Very innocuously, the Biden Administration has ‘sensitised’ the world opinion that American troops are indeed present on Ukrainian soil in Russia’s immediate neighbourhood. Washington made a “soft landing” with an unnamed senior Pentagon official making the disclosure to the Associated Press and the Washington Post. The official gave an ingenious explanation that the US troops …
Ukraine’s revenge on the West
Russian Duma ratified the accession of four Ukrainian territories into the Federation, Moscow, October 3, 2022 [This is an abridged version of my column featured by The Cradle, published from Beirut, which can be seen here.] Russian Duma’s ratification of the annexation of four regions of Ukraine (Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, as well as …
Why Ukraine referendum is a big deal
The referendum on September 23-27 in the Donbass and southern Kherson and Zaporozhye regions of Ukraine on their accession to Russian Federation is, prima facie, an exercise of the right of self-determination by the native population who reject the western-backed regime change in Kiev in 2014 and the ascendancy of extreme nationalist forces with neo-Nazi …
Moment of truth in the Ukraine war
Ukrainian counteroffensive has begun in Kherson Oblast The fog of war envelops the Ukrainian “counteroffensive” in southern Kherson region where Kiev hopes to regain lost territories. But by the sixth day of operations, the echo chamber in the West has fallen silent. There are no tall claims. Today’s update of the UK Ministry of Defence …
US taunts Russia to escalate in Ukraine
An UAV hit the roof of the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, Sevastopol, Crimea, August 20, 2022 In military terms, the crude, locally assembled drone dropping a country-made bomb or two on unguarded sites in Crimea are at best pin pricks in the big picture of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine. But it …
Russia’s Vostok 2022 has big messages
Russia’s massive Vostok 2018 manoeuvres, held four years ago was first of its kind after 1981 during Soviet era (File photo) The announcement by Russian Defence Ministry on Tuesday on Vostok-22 strategic command post exercises during August 30-September 5 gives a big message to the West in political and military terms. The announcement said, “In addition to …
Turkey, NATO joined at hips but think differently
US President Joe Biden (R) met Turkish President Recep Erdogan on the sidelines of the NATO Summit in Madrid, June 30, 2022 Turkey has had an uneasy history as a NATO member country. The push and pull of strategic autonomy constantly grated against a security guarantee the alliance offered and also a way of reinforcing its Western …
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A pivotal moment in eastern Ukraine
Ukrainian troops retreat from Severodonetsk city in the eastern Luhansk Oblast after weeks of fighting, June 24, 2022 The retreat of Ukrainian troops from Severodonetsk city in the Luhansk Oblast of the country is a pivotal moment in the ongoing conflict. The Russian forces are now almost in total control over the Luhansk region. The …
Southern Ukraine is the priority in NATO’s planning
The desolate Snake Island in the Black Sea off Odessa has become a major theatre of contestation between Russia and NATO On the night of February 24, when Russian forces crossed the western and northern borders of Ukraine, the world’s attention was riveted on the fate of Kiev. Hardly anyone paid attention to the far …
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West at inflection point in Ukraine war
Henry Kissinger predicted some three weeks ago that the Ukraine war was dangerously close to becoming a war against Russia. That was a prescient remark. The NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg in a weekend interview told Germany’s Bild am Sonntag newspaper that in the alliance’s estimation, the Ukraine war could wage for years. “We must prepare …