Thousands of Italians have demonstrated across the country in Rome, Florence and Genoa against Western sanctions imposed on Russia and transfer of lethal military hardware to Ukraine, a day after the first anniversary of the Ukraine-Russia war.
Thousands in Italy protest West’s weapons supplies to Ukraine as war enters 2nd year
Video via World Politics
Related:
Anti-NATO, Anti-EU, Anti-War, Protest Rallies Hit Germany, France, Italy
When Emmanuel Macron complained to Biden that the Inflation Reduction Act will hurt European businesses I made fun of him. I made fun of all the European politicians who complained about the IRA because, really, it has always been pathetic to assume someone other than yourself should take care of you and your strategic interests because you’re friends.
This is not a race (original)
Some of you may recall the discussion about weakening Germany and how sanctioning Russia is destroying Germany? While empowering Poland.
Keeping Germany down has always been a US led NATO goal.. Always.
German Energy Reprieve Too Little, Too Late to Save Factory Jobs
The report says a prolonged war in Ukraine hampers the US ability to focus on its ‘competition with China’
New RAND Report Says a Long War in Ukraine Is Against US Interests
Previously:
RAND: Avoiding a Long War – U.S. Policy and the Trajectory of the Russia-Ukraine Conflict
*Russian use of nuclear weapons is a plausible contingency that Washington needs to account for and a hugely important factor in determining the future trajectory of the conflict
*Although a Russian decision to attack a NATO member state is by no means inevitable, the risk is elevated while the conflict in Ukraine is ongoing.
*Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley reportedly kept a list of “U.S. interests and strategic objectives” in the crisis: “No. 1” was “Don’t have a kinetic conflict between the U.S. military and NATO with Russia.” The second, closely related, was “contain war inside the geographical boundaries of Ukraine.”
*It is clear why Milley listed avoiding a Russia-NATO war as the top U.S. priority: The U.S. military would immediately be involved in a hot war with a country that has the world’s largest nuclear arsenal. Keeping a Russia-NATO war below the nuclear threshold would be extremely difficult, particularly given the weakened state of Russia’s conventional military.
*Since neither side appears to have the intention or capabilities to achieve absolute victory, the war will most likely end with some sort of negotiated outcome.
*Since avoiding a long war is the highest priority after minimizing escalation risks, the United States should take steps that make an end to the conflict over the medium term more likely.
*A major source of uncertainty about the future course of the war is the relative lack of clarity about the future of U.S. and allied military assistance to Ukraine.
Avoiding a Long War – U.S. Policy and the Trajectory of the Russia-Ukraine Conflict
Related:
Avoiding a Long War – U.S. Policy and the Trajectory of the Russia-Ukraine Conflict
Workers who can’t afford crippling energy prices are being forced to pay even higher rates by the vulture providers.
Prepay meter scandal reveals workers being slowly crushed by energy debt
Just over half of states in the U.S. are struggling with slowing economic activity, which could be a signal of a looming recession, according to new research from the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank.
Risk Of Recession In U.S. Increasing, Finds Fed Research
Gen. Mark Milley, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently offered some matter-of-fact observations about the immense human suffering and death caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and placed the responsibility for ending the war squarely on Moscow’s shoulders. “There’s one guy that can stop it — and his name is Vladimir Putin,” Milley said. “He needs to stop it.”
But then Milley crossed what he most certainly never imagined to be a tripwire when he said, “And they need to get to the negotiating table.”
War Industry Looking Forward to “Multiyear Authority” in Ukraine
Last week, as expected, former President Donald Trump announced he is throwing his hat in the ring for the 2024 presidential election. The move was widely expected, and as he is prone to do, Trump made a number of questionable claims in the speech announcing his candidacy.
Donald Trump’s Claims About Filling The SPR Are Not True
Related:
No, Former President Trump Did Not Fill The Strategic Petroleum Reserve
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 
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