US ‘quietly’ supplied weapons to Ukraine before Russia’s operation started, Blinken says

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The Interview: Antony Blinken Insists He and Biden Made the Right Calls

You made two early strategic decisions on Ukraine. The first, because of that fear of direct conflict, was to restrict Ukraine’s use of American weapons within Russia. The second was to support Ukraine’s military offensive without a parallel diplomatic track to try and end the conflict. How do you look back on those decisions now? So first, if you look at the trajectory of the conflict, because we saw it coming, we were able to make sure that not only were we prepared and allies and partners were prepared, but that Ukraine was prepared. We made sure that well before the Russian aggression happened, starting in September and then again December, we quietly got a lot of weapons to Ukraine to make sure that they had in hand what they needed to defend themselves, things like Stingers, Javelins that were instrumental in preventing Russia from taking Kyiv, from rolling over the country, erasing it from the map, and indeed pushing the Russians back. But I think what’s so important to understand is at different points in time, people get focused on one weapon system or another. Is it an Abrams tank? Is it an F-16? What we’ve had to look at each and every time is not only should we give this to the Ukrainians but do they know how to use it? Can they maintain it? Is it part of a coherent plan? All of those things factored into the decisions we made on what to give them and when to give it.

Related:

TASS: US ‘quietly’ supplied weapons to Ukraine before Russia’s operation started, Blinken says

OSCE Reports Reveal Ukraine Started Shelling The Donbas Nine Days Before Russia’s ‘Special Military Operation’:

Ukraine began artillery strikes against the Donbas republics on February 16th, 2022.
“In other words, Ukraine began shelling the independent republics of Donetsk and Luhansk nine days before Russia announced its ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine.
“While the western corporate media remained completely silent, explosions documented by the OSCE increased from 76 on February 15th, to 316 on February 16th, to 654 on February 17th, and to 1,413 on February 18th.

[02-18-2022] Shelling in Donbass brings Europe to brink of war

Euromaidan 2014 – Orange Revolution – War in Donbass

Part 3a: RAND and SeaLight – Taiwan Relations Act

The United States has also recently transitioned from an ambiguous approach [strategic ambiguity] to deterring a Chinese invasion on Taiwan to one that more clearly states that the United States will defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion (referred to as strategic clarity).

P93: Understanding and Countering China’s Maritime Gray Zone Operations | RAND

This is not true! The Biden administration “walked back” his statements each time!

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China banned sale of these minerals to the U.S. It matters to all of us

China banned sale of these minerals to the U.S. It matters to all of us

The ban will challenge many semiconductor manufacturers in the coming months. After two years of flat consumer demand, exacerbated by the global semiconductor shortage, many companies are predicted to struggle to stay afloat. Access to critical raw materials like gallium, germanium, and antimony is becoming increasingly important due to the heightened demand for electronics due to AI.

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(Primer) A Decade of EDCA: US military bases and its expanding war games in the Philippines

The outright re-establishment of US military bases in the country and its relentless and escalating war games on land, sea, and air are flagrant manifestations of US imperialist domination of the Philippines. This further tightens the grip of US imperialism on the Philippine neocolonial state, especially on the puppet Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

(Primer) A Decade of EDCA: US military bases and its expanding war games in the Philippines

Ukraine: MFA welcomes Kellogg’s nomination for special envoy for Ukraine and Russia

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has welcomed the nomination of Keith Kellogg for the position of Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia and expressed its readiness to cooperate.

MFA welcomes Kellogg’s nomination for special envoy for Ukraine and Russia

Related:

America First, Russia, & Ukraine by Lt. General (Ret.) Keith Kellogg & Fred Fleitz

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US Navy Aircraft Transits Taiwan Strait, China Responds (+the U.S. is not obligated to defend Taiwan)

US Navy Aircraft Transits Taiwan Strait, China Responds

The U.S. Navy’s 7th fleet said a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft transited the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday.

Around once a month, U.S. military ships or aircraft pass through or above the waterway that separates democratically governed Taiwan from China – missions that always anger Beijing. China claims sovereignty over the island of Taiwan and says it has jurisdiction over the strait. Taiwan and the United States dispute that, saying the strait is an international waterway.

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Trumpism, NATO and the Ukraine war

Trumpism, NATO and the Ukraine war (original)

“Two years ago, General Mark A. Milley, then President Biden’s chief military adviser, suggested that neither Russia nor Ukraine could win the war. A negotiated solution, he argued, was the only path to peace. His comments caused a furor among senior officials. But President-elect Donald J. Trump’s victory is making General Milley’s prediction come true,” wrote The New York Times in an article published last week, part of a growing line of arguments by those who fear that the arrival of the new Republican administration will mean leaving Ukraine to its own devices. These articles, present in all major American and European media, take literally Trump’s desire to end the war and his lack of interest in the situation in Ukraine. This has also been helped by the words of JD Vance, who, from his ignorance of the conflict, has proposed a plan that can only satisfy Russia, or the exalted response of Donald Trump Jr. after the confirmation of the American permission to use Western missiles against targets on the territory of mainland Russia. Sometimes, think-tankers and experts also add Trump’s disdain for NATO or his desire not to rescue member countries that do not meet the minimum investment required by the Alliance in the event of a Russian attack.

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