here—The New York Times is now reporting that SAS is in Ukraine, though they’re being careful to claim it’s strictly just for training purposes. It’s funny because just a few days ago, an intelligence source out of France was already hinting that both Delta and SAS were on the ground there. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/s...aine-32vs5bjzb
So, The Washington Post just got their hands on a formal diplomatic note from Russia, where they're basically begging the West to stop sending all this weaponry to Ukraine. Personally, I think Americans are already pretty much ignoring them and laughing it off. https://www.washingtonpost.com/natio...rming-ukraine/
As part of that massive $500 million aid package, there’s talk that Canada might actually step up and send over some armored vehicles, specifically those LAV 8x8s and the Rosalie Senator 4x4s
That’s actually a really fascinating idea—instead of just slapping on sanctions, why not just tax Russian oil exports? There are some seriously strong arguments behind it, too, ranging from the fact that they can't just pivot to new buyers overnight to how much this could actually benefit Ukraine. And man, those charts are incredibly convincing. https://navigatingrussia.substack.co...utm_medium=web I was also digging into how much they actually rely on the West just to keep the lights on at their drilling sites; basically, if you take away access to Halliburton, Schlumberger, and the rest of the big players, a massive number of their fields could be shut down pretty fast. It reminds me so much of what happened right after the USSR collapsed, where they lost such a huge chunk of their production capacity that they had to spend years crawling back to stability with help from Western companies.
So, the US is actually going to start sharing intelligence on occupied territories with the Ukrainians—and yeah, that includes Crimea. Or, to put it more accurately, they’re finally admitting they’re handing over data regarding Crimea. It’s all laid out pretty clearly: the whole point is so they can "improve targeting accuracy." Honestly, we're still just sitting here waiting to see how Moscow reacts to this move. Back when the conflict first kicked off, they were making all these massive threats about retaliating against anyone brave enough to step in, but looking at things now, it really feels like that was just the empty blustering of a second-tier power.
Wait, did the Czech Republic actually send over self-propelled howitzers too? I mean, I know they've been sending a ton of gear their way, but I haven't seen any news about this specific shipment. Is this maybe part of those 26 units that Ukraine ordered back when things first kicked off two years ago?
slyfox43 said:Forget the Hellfire; I doubt that would do much real damage to a locomotive. A 550-pound JDAM, which they also carry, would be a much more effective tool for the job. 👍
Man, talk about options! Between the Predators and the Reapers, they have a seriously massive arsenal at their disposal—we're talking JDAM/Paveway, Hellfire, Griffin, JAGM, Brimstone, even Stingers...
And when you look at artillery, there are just so many ways to get precision strikes on target. I mean, if we're going to be sending over howitzers, it only makes sense to send along some high-tech munitions too, like the M712 Copperhead, the M982 Excalibur, or those XM1156 PGK kits—which are basically little conversion sets that turn standard 155mm shells into guided projectiles, kind of like a JDAM for artillery.
Carl Lee27 said:- The Americans are putting together a fresh $750 million aid package, though we're still waiting to see the full breakdown, but word is it could include Black Hawks, howitzers, drones, NBC protective gear...
- The UK is really stepping up too—on top of those 120 Oshkosh M-ATVs, they’re sending 40 CVR(T)s, 35 Spartan APCs, plus Samaritans and Samsons... not to mention training for the Ukrainians, and more... honestly, you've gotta give the Englishmen credit here, it's a solid effort.
- Meanwhile, the US says it’s perfectly fine if Slovakia sends over some MiGs to help out.
- General Atomics is reportedly ready to roll out Reapers and Predators, which apparently comes right after their meeting with the Ukrainian ambassador.
- As for France, their aid has hovered around the €120 million mark so far, covering stuff like Javelins, Milan, Mistral systems, and access to satellite imagery...
- There’s also talk that Norway might be looking into sending anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles... maybe NASAMS first, then NSM? Or even those portable anti-ship Hellfires they have lying around.
- Besides the T-72s, the Poles have already sent over BMP-1s.
- And the Germans, since they aren't allies of Moscow and have clearly made a massive pivot in their foreign policy, are also sending something their way.
Actually, wait, turns out helicopters won't be part of this new US aid package after all https://twitter.com/DanLamothe/statu...34167071260674
The General Atomics deal might actually go through, perhaps in the next round of assistance; word is the US has plenty of out-of-service Predators just sitting in storage. https://twitter.com/NotWoofers/statu...27737039654918
We are seeing a slow but steady move toward much more sophisticated hardware. We started with basic infantry gear, mostly geared toward defense, then moved up to light armored vehicles, kamikaze drones, and things like that. Now we're talking about howitzers, tanks, and anti-ship missiles... so what comes next? Abrams or Leopards, Sky Sabre, AH-1Z, ATACMS, F-16s, high-end drones, and basically the whole spectrum of guided munitions like Hellfire, Brimstone, or JAGM... And since the Americans emphasized they are willing to provide support even if the Ukrainians need specialized training, there's this excellent thread on the subject regarding how the private sector gets involved in US military logistics and training, and how the Ukrainians can transition to American weaponry relatively quickly. https://twitter.com/TrentTelenko/sta...18592334475265
By the way, that Pentagon meeting with the defense contractors? The whole topic is preparing for the possibility that this war in Ukraine drags on for years. The US is gearing up to provide everything necessary so that every single village, even in the most remote reaches of Russia, is draped in black.☕