Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5

gentlestag15 said:Putin: Russia Has more modern nukes Than the West. will Use All weapons if Russian territory is threatened. "We are not bluffing."

So, basically, he sets up those rigged referendums to pull off an annexation of those regions, and then if the Ukrainians try to push back, he claims he's got the right to drop the nukes.
Because suddenly, they're attacking American-aligned territory or whatever.

What about the explosions happening over in Crimea? 😁 This is just ridiculous.

Desperate moves from someone losing a war.

If those in charge actually wanted to mobilize people to go to Ukraine, they would have done it by now. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how they react.

Besides, if Russia annexes parts of Ukraine, then their military could just start sending recruits into those specific areas.

He’s just now getting around to discussing how Russia Has more modern nukes Than The West on Sky News.
Where on earth were you all pulling those quotes from earlier?

Brenda Murphy3 said:So, just like everyone called, he got spooked by the idea of a full-scale mobilization. Instead, we’re seeing that classic Kremlin move where they try to play it safe with a "halfway" solution...

Honestly, though, this is still a massive gamble for Putin. Even a partial mobilization—just pulling in reservists—is enough to spark real unrest or even a full-blown revolt. In situations like this, it doesn't take much; one tiny, seemingly insignificant mistake and the whole thing spirals into total chaos.

Typical Putin behavior, really... the guy isn't going to back down, and his inner circle is way too deep in this mess to ever actually turn on him. Personally? I hope he, Medvedev, Zakharov, and the rest of that crew end up swinging from a lamppost sooner rather than later. They haven't earned anything else.

It's a total mobilization; they just gave it a different name.

Maybe you're watching a replay, because I think the speech is already over.

He’s just trying to hold onto what he’s already taken, but honestly, he seems to be backing himself into a corner with no way out. All this talk about nuclear weapons feels like nothing more than a desperate attempt at intimidation; I suppose he actually thinks Ukraine will just stop fighting if Russia simply declares victory over the territory they've seized.
Ultimately, it looks like he’ll be forced to either admit a total, humiliating defeat for himself and Russia, or resort to using nuclear weapons. If it comes to that, I have a feeling someone might decide to decapitate his leadership.

Once this latest wave of mobilization settles, I expect we'll see some serious unrest within Russia, because people who are being drafted aren't exactly going to take this lying down.

Bradley White73 said:And he's saying Russia won't be blackmailed with nukes, and if things keep going this way, they're ready to strike back—he isn't bluffing. It's just completely wild.

The only ones constantly and loudly bringing up the use of nuclear weapons are the people sitting in Moscow. Everyone else mostly stays quiet; occasionally, someone like Telk might suggest that escalation simply wouldn't be worth the cost. It's a classic straw man argument—nothing new from that crowd.

Timothy Nelson5 said:He’s going all in.
It’s all or nothing at this point.

Then we end up with nothing.

Whatever, just send more artillery shells to Ukraine.

Brenda Murphy3 said:So, just like everyone called, he got spooked by the idea of a full-scale mobilization. Instead, we’re seeing that classic Kremlin move where they try to play it safe with a "halfway" solution...

Honestly, though, this is still a massive gamble for Putin. Even a partial mobilization—just pulling in reservists—is enough to spark real unrest or even a full-blown revolt. In situations like this, it doesn't take much; one tiny, seemingly insignificant mistake and the whole thing spirals into total chaos.

Typical Putin behavior, really... the guy isn't going to back down, and his inner circle is way too deep in this mess to ever actually turn on him. Personally? I hope he, Medvedev, Zakharov, and the rest of that crew end up swinging from a lamppost sooner rather than later. They haven't earned anything else.

Exactly. He didn't have the guts to declare a general mobilization because that would be a definitive admission that this "special operation" is actually a war, even though everyone—including people in Russia—knows it is.
By opting for a partial mobilization, he's essentially pivoting toward war while still attempting some linguistic gymnastics to avoid the label.
If he weren't so afraid, he'd just admit they're on the defensive, but instead, he's leaving room for his propagandists to ramp up the rhetoric.
Regardless, the real question is how much risk he's actually taking; nobody truly knows what Americans or Russians think when living under a regime where speaking your mind can land you in prison.
The USSR had massive propaganda machines too, but isolation and poverty tended to have a more profound impact on the populace back then.
Then there's the constant nuclear threats that almost nobody responds to anymore, which probably just makes him even more twitchy.

We’ve seen how Russian artillery performs.

If they launched a nuke, it would likely land right back on their own heads.

velvetcyclist95 said:Whatever, just send more artillery shells to Ukraine.

True.
He’s shaken. Even Scholz has started getting an edge.

coastalbison6 said:It's a total mobilization; they just gave it a different name.

Let's be real, even if they called it general mobilization, half the guys with deep pockets would find a way to dodge being sent out there to man the HIMARS thanks to all the corruption.

We're just sitting here waiting on a response from the USA... though I suppose there's still plenty of time before anyone actually wakes up. We're all bracing for a move from Putin.

Andrew Booth29 said:We're just sitting here waiting on a response from the USA... though I suppose there's still plenty of time before anyone actually wakes up. We're all bracing for a move from Putin.

They'll probably say, "Screw the nukes, let's get cooking!"
And then they'll just ship even more weapons over to Ukraine, because clearly, that's the only move left in the playbook.

More people are just going to end up dead on both sides.

Andrew Booth29 said:We're just sitting here waiting on a response from the USA... though I suppose there's still plenty of time before anyone actually wakes up. We're all bracing for a move from Putin.

Nothing new here besides the fact that they'll probably just round up locals and ship them off to Ukraine. The US response keeps flying in daily—cargo planes hitting Poland, then moving into Ukraine, followed by HIMARS strikes or B-52s raining hell on the Russians.

I didn't sit through the entire speech because I was stuck watching those subtitles—which honestly drive me up the wall—but from what I gathered, there was some nonsense about preserving the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation. Let’s be clear: Russia isn't launching an attack, nor is its own sovereignty under threat. What we are seeing in Ukraine is nothing more than standard territorial expansionism disguised as defense. By his logic, any nation could invade its neighbors and claim they're simply "protecting their borders." It’s a completely moronic way to frame reality.

I honestly find myself wondering who exactly Russia plans to mobilize next—but the moment they realized the Far East was finally stirring, the strategy became painfully obvious. It’s all clear now: they are sending the minorities from the autonomous republics and districts straight to the front lines. It’s a cynical way to kill two birds with one stone—they thin out the minority populations while simultaneously securing a steady supply of cheap cannon fodder.

There is a massive difference between mobilizing 100,000 Russians to face certain death, versus mobilizing 100,000 people from Ingushetia, Yakutia, Buryatia, Tuva, Bashkiria, or the various other ethnic Turkic or Mongolian minorities.

Nancy Gomez26 said:Then we end up with nothing.

At least they’re Putinophiles at heart, now just masquerading as citizens terrified of a nuclear strike that’s barely a threat. They finally got their little moment of manufactured ecstasy.😬

Otherwise, yeah, it's just another desperate gamble. What else can a loser threaten with? Partial mobilization is already a total disaster. Their supply lines are a wreck as it is, and throwing thousands of half-trained soldiers into the mix is just adding fuel to the chaos.
His only hope is to stage this rigged referendum, formally announce the annexation of those territories, and pray the West agrees to a ceasefire. It gives him something to show for it—just enough to prevent the kind of humiliation that Macron and his crowd seem so eager to avoid.

If there is going to be an explosion, it’ll be right in Putin's forehead long before any clouds gather over Europe.
Xi probably gave him a metaphorical kicking and a green light regarding the nukes. I mean, would he even bother with mobilization if he actually had the guts to drop an A-bomb?