My favourite moments of this iteration of the ”US-Russia peace plan” were:
1. Dmitriev leaking it
2. The points admitting that Russia does kidnap Ukrainian children
3. The points including that Ukraine shouldn’t hit Moscow or St Petersburg ”without a cause”
(Tbc)
While Kallas’ EU military aid plan is stuck, individual member states (and Norway) are coming through with increased aid packages.
- France €2bn (today)
- Sweden €1,5bn (today)
- Germany €3bn (last week)
- Norway €4,4bn (early March)
Europe🤝Ukraine
Naming competition for the Air Force’s new fighter jet:
F-47 “Felon?”
economies collapse, along with the Euro and the all European state finances.
Being stingy now will lead to defeat and economic collapse in the future.
If some ReArm isn't amended ASAP (no spending cap, no time limit) russia's victory is assured.
12/12
russia is preparing to invade European nations, destroy the EU, fracture the Eurozone, and crash ALL European economies.
If russia invades the Baltic states - three EU and Eurozone members, "fiscal sustainability" will be the least of the Europe's worries as ALL European
11/n
and you can't add more troops, because after 2029 you can't pay for them without cutting spending somewhere else.
The EU is always about compromise... and you can tell they cooked up a plan that is hamstrung by a few EU members focusing on "fiscal sustainability", when
10/n
In short a time limit and a spending increase limit on defence spending is insane if you want to ready Europe to defend itself by 2030.
ReArm as it is now means you can't order anything, which will be delivered after 2029 (means you can't order submarines, frigates, fighters
9/n
If a nation wants to increase defence spending by 2%, then only 1.5% are exempt from the 3% limit... the remaining 0.5% count towards the 3% limit, which means you have to cut either spending (pensions, social services) or raise taxes if you want to spend above 1.5%.
8/n
Furthemore if a nation wants to increase defence spending by more than 1.5%, everything ABOVE 1.5% counts again towards the 3% limit... which effectively caps defence spending increases for all of Europe at 1.5%.
No wonder Giorgia Meloni is up in arms against this nonsense.
7/n
Quote: "Member States would have to prepare to sustain a structurally higher spending level after that 4-year period. It should be done through a gradual re-prioritisation within their national budgets to safeguard fiscal sustainability."
fiscal sustainability in war time???
6/n
And when ReArm ends the additional 1.5% that a nation is spending on defence is immediately is counted towards the 3% limit.
When that day comes a nation must either rise taxes, cut spending by 1.5% or gut its armed forces. You can guess, which of these 3 is most likely.
5/n
and just when Europe will start to produce masses of weapon systems ReArm ends?
The European Council can vote to prolong it, but every time only for 1 year.
If a European nation begins to form new brigades now, they will be combat ready just when ReArm ends.
4/n
these 1.5% do not count towards the 3% limit... BUT it's only valid for 4 years!
In 2029 the National Escape Clause lapses. If you order now submarines, fighters, frigates, tanks, etc. in 4 year you will not have them.
It will take years to increase production capacity
3/n
ReArm allows Eurozone members to request the EU Commission to activate the National Escape Clause from the Eurozone strict 3% budget deficit limit.
Then the European Council votes on it (qualified majority) and after that nations can spend up to 1.5% per year on defence and
2/n
I read the EU's ReArm Europe Plan/Readiness 2030 Plan... it's useless as it caps defence spending increases at 1.5% and lasts only for 4 years.
You can tell that the frugals (🇳🇱🇦🇹 etc.) and russian lackeys (🇭🇺) don't care about investing in European defence.
This is mad!
1/12
🇪🇺 European Commissioner for Defence and Space, Andrius Kubilius:
"Italy has very strong space and defence industry. Very Strong. I would repeat that you know. Leonardo is [the] strongest European defence company."
www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBB9...
Italian Army Alpini troops with Swedish BV206S vehicles in the Dolomites.
The kind of vehicle you need if you think about fighting russians in Northern Finland.
🇪🇺🇮🇹🇸🇪🇫🇮
Kinzinger: There’s a reason that every Trump cabinet member has had to tweet how strong he was today. Because they got the memo from The White House that they better come out and support Trump because this is a really bad day for them and they know it
🇷🇺 putin speech just now: "bullshit... blablabla... nonsense... lies... more bullshit... hypersonic... wet fart noises... signal... bullshit... bullshit... medium-range... more nonsense... Oreshnik... *puppy eyes* please take me seriously... more bullshit."
After looking at warhead debris from Dnipro I can say:
• this is not: "russia is firing ICBMs at Ukraine"
• this is: "russia is disposing test missiles with inert warhead mockups of its failed illegal IRBM program in the cheapest way possible"
and Western idiots fall for it.
Last night russia fired a RS-26 IRBM (!! NOT AN ICBM !!) from the Kapustin Yar test site at Dnipro in Ukraine.
Test site?
Yes, of course test site. The RS-26 never went into production and russia rid itself of its last test model last night.
Everyone, pro-russia & pro-Ukraine, is going with "ICBM" today, because it suits their narrative.
Wasn't an ICBM.
Was an IRBM.
IRBMs are banned by the INF Treaty. russia broke the treaty in 2011 by deploying RS-26s, which russia calls "ICBM" to claim it didn't break the treaty.
🇬🇧 British Army (74,000 troops): We have a "recruiting crisis". There are too few volunteers. Young people don't want to join the military.
🇮🇹 Italian Army (94,000 troops): 9,800 volunteers joined and we had to send 59,000 volunteers away, because we hit our annual recruiting goal in March.
Italy just sent an Italian Navy officer, who tried to spy for russia to prison for 29 years.
If he had murdered someone, he would have gotten 20 years.
But he took €5,000 from the russians for bringing them 57 secret NATO files... got caught on the way and will die in prison.
Surely not. If the russians fire it and Patriot intercepts, then the entire russian strategic nuclear force becomes worthless.
putin will not strike Ukraine with a ICBM, tactical nuke or similar.
Trump isn't president yet and putin needs Trump to "win" the war.
Striking Ukraine with a weapon that will cause a global outrage will drive Trump away from brownnosing putin.
ICBM and nuke talk is bullshit.
Meanwhile Italy's main shipyard is delivering from 2013 to 2030:
• 1 carrier
• 2 destroyers
• 23 frigates (2 for Indonesia, 2 for Egypt)
• 4 landing platform docks (1 for Algeria, 1 for Qatar)
• 5 submarines
• 4 corvettes (for Qatar)
• 6 OPVs (2 for Qatar)
• 2 logistic ships
What I like about the UK:
• spends a ton of money to upgrade HMS Bulwark, then immediately scraps it.
• spends a ton of money to upgrade Puma Helicopters, then immediately scraps them.
• spends a ton of money to upgrade Watchekkper, then immediately scraps them.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Usually when someone talks about Italy's military I despair. So little knowledge... but just now @surivoron.bsky.social sent me this video by @michaelshurkin.bsky.social and I have zero notes; found no errors; agree with all!
And that is beautiful.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=vh4e...
Italy's 2024 defence budget is just 45.03% of the UK's 2024 defence budget... and yet:
🇮🇹 Italian Navy > 🇬🇧 Royal Navy
🇮🇹 Italian Army > 🇬🇧 British Army
🇮🇹 Italian Air Force > 🇬🇧 Royal Air Force
The UK has less ships, less fighters, fewer troops etc.
Britain nowadays is just a big useless Ireland.
